Wet & Wild
Iguazú Falls – somewhere to just stop and stare.
There’s a massive collection of waterfalls that divide three South American countries, and they roar with pride as the tourists gawk on at them, unsure whether to take another photo or concentrate on concealing the chubby that’s growing in their soggy shorts. Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay all come to meet at this crack in the jungle - it surely has to be one of the most impressive borders in the world, second only to the Bristol Channel and Severn Bridge that separates England and Wales…
Cliché alert: photos and videos do not do this place justice, for real though. Yes, you can snap, snap, and snap some more until every possible angle has been covered and captured, but ultimately it’s the memory of the falls that will serve as the benchmark for sights and scenes that are yet to come in one’s travels. Having said that, we have accumulated some cracking shots of this beast of nature.
There are two sides to the falls, not metaphorically but geographically. The Argentinian side (Iguazú), and the Brazilian side (Iguaçu) both offer sensational views and each have their own slippery lookout points so you can get as close to the falls as physically possible without hurling yourself headfirst into them. There is a boat tour that takes you right into the thick of the falls, South America’s answer to the Maid of The Mist, and, though in comparison to its Canadian counterpart is rather cheap, it’s still an (unnecessary) added extra for a couple of 10-monthers!
Aside from water, mosquitoes, and tourists, you will also, undoubtedly, run into the locals. They’re rowdy, big-nosed, and sometimes very nasty. They walk around like they own the place, because in fact they do. They are the Coatis (pronounced ‘kwotees’) and they are everywhere. They’re funny little things really, like pissed up Racoons bullying their way through the jungle, as if bowling between stag night bars, sniffing for food and knocking into innocent children. They’re quite terrifying, yet strangely likable, and together with the hundreds of thousands of butterflies that have no shame in landing uninvited on any part of you that sticks out, they keep you on your toes.
Iguazú Falls – yet another astounding miracle of nature brought to you by Argentina.
