When I left Buenos Aires the weather report called for sunny skies and a high of 97 degrees. In packing light I only took shorts, 2 tank tops and my favorite stretchy pants. When I woke up Saturday morning there was a monsoon happening outside the bus. YIKES. So much rain. So so so much rain. When we finally got to Iguazu there were trees lying everywhere, powerlines in the roads, no running water and no electricity. Very interesting. We made our way to our hostel, checked out our options and headed into town to purchase plastic ponchos and wait out the storm. Finally the rain stopped and we walked around town and made our way to a lookout where we saw the convergence of the Iguazu River and Paraná River. These rivers meet to form the international borders of Argentina, Paraguay and Brasil. Pretty incredible to see three countries at once. Kind of like putting arms and legs in different states at Four Corners in the Southwest United States. Eventually we took a city bus back to our hostel and finally saw a different view of South America. Living in Buenos Aires has been so interesting because it is so different than many other countries I have visited. People often say it's a European city, and I think they mean it isn't a very poor city. While I have loved the city, I was glad to get away from the urban-ness and into a more rural setting.
A few hours later, sometime around midnight, the power came back on and we made our way to bed. Sunday we got up early, poured on the bugspray and headed to the falls. SO INCREDIBLE. We were able to walk through parts of the forest and see and hear wildlife. We saw the most beautiful (and huge) butterflies. We saw TOUCANS!!!! So cool! We saw weird racoon-like animals call caoti. It was awesome. We were able to walk out on a series of catwalks over the falls and look down. What a rush! It wasn't possible to see the bottom because of the water spray. Like I said, no words for the experience. After seeing the falls, Cat and I began a jungle hike, but eventually turned back because the trail was totally flooded. We ended up meeting a park ranger who gave us a mini-tour, a great bird book and incredible stories of seeing jaguars and pumas. I love meeting fantastic people!!!
The bus ride home seemed much longer than the trip there, but such is life. There were ups and downs and a lot of rice cakes and laughing. There was a broken window and many stinky diapers :) In total, it was such an incredible incredible experience and I am so thankful for the experience! I wish I could explain the beauty and the wonder of the falls better, but you will have to visit to truly appreciate the WOW factor.
This is my last week in Buenos Aires and I cannot believe it's gone so quickly. I am so thankful for my time here and know I will miss the city and my awesome friends when I leave. When I arrived five weeks ago I was overwhelmed and nervous and a bit fearful about my decision. I am feeling a little bit of these feelings about my upcoming trip to Lima, but I know it will work out. I am loving learning Spanish and spending time with awesome people from around the world. I miss my family and friends so much and I am so thankful to have such an awesome support system to cheer me on throughout my life. Thank you thank you thank you for your love, letters and thoughts!!!
p.s. Antibiotics kick booty! Hasta luego sinus infection!
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