Iguazu

Today, we’re taking the plane to Iguazu to see the famous falls!! Our Belgian friends left a few days ago and had the courage to go by bus (a 20 hour drive). It turns out Pierre does not like flying, but not for the same reasons as Julia. He’s a pilot and it reminds him of work… 

As we approach our destination, the view is magnificent. The rainforest extends as far as the eye can see. Once we land, we take a taxi to the city. There are no more traffic signs telling us to be mindful of llamas crossings. Here, they tell us to be mindful of puma crossings. Well, that’s a change!

This afternoon, we’re just walking around the city. It reminds us the Philippines. The houses are low, there’s a lot of tropical vegetation. Tonight we go to bed early because tomorrow we’ll wake up early to enjoy our day at the falls to the fullest.

Las Cataratas de Iguazu 

Our taxi driver was so nice yesterday that we decide to go with her to the falls. We get there for the opening and will stay until late afternoon. The site is huge!! There are many paths and walkways in the jungle. There are even trains taking visitors who don’t want to walk much closer to the viewpoints.

We start our visit hurrying a bit to get to the beautiful walkways before there are too many people. But we quickly realize that there’s hardly anyone today so we quickly slow down the pace. As we get deeper into the jungle, the walkway takes a sharp turn to the right. And there… we see the falls between the palm trees in the distance. The view is magnificent!!! We continue on, impatient to approach these wonders, and as we advance, the many falls reveal themselves. And honestly, it is very difficult to express the splendor of such site… As you know, we’ve seen a couple of things on this world trip, we’ve been to a place or two… but we haven’t seen anything like it. The scenery is just incredible!!

After about ten thousand pictures and of course moments in which we just took the time to admire the landscape, we head to other walkways. On the way, we come across a toucan in the trees, “flocks” of butterflies that aren’t afraid to land on us and koatis (a sort of hybrid between the anteater and the raccoon). 

The other walkways lead us just above and next to the falls. Here, there are quite a few people but the spectacle is just as incredible and the water is flowing with such strength that we can feel its power. Côme is a bit scared. Mother nature is stronger than he imagined. On our way back, we witness an alligator on the river banks crunching a prey then returning to the water. We’re in the jungle alright!!

Foz de Iguaçu

The next day, we’re going to see the Brazilian side of the falls, just opposite the Argentinian. Our bus takes us through Argentinian customs but the Brazilians don’t bother with us. It is the first time we enter a country (outside of the EU) without going through customs. Doo is a bit worried about this “illegal” crossing into Brazilian territory and asks the driver if this is normal. “Si! Está todo normal!”… Alrighty then…

The Brazilian side of the falls is much smaller than the Argentinian. There is only one fairly short walkway but it is still magnificent and impressive. And there are still koatis and tamed butterflies to greet us. The downside is that you have to queue up at the different viewpoints because Brazilians are queuing to take selfies… And it’s really, REALLY annoying!! Because they’re not just taking one picture… Each member of a family takes about thirty shots on their own. Then, they take about fifty shots with all the family members (and sometimes they even take different combos)… Honestly, it’s just infuriating! Especially since we just want to take ONE picture and enjoy the view… 

Anyway, after we’ve finished our stroll on the walkway, we’re heading to a bird zoo/park nearby. The park and the bird species are beautiful but we can’t linger for too long unfortunately, our bus back to Argentina is leaving soon. It is the penultimate bus of the day and we don’t want to try our luck with the last one. Just in case…

Tomorrow is going to be a long day. We have an early flight to Buenos Aires in the morning then another to Salta, our destination, in the afternoon. We have to cross the entire city because our second flight is leaving from another airport (it wouldn’t be funny otherwise). We will obviously stop in Buenos Aires center, to eat one last time at our favorite meat restaurant. 

In Iguazu, Côme: 
Did not understand: why there was a fall that was no longer flowing. 
Learnt: that the toucans flew with a super straight beak for their balance. 
Loved: to see the animals and feed the small fishes underneath the walkways (he would have liked to give food to the big ones too but they were too slow and were stolen their bread crums by the small fishes). 

Julia: 
Did not understand: why the old destroyed bridge was not taken away from the site. 
Learnt: that there were caymans in the water and that the walk to see the falls was a walk in the jungle. 
Loved: to feel the power of the falls and see toucans (her favorite bird). 

Doo: 
Did not understand: why people took 20,000 pictures of themselves (the vanity!!!). 
Learnt: that the site was immense. 
Loved: to finally be able to admire the falls after so many years of waiting.