Image Page on Argentina

Insert pictures, and at least one panorama image, and a webcam image from two different times.

Outline

  1. Landscapes
  2. Cities
  3. Landmarks
  4. Images of People
  5. Images from the book

1 Landscapes

Valley of Ongamira, Argentina

A large green field with a mountain in the background Description automatically generated

This landscape is located in the valley of Ongamira in Argentina. Ongamira is a valley that is located northwest of the Argentine city known as Cordoba. Ongamira is famous for its caves and grottoes. This image of Ongamira is of horizontal structure, with the center layer catching the viewer’s eye first before all other layers. The viewer’s attention is drawn first to the rolling mountain range that establishes itself as the dominant feature of the landscape at the image’s center. From the highest mountain peak, the viewer’s gaze is raised up to the sky where a giant, fluffy, white cloud floats over the valley. Eventually, the cloud floating above the valley loses the viewer’s gaze and the viewer takes a new interest in the landscape below. The smaller, lower mountain range and the seemingly endless zig-zag of trees that stretches across the landscape for miles compete or the viewer’s attention. Finally, the viewer’s gaze begins to move once again, this time to the fields and mountains to the left. After gazing as far as the fields and mountains go, the viewer’s attention glides to the opposite side of the image to view how similar fields and mountains shape that side of the valley.

 

 

Monte Fitz Roy, Patagonia, Argentina

A close up of a snow covered mountain Description automatically generated

This mountain range is known as Monte Fitz Roy and is located in the southern region of Patagonia, on the Chilean border. Monte Fitz Roy is the trekking capital of Argentina and has had world-class mountain climbers encounter its rough but marvelous routes. The viewer’s gaze is captured by the highest peak of  Monte Fitz Roy. From this peak, the viewer’s eyes raise to a sky that stands over the mountain range, protecting it from something that could harm its perfect structure. From the sky, it drops to the peak that sits in front of Monte Fitz Roy before lowering to the rocky shore that lies in front of a small lake nestled between two lower peaks.

 

Salinas Grandes, Juyjuy and Salta, Argentina

A large body of water Description automatically generated

Salinas Grandes is a salt plain located in the Juyjuy and Salta provinces of Argentina. The landscape was once a dried-up lake in the Holocene, but now is a 525-square-kilometer salt crust that gets up to 0.5 meters thick (pg. 244). There are three layers to this photo: the sky, the mountain line and the salty surface. The ocean-blue sky, dominated by floating shapes of fluff, covers the salty plain for miles. The sky and salt plain are divided by a humble mountain range. The salt plain below, patterned by polygons, shows its own sense of splendor by stretching across a seemingly endless landmass.

 

 

Esteros del Ibera, Corrientes, Argentina

A sunset over a body of water Description automatically generated

This is a photo of the Esteros del Ibera Wetlands, located in the Argentine province of Corrientes. These wetlands are comprised of a mix of swamps, bogs, lagoons, stagnant lakes, natural slough and water. Esteros del Ibera is the most important fresh water reservoir in Argentina. These wetlands are also known for all of the different species of birds and other wildlife that inhabit the area. The two layers in this photo include a sky where the three colors of blue, orange and pink come together behind an enormous converging of clouds and a surface of water below that is topped off with a receding hairline of tall grass.

 

2 Cities

Buenos Aires, (autonomous city) Argentina

A view of a city Description automatically generated

This photo shows us Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina. Buenos Aires is also an autonomous city that has a population of 2,891,082 people. The city was first settled by Spaniard Pedro de Mendoza in 1536. For 196 years after it was settled, the city was a backwater and smuggling hub because of trading restrictions imposed by Spain. In 1776, Spain decreed Buenos Aires as the capital city of the viceroyalty of Rio de la Plata. At last, in 1880, the city was declared as the nation’s capital. Today, Buenos Aires is known to be a beautiful, vibrant and multicultural city, mainly influenced by European capitals.

 

Cordoba, Cordoba, Argentina

A bridge over a body of water Description automatically generated

Above is a photo of Cordoba, Argentina. The city of Cordoba is located in the Argentine province also known as Cordoba. Cordoba was founded on July 6th, 1573, by Jeronimo Luis de Cabrera, who named the city after Cordoba, Spain. Cordoba is inhabited by about 1,317, 298 people. The city is Argentina’s second largest city and is known to be lively and a fascinating mix of old and new. Cordoba is also a university city, with seven major institutions. Of course, in spite of being a university city, Cordoba’s population is dominated by young people. 

