In the summer of 2006, I was hiking with some friends in northern Israel, about six miles from the border with Lebanon. This happened to be the day that a group of Hezbollah agents attacked an Israeli jeep, initiating a month-long conflict between the two forces. I watched as Ketyushim rockets rained down on the small Israeli town I was in, and I spent the night in a larger city listening to rockets crashing all around us. I got out of the war zone safely because I acted calmly and was staying with Israelis who took care of me. What kept me together was being among Israelis who had dealt with violent situations before and could answer my questions and tell me their predictions. However, I learned that you cannot always trust the locals’ expertise. My hosts swore that the city of Tzfat would never be hit by rockets because it was a holy city with no military targets. The next day, as we were on a bus to Jerusalem, we heard the news: Hezbollah had begun bombarding Tzfat.

If you are ever traveling in places that are in constant states of war, like the Middle Eastern countries, or places that lack stability such as many Latin American countries, there are a few things you need to know in order to be ready should disaster arise.

1. Keep a small notebook while traveling with a list of emergency contacts, your name and basic information (home country, health insurance information, allergies), and the address of where you are staying in that country. Think of it this way: if you are traveling in places where there are riots, wars, social unrest, or violence, you could be a victim at any point. People need to know who to call about you, how to treat you, and what country you are a citizen of.

2. Always know where your passport is. You need to be able to get to it quickly. If you aren’t afraid of being robbed, you might as well carry it with you. However, if there’s a chance of robbery, just carry a copy of it with you, and keep it in a safe place at your hotel or lodging.

3. Register with the US embassyin the country you are visiting. Keep the address of the Embassy (assuming you are American) and have it handy at all times. You can always call them or go directly there if there is a catastrophe, and you can call them for help if you are taken to jail. However, I have spoken with people who were on the Lebanese side of the war with Israel in 2006, and some of them were unable to get any help from the U.S. Embassy. Be prepared to rely on yourself.

4. Have contacts in major cities that you can call to ask for a place to stay or for some comfort in times of stress. If you are traveling along, be sociable and meet other backpackers, and exchange e-mails so you can be in touch along the way. If you are doing volunteer work or teaching, keep the contact information of your organization with you at all times.

5. Know a few words in the local language: “Help,” “Where is the American embassy?” “How do we get out of here?” Even if you can never memorize these sentences fluently, at least write them down in your notebook properly so you can show them to people, or just try to memorize a few key words that will communicate the basic idea.

6. Be alert, but remain calm. Wherever you are, you will be more terrified than the locals if you have never experienced this kind of event before. Realize that you, and they, can survive if everybody works together to find an escape or a solution. Keep your eyes and ears open at all times so you will always know whether a situation can become dangerous or not. Read the newspaper or watch the news every day so you are updated. Listen to what locals are saying. Watch how the locals act. If they appear frantic, you probably should be worried.

If you follow these suggestions, you’ll at least be prepared for dealing with catastrophic situations as they arise.

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More info:

1. State dept site for registering w/embassies

2. an in-depth article on Travel Safety by a detective

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About Rachel Signer: “”I’m a freelance anthropologist, roaming the world doing what I have to do to accomplish my dreams, loving it all, and recognizing the beautiful parts as well as the not-so-pretty things.”

terrain of Northern Argentina. Photo by Eamonn Lawlor

One of the amazing things about South America is that places like Humamarca and Buenos Aires exist in the same country. If you are traveling in Argentina and want to explore indigenous culture, grab your backpack and get on a bus for Salta and Jujuy, two provinces in Northwest Argentina.

1. Salta Capital a medium-sized city with few tourist attractions, but great cuisine. You’ll already notice how different small-town Argentina is to places like Buenos Aires. Eat a hearty dish of locro while you are here; it’s a stew made of fresh corn. Try its variation guachalocro with goat cheese sprinkled on top for a delicious belly-warmer.

Things to see and do in Salta include viewing architecture, walking, museums, presentations of folkloric music and dance, and eating. The main plaza, Plaza 9 de Julio, is Salta’s prime attraction, with its well-preserved Italian Neoclassical church dating from 1882, plenty of benches and trees to relax, and touristy cafes serving somewhat overpriced food and drinks. A fifteen-minute walk away from the plaza is the Cerro San Bernardo, a hill that you can rise up by taking a teleferico or by a thirty-minute hike up stairs.

2. San Salvador de Jujuy. Known as the most Andean city in Argentina because of the large Bolivia population. Here’s a little secret: the best food in town can be found at the Bolivian market around the corner from the bus terminal. Don’t eat too much of it right away or you’ll get a stomach-ache!

3. Quebrada del Toro Small villages set in valleys between along the Andean Cordilera. You can spend up to two days in each of these towns: Pumamarca, Tilcara, and Humamarca. Each has archaeological ruins, beautiful cemeteries, hills to climb to watch the sunset, delicious local cuisine (try the llama steaks!), and musicians performing in the streets. If you want to really tap into the unique culture of Northwest Argentina, step off the beaten path and head to Iruya.

Campesina in Northern Argentina. Photo by Any Manetta

4. Iruya Like a tangent off the main route, a remote speck that just calls to you to break away from the beaten path and come visit it. Board a huge bus resembling a tank in Humahuaca, one of the last towns in Argentina before the border with Bolivia, and brace yourself for a three-hour seat-gripping descent into a mountainous valley where lies the town of Iruya.

The ride seems to descend into the mouth of the Earth. Upon arrival you will be greeted by small, bubble-eyed girls who take your hands and lead you to lodging. As you climb over cobblestone paths you’ll notice the serenity of this tiny hamlet. The lodgings are humble except for one high-priced hotel, but just sitting out on the stoop and drinking mate and enjoying the view is enough to make you feel like you are in a palace of natural beauty.

The people of Iruya are proud of their indigenous identities and they are shy to mix with visitors from urban Argentina or elsewhere. Despite this hesitancy, they are incredibly friendly and patient with tourists who ask nosy questions about their local customs. Although the people of Iruya wear factory-made clothes and watch television, they live in the middle of the mountains and raise sheep, goats, and pigs. With their hands they spin wool throughout the day to make carpets or clothing. If it weren’t for the presence of the three staples of every Latin American town – a soccer field, a main plaza, and a church – you wouldn’t even know you were in Argentina, or any country with Spanish heritage. The unique culture and lifestyle of Iruya, as in any remote village, is a result of hundreds or even thousands of years of interactions with the land.

5. San Isidrio. Whereas in Iruya there were televisions, cars, and tourists wandering about, a twelve-kilometer hike down the river takes you to a tiny hamlet where there are no vehicles, nothing resembling an actual bar or cafe with a TV. There are people washing clothes in the river or sitting in adobe houses knitting wools, or boys walking in groups with a soccer ball. It was surreal to be so remote from anything resembling a city, and it makes you daydream about Spanish explorers following the valley and river until they reached this settlement, and the kinds of cultural interactions that must have produced.

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Info:

Argentinacontact.com has more options for visiting small-towns in Northern Argentina.

bus companies and schedule for Argentina

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About Rachel Signer: “”I’m a freelance anthropologist, roaming the world doing what I have to do to accomplish my dreams, loving it all, and recognizing the beautiful parts as well as the not-so-pretty things.”