Wind-blown

Foz do Iguaçu Vacation: Part VII

We headed back to Porto Alegre on Friday and made it back Saturday. It took us only 15 hours to get home as opposed to the 17 it took to get to Foz do Iguaçu. It was such a great getaway. We really enjoyed sharing it with you.

It took me a few days to figure out how to get a good slide show going. I finally figured it out. These are all photos that I haven't yet posted. Enjoy!

Foz do Iguaçu Vacation - Part VI

This was our last full day at Foz do Iguaçu. We made the best of it by getting the most amazing views of the waterfalls that we possibly could... from Argentina. I think the only way we could have had a better seat would have been in a helicopter hovering over the falls!

Foz do Iguazu - ARGENTINA! (Day 8):

Since we were right on the border and we had heard that it was worth the day trip to Argentina we decided to spend our last full day in Foz do Iguazu (spelling in Spanish). It was really easy to get across the border since the Brazilian border patrol didn't event look at us! The Argentina customs was pretty easy and now we can all say that we have one more cool stamp in our passports.

Once we entered the Argentina National Park we had a short hike to the little train that takes you to a trail head leading to Devil's Throat. This trail (as you will see from the pictures) was primarily on a metal catwalk that went over rivers and through trees until it reached the final point - almost directly on top of Devil's Throat. It was a little over a mile to walk the trail and come back to the train. I must say that the awesome power of Devil's Throat floored me. It was absolutely incredible! Here are some pictures of what we saw on the Argentina side...

The metal catwalk trail through the trees and over the rivers.

I am sure that when these waterfalls were discovered people may have thought that they were seeing smoke at first. IT AIN'T NO SMOKE!

I thought this view of Devil's Throat looked like a hole in the Earth. I've been watching too many movies I guess!

Elisa and her daddy check out the giant waterfall from a bird's point of view.

Devil's Throat (part of it anyway - it is too huge to fit into one frame from this catwalk). The video below gives a much better show!

The pictures above and below are from Devil's Throat looking back down the river. On the right is Brazil and on the left is Argentina.

After taking in this awesome wonder we headed back to the beginning of the trail to grab some lunch. Then, we hit the upper trail that showed us some of the waterfalls a little further down the river. It was quite a site. We saw most of these falls on our boat ride the day before and from across the river when we were on the Brazilian side. Being up close to these waterfalls on the Argentina side, though, was spectacular. Everywhere you looked there was a waterfall. It was truly one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to.


We didn't see a ton of wildlife outside of the exotic bird park that we went to on day 3 of our trip. However, we saw plenty of quati (kwa-chee) around the waterfalls. Every time Elisa saw one she would say "kee-kee (kitty) aawww!" These little guys look so cuddly and sweet, but are ready to kill and destroy whatever has food. One of them attacked a backpack that we left on the ground because it had a couple of bananas in an outside pocket. I managed to get the backpack and throw the bananas away so that they would leave. There are plenty of signs that warn against feeding the animals. There is good reason. Here are a couple of pictures of quati...



And just for good measure, here is a picture of a tarantula...

Foz do Iguaçu Vacation - Part V

Today was an absolute blast! Hands down it was one of the funnest days I have ever had!

Macuco Safari (Day 7):

This afternoon we set out to check out the waterfalls from a whole new angle. A couple of days ago we bought tickets to go on a 4X4 "safari" tour through the jungle that would eventually lead us to a boat that would then take us up the river against the rapid current for a close encounter with the waterfalls of Foz do Iguaçu. We have been waiting for this day in great anticipation since the purchase of our tickets.

We started out entering the National Park on the Brazilian side like we did on day 4 of our vacation. We took the bus to the 2nd stop - the Macuco Safari! We eventually got on this heavy duty trailer that is pulled by a jeep. The trailer was situated with several rows of seats so that approximately 20 people could enjoy the trek through the jungle at one time. As we went along our guide told us interesting facts about some of the plant life.

Here is a picture of the trailer that we rode on. The jeep pulling it is heading into the trees on the left.

"Welcome to the jungle, baby!"

Finally, we made it to a trail head. Once at the trail head everyone exited the trailer and started to walk along a nicely laid path (wood planks and stone set in concrete). I was expecting to really hike - not stroll! The "hike" was about a half a mile long through some trees and brush. Elisa had a good time walking when we permitted.

Jennifer and Elisa are leading the way down the trail.

