Salta
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Introduction
Salta is the capital of the Salta Province, in the North West of Argentina. It is Argentina's 8th largest city, with a population of around 475,000. The city was first founded on April 16, 1582 by the Spanish conquistador Hernando de Lerma. His original intension was the city to be an outpost between Buenos Aires and Lima in Peru.
The city was heavily damaged during the war of independence, which left the city bankrupt. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries a large arrival of Spanish, Syrian and Lebanese immigrants helped to revive trade and agriculture in the region giving the city a second birth. To this day the city has a very multicultural flavor because of this immigration.
Neighbourhoods
Sights and Activities
Salta is one of the more popular tourist destinations in Argentina, based largely on its colonial architecture and natural scenery. It is also the main base for a lot of the trips throughout the province, including the "Train to the Clouds" (Tren a las nubes).
Plaza 9 de Julio
The main attractions are located in the city centre, clockwise around the 9th July Square (Plaza 9 de Julio) are the following:
- Neo-classical Cathedral
- Museum of Contemporary Art (M.A.C.)
- Cabildo - The 18th century town hall. Houses the Historical Museum (Museo Histórico del Norte)
- Museum of High Mountain Archeology (M.A.M) - With artifacts from the Inca civilization including the preserved bodies of three Inca children.
Other Sights and Activities
- Saint Francisco Church (Iglesia San Francisco) - Built in 1796 this is a beautiful church with remarkable tower.
- San Bernardo Convent
- Güemes Monument
- Balcarce Street - Is where most of the nightlife is centered around
- San Miguel Market
- Crafts Market
- San Bernardo Hill (Cerro San Bernardo) - Is 1458 metres high, which is east of the city and offers spectacular views from the summit. You can get to the summit by car, stairway or cable car from Parque San Martin.
Events and Festivals
Weather
The weather is warm and dry, with an average temperature of 16.4 °C (around 20 °C in the summer, 11 °C in winter). The summer months of January and February also are the wettest whilst during spring, Salta can be plagued by severe, week long dust storms.
Getting There
By Plane
Martín Miguel de Güemes International Airport (SLA), in Spanish Aeropuerto Internacional de Salta Martín Miguel de Güemes, is an airport about 6 km southwest of the city centre. In 2007 this airport almost had 400,000 passengers making it the busiest airport in the northern part of the country. This airport is the main hub for the Andes and served by Aerolíneas Argentinas, LAN Argentina, Andes Líneas Aéreas and Aerosur.
By Train
By Car
By Bus
By Boat
Getting Around
By Car
Taxi fare is around 5 pesos.
By Public Transport
Buses cost 1 Peso.
By Foot
By Bike
Eat & Drink
The three blocks on the north end of Balcarce street, closest to the train station, are the centre of nightlife in Salta. There's plenty of restaurants, pubs and cafés here, as well as nightly concerts.
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This is version 8. Last edited at 0:27 on Jul 20, 08 by Lavafalls (+598). 4 articles link to this page.
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