So we decided to take the small sleepy town route up to Salta which was going to be our last main stop before we made our way east towards Iguacu Falls and Brazil.
Belen, is a beautiful little town, centred in a valley and we stayed in what is one of north Argentina´s more stylish boutique hotels. And honestly, it was! Especially considering that we have been hostelling it and staying in some rather run down but lovely places, this was a real welcome stay for us. But the highlight of our trip to the town was the incredibly warm locals, who we befriended on our first night because the town was having its huge artesenal market - where all the locals displayed their crafts, jewelry, handwoven items plus there was food, drink and folkloric music! It was such a nice way to get into the whole vibe of the town, plus we got to put our money right into the income of the town by buying locally, which always makes me feel much better than buying it off some market seller who ´claims´to have made the item themselves.
We also ended up having the craftsmen and women (about40 of them) offering to share their very delicious and hearty bbq lunch the next day to celebrate the success of their artesenal fair. It was such an eye-opener as they were fascinated to have us two foreigners there, which they toasted a few times! We had a chance to talk to some of them about culture, world politics, their lives and ours, late into the afternoon/evening. All in spanish!
And we visited an old relic site of the Quilmes Indians - who were one of the last tribes in the area to have contact with the Inca´s.
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