Soon the trees started to thin out and we began to see glimpses of the river below us. As we descended we could see some of the boats that are used to go up and down the river for the meet and greet with the waterfalls.


We made it to the boat house on the river where we began to get ourselves ready for the ride. First, we put on our completely useless plastic ponchos. They were free with our tickets, so we thought that we should give them a try. Second, we strapped on our life jackets. No one is permitted on a boat without a life jacket!


Next, we got settled into our seats on the boat. We sat on the very back row next to the 2 big engines. I thought they looked like speedboat engines.


Finally, we braced ourselves for an incredible ride! They may have actually been speedboat engines...




Once things calmed down a little bit this is what we experienced up close...


The pilot of the boat made sure to actually put the front end of the boat under one of the smaller falls (that wasn't so small) to completely drench the people sitting there! When he got us going back down the river we put our side of the boat under a huge wave from the rapids - completely soaking us! It was better than any amusement park ride!

Our family really had a great time on this adventure - especially Elisa! She was actually yelling "PLEASE" with her arms extended wanting more water from the waterfalls! There were a few people that were concerned that the crazy Americans were taking their toddler on this boat ride, but she loved it!

"Hooray for the waterfalls!"

The pilot of the boat took this family picture for us. Don't we look great in unless plastic!?

These are most of the friends that Elisa made on the "safari". She was a hit - really stealing the show!

We might need a helicopter ride to beat the Macuco Safari. It was quite the rush!

Foz do Iguaçu Vacation - Part IV

Tuesday was a rainy day. Fortunately, there are plenty of cool things to see and do in Foz do Iguaçu regardless of the weather conditions. Dani and Alexandre wanted to check out the Itaipu Hydroelectric plant (as did we) before they returned to Porto Alegre, so we made it the priority for the morning's sight-seeing venture.

Itaipu and the Departure of our Traveling Buddies (Day 6):

Itaipu is the largest hydroelectric plant in the world. It is considered one of the seven wonders of the modern world! We had already seen some pretty impressive sights with what God had done in nature, but this was quite different. In a different form of respect I really admired what man had done with this plant. In a video that we watched at the beginning of our tour they did a good job of explaining how they have worked hard at being environmentally safe and how they have used the plant's resources to teach many students.

There were a few things that I caught in the video that stuck with me. It was hard to pay attention to every detail with Elisa not being so interested and wanting to play. One thing they said was that they believed that they had a little help from the Lord in getting the plant going. Once the construction was completed they had expected to wait approximately 90 days for the lake to fill up to the dam's capacity. It just so happens that they got the worse flood in over 40 years and it took only 2 weeks to reach capacity! Normally, flooding would be a problem, but this time it was helpful.

A couple of interesting statistics they shared in the video and on the bus tour were that this plant, which borders Paraguay and Brazil, is 90% of Paraguay's energy source and 20% of Brazil's energy source. I thought that was pretty impressive. Also, the huge white tubes that you can see in the pictures and in the video I have posted can produce enough energy for 2.5 million homes - each! Whoa!

As we went along on the bus tour we made a couple of stops. As you can see from a couple of the photos the dam's spillway is open on one side. The tour guide said that we had really good timing because the spillways are closed 90% of the year. That was really cool to see. When the spillway is 100% open it is 40X the force of the Iguaçu waterfalls. We also went through a tunnel that I understood to be in the dam itself. This tunnel led to the Paraguay side of the dam. I thought that it was interesting and a little strange that this tunnel is the only one in the entire country of Paraguay.

The dam's spillway.The dam (with the white tubes I mentioned above).

Another angle of the spillway.

Through the rain on the window of the bus you can see the white tubes that produce so much energy. They really are impressive... and huge!

Here is a video clip that lasts about a minute of the spillway and dam in action. The voice you hear is a lady giving some additional information about Itaipu (in Portuguese).



I thought that I would go ahead and add this picture for you. This was taken at the bird park that we went to on the 3rd day of our trip (Part I). In the picture you can see that I am standing in front of a caged anaconda snake. This snake's name is Lady Monica. Lady Monica is approximately 10 meters in length (a little over 30 feet)! She was found just 120 km (approx. 75 miles) from the bird park. The reason that I am posting Lady Monica's picture here is because the location of her discovery was actually in the mouth of the river that flows into the lake that is on the other side of the Itaipu dam. It is pretty crazy that there are animals like her just out there where people are farming and fishing. Anyway, I thought that the picture of Lady Monica would be interesting for some of you.


