Sunday, May 26, 2019
Puerto Iguazu and the Iguazu Falls
Llew Sees The Iguazu Falls at Last:
Buenos Dias from Buenos Aires!
The reason for our early awakening was our overnight excursion to Puerto Iguazu, the small town that makes a base for exploring the famed Iguazu Falls, one of the highlights of a trip to South America. I had seen them before, about 5 years ago, when I had participated in a conference held at Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. The Falls have the most unique location: they lie at the exact confluence of three major countries: Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, and can be viewed from all of them. It is said that seeing them from each perspective is a different experience. My experience, seeing them from Foz de Iguazu on the Brazilian side, had been stunning to say the very least. I expected a similar sighting this time. However, it was very different. The Falls are created by the merging of two main rivers: the Rio Iguazu and the Rio Paraguay which, as they rush down the heights of the terrain, create voluminous drops and sheets of water through immense heights.
Our flight took 90 minutes, Just before landing, we caught sight of the river and could see wisps of cloud and smoke emerging from it at various points. We realized later that these were the points at which smaller drops existed. They created the streams of spray and mist that looked from a height like clouds.
We disembarked quickly, found a pre-paid taxi service and hopped in for 200 pesos each (about $4) to get to our hotel which is right in the midst of the Rain Forest and far away from the town of Puerta Iguazu. Several other passengers got into the vehicle (a mini-van) outside the airport that is being completely renovated and reconstructed and is in quite a sorry state at the moment as construction continues.
It took us 35 minutes to be dropped in this shuttle to our hotel—La Aldea Lodge de Selva. We entered the Reception area that sits right in the middle of a large restaurant where all three meals are available and breakfast comes with room tariff. We had arrived far earlier than check-in time and were permitted to use the washroom and take only what we needed for the day. We left most of our belongings behind and ordered a taxi to take us to the Falls. Our driver was Lucas. He spoke no English and we speak no Spanish. Most drivers have a translation app and it is through this device that communication is done,
We were dropped off at the Entrance to the Parquo Nacional Iguazu (Iguazu National Park) where Lucas told us that he would ick us up at 5.30 Pm. This worked for us as it gave us about 7 hours in the park and at the Falls. At the Ticket counter, we paid 200 pesos each and received tickets and maps which also entitled us to the use of a free train that runs periodically in the park. Armed with this knowledge, we set out to take in the sights.
On Foot Along the Green Trail to Central Station:
We did the first bit of walking in the Rail Forest when we got into the park and make our way to the train station. It would not be around for a half hour—so we were advised to walk along the Green Trail for ten minutes and pick up tickets at Central Station. This worked for us and was a very pleasant walk. We began to see the first of what would be large herds of coatis—scavenging animals native to the region that look raccoon-like except that they have pointed snouts like ant-eaters. They forage for food and one is warned to keep food and food bags out of sight as they grab it from unsuspecting visitors. I found myself on my toes while on the lookout for them as they are greedy, aggressive and quarrelsome.
At the Central Station, we were given free tickets for the next train for which we had to wait for another half hour. During that time, we browsed through a shop and bought a magnet of the Falls as well as a post card. We also munched on our packed breakfasts as we were hungry by this point.
When the open train did get there, we found lovely window seats and enjoyed the ride during which we were trailed by a whole host of colorful butterflies in varied sizes. We also saw a lot of capuchin monkeys on the trail—they are constantly at war with the coatis.
Arrival at the Devil’s Throat Station:
The Devil’s Throat is the name given to the most stunning bit of the Falls in Argentina. It is a massive drop of water that falls so far below that you cannot see the base. It sends up clouds of spray and mist that can completely drench the visitor depending in the direction in which the wind is blowing.
To get to the vantage point, one must walk for a good long mile along wooden walkways that are constructed above the river. Some bird life is evident if one is lucky. We saw a black cormorant in the rocks and a bird that we could not identify fishing in the shallow waters in search of fish that she surfaced in order to eat.
Hundreds, if not thousands of people, were using the walkway and there was heavy traffic. When we did eventually get there, we were fascinated by the sight of the main Falls that fell from a horse-shoe shaped ledge (similar to Niigara but not as deep) and similar to the Victoria Falls in that one sees it falls as from a straight flat ledge right ahead. Many other minor Falls cascade down this ledge as far as the eye can see. The power of the water and the proximity from which one views the falls is quite special here. That said, on the Brazilian side, one has about ten different sites from which one can see the Falls in different vistas. They are almost layered there as they fall from one ledge to the next to the next like a tiered fountain. I personally found the impact from the Brazilian side far more arresting.
We spent about a half hour at this point, taking pictures and videos and jostling for space with other visitors, some of whom had bought plastic ponchos and were able to stand much longer in the spray.
Eventually, we moved away to start the long mile walk back to the Railway station so that we could return to Central Station. That happened in about another half hour.
In Search of Lunch:
It was time to pause and take in lunch and since there was a good deal—an all-you-can-eat buffet in the neighboring restaurant for $10 each— we decided to go for it. It offered a wide selection of salads plus grilled chicken, beef and sausage and a desserts bar of fresh fruit. Everything was very tasty and the grilled items offered us our first taste of Argentinian churascaria (although we still intend going to a nice restaurant to enjoy a really good well-aged steak).
On the Inferior Circuit Trail to the Minor Falls:
We lingered for a long while at the restaurant and then decided to take one of the trails that would lead us on foot to the minor falls. However, on calculating the amount of time at our disposal, we realized that we could only get the taste of one of the trails on the Inferior Circuit. And after about half an hour of walking the trail, much of which went downhill down very steep stairways, we caught a glimpse of the first sets of Falls (Salto Alvar Nunez) and decided to retrace our steps back in order not to be late for our meeting with Lucas.
We managed to get a couple more free train rides through the thick lush vegetation of the Rain Forest that was filled with singing birds before we made our way back to the entrance. Lucas was prompt and was waiting for us when we reached. He whisked us off in his car for the half hour ride back to our hotel where we reached just as dusk had fallen.
Enjoying our De Luxe Upgraded Suite in our Hotel:
Since it was already dark, we did not venture upon the balcony attached to our lovely suite in the hotel. To reach it, we had to walk along wooden walkways, identical to the ones we had walked along at Hamilton Camp in Kruger National Park in South Africa when we had gone on safari. In fact, the only thing missing here was the water hole that offered uninhibited views from our balcony of the animals as they came to drink. This balcony overlooked the thickness of the Rain Forest and came with a hammock, a hot tub and other amenities—if only we had known. It was silly of the hotel personnel not to point this out to us.
Had we known, we wouldn't have had showers but would have used the beckoning hot tub instead.
Still, we decided to make the most of the luxury suite and ordered drinks (Wine and shandy) to the room so that we could relax completely and get our showers, try out the TV channels and find CNN and BBC in English. We were both tired and ready to slow down as the night closed in about us. Neither of us felt the need for dinner as our lunch had been so huge and we were still stuffed. Just drinks and a few snacks did the trick before we called it a night after what had been a most visually stimulating day.
Until tomorrow
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