When we last left our adventurers, they had just finished hurling their brains out in Bolivia after an astonishing journey through the Salt Flats.
Now, the sunnier side of that trip.
Paul and I left La Paz for Lima and then went on to our second leg of the trip, from Lima to Iguazu Falls, on the Brazilian side. We arrived there tired, weak, and smelly after 3 days or so of no full showers, due to lack of even luke warm water. The moment we arrived at our bed and breakfast, we felt immediately relieved. Hot showers, good food, and good sleeping conditions can turn a life around.
We stayed at Marica's Bed and Breakfast and our hostess did not disappoint. She provided a great breakfast spread, beautiful surroundings, and she was very helpful in making sure that we saw all that was offered. Although the water was shut off after the first day, it was still considered an oasis of paradise.
Iguazu Falls sits on a tri border: Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay. The first day, we stayed on the Brazilian side, to get the general idea of the falls. It's beautiful of course and reminded us so much of Niagara. But they aren't Niagara, as we will find out later, on the Argentinean side.
But first, the bird park!
Paul and Rachel
Whenever we were in these open aviaries, I thought for sure we would get pooped on. Luckily, we went unscathed.
Guess who is Rachel in this picture.
The bird park of Parque do Aves was incredible. We didn't have such high hopes for this place, but seeing these diverse birds was fun. There are raptor birds that can carry off small children too, which is mind boggling to us.
Then, we saw them:
Iguazu Falls! And this is just one set!
Close to La garaganta del diablo...the Devil's Throat
These falls are beautiful and indescribable and every imaginative adjective. There were points where Paul and I just sat and stared, marveling at how fortunate we are.
We even went on a speed boat ride.
See those falls right there? We were about to go under them and get pretty wet. This is where we found out my new adventure pants are water resistant. Paul's jealous.
Our most hilarious moment from the whole trip was thanks to our favorite Central/South American resident:
the coati.
These guys are everywhere at Iguazu and are slight pests because they get all up in your business. And they won't stop. Paul and I were dining on some burgers from the park, and Paul had "accidentally" ordered a Coke. Before we knew it, the coatis descended. They knew we loved them and we just get giddy when we see one. And they also are very concerned about Paul's health. So concerned that they decided to take matters in their own paws. So, as Paul and I are shooing away a couple on one side, one sidled on up to Paul and with his front paws PICKED UP the cup of Coke and DRANK IT LIKE A HUMAN. Our biggest regret was not taking a picture, but it was so fast, there was no time to think. Sneaky coati. We still love you.
The aftermath
That night, we had some churrasco, or Brazilian BBQ. It was good, but nothing too amazingly special.
The next day, we went to the Argentinean side. We had to pay a pretty hefty reciprocity fee, which isn't great, but the good thing is, the dollar is strong in Argentina. It is roughly 7 pesos to the dollar, the best exchange we've seen (Peru was 3 to 1). Yet, this was definitely the side to see. These people made a beautiful park, with closer views of the falls.
This is when we went on the little island that is there. It closed shortly after we were there, for who knows why. We think someone got hurt, but that's just a theory.
The swifts that fly all around
Majestic, right?
Rainbow!
On the upper trail
So, I bet you are thinking "Self, this isn't much different than Niagara". We thought that at one point too. And then, we went to the "Devil's Throat". These pictures do not do it justice.
We couldn't see the bottom
We stayed here for so long because we could not get over it. We were astounded. Not only is it amazing, it is huge and loud. Nothing is more awe inspiring than something like this in nature. Gorgeous.
The next day, we went to the world's second largest hydroelectric plant: Itaipu. It straddles the Brazilian and Paraguayan border. It still produces more electricity than 3 Gorges in China, and produces 70% of Paraguay's needs and 25% of all of Brazil's needs...that's a lot. This is also Paul's chance to nerd out.
Models
How will Paul change the world? He could do it :)
Capybara!! World's largest rodent!
On the dam. The left is the huge lake this dam produced, which also took out a set of waterfalls that supposedly rival Iguazu.
It was massive.
Well, that was the rest of our adventures while I was down there. In December, we will be doing a huge trip, finishing up our time in South America, but we definitely took a huge chunk out of this amazing continent. Now, it will be up to Paul to post about his internship and me to post about my schooling. I will post about that later and Paul will have to post about mid stream week.
Before I finish, I wanted to take a pause and give homage to my Grandma, Beatrice All, who died last Wednesday at 2:00 at the age of 102. Her funeral was yesterday and no one could have asked for a more beautiful day. Thank you Grandma, for all that you did and for all your thoughtfulness. You helped me come into existence, so thank you. This life that I lead, I would not trade it for the world. Some people hunger for the after life, because it is supposed to be much better than life itself. But to me, life is incredible, exciting, and worth every heart ache for the moments of pure love and happiness. I am certainly blessed to have my life partner and Grandma showed me that life is to be experienced and cherished at every moment.
