Brazil, here we come... 30 Aug 09


Well, we went to bed at 8pm last night and were fast asleep soon afterwards so after 10H of solid sleep, we were ready to make the most of the day as of 6.30am. We watched the sun rise change the sky colours from pink to blue gradually and so enjoyed listening to the sounds of exotic birds (we had a jungle view room).


Our whole day was packed with treats.... the first one was breakfast, full buffet, all pretty yummy, even some detox juices (parlsey, celery, carrots) and the most fantastic views of the falls, with its huge spray. It was a totally glorious morning, not ONE cloud in the skies....


Our driver was on time and at 8.30am sharp, we drove off to the Brazilian border with our passports. US citizens have to pay $100 for a Visa but we didn´t need any :)


Our first adventure of the day was to trek the Brazilian side of the falls as I figured the sun would be shining on the falls in the morning, and sure enough, they were. After our beautiful leisurely walk, Nathalie agreed with me that both sides are equally stunning and it is impossible to choose a favourite as they offer totally different view points. We walked from the Tropical de Cataratats Hotel to the lift with the view over the falls (end of the trail). Every 10 m was a photo opp and we lost count of the numbers of rainbows and double rainbows that we saw that day. I´d never seen so many in my life... ever so gorgeous. It did look like Heaven in so many ways...


We had lunch in the restaurant that overlooks the river. Huge buffet, not much to our liking, but it was so relaxing to wash the cormorans try and fish and listen to the falls in the distant background that we could have spent all day there... We did see numerous coatis too and they are SO cute. I really wanted to take one back home... I´m in love with them.


We then had to get the bus back to the main entrance as our driver was not allowed to pick us up inside the park. They have these rules so that we can only employ Brazilian drivers if we want this kind of service, and vice versa. The park buses run every 7 mins or so, so it wasn´t too bad and it was a double decker bus, open on top, so it gave us a different perspective I guess.


We couldn´t spend more than 40 mins over lunch though, pleasant as it was, as there was SO much more to do whilst in Brazil. At 1pm we hooked up with our driver again and we went to Parque De Aves, the Bird Park that I had so loved previously. It was as special as I remembered and Nathalie loved the tucans as much as I did. They are so inquisite and one was so "tame" that he was quite happy being stroked gently on his back. Nathalie didn´t dare in case it turned round and bit her finger but I felt quite safe with them really.


We spent 2h30 in there (some tourists do it in 40 mins but it´d be such a shame to rush such a beautifully made park, it has the same quality as Belize Zoo, as it is built within the jungle itself).


Just across the road was the helicopter point so we went in and decided that for US$100 for 10 mins, we would go mad and do the ride over the falls as it was a "now or never" type of moment. It was a bit too high for our tastes, I had seen just as much from my airplane when one lands from Sao Paolo into Foz do Iguacu. It was neat to do it, but it would not come in my top 5 experiences in Iguassu as such and I have no intention to do it again - once was enough. It did shrink the perspective too much though I was lucky to be seated right at the front !!! A first for me... but I did miss not having a stabiliser on my camera it was impossible to take pin sharp shots due to the vibration on the helicopter. Some shots are very neat but I can´t blow them up too much otherwise it will show that they are a bit blurred.


Then we went back into the park (had to go to a special window to be allowed back in without paying a 2nd fee) and stopped at the Macuco Safari Boat stop with the bus. There were just about to depart as we arrived so we hopped on a little train that took us deep into the jungle, then switched to a 4x4 and got to the floating platform on the river.


I was wearing a Mac I'd bought ages ago in England and was really pleased with my forward planning. Nathalie bought a $3 plastic poncho on the spot on the said platform and as it turns out, I ended up soaked from top to bottom, and she stayed fairly dry. Go figure !!! It was quite good fun to ride the waves and to get so close to a fall (we almost went right underneath on 4 occasions) but when you are too close you just can´t keep your eyes open as water gets in your eyes. So, in effect, you see a lot less. I did do a few videos as I´d taken my small camera and put it in a plastic bag to protect it. Nathalie really wasn´t sure if she´d enjoy this but she did great. And I was right, the falls did look bigger looking at them from the bottom up.

After that, we were starting to feel a bit tired and it was getting dark (it´s totally dark at 6.40pm) so it was time to drive back the one hour to the Sheraton, cross the border again, etc. As it happens, there was a safari boat tour from the Argentinian side too, but the hotel staff had misled us into thinking you could only do this from Brazil. So it was really frustrating to have to then spend an hour to go back to our new home when we would have been back in 5 mins tops if we had landed on the opposite shore ! Oh well, you live and learn...

