Waterfalls, dog poo and diahorrea!


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Published: November 4th 2006
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Hello again from Argentina!!

We did a day trip to the Tigre Delta. The train there was a real experience, 40p for an hours journey, through some really nice areas of BA with gorgoeus houses! On the train a full band joined us playing flamenco music to entertain and there was no shortage of blokies selling things (even toothbrushes for some reason!), all this on a regular commuter train...imagine that going on on Midland Mainline! Tigre was a really nice place, just off the Rio de la Plata and the starting point for the Delta del Parana. It reminded us of Alkmaar in the Netherlands without the cheese market.

On coming back from the Tigre Delta we have made a few observations. Here they are!


1) All the backpackers we have seen so far have been very miserable. You´d think that being on an adventure of a lifetime would be enough to make them smile!


2) Most backpackers wear flip flops, even when it is inappropriate such as 10 degrees, raining in a city with class where even the poorest people make an effort to dress smart. Fair enough we agree with travelling light, but we don´t like to see hairy big toes when we are eating our steak and sipping our 2 pound 50 bottle of chablis!


3) There is a lot of dog poo on the streets here, hence another reason why flip flops are inappropriate.


4) There´s a part of BA called Puerto Madero (a bit like the Albert Dock in Liverpool) it´s full of wannabe yuppie Porteños (residents of BA). There are some cranes at the docks which Neil says reminds him of the ´claw and grab´ amusement arcade machines, which he is convinced can be used to grab a yuppie Porteño and hoist them into the water! if only he could find the slot to put the 10p into!


5) We went to the cinema last week to watch The Illusionist, it was 4 pounds for our tickets, large popcorn and a drink. It was there we realised that both here and Brazil that couples are extremely affectionate with each other in public. With groping, noisy lip smacking, slurping galore and with absolutely no shame whatsoever. This isn´t necessarily a bad thing, we even saw one couple go for a record breaking 2 hour snogathon attempt! What is odd about this behaviour though is that the couples seem to do it a lot more when other couples are present, as if to show they are the ´greatest´couple (Argentines think they are the greatest everything!). It´s amazing how one night we sat in the romatic Plaza Dorrego in San Telmo and managed to set off a kissing couple chain reaction, with up to 5 couples competing - note that we didn´t join in, preferring our 1 litre of Brahma lager to each others mouths!!


6) Two things we have noticeed whilst dining. The first is that Americans unnecessarily tip way more than they should. This never seems to be to show gratitude for good service, but rather to be big and flash in front of the other customers. Very silly considering that service is included in the price nearly everywhere here. The other thing we noticed is that UK and US men seem to like to discuss how many women they have shagged or their latest sexual exploits over steak and beer


7) If visiting BA, be prepared for bruised shoulders, elbows and feet! Walking along the pavement is no simple task as the locals NEVER move out the way, particularly if you look foreign. This results in a pavement stand-off, a bit like a Matador and a bull, Donna is the bull (with horns) as many people have found out!


8) Be careful not to eat too much ice cream as Neil found out after having his last steak and 7 peso half a kilo of ice cream from the Heladaria around the corner. He is convinced now he has bruised his heart with all the junk food he has consumed!



Ok, back to the blog....


We checked out of our BA apartment just in the nick of time (thanks to confusion with the landlord with our check out time), to catch our Via Bariloche coche-cama (2nd class) bus to Puerto Iguazu. The bus journey was 16 hours long, but even in 2nd class we got very comfy reclining, almost horizontal seats, two meals included, a starter, drinks and a boiled sweet. The journey went surprisingly quickly, probably because we had Steven Seagals Shadowman film to keep us entertained (DON´T EVER WATCH THIS FILM UNLESS YOU HAVE NO CHOICE!!!).

We arrived to
War museum at TigreWar museum at TigreWar museum at Tigre

Donna smiling for Ricardo. Museum had Falklands war relics etc
rain in Puerto Iguazu, it was hot and humid and the rain soon disappeared. The contrast here to BA couldn´t be greater, people were much friendlier and it had a real sleepy village feel. We stayed at the Hostel Park Iguazu, our first experience of a hostel. It was clean with a comfy bed but the pool was decidedly unclean and the breakfast was sparse!

We ventured to the Hito Argentinos, where the countries of Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina converge on the Rios Parana and Iguazu. It was really strange seeing 3 countries within a stones throw of each other. The Argentinian teenagers took great delight in shouting insults and throwing sticks across to the Paraguay and Brazil sides of the rivers. It was at this point our luck changed and Neil was struck with a raging fever (38.8 according to our medical kit thermometer!) and erm...toilet trouble. So much so that the question of ´how much Immodium can you take in 24 hours?´came up in conversation frequently. Let´s just say we were pleased we hadn´t opted to stay in a shared dorm!

Despite Neil´s illness we somehow made it to the Iguazu National Park entrance. A bargain entrance fee of 30 pesos which included a Hornby model railway journey to the Devils Throat waterfall (the biggie) and a boat journey to the island of San Martin. What can we say about the waterfalls that hasn´t already been said? they are simply spectacular, as you can see from the pictures and videos. They must surely be one of Nature´s greatest creations...oh gosh they were amazing! Asidee from the waterfalls there is almost pristine rainforest and so much wildlife in the national park. The walkways in the park get you really up close to the rainforest and waterfalls. Even with Neil´s personal waterfall issues, we still got our money´s worth and stayed for 6 hours.

Another positive from Iguazu is that Neil´s illness kept us well under budget as neither of us felt like eating for 48 hours.

The bus journey back was on a Tutto Letto, super-cama (1st class) bus which had fully horizontal seats, beef for the meal rather than chicken, cognac and two boiled sweets with the obligatory Steven Seagal´s Shadowman film. We were hoping for Jean Claude Van Damme, but he did not materialise.

Our flight to Lima is in the early hours of tomorrow morning, so Peru is next. Until then....


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6th November 2006

Yeah...a smile! Great to read you're still enjoying the journey. Not so much about Neils significant contribution to the iguazu flow rate. Keep it up (no pun intended!). Rico.

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