Waterfalls

A very early start to fly to Iguazu so we roused ourselves at 5.30 am.  Bleary eyed and a reduced breakfast and and a twenty minute ride to a different airport in Buenos Aires.  Oh no, the flight was Demorado -delayed so I asked the check in lady how long, she said it wasn't delayed.  I pointed out the departures board and got a shrug so no idea whether we had a wait or not. Well it turned out to be fairly on time which was good as there wasn't much to do at the airport.  Only a short flight but we were served a breakfast of 3 Waggon Wheel type biscuits, I've had better.

We were met by a guide who took us straight to the Argentine side of the Falls.  They are one of the three biggest falls in the world and the biggest in terms of breadth - two and half kms across.  It was a bus ride, kiddy train ride and 30 minute walk to get there in the Iguazu national park but spectacular.  

No need to describe them just look at these selected photos.  Our first view was of the Devil's Throat where the river Iguazu crashes down massively.  If you try to look at the falling water close up, your eyes become disorientated and you feel dizzy and the roar is so loud you can't hear anything else.

The Argentine side showing some of the span

From below the Bossetti Falls

Part of the Devil's Throat

Close up to the Devil's Throat

As for the wild life, we saw in no particular order, capuchin monkeys, coaties, which are a bit like raccoons and something of a pest as they hang around the picnic areas looking for scraps

An armadillo, 

Great big, poisonous caterpillars

big lizards

A huge catfish

All sorts of exotic birds and butterflies everywhere

We did three walks to see the various falls from above them and then below so we were walking for a couple of hours.  Did I say it was 34 degrees? The guide was very knowledgeable and pointed out the wild busy lizziies and begonias as well as the native trees.  It's a sub tropical area as they often get showers, it's also very lush.

Wild busy lizzies

At the end of the tour we were literally exhausted with the heat and the jungle trek so we were keen to get to our 5 star hotel on the Brazilian side of the falls.  We could see it occasionally from the Argentine side, perched on a hill in the forest but we had a 30 minute journey over the bridge over the Iguazu River which separates the two counties.  In the distance we could also see Paraguay. We finally arrived at our hotel Las Cataratas which is a pink and white colonial style group of buildings.

  Our room is not huge but fabulously appointed and the forest view is lovely.  I opened the window and could hear the roar of the falls in the distance, just like being at home with the M25.  As we were looking a bit as if we had been round Romford Market on a hot day, we showered in the luxurious walk in shower where you can sit if you prefer and put our best frocks on.  A couple of mojitos later on the veranda,we headed for the barbecue restaurant by the pool. 

It was a barbecue and grill buffet with a big choice of gourmet dishes.  I tried some heart of palm with shrimp which I have never had before.  I learned later that it takes 10 years for that particular palm to grow big enough to harvest the heart of the bark. But then it grows again. After a wander round the hotel admiring the orchid arrangements we headed up to our room.

Lynn incognito

  Because we are in the heart of the forest, there is no light pollution so the skies are incredibly clear with big fireflies darting about and the whole garden area is lit with those new flameless flickering candles.  In the room, I popped on my complimentary Havaianas and started on my blog.  Am having difficulty moving the photos on my phone over to my iPad and similarly the video I have taken of the falls so I will publish them another time.