>> Purmamarca (2192 mts. over sea level)

The town of Purmamarca (name that means "Town of the Virgin Land" in the Aimará language) is an attractive town bounded to the North by the Purmamarca River, and to the South by the Hills that form the Depression of the same name. This little town becomes especially attractive because it is located at the foot of the impressive and majestic Siete Colores Hills (Seven Colors). Its constructions are from the XVII Century, which also gives an interesting vision of the pre-Hispanic origin. Its picturesque design was organized around the main Church, of striking classical style of the Quebrada.

The old Church, declared National Historical Monument, and was built in 1648, has clay walls on the outside, and on the inside, the woodwork is entirely made of teasel. It has only one narrow nave with interesting XVIII Century, images and paintings from Cuzco, which fill it with history and tradition within the Circuit of the Quebrada. This church was devoted to Santa Rosa de Lima, and behind it you can see the renowned Siete Colores Hill, which delights every visitor of the city.

The crafts fair is permanently open and, near the square, the local vendors offer hand-made rugs, several wood carvings, local items of clothing, eye-catching vases, and even different medicinal plants. The impressive Quebrada de Humahuaca (Humahuaca Depression), is a paradise landscape of our country, that has been declared Estate of Mankind, is the axis of this picturesque area through which the Grande River runs. All over the area, the houses in the area are made of clay, where the towns of the colonial times developed in relation to significant pre-Hispanic settlings, where the streets were re-designed at the end of the XIX Century.

So, in the area, there are still several pre-Hispanic important costumes in the community celebrations, in which all the inhabitants of the town take part, such as the festivities of the Patron Saint, the misachicos, the devotion to the dead, the living cribs, the Holly Week.

The devotion to the Pachamama, and other rites previous to the conquest, are also very important, you can see the way in which the Indian apachetas live with the colonial churches all over the area. Here the music is also one of the main protagonists, and it is played with local musical instruments such as: the siku, the quena, the caja, the erque, the erquencho, and the charango.