Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Los Helechos
Inside Hotel Mitru Annexo.
Popular travellers' hang-out serving all the gringo
favourites (at gringo prices) including fruit salads, American breakfasts, pizza, pasta and
chicken. Mains Bs20-50.
El Rinconcito Quilmes
Suipacha.
The best food in town, popular with locals for its filling
set almuerzos (Bs12), excellent meat dishes (including delicious Argentine-style steaks), and
special lamb roasts at the weekend. There's live music on Sun afternoons.
La Torre de Italiana
Florida.
As well as reasonable pizza and pasta (Bs25-95), this tourist-
oriented restaurant has decent Mexican fare (Bs25-40), Spanish-style tortillas and a good
range of coffees. Bring a book, as service takes an age.
DIRECTORY
Exchange
Several cambios on Calle Avaroa will change travellers' cheques, as well as US
dollars and Argentine pesos.
Hotel Mitru
, and the
Hostal Valle Hermoso
also change all of
the above, and may also allow you to take cash out on your credit card (for a hefty charge).
Internet
Viva near the market on Florida (Bs3/hr).
Post office
The post office is just west of Plaza Independencia on Avaroa.
Telephone office
The ENTEL office is on the corner of Avaroa and Av Aramayo, a block
west of the plaza.
Cordillera de Chichas
Around Tupiza stretches the harsh but beautiful
CORDILLERA DE CHICAS
, a striking
landscape of cactus-strewn badlands, deep gulches and canyons, and strangely shaped rock
formationsandpinnacles.Theeasiestwaytoseethecordilleraistotakeajeepexcursionwith
one of Tupiza's
tour companies
,
but travelling on foot, bike or horseback offers a much more
relaxed way to explore the eerie desert landscapes and enjoy the tranquillity and ever-chan-
ging colours of the mountains, as well as giving you the chance to indulge any Wild West
outlaw fantasies you may harbour. Bring plenty of water with you, particularly if travelling
on foot, as the sun can be very intense and water is scarce. There are plenty of good spots to
camp in the cordillera's secluded valleys, but avoid pitching your tent on river beds in case
of flash floods after rain.
Quebrada de Palala
A few kilometres northwest of Tupiza along the road to Uyuni is the mouth of the
Quebrada
de Palala
, a ravine formed by a tributary of the Río Tupiza. The river bed is dry for most
of the year, and is used as a highway by vehicles heading to isolated mines to the northwest.
If you journey 6km or so up the gorge you'll come to a series of red rock formations that
have been eroded into massive fins. A few kilometres further on you'll reach a high saddle
