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Published: January 28th 2009
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PUERTO IGUAZU
Our last stop in Argentina before we would try to make it across the border to Brazil. What would we do if they didn't give us a visa? We would either have to go all the way back down to Buenos Aires and fly home from there, fly directly to Columbia, or take a bus around Bolivia, through Chile, through Peru, through Ecuador to get to Columbia. The only problem was international plane tickets within South America are ridiculously expensive. $1,000 to $2,000 per person! And a bus to Columbia would probably be 140 hours. So we were really hoping to get into Brazil, but we were stressing over the application forms. Technically we needed a plane ticket out of Brazil even though we were traveling overland. We needed a printed bank statement, copy of our drivers license, and credit cards. We had all that (except plane tickets, which Ammi had lovingly forged) but we weren't going to give them over unless we were asked for them. Ammi spent the next two days making herself sick. She had done so much research on the internet about how difficult it was for Americans to get a Brazilian visa that
Looks like a Bob Ross painting
Here's a happy little water fall, and maybe over here lives a happy little bush she was sure we would not get them. We showed up to the Brazilian consulate, filled out the application, paid our $130 and he told us to come back at 1pm. That was it. We were so relived. We came back at 1 and had our Brazilian visas! No hassle, no red tape. Who has a Brazilian visa? WE DO! WOO HOO!
The other reason we wanted to see Puerto Iguazu was to see Iguazu Falls. A large amount the rain that falls in Brazil flows here with an absurd amount of water per minute. Niagra Falls ain't got nothing on this place. And the wildlife is amazing! Just as we started walking on the trails we were swarmed by these racoon looking animals. It was magical. The falls themselves really are spectacular. It was incredibly scenic and made me want to learn to paint.
That morning, we had to chose between two different tours, a boat trip of the falls, or a moonlit tour of the falls. “Everyone does the boat trip. The moonlit walk only happens once a month. It will be special.” So as we were walking though the hot jungle, pouring sweat we looked
with envy at the people on the boat riding UNDER the water falls. Our mouths salivated. We hoped to get home and take a nap before the night tour, but we barely got home before we had to set out again. I was so tired, ready for bed, and now we had to do it all over again. The moonlit tour was OK, but we saw the same things we had already seen during the day.
The only problem with Puerto Iguazu is that it's a bottle neck for tourists. The Gringo Trail was full of the most annoying tourists from every nation. We had four Americans in our room (who were sharing three beds) whose idea of good travel was getting as wasted as possible in different countries. Most of the time staying in hostels it's not too bad, then you get these guys that come home at 5 o'clock in the morning, stumbling about drunkenly, waking everyone up, and making us ashamed to be Americans. “Are you still hungry,” one of the girls asked another. “Because I grubbed out, yo!” and “Set your alarm, we gotta wake up mad early, yo.” One of the guys was sleeping
falls 2
Can you see the people? Click to enlarge on the top bunk and STEPPED ON our Australian friend below him as he scrambled up. We've decided that we have an obligation as Americans to tell these people that they are the reason that some people don't like us. Be respectful! If you just want to get wasted do it at home! Anyway, that was my two little cents.
We hope you like the pictures. Next stop Pantanal, Brazil.
***TRAVELERS' TIPS***
-Dont do the full moon walk by the falls. You seem the exact same stuff during the day.
-If you're an American, this is a good place to get your Brazilian visa. It's hassle free, but it's only a 30 days visa.
-The HI hostel directly across from the bus station is a good value for the money, but it's where all the people who stumble home drunk at 4 AM stay.
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Sydney
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WOW!
Guys, the pictures are amazing! WOW!!