Hiking in north west Argentina
"Before we go any further, we have to ask for permission". We'd just started hiking through some of the most spectacular landscape in north west Argentina, close to the famous Seven Coloured Hill in Jujuy province. Oh yes, of…
Argentina's famous empanadas
Food again, after my ruminations on the Andean potato. (I try to write this blog first thing after breakfast, when I'm not hungry, but it doesn’t always work out that way). Empanadas, as the Brits who have joined Poncho…
The sport of kings
My only experience of polo was as a young journalist when I was sent to cover Prince Charles in the first flush of his marriage troubles with Diana, and the press pack was chasing him around the country. It…
How much does a dollar cost in Argentina?
UPDATE March 6th 2023: Latest government figures claim that over 800,000 visitors from abroad spent US$164 million on their bank cards, benefiting from the tourist dollar (at 360 pesos, as I write this). That’s a fivefold increase on January 2022,…
Day of the Dead
As anyone who has seen the film Coco will know, today is the Day of the Dead. Celebrated most famously in Mexico, but also throughout Latin America, its traditions are particularly strong in countries with a large mixed-indigenous presence like…
Celebrate the humble spud
The humble potato gets a bad press. It's associated with unhealthy eating habits: eg crisps, often eaten by a couch potato while another member of the family is provoking a chip pan fire in the kitchen. There's the Irish potato…
Birth of Inca Legend
Bolivia is famous for its salt flats, the Salar de Uyuni, and Peru is rightly celebrated for Cusco, Machu Picchu and the Inca trail, but there is much more to discover in these predominantly indigenous countries. I returned recently to…
(Un)holy trinity part 2
When you're visiting Argentina with Poncho Tours, you will notice many roadside shrines: one featuring red flags, another mountains of plastic bottles. You may also be sharp-eyed enough to spot small altars festooned with black flags. These are three of…
Taking the bull by the horns
There is a curious ceremony in an obscure town in the Puna of Argentina which marks the Assumption of the Virgin Mary today (August 15th). The tiny town of Casabindo, nestled in the Altiplano north of the Salinas Grandes salt…
Pachamama is Mother Earth
Today is Pachamama day, perhaps the most important celebration in the indigenous calendar (closely followed by carnival but they’re so interlinked you can’t have one without the other). On August 1st, Argentina’s indigenous population give thanks to Mother Earth (which…