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Published: January 2nd 2010
Iguazu Flyover
A rare opportunity to fly over the fallsDay 13
We rise early head to airport and we're off to Iguazu Falls on New Year's Eve day. The flight is about 2hours. As we approach the airport, Warren and Brian receive clearance to do a fly over the falls. Who needs a helicopter tour when you can fly over the falls in a private jet (Spoiled!).
Upon landing, our handlers, the people that help us when we fly into these places, are ready to usher us to the Sheraton and have pre-arranged a tour of the falls for us. As we approach the front desk to check in, we can already begin to enjoy the beautiful views. The back drop of the front desk is an entire glass wall overlooking the tropical falls. We drop our bags in our room, grab a bite to eat, and make our way to the tour company. The handler has arranged a 4wheeled drive tour truck to take us to a boat that will take us right into the falls.
As we wait for the tour to begin, there are many Coati's, similar to a very large Lemur (but Warren keeps calling them ROUS'), attempting to steal food
Iguazu Airport
A small airport in the middle of the jungle from the awaiting tourists. We board the 4 wheeler and a bilingual guide greets us. We ride the big truck down the tropical paths of the rainforest with big eyes as the guide informs us of all the local flora and fauna. Those of you that know Warren, know that he is not a big fan of spiders. Spiders in this rainforest are very big and knit webs as opposed to spinning webs. The webs appear to be made of yarn rather than silky threads. During one of Warren's photos he extends his head over the side of the truck and is clotheslined by a huge extension of a web. Warren begins frantically brushing invisible web from his clothes and asks if "it" is on him. Brian and I are laughing so hard that we begin to get tears in our eyes and cannot respond. This would only happen to Warren.
The truck drops us off at a small path leading down to a boat dock. We have been forewarned that we will be getting wet on the boat and are given a dry bag for any valuables that cannot get wet. As we begin boarding the boat
Falls from the hotel
This is a view of the falls from the hotel restaurant it starts to rain. Everybody is laughing at the sprinkles and rushing to stuff dry items into the special bags. We are given life vests that are already soaked. We have no idea what's in store for us.
The powerful boat speeds up the river towards the falls. The scenery is amazing! On the banks of the river we see hikers and a steel frame with people repelling from the top. As we approach the falls we are taken aback. It is huge! The falls are numerous with muliple sections of cascading water. The rapids are violent white capped waves and we understand why the boat have to be so powerful.
The boat stops 100 yards from the falls to allow for photos. Everyone is happy and smiling while taking photos. A few minutes later, the boat operator instructs everyone to put their cameras and videocameras into their special dry bags. Everybody is excited to get closer to the falls. Closer is not what happens. We go directly under the falls. It is truly like taking a shower with the most water pressure you have ever felt. There is no part of you that does not
ROUS'
Rodents of unusual size? I don't think they exist.... get wet. If you did not heed the warning, your camera is definately dead. The boat takes us in and out of the different sections of the falls before taking us to another boat dock. The operators offer to sell a copy of the trip to the passengers. It is a must buy, of course. To get back to the hotel it is a climb up a semi paved path along the falls and some stairs with catwalks for photo opts.
Back at the hotel we showered off the amazon water and got ready to go into town. The hotel arranged for a taxi to take us into the local town of Puerto Iguazu. The day has flown by and it is already 6:30 p.m. local time. By the time we get to town, a 30 minute ride, most of the town has already rolled up it's sidewalks. There are a few shops open and some of the indiginous people are selling handmade items from sheets on the ground. The town also has a casino. Warren and Brian jump at the chance to check out the casino. Their game of choice is usually roulette. There are no table
Jungle tour
A short tour of the jungle on the way o the boat. WATCH OUT FOR SPIDERS!!!! games in the casino and the roulette is an automated machine. The exchange rate is 3.8 pesos to 1 U.S. dollar. The guys play a few dollars and they win and lose a few times. Ultimately they lose 5 U.S. dollars. We spend an hour in town and then take the cab back to the hotel. Upon returning to the hotel, the New Year's eve buffet has begun.
We join Warren's boss' and family at the buffet. The buffet is huge and has table upon table of food. Their are 5 tables just for dessert! The evening is filled with good food, nice company, and laughs as we all review our trip. It is the last night of the trip and everyone agrees that it has been a great trip. We all head to our rooms before midnight and nobody thinks that they will be awake to see the turn of the year. We are all exhausted!
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