 

Bariloche, Rio Negro, Argentina

A view of a city Description automatically generated

This is a picture of Bariloche, Argentina. The city is located in the province of Rio Negro, along the shoreline of Lago Nahuel Huapi, in the national park also known as Bariloche. The city was founded in 1902 and was later urbanized in the 1930s and 1940s when architect Ezequiel Bustillo added Central European styles into the city’s urban plan. Bariloche is home to 108,205 inhabitants. The city is also encircled by mountain peaks including Cerros Catedral, Lopez, Nireco and Shaihuenque. The city is known for its marvelous setting, a variety of summer and winter activities in the countryside and for being Argentina’s chocolate capital. 

La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina

A large city landscape Description automatically generated

This is La Plata, Argentina. The city of La Plata is located in the Argentine province that is known as Buenos Aires. The city was founded by Governor Dardo Rocha on November 19th, 1882. La Plata was intended and developed to serve as the provincial capital after Buenos Aires became federalized in 1880. The population of La Plata is 765,378. The leafy streets of La Plata align with an elaborate plan of diagonal avenues that cross a five-kilometer square grid pattern that connects the major plazas of the city. This gives the city the shape of a star when viewed from the sky. Today, La Plata is known as a pleasant city with invigorating nightlife, wide-stretching parkland and multiple sights to visit while staying in the city.

 

3 Landmarks

Iguazu Falls, Misiones, Argentina

A large waterfall over a body of water Description automatically generated

The photo above shows us the famous South American landmark known as Iguazu Falls. Iguazu Falls is located on the border between the Argentine province of Misiones and the state of Parana, Brazil. The majority of the falls are on the Argentine side. According to legend, the site was formed when a deity intended on marrying a beautiful woman by the name of Naipi, who fled with her mortal lover Taroba in a canoe. Enraged, the deity sliced the river, creating the waterfalls and condemned the lovers to an eternal fall. There are also national parks on both sides of the river system that runs through the site that offer easy-to-medium trails through the neighboring jungle areas that offer wildlife-observation opportunities.

 

Talampaya National Park, La Rioja, Argentina

A close up of a mountain Description automatically generated

This is a panorama photo of the Talampaya National Park that is located in the La Rioja province of Argentina. The national park is made up of beautiful rock formations and canyons in the dusty desert of La Roija. These rock formations and canyons offer evidence of erosive creativity of water. Today, many people find it hard to believe that water and ice once existed here. The most famous feature in the national park is the Talampaya Canyon, which is a watercourse that has been bounded to completely sandstone cliffs. Here, condors glide on thermals and guanacos, rheas and maras  are seen in the shade of algarrobo trees along the canyon’s sandy surface.

 

Cueva de las Manos, Santa Cruz, Argentina

A pizza sitting on top of each other Description automatically generated

This photo shows us a piece of the ancient art that is in the Cueva de Las Manos cave located in the Santa Cruz province of Argentina. The cave is an Unesco World Heritage site that features impressive rock art that dates back to about 7370 B.C. The polychrome paintings cover recesses in the almost-vertical walls of the cave with imprints of human hands and drawings of guanacos along with some abstract designs as well from a later time period. The cave includes roughly 800 images, which more than 90% is made up of left hands, with one including six fingers.

 

Catedral de La Plata, Buenos Aires, Argentina

A large clock tower towering over the city of london Description automatically generated

The picture above is of the Catedral de La Plata, which is located in the province of Argentina that is known as Buenos Aires. The cathedral’s construction began in 1885 and was headed by Architect Pedro Benoit. Drawings of the cathedral were done by another architect by the name of Ernesto Mayer and a third architect named Emilio Coutaret collaborated with both men. Catedral de la Plata is of the Neogothic architecture style. The building was inaugurated in 1932 and its twin steeples weren’t ever completed until 1999. The cathedral’s design is inspired by medieval churches found in Cologne, Germany and Amiens, France.

 

4 Images of People  

Tango Dancers in San Telmo, Argentina

A group of people walking down a street Description automatically generated

This photo shows us an elderly couple dancing the tango in San Telmo, Argentina. Although the exact origins of the tango cannot be pinpointed, many believe the dance originated in Buenos Aires in the 1880’s. The tango is known to be a dance that combines machismo, passion and longing along with a bit of a fighting edge as well. In Argentina, when dancing the tango, the body’s center is the first to move, followed by the feet reaching out for support. Steps to the dance typically involve gliding, but can vary in timing, speed and character, and follow no specific rhythm. Themes of the dance range from profound feelings about changing local neighborhoods to the figure of the mother, male friendship and betrayal by women. 

