Cataratas del Iguazú

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The car took us back to the hotel as we were hoping to hear some more about the backpack but they had not received any calls. We tried to ring the number they had provided us with but nobody answered it both times we tried. As you can imagine, we were really rather fed up by this point, and both beginning to think that they were not going to find the bag and that we'd lost some stuff for good. The driver who had taken us to Brazil was going back to the airport to collect some other people so kindly offered to ask at the LAN desk for us. About half an hour after he left, he called to the hotel to say that LAN said that it was on the next flight into Iguazu that day and they would bring it to the hotel. While we were somewhat relieved, we would not be completely happy until we had the bag in our hands but we left for the afternoon feeling a little better.

The sun had come out so we didn't mind the wait at the bus stop and once we arrived at the entrance, we jumped on the mini train through the jungle to take us to the walkway out to the other side of the Garganta del Diablo. The trail takes you across the much more tranquil upper reaches of the river, before the water disappears over the edge of the falls and has a number of small islands and quite a few birds and fish, all apparently oblivious to how close they were to possible destruction! And when we got to the falls......wow! There's really no way to describe the amazing power of the water, the beautiful rainbows and the drenching we got from the spray. It really surpassed all my expectations and we had to drag ourselves away to catch the last train back, just stopping to watch a few birds on the way.

We were both rather nervous walking back from the bus stop to the hotel but there it was when we got back to reception, complete and undamaged which just made it into a perfect day. To cap it off we decided to treat ourselves to the best restaurant in town (bear in mind it's a small town) and we both indulged in a bit of cow heaven with a great bottle of wine.

But we still had another day yet and a lot more to see. There's all sorts of bits of the falls and different walkways to see them and each seems to get better and better. It was a beautiful sunny day with fantastic rainbows in the spray from the falls and we hiked and climbed all over the place to see them. We also took a ride in a boat right up under the walls - like the most powerful shower you've ever been in multiplied 10 times. Even in waterproofs it managed to get into all the nooks and crannies but was great fun and another way to see the falls. There's an island in the middle of the river below the falls which has a small beach and we had a while to dry out in the sun on there before climbing to the top of the island for a last, and possibly most spectacular, look at the falls.

So, while it didn't quite turn out as planned and we didn't have quite as much time as we would've liked, it did turn out to be an "awesome" experience (as our American friends would say!) and we would certainly go back.

The following morning we nervously watched Hugh's pack go onto the carousel at the airport (though this time he probably had half his belongings in his hand luggage!) and got back on board to return to Buenos Aires where we were to move into our new temporary home. And how is it.....find out next time.

Lots of love

S + H xx

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Comments

[jonathan]

Hey Guys
Some spectacular photos there. The falls look amazing. I hope your taxi driver got a hefty tip... J x

[jon peacock]

truly awesome...
...to join in with the lingo. Great pictures, amazing falls, good to keep up with your travels. Shame about the fever, luggage, knees and so on. We are off to Friesland tomorrow, hoping for a less eventful journey. Probably no waterfalls either, too flat.

[Sarah H.]

Looks absolutely amazing! Glad to hear that Hugh's re-united with his luggage too!