Blogs from Iguaçu National Park, Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná, Brazil, South America - page 13

Monday 14th April By 1030am we need to be checked out so enjoy another good breakfast, check luggage into the storage rooms and are ready for our 3rd country in 3 days! We're off to Paraguay (optional extra). No messing around at the border this time... They're there but there's no stamping in/out this time. Across the bridge and we're into Paraguay... Or one town of it where electronics, branded goods, etc. can be purchased cheaply. Just interested to see but manage to replace my camera case and get another memory card. Help Lila and Staurt replace their stolen mobile phones... Engage in a bit of bargaining, but the price doesn't shift much. Amazing what you can buy here! Next stop, the supermarket. Here there's a chance to buy lunch 'per kilo' - pretty cheap/good option... ... read more

We moved over to Brazil on the Thursday to see what they have to offer across the border. The Brazilian side of the falls is surprisingly a lot more commercialised than the Argentinian side and they have organised a lot more activities that you can do (which obviously cost extra on top of the entrance). They actually have very few falls on Brazilian territory as it is mostly on the Argentina side, but the views are more spectacular because you can see it all at once. Again, we got some cool rainbows (see pics) and plenty of pretty waterfalls and blue sky! Our first taster of Brazil has been pretty good. Our hostel is very nice with a swimming pool and hammocks, the people are friendly and there are amazing juice bars everywhere. I think we're ... read more

Yesterday I went to the Brazilian side of the Iguazu falls. I took an excursion that was supposed to include biking through the jungle, riding a boat on the river, and kayaking. We didn´t bike because it was too muddy, the boat ride was not that exciting, and the kayaks were so crappy we couldn´t go in a straigt line, it kept going in circles. A disappointing start. However, after that, we went to see the falls, and they made everything better. The view from the Brazilian side is more of a panoramic view, so I saw all the places I went to the day before, on the Argentinian side, from across the river. We also got close to some of the waterfalls, and that was just as much fun as on the Argentinian side. We ... read more

After moving to Australia, a Brazilian friend of mine once said the biggest difference between our two cultures is that Brazilians drink until they’ re happy and then they dance, whereas Australians drink and drink until they fall over. It didn’t take me long after arriving in Brazil to see what she was talking about. Salvador-Bahia I flew into a hot and sunny Salvador-Bahia 2 days before the world’s biggest party kicked off. I stayed at a hostel in Pelourinho- the city’s beautiful heritage part of town and waited for my younger brother, Jimmy, to arrive. It was great to have a couple of pre-Carnaval days catching up with Jimmy and checking out the historical area while the buzz around town was steadily building. The hostel rates during Carnaval went up by as much as $100 ... read more

Leaving the Pantanal After our two and a half hour ride back to Swampy on the "4x4" we set off again for another delightful day of driving with a free camp in a service station next to a road. Hmmm. Well at least it didn't rain! We then continued on south to Foz do Iguacu, the Brazilian town for the Iguazu falls. The journey was a first for me for two reasons. Firstly, I read. I was so fed up of being bored I thought I'd risk travel sickness for some amusement and I was actually ok! For about 15 minutes. Secondly I slept on the floor which up till now I had been refusing to do but its much easier to sleep down there! So we eventually arrived at our "Camping International" which was to ... read more