 

 

Soccer Player

A football player on a field Description automatically generated

The photo above shows the famous Argentine soccer player, Lionel Messi. He has been voted as FIFA’s best player of the year five years in a row. In Argentina, going to a soccer match is often seen as a religious experience. Even less-important games could give anyone a taste of Argentina’s national passion. Soccer, or as the Argentines call it, “futbol,” is an integral piece of the lives of virtually everybody in the country. The most important and popular teams are known as the Boca Juniors and River Plate. There are approximately two dozen professional teams in just Buenos Aires alone! 

 

 

Gaucho Cowboys in Patagonia, Argentina

A person riding a horse in a field Description automatically generated

This is a photo of three traditional gaucho cowboys taking a break from work in the Argentine province of Patagonia. Over the centuries, the gaucho cowboy has become an Argentine icon and representative of the pampas of Argentina. The intrepid gaucho came to be after Spanish settlers let their cattle run loose on the grassy pampas hundreds of years ago. The gauchos became nomadic, living by taming horses that were introduced by the Spaniards. They hunted errant herds and drank mate, which is a beverage similar to tea. Gauchos also often slaughtered the cattle that roamed free on the grassy farmland and they were unsupervised by their Spanish colonizers as they worked on the farmland. 

 

Spectators at the Gualeguaychu Carnaval, Entre Rios, Argentina

A group of people standing in front of a crowd Description automatically generated

The picture above shows us hundreds of spectators watching a magnificently blue, decorated float go by at the Gualeguaychu Carnaval in the Argentine province of Entre Rios, Argentina. The town of Gualeguaychu is a mellow, riverside town that is quiet outside of Carnaval season. But in the summertime, the town becomes ever so lively at the kick-off of the Gualeguaychu Carnaval celebration. The celebration is the country’s longest and flashiest annual event that runs any weekend from mid-January to late-February. The main venue of parades and other activities is the Corsodromo, which is a building that is similar to a football stadium or a sacred temple in terms of size and construction.

 

5 Images from the Book

A large body of water surrounded by trees Description automatically generatedLago Nahuel Huapi, Bariloche, Argentina

 

This is a picture of Lago Nahuel Huapi, located in the province of Bariloche, Argentina. The lake is located in the center of Nahuel Huapi National Park and is a glacial remnant over 100 kilometers long that stretches over 500 square kilometers. The national park that this lake is located in is among Argentina’s most-visited national parks. It occupies 7,500 square kilometers in the mountainous southwestern region known as Neuquen and the western region known as Rio Negro. Looking West, a ridge of high peaks divides Argentina from Chile. The tallest is 3,554 meters, known as Monte Tronador, which is an extinct volcano that lives up to its name as translated as the “Thunderer” when ice blocks tumble from its glaciers. During the winter, wildflowers blanket the alpine meadows. This photo was taken from a Google Image search but is identical to the photo of the exact same area found in my travel book entitled “Lonely Planet: Argentina.”

 

Cerro Catedral, Rio Negro and Patagonia, Argentina

A group of people standing on top of a snow covered mountain Description automatically generated

This picture shows us Cerro Catedral ski resort which is located in both the Rio Negro and Patagonia provinces of Argentina. The Cerro Catedral peak is 2,388 meters tall and is located 20 kilometers southwest of Bariloche. It is the area’s most important winter-sports hub. Multiple chairlifts and the Aerosilla Cerro Bellavista cable car that is there carries passengers up to 2,000 meters. The area also has four hiking trails that traverse the mountain, two of which are open year-around. At the resort, there are 120 kilometers of intermediate and advanced ski runs. There are also a few steep black runs at the top of the peak as well as some tree runs near the base. Finally, the resort also offers a single beginners’ run at the base for those that are new to skiing. This photo was taken from a Google Image search and is not identical, but similar, to the photo of the exact same area in my travel book entitled “Lonely Planet: Argentina.”

 

Works Cited:

Albiston, I. Brown, C. Clark, G. Egerton, A. Grosberg, M. Kaminski, A. McCarthy, C. Mutic, A. Skolnick, A. “Lonely Planet: Argentina.” Edition 11. Lonely Planet. August 2018. Printed in Singapore.

 

Submitted by Spence Bridgman on April 6, 2020.