Lindas, hermosas, ricas...you name it, these waterfalls live up to, if not surpass, all of them. The Parque Nacional de Iguazu is easily the most beautiful place I've ever been. The Iguazu Falls are brilliant, untouched, and the vast majority of people (including myself until I researched Argentina) have no idea they exist.

I traveled to Iguazu via a 17 hour bus ride. I'd never been transported continously for that long but since each way I took an overnight bus the trip really wasn't too bad and I didn't even need to recharge my iPod for the return trip. Between movies, complimentary drinks, and talking to people the time passed quickly. As a reference point, Puerto de Iguazu (the town of Iguazu) is in the province "Misiones" which is at the very Northeastern point of Argentina. The Iguazu River actually serves as the Argentina/Brazil border though most of the vantage points exist on the Argentina side.

(FYI: I had wanted to travel to Brazil and see the Falls from that side and travel to Foz de Iguazu (Brazilian city of 30,000) but in retaliation for how the US treats Brazilians who want to visit America, Brazil charges America over $100 for a day visa (matching the US price as I understand it) and doesn't like allowing Americans to leave its borders.)

As it turns out a short walk from Puerto Iguazu leads to the Tres Fronteras (Three Borders) from which we could see the intersections of three rivers, one each side of which was a different country. Thus, from Argentina we could see both Brazil and Paraguay. We made the trek our first day in Iguazu after hanging around the hostel a bit, mustering up energy to leave.

We stayed at the Marco Polo Hostel, costing each of us $12 per night, and the place was ideal for what we were doing. About 30 of the 100 students in my group went to Iguazu though not all of them stayed in the same hostel and only a few of us booked trips together--so it was ideal to have lots of friends staying in the hostel with us while we went off and did our own thing during the day.

When we walked out of the bus station the hostel was directly across the street. I stayed in a 5 person room with friends from the program and we had free access to a pool, kitchen, ping-pong table, computers with internet, and a complimentary breakfast--all of which we used (though as the pool was freezing most people opted not to use it). I met three travelers (from Germany, France, and Spain) who traveled from Buenos Aires to Puerto Iguazu on the same bus I did and were staying at the Marco Polo so we hung out and played a lot of ping-pong and plan to hang out back in BaAs.



There are a few reasons I chose to go to Iguazu at this time of the year. First, while not cold by Connecticut standards it is still late winter in Buenos Aires and traveling from Buenos Aires to Puerto Iguazu in August is like driving from D.C. to Florida as far as climate goes. Thus, I decided to go up north during the winter and wait until it's warmer to visit the southern locations like Patagonia that currently have snow (I'm not much of a skier). Additionally, during the winter plants need to absorb less water; because of this fact the Falls have much more water in the winter than in the summer.

Anyway, our first full day there about 10 of us got up early and left for the Falls. we had splurged and signed up for the Gran Aventura (Great Adventure) which is the premium tour of the Falls, whereas other people did only the Nautical Adventure for half the price, but I'm convinced the money was well spent. We went to the Gran Aventura right when we got to the park, but had about a 20 minute wait until it embarked...so naturally a friend and I taught the others some Capoeira.





The Gran Aventura first took us on a 25 minute ride through the jungle on a 4X4 with a guide. We didn't see a lot of exotic animals which was unfortunate and even though everyone on the bus said they wanted the tour in Spanish the guide ended up speaking English most of the time. It was a nice intro to the jungle though it wasn't that exciting overall.



The second part of the Adventure was boating through the rapids of the Iguazu River. This part was certainly more adventurous, especially when we starting approaching the larger of the Falls. I definitely think the best way to first see the Falls is via boat because you really get a sense of how enormous they are when approaching them from the level of the River.



Also, note (from the pictures) the weather we had each day we went. While later in the second day the weather got cloudy, until then it was bright, sunny, dry, and around 80 degrees.

The third part of the Adventure was easily the best, not to mention something that would break dozens of safety codes in the US. Our boats took us under two of the largest waterfalls Iguazu has to offer. The water pressure is enormous with more water coming off the Iguazu Falls than any others in the world. To put things in perspective: the surface area of Iguazu's Falls are well over double that of Niagara, not to mention 50% taller at certain parts. The memory of that crazy boat ride will certainly stick with me for a long time.






After the Gran Aventura we walked through the 2nd half of the Lower Trail back toward the central area. The vistas we saw from the trail were incredible, and as we walked down the path toward the Falls they only got better. I feel like I could talk about the Falls for hours but as I think I've written enough already, I'll let some pictures do the talking for me.

















After returning from the Falls on Saturday and playing a bit of ping-pong during Happy Hour, I brought some friends to a restaurant I'd read about online called "La Rueda." The place was very upscale and expensive for portenos at 40-60 pesos an entree, but with our favorable exchange rate this upscale meal cost $12-$17. I ordered the wine for the table and spoke most with the waiter and he decided to call me "Caballero," which was quite amusing. I ordered Dorado al Ruedo (native fish caught there made as the chef recommends it) which was delicious and ironically (since Buenos Aires is a port city) the first time all trip I'd eaten fish.



On Sunday most of us (myself included) couldn't pass up returning to the Falls, especially because we had half-price return tickets on top of our 66% student discounts. We walked the entire Lower Trail, ate lunch on the premises, and then most people left to catch their buses while I stayed with a friend who was on a later bus with me and we explored a bit more.

I was actually legitimately saddened by leaving Iguazu...not that I'm generally excited about 17 hour bus rides, but I really can't get over the whole experience. I strongly encourage anyone who can to get to Iguazu at some point--it seems like one of the few majestic, natural wonders left untouched.

...then again I didn't know it existed until a few months ago, so who knows what's out there.