Long Lost Longworth
 Loving lomitos, licuados & locales The past 2 weeks of the trip have been insignificant in terms of distance covered and sights seen, but significant in terms of experiences had and friendships formed. After our great 30 hour bus trek back from the magnificant Iguazu falls, we returned to Jujuy where our contact Alberto (ex boyfriend of a friend of Laurens) promised we would be leaving on a road trip in a few days. Sadly our roadtrip never happened, but luckily we befriended Albertos brother and his friends who made sure we never got bored. We were taken out for the local fare our first night (love affair #1- the lomito- a grilled sandwich consisting of a beefsteak, ham, egg, cheese, tomato, lettuce, and secret sauce- all for around $1!!) and met the gang: Alberto, construction project manager (we stayed in one of his unfinished houses our first night!), who drives everyone (especially the ladies) around in his jeep. Carlos, a P.E. teacher-to-be who was shy when we first met him but came very much out of his shell over time. Ricky, a trainer for a local soccer team, who despite language barriers made us laugh right off the bat. Javier (Albertos younger brother) also became a good friend as Alberto was quite busy at work so many a day was spent in his company as he tried to entertain the foreign chicks and practice the English he picked up from the movies which was actually extremely impressive! We spent lots of our time in Jujuy riding around in Albertos jeep (either squashed up in the front or being windblown in the back!), being shown the scenery which reminded me alot of Hawaii for some reason without the beach- lots of lush greenery, palm trees, valleys and mountains. We swam in a hot springs one night before going out to an electronic club which didnīt open till 3am- Argentinians typically donīt even eat dinner until 10 or 11pm after their 4 hour siesta during the middle of the day, weīve had to adjust to their schedule quite a bit! Speaking of food, it`s amazing in this country; succulent meat, empanadas galore, delicioso gelatos, all the italian cuisine you can imagine and for soo cheap, itīs a little dangerous. A licuado (love affair #2) is a milkshake type drink that comes in a yummy strawberry flavour, itīs practically become part of our daily routine. Last night we went to an all-you-can-eat-bbq for $5, mmmmm.. We also took a side trip down to Salta, a touristy little town where we spent 2 days wandering around (enjoying our freedom from the boys) but decided to head back up to Jujuy in hopes of having more adventures which were indeed in store. The next afternoon we were packed into the back of the jeep along with 5 friends and were on a road trip to Tilcara, a very hippy backpackery town in the middle of this deserty valley, where a 2-week festival was taking place. We spent the night hanging out in a plaza drinking the infamous īfernetī (a very strong herbal liqour from Italy) mixed with Coke, wandering around town and listening to local rock bands and bonding with the locals! Our time in Jujuy flew by, and before we knew it we had spent almost 2 weeks (on and off) with our new friends who were all home for their summer holidays. They will all be returning to their respective towns in the next few weeks, so we decided to continue on with our trip and promised we would visit them on our way up to Brazil (despite the fact that itīs a little out of our way!). So we said īciaoī, kissed on the cheek and headed off on another 20 hour bus trip to Mendoza, where we are now. Itīs a very touristy town, with lots of leafy avenues full of outdoor restaurants and cafes, plazas full of artisans and comedians. We went on a biking-winery tour the other day but sadly only ended up trying 2 samples of wine during the 6 hours (every winery charged a fortune to try their wine and we were too cheap!) Eventually my bike broke down and I had to hitchhike back to the rental place, thankfully we were on our way back anyways! Weīre off to Chile tonight on the bus, actually itīs leaving in an hour so I better get going here- hope everyone is well and will supply pictures soon! xo em
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Diary Photos
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Los chicos |
 Bikes n wines |
 All-you-can-eat-bbq! |
 Colourful murales |
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