Iguazu - Water masses and jungle

From Buenos Aires, we take a detour to Puerto Iguazu, where you can admire the huge waterfalls in the Iguazu National Park. Puerto Iguazu is located directly on the border with Brazil, so there is an Argentinean and a Brazilian side of the falls. Allegedly, the Argentinean side is much more beautiful, what luck. When we get off the bus, we are greeted by tropical heat. Fortunately, our hotel is not far away and our room has air conditioning. Lisa is also pleased that there is a family of cats in the courtyard. We rest for a while in the air-conditioned room and take a shower, then we walk towards the market, because there should be some good treats here and our stomachs are growling. We stroll through the little town, it's actually quite nice here and above all very quiet. The market consists of various stalls and small restaurants, all of which offer almost the same dishes: Picadas (various cheese morsels, salami, and olives) and Empanadas. All prices here are quoted in pesos and reais, as apparently Brazilians also like to eat here. We sit down and enjoy delicious and spicy cheese and olives, and Sebastian of course also enjoys the good salami.

The next morning, the time has finally come: we go to the Iguazu National Park. Here there are not only famous waterfalls, but also various hiking trails and a train through the park. You can not only walk along the river towards the waterfalls, but also above, where the insane masses of water rush down. There is also an island below the falls with a viewpoint to be able to see everything up close. Unfortunately, the island is closed today because of the water level. What a pity.

For now, we decide to take the two hiking trails and follow the path through the green thicket. To the right and left of us are not only huge trees and tropical plants, but also huge spider webs with inhabitants. Suddenly we hear a faint rustling. It gets louder and louder. The path clears a bit and we look down on a huge river and catch the first glimpse of the Iguazu waterfalls. WOW! We keep walking, getting closer and closer to the waterfalls. Of course, we also take the upper path, which leads up to the river and to the top of the waterfalls. Up here, the river is extremely wide. In order to cross it and be able to admire the waterfalls from all sides, the river is accessible with long wooden walkways. Unfortunately, up here we don't see any tropical animals other than a few water birds and fish. No toucan, no monkeys. Instead, we make ourselves look like monkeys, because since Christmas is just around the corner and we want to send some greetings, we brought our Christmas hats that we bought in Buenos Aires. We thought the Iguazu waterfalls would make a nice background! So we take Christmas selfies at 35 degrees and 90% humidity.

Now we are heading to the Devil's Throat- here you can see the masses of water plunging into a deep abyss, with a rainbow above it. On the way to the train that takes us to the throat, we encounter some coatis. These cheeky little animals roam around and look into various backpacks and handbags - maybe they'll find something to nibble on here? The train turns out to be a small steam train, and we set off.

The throat with all its masses of water is really worth seeing, and we also discover the rainbow, although a bit further down in the abyss.

Unfortunately, we didn't see any of the jaguars that live here in the park. Despite being well prepared with the advice from the Lonely Planet: 'If you encounter a jaguar, speak to the animal loudly and soothingly, and never turn your back on it. To make yourself appear larger, you can paddle with your arms or wave a piece of clothing.' What a shame.

It was still beautiful here!