Tucuman.: The year 1816.

August 16, 2010

Tucuman. The weekend, 14th and 15th Aug.

Over the weekend there's been a big mountainbike race called TrasMontana in the sierras to the west of the city. Competitors from all over Argentina have filled the hostels. So I's lucky to fine a bed on Friday night and I'd to fine another hostel on Saturday as Saturday was full booked.

The courtyard in the hostel I'm staying in now was full of shiny full suspension machines being washed after Saturdays practice run. There were pre-race preparations, wheels out, bikes turned upside down and tyres being inflated to the optimum pressure. Juan a racer from Mendoza told me the circuit has a downhill section which takes an hour to complete. The rest of the way round is of coarse mainly climbing. I ask is it far, meaning could I cycle there to spectate.'An hour and a half' he replies. 'To cycle'. 'No en el aauto'. By car, forget it, it's too far to cycle there and back in a day. So I remained in the city to sight see.

The main reason people come to Tucuman is it's historic association with the Tucuman Congress, independents from Spain and the birth of the nation. So I was interest in seeing the place where the Congress took place. I thought it would perhaps be hidden away and I would be spending some time looking, but no.

On Saturday morning I's walking along a pedestrianised street leading from the plaza, just happen to be called Congreso de Tucuman, but I was not to know that at the time. As I's passing an old very white house which stood out from the rest of the street. By the ornate doorway with the celestial blue and white national flag on either side people posed for photos. This could only be it I thought. 'Senora what is this house?' I ask a woman looking on in awe.'The house of the Congress, the birth place of the nation' she when on with great passion into detail about the history but I was preoccupied by moving hostel at the time, so I politely got away.

On Sunday I passed again intent on taking some photos, going to the ATM, by that time it would be time for an early lunch then, I'd return to have a look in the museum in the white house. However just as I's passing a play or street theater began. Set at the time of independents, a period drama in period costumes. It was actually a light hearted sate rial take starring the Governor, his wife and a military officer. I did not quite get the plot but so it was nice to watch anyway even if I's none the wiser.

I took many photos and the ATM was just by a Resto-Bar which looked good from the outside especially as the meal one costumer by the window was eating was a jacket potatoe, not too common in Argentina and a nice change from Criollo food. So I entered and ordered a jacket potatoe with chicken curry which was every bit as delicious as it looked.

I finished off with a coffee then it was time to have that look in the museum. There were many exhibits from the colonial era, tucuman's importants as a stopover on the long road of colonial America, but the most interesting exhibit was a French map of South America dated 1867. The French tend to miss spell the names of South American countries, Chile becomes Chili, Bolivia Bolivie or something like that. Bolivia, what a massive country it was in the mid nineteen century, stretching all the way from the Pacific in the west to include most of present south western Brazil and Half of Paraguay in the east. It included bits of present day Argentina too, parts of the provinces of Jujuy and Salta.

Tomorrow it's time to hit the road again. The street map from tourist information not only shows the way out of the city but also roads in the province and an alternative to the busy national road, Route 9, Provincial Route 305 which should be quieter but we'll see.

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