Salta Day Two – The Andes Mountains and Salinas

On our second day in Salta, we took a bus tour of the Andes Mountains and got to experience multiple climates in a short amount of time. On the side of the Andes that the city of Salta resides, the climate is humid and very rainy, while on the other side of the mountains there is a desert climate. Millions of years ago, the area where the Andes Mountains would be was covered with the ocean until earthquakes resulted in the Andes. Then the ocean somehow drained from the area and left pools of salt water at the foot of the mountains. IMG_4138However, due to the mountains’ altitude, they prevented moist winds from blowing over them, resulting in the salt-water pools evaporating over time, leaving the Salinas salt flats.

IMG_4073     On our first few stops, the weather was cold, cloudy, and humid and there was a dense layer of fog/clouds surrounding the mountains that we could see. The views we had of the mountains there were beautiful and I liked how due to the altitude, they actually seemed to reach the clouds. As we continued to drive to the other side of the mountains, the sky was suddenly blue and the sun shone. It almost felt like we had driven to a different country completely.

For the remainder of the drive our views remained the same, but they were still unbelievable. When we made it to the Salt flats in Salinas, the views were almost more breathtaking. The ground looked like it was covered in snow but it was actually a thick layer of salt left behindIMG_4118 by the ocean millions of years ago. I think this was my favorite stop on the tour because I loved the contrast the white salt brought to the mountain views in the background. Overall, this was by far my favorite day of the trip to Buenos Aires. I love the culture of this country, but the views we saw on the bus tour are hard to beat.

El Archivo Nacional and La Plaza de Mayo

In the United States I never knew that we had access to almost any document we could dream of, which is also what is available here. The first thing that struck me about the building was it’s intricate yet simple architecture visible in the inside of the building. Its size was also incredibly impressive, but what was more interesting was how much information the building held. We were fortunate enough to get a tour of a few sections of the archives where we tested out the audio/visual database and learned about the restoration process oIMG_3688f the older documents. I think touring this building and getting to see a few of the older documents gave me a better appreciation for the work of historians, since before today I did not know the logistics of the job. Additionally, the fact that centuries of records could fit in a few of the boxes that we were shown was humbIMG_3689ling and made me reflect on how little time I have been a part of history. Overall, this excursion was educational in showing us some behind-the-scenes aspects of being a historian and how the documents we see online in databases got there.

 

We also got the chance to tour the Plaza de Mayo where we saw Las Madres de la Plaza along with other groups protesting. Los desaparecidos are the people who disappeared during the last, and most bloody, dictatorship in Argentina under Jorge Rafael Videlo due to their political alignments. Las Madres have been protesting these disappearances for 39 yeIMG_3712ars, every Thursday in La Plaza de Mayo in order to raise awareness about those who have disappeared, but also with hopes to bring justice to the families of los desaparecidos. There are still families that have not received closure with regards to the family members they lost, and more peopleIMG_3701 still need to be brought to justice for their crimes against these families.

La Plaza de Mayo is an important historical place for many reasons, but these marches of resistance held by Las Madres resonates with me the most. These brave women dared to speak out against the government during the “dirty war” under Videlo even though the chance of being killed or becoming another desaparacido was very high. The passion that the women (and men now) show for their families and justice was and is inspiring to witness. I can only hope that I would show the same bravery and devotion to my family and values as they have, however I also hope I never need to.