After we spent a couple of hours on this tour Jennifer and I headed to lunch while Dani and Alexandre went to check out of their hotel. They met us at the restaurant later (Pizza Hut if you must know) and then hit the road. Alexandre had to be at work on Thursday and it takes 2 full days of driving to make it all the way back to Porto Alegre. We really enjoyed spending so much time with our good friends, getting to know a different part of the country together. We are blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives here in Brazil.

Foz do Iguaçu Vacation - Part III

Dani and Alexandre go to Paraguay; the Girls play with ducks and geese; and the 3 Borders (Day 5):

On Monday, Dani and Alexandre took advantage of our free babysitting services and went across the border into Paraguay to do some shopping. From what I understand the little town that they went to is the 3rd largest trade center in the world and the crowds are like being in Tokyo! That is crazy! Anyway, I pictured it like going over to Mexico to get some bargain purchases.

While they were gone Jennifer and I played with Elisa and Ana Luisa. We played peacefully in the hotel room for a little while...

... and then we ventured outside to play with the ducks and geese on the hotel grounds. The girls had a great time feeding the birds pieces of bread! We call Elisa a "silly goose" on occasion, so she has that word (and "duck") down pretty well. Both Ana Luisa and Elisa have good arms. They did a great job of giving the ducks and geese exactly what they wanted!

Ana Luisa with a little "Southpaw" action.

The goose spreading his wings was really dominate. I didn't like his attitude much. Check out Ana Luisa's face in this picture!

Videos always are so much fun. When it comes to little kids and animals you can't pass up sharing them...



Later in the day we went to see a landmark in the area. This is where the 3 borders of Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina come together. It was pretty interesting to be at a place like that. Being from the U.S. this kind of experience is rare!

The daddies with their little girls.

In this video Jennifer shows you the monuments of each country...

Foz do Iguaçu Vacation - Part II

Sorry it has taken a few days for me to get back into the updates of our vacation to Foz do Iguaçu. Although there is internet access at the hotel we have had full days and are pretty exhausted by the time they are over. That is my simple explanation for those of you who have been waiting for an update - sorry.

Let me start off by saying that I was taking note as to how I would like to post about our adventure and I think that this will actually end up being a 7-PART POST!!! Dun-dun-dunnnnn! If you are entertained just a little by my ramblings and the pictures then it is well worth it. Here we go for "Foz do Iguaçu Vacation - Part II"...

Seeing the Waterfalls - the Brazilian Side (Day 4):

This is the event that we have been waiting for! Mother's Day is here... and we are spending it checking out the largest chain of waterfalls in the entire world! There are 275 waterfalls at this spot and I have read that there can be up to 350 in the rainy season. The falls descend about 250 feet off the cliffs to the rocky bottom below.

On this tour we entered the Brazilian side of the National Park which is only a few kilometers away from our hotel. Once we went inside we had to catch a bus that stopped at different trail heads where you could hike a well-paved path or do some other exciting activity (more to come on that). We wanted to get a good look at the falls on this day so we elected to do a popular hike to get the best view we could. Let me say that we were not disappointed! This was a day that will forever be imprinted on my mind. I was absolutely amazed at the wonder and power of these waterfalls. There is nothing like them on the planet.

Here are a few pictures and a video clip from our day touring the Brazilian side of the waterfalls. Keep in mind that as you view these pictures and the video you are looking from Brazil over to Argentina. Those waterfalls are on Argentina soil! Pretty cool!

Here we are at the entrance to the "National Park of Iguaçu".

This is the first glimpse that we got of the waterfalls at the beginning of the trail.

This is a pretty good shot of "Devil's Throat" off in the distance. The rainbows (bottom right) were pretty easy to spot, as I'm sure you can imagine.

Alexandre, Ana Luisa, Dani and me (with Elisa on my back) walking down the path.

What a spectacular view! I think you can see another rainbow in this shot on the far right.

Jennifer & Dani at the base of the waterfalls on the Brazilian side.

This is such an amazing scene. The center of this picture is "Devil's Throat" or "Garganta do Diabo". It is breath-taking in person!

All the photos in this post (with the exception of the ones that have Jennifer in them) were taken by Jennifer. She did an awesome job of capturing these amazing waterfalls!