Blogs from South America - page 5354

To quote Lonely Planet the Iguazu falls are not your average "isn’t gravity nice" type of waterfalls. This one is bigger, better and wider than all the waterfalls I've seen so far combined. Apparently there are close to 300 falls with up to 80 meters height spread out over 2km. As one tourist brochure claims 1.2 million liters of water run over the falls ever second. The waterfalls (the river to be exact) are also the border between Argentina and Brazil which gives both sides the opportunity to extract money out of your pocket. The Argentinean side gives you access to more waterfalls and has more walks (most of the close ups of the small waterfalls are from there) but the Brazilian side has the better overview. The legend has it that the falls were ... read more

Left BA and headed north through the Pampas of Argentina (where all the cows live!). Couple of long truck days got us to the border with Paraguay at Encarnacion. Once into Paraguay we stopped at Trinidad to visit some Jesuit ruins, which included lots of beheaded statues because inhabitants of the site after the Jesuits left thought the statues contained treasures. Then to campsite nearby, the best one yet, with a lovely pool, plus slide and diving board!! Spent the whole morning at the pool the next day, not leaving the site till lunchtime. Got to Ascunsion late afternoon, but like a ghost town, the quietest capital city I´ve ever seen! I suppose it was Sunday, but still.... Attempted a bit of shopping the next day, very traumatic for us girls trying to buy new bikinis, ... read more

So if you're confused by my Virgin Episode, it's because I did my first entry and put some pictures up, but then decided to transfer all my old Sent emails to this website so that I can have a record of my travels. This week has been pretty non-eventful. One, it's because there just aren't as many people at the school who are wanting to do stuff. Second, because I have been spending lots of my budget and I'm not even halfway through my trip. You don't want me to be calling you at your homes and asking for a wire transfer in exchange for reading my intriguing emails, do you? Sunday night we went out for Mexican food. It was okay Mexican food, they did offer us a taster margarita in a shot glass that ... read more

In Rio now after a long but surprisingly awesome bus ride. Although I could not understand the movies, they were constantly playing, and the company provided a few treats and water for the ride along with a blanket and head phones. Aside from the baby that decided to scream at 4am (I have no way to confirm because I don´t have a watch), it went by really quickly. The apartment that we have in Rio is on the 8th floor with three bedrooms and three bathrooms conveniently. The shower is the best shower that I have had on the trip so far with great water pressure and hot water. Yeah, I know it´s 30 degrees all the time and there is no reason to have a hot shower, but damn do they feel good. For the ... read more

Feb 17 started out with me waking up early, finishing packing, and having some more grilled breads from Coco. I got out at 8:30am, just in time to walk Scott to the corner as he headed to the bus station. After he left, my tour bus came and off we went. It was me, another guy, and three pairs of friends and couples. They all spoke Spanish and no one talked to me. This was actually good, as I was too tired to try to organize my Spanish thoughts. We drove around and saw the seven lakes, and stopped several times for photo opportunities. As we neared on another town, all the pairs got out and stayed out. Turns out they all had the same idea I did, they just weren´t going as far as Bariloche. ... read more