We had a well earned shower, dinner and crashed in bed some afterwards. No need for Nytol (sleeping pills) for me, I slept like a baby courtesy of the lovely orange liquor they serve us at dinner. In fact, Nathalie & I did amazingly well. We got over the journey instantly. Slept 10H and were back on our feet, full of energy all day long without a hint of jet-lag. Great ! ;)

We just missed our friends terribly as this is such a peaceful, beautiful, almost spiritual place and it really is spectacular. I already dread leaving.... and I think I will come back again, one day... God willing.

The long journey back to Iguazu - 28 Aug 09


It has taken Nathalie and I about 28 hours before we could check-in at the Sheraton in Iguazu National Park but it was SO worth it when we landed that the endless journey is already all forgotten and we are on a complete high from the adreline flowing.


Iberia was as dreadful as ever, our first flight was 30 mins late, but it still left us with two hours to spare in Madrid before we caught our 2nd flight. That one was about 15 mins late, but also still left us with two hours to spare in Buenos Aires before we got onto our flight for Iguazu. I managed to sleep a bit on the longest leg (12H15) but Nathalie having much longer legs struggled a lot more than I did. But I pretty much slept like a baby as we had decent leg room behing right behind a section and not another row of seats.


Food on the short haul was a total rip off, they charged 4 euros for a tiny sandwich made of dry bread, two tiny slides of cheese and no butter. I wouldn't have even served it to my birds on my balcony... but these were desperate measures.... still, next time we will definitely buy a sandwich before we board. Anything else would have been better... Of course, Iberia being one of the world´s airlines there was hardly any entertainment either. Just a couple of movies at night but they were for all to see, not for each of us to select what we wanted to see.... so, I didn´t miss anything by sleeping. If they were not half the price that British Airways charges, we´d never fly Iberia again, but "beggers can´t be choosers" and we are not millionaires yet.


Buenos Aires looked nice, the little we saw of it from the cab. The airport overlooks the sea so and cab rides went very smoothly, I have to say. The guys were there and all our pieces of luggage turned up too. Big sight of relief as I had my friend´s ashes in my checked-in luggage.


We got our first glimpse of the falls from the air (Nathalie got a window seat, thank God), a bit too far for any decent photos though but at least we could see the spray was high in the air which was a good sign: more water.


In case you didn´t know, Brazil had experienced its worst drought in 80 years in May this year and they had only had 20% of the usual amount of rain falling. So I´d been really worried ever since wondering if the falls would look as spectacular as they had, first time I saw them (the 2nd was also not great -- downpour and fewer falls due another unusual drought in July 2007).


So, when Nathalie and I walked our first trail (after a well earned shower !) we were like WOW because we had a perfect, perfect day. The kind of day we did not dare dream of. Beautiful golden light, masses of water and not one, but TWO rainbows to greet us. It was just awesome. She was so excited... and I think it´s probably of the best sightings I´ve seen.


We were also greeted by 3 types of really cute birds, quite big, yellow underneath, blue on top, and they looked like soft toys. Not shy at all. We also saw some small ones on the lawn of the hotel - almost like canaries.


The hotel, I have to say, did not disappoint either. Again, I was expecting it to be pretty average as so many people on Trip Advisor had put it down saying it looked old and they´d made no effort to upgrade it or apply fresh coats of paint, etc. but I found it to be superb. Nathalie and I were both really happy with our room and the hotel grounds are great, with a big outdoor pool and the views of the falls in the background. It also has great restaurants with very nice menus and the prices aren´t as astronomical as I´d feared either. About 10 UK pounds for a risotto... well, I can think of many West End restaurants that would charge that and they wouldn´t be able to offer the kind of backdrop that you´d get here. Our big regret is that if we had timed it a bit better, we could have enjoyed a meal right by the Devil´s Throat (the biggest of all the falls) by moonlight. Everybody says it´s a magical, unforgettable experience but the full moon is happening about 4 days after we´re gone. Oh well... I guess it´ll give me a reason to come back one day.


We are hoping to go over to Brazil tomorrow. We are considering several options... we´ll definitely go to Parques de Aves because I really want Nathalie to experience how utterly gorgeous and inquisitve tucans can be (and you can walk in an aviary where they come to you) and I really want her to experience the Macuco Boat Safari where they take you right to the bottom of the falls, and we are debating whether to book a helicopter flight as well but it would only be for 10-12 minutes and would cost US$100, which is quite pricey. We saw quite a few fly over the falls today but they were quite high up... and I worry the perspective will shrink. I am convinced the better view is from the bottom up, to appreciate the height and magnitude of the falls, but who knows... We will play it by ear and see what the weather´s like as well.


On this note, I´ll love you and leave you and will head for dinner as we are getting quite hungry. It is +4H in our stomachs, so we´re well overdue for a meal.


I really wish you could all be here... it is really is an unparalleled sight on Planet Earth.


Bisous, Sylvie x