Last Monday after the horrid Sunday event I headed up to Iguazu Falls 20 hours North of BA. It was the best decision I could have made. I arrived late Tuesday morning *with my borrowed camera in hand...and found a lovely hostel called Timbo.
The next few days were filled with busy activity. I decided after my recent losses I needed to go out of South America with a bang!
Tuesday afternoon I jumped aboard a jeep and ventured into the Argentine Jungle...
though not as impressive as Manu in Peru it was definitely worth seeing. I got the low down on much of the flora and fauna and saw MONKEYS...a ton of them...fast little buggers couldn't catch them on camera...but man were they were so cute...jumping tree to tree and lounging on branches looking at us.
Wednesday morning I woke early and headed for the falls. At 9am I was boarding a large land rover type machine that was to drive me and 30 others through the jungle to our boat ride that would take us directly under the famous falls.
When we reached the river I jumped aboard a large ...very large...jet boat...after being harnessed in we took off at rocket speeds down the river between Brazil and Argentina towards iguaza falls. Ripping through rapids and speeding past large rocks...with whoops and hollers from all the passengers...it was quite the beginning of a great adventure. 15 minutes later the falls came into view...spectacular...everywhere you looked....walls of water...amazing, astounding, gigantic and beautiful. The boat zoomed back and forth between the Brazil side and Argentine side...diving through cascades and drenching all 30 of us from head to toe.
After many an encore through the cascades we docked along the side of the river and departed the boat.
I continued the rest of the day on my own. Wandering on paths looking for the best view and most advantages photo angles. It started to rain but you could hardly tell because the mist from the powerful plunging water made it hard to decipher rain from river. Besides the many retarded and stupid tourists present that day for their guided and video taped tour...I had a great time. I returned to the hostel late in the afternoon drenched to the bone, tired but satisfied.
Thurs. morning I once again woke up early and lept into my EXTREME adventure. A day of physical exertion and risks of will...
Rock climbing
Canopying
(Sorry no picture...was a bit high in the air and whizzed by too fast to capture it)
Repelling
and swimming in the river
It was fantastic! We trekked into the jungle to a well used and beginner...thank god...climbing wall. I incredibly enough was able to hoist my rather voluptuous form up the cliffs edge...though at the very end I had to cheat a bit and take the easier route...I will say I was proud of my first attempt.
When at the top of the wall I was immediately strapped to a small seat and pushed down a thin cable speeding over tree tops and creeks to a small platform below. After completing two such runs...I ending up once again at my climbing wall and was harnessed for the repel down...by MYSELF...yep that was a bit freaky...BUT I DID it and I am still in one piece!
After all were finished we jumped aboard a little African Queen type boat and putted to a small swimming hole to wash of the jungle heat. When well cooled off we boarded the boat and headed down the river to the meeting point of the three main South American rivers...45 minutes later I found myself in the middle of the water between Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina...it was quite impressive. (of course the battery on the camera was dead by this time...so no image...in the memory)
Thursday afternoon I boarded a bus...heading back to BA...recovered, refreshed and ready for more...4 days left in South American...YIKES!
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