Mar 19, 2006 - Foz do Iguazu, Brazil

(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Mom & Dad, at a Brazil side viewing platform	Cuati, the mascot animal of the falls	Closer up of Mom & Dad	A long string of falls from the lookout
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
More falls, with the walkways above them	Mom, looking out	The falls and San Martin island	Me
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Dad, trying to find the waterfalls	A boat going out for an up close tour	Boat bringing people to San Martin island	Our hotel
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Mom & Dad, at another lookout	Me, Mom & Dad	View through the trees, you're gonna see a lot of these	More of San Martin falls
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Still more	Blurry San Martin falls	Me again	A pair of falls
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Mom & Dad, a new lookout	Final viewing platform on the Brazil side	The walkway out to the platform	More of the walkway
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Panaroma: Brazil side view (poor quality)	From platform, into the Devil's Thorat waterfall	Me on the platform	Some falls
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
The horseshoe shape of the falls	Bigger Panorama of the Brazil side	Side falls	More of the side falls
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Falls close to the elevator at the platforms	View of lower lookout	Those close falls again	Shutter play with the closer falls
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Me at those falls	Another wide shot with the lookout	The closer falls, and the horseshoe, from above the elevator	The water leading to the falls
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
At the bird park	Blue Macaws	Flamingos at the bird park	Flamingos and a mirror
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Cool looking bird	Up close and personal	A parrot	A different bird
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Toucan	I thought the beak looked like a mask	A monkey, in the bird park	Peacock
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Parrots at a feeder	Another parrot	Still more parrot	The dinner/show that night (Mexican dance)
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Argentine folkloric dance	Brazil's turn to dance	Rio-style Carnaval costume	More dance
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Another of the costumes	The finale	Day 2: Argentina side, our first walk on Macuco trail	Mom & Dad on the trail
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Mom & Dad again	Self portrait of the 3 of us walking	View from the top of the waterfall	Looking down the waterfall
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Top bits of the waterfall	Mom & Dad above the fall	Fall from below, with Mom & Dad	Closer of Mom & Dad atop the fall
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
The fall and surroundings	Me beneath it	Some people we met at the bottom	Vertical panorama: The first waterfall of the day
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Back at the beginning/end of the trail	At the trail sign	On the train out to the next walkways	The train
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
A butterfly	A lizard	Our hotel, from across the border	Mom & Dad taking a break
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
More falls through trees	Long string of falls	Me with the falls	Mom & I
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Mom looking out at the falls	Tall falls, from a midway lookout area	The great string of falls again	More shot-framing
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
More trees and falls	San Martin falls from a distance	Panorama: amazing string of falls	Part of the string leading to San Martin
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Mom & Dad on a lookout	Down a waterfall to San Martin island	Mom on a lokout	Me on the same one
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
San martin falls again	Another set of falls	Close up of the water	Looking up Devil's Throat again, and the Brazil side lookout
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Another framed pic	Me atop another waterfall on our path	Cuati crossing the branch	Another cuati crossing the same branch
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
The Devil's Throat horseshoe	Me at another lookout	Possibly my favorite pic from all of Iguazu	Thats the string of falls again, different angle from before
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
San martin falls and its viewing platform	Sam Martin island, falls, and surroundings	San Martin's platform, and the lower scenery	The platform and surroundings again
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
The mid-level viewing area gain	Mom & Dad and the waterfall	Me and the waterfall	Same place, different pose
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
A rainbow	Me and some of the string of falls	Mom & Dad at a waterfall again	Me at a waterfall again
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Self-portrait	The top of some falls	Just another Iguazu scene	Panorama 1, San Martin island and falls
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Panorama 2, San Martin island and falls	Panorama 3, Pathway down to the San Martin island boat	Completed panorama: San Martin on left, others, and the path	On San Martin island
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Another boat tour	The string of falls, from the other side, on San Martin's lookut	Another shot of that section	San Martin falls and spill over
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Another of San Martin's glory	Me on the viewing platform	A cool slice of the scenery	Dad on the platform
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Panorama 1, The platform and the scenery	Panorama 2, The platform and San Martin	More San Martin	Raging water close up
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Walking back up, we're getting tired now	The 1km walkway out to Devil's Throat	From the walkway, the water source of the falls	Devil's Throat mist, rising from beyond the trees
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Mom & Dad getting closer	We've reached the viewing area	The Devil's Throat falls	A piece of the falls
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Me on the platform, it gets wet there	One part of the horseshoe, on the Brazil side	Top of Devil's Throat	More from the lookout
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
The top again	Mom & Dad on the platform	Brazil side again, you can sort of see the elevator	Another misty scene
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
The start of a sunset over Devil's Throat	Still more Devil's Throat	Sun setting on Brazil side	Wide shot of Brazil side
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
A bird and a cool cloud with nice light	Me on the viewing deck	Close up of me	up above, the water leading to the Devil's Throat
(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)	(click to enlarge)
Panorama: Garganta del Diablo (The Devil`s Throat)	A large butterfly on the train ride back	Me in the hotel room	My pack and the hotel room

Internet Movie Clips:

Playback Requirements

(MOV - 13.86 MB)		(MOV - 14.59 MB)		(MOV - 9.60 MB)
A long stretch of medium-sized falls, and mom & dad		San Martin falls, and his neighbors		The centerpiece of it all, the Devil's Throat falls

Playback Problems?

The Iguaçu falls, or however you want to spell it, are stunning. They are shared by Brazil and Argentina, whose border runs right down the middle, and thus are housed in two separate national parks. The tri-border with Paraguay is actually very close by as well, and while none of the famous falls are within Paraguay, some people still go there for yet another lookout point. Quite simply, they are one of the most incredible and awe-inspiring natural sights I have ever witnessed. Much like Machu Picchu, the Falls are hyped up everywhere you go along the Gringo Trail, and like Machu Picchu, they were still far better than I ever expected.

We arrived Friday evening and were brought to our more-than-luxury hotel, actually inside the national park on the Brazil side and right in front of an impressive lookout of the falls. That night we ate dinner at the hotel and rested ater a long day of travel.

Saturday was our day to explore the Brazil side of the falls. The Brazil side grants you much more of a lookout and impressive panaoramas as opposed to an upclose look at individual falls. We spent the morning walking the paths that hug the cliffs high above the different waterfalls and rivers. We started a bit downstream, and slowly worked our way up to the main viewing area, where long catwalks actually take you out over the water and right up to the waterfalls edge. There are hundreds of waterfalls within the national parks, but the centerpiece of it all is a horseshoe shaped curve completely ringed with waterfalls, at the apex of which is the largest most impressive Garganta del Diablo falls (The Devil's Throat). By the time we got out to this area the clouds had rolled in and the mist from all the falls was thick. Still it was an amazing sight and experience, and only got me more excited for the Argentina side tomorrow. I'll let the pictures do the rest of the talking.

In the afternoon we we went to the Bird Park closer to the town of Foz do Iguacu, and saw many species of exotic birds from all over the globe, at times even walking through large open aviaries and getting a very personal look at the birds. Then finally at night we went out to a very typically Brazilian buffet and show. The food was never ending and spectacular, and although we had worries that the show would be way too tacky for our tastes, it actually ended up being not so bad. It was a multicultural dance show with performances of traditional dances and music from all over South America. So in a way, it was the perfect thing to see and give my parents a crash course on some of the things I had been witnessing up until now.

Then Sunday the 19th was my brithday, and the day that we saw the Argentina side of the falls. Wow, simply incredible. We took a taxi accross the border, a very small portion of which I was actually driving, and started a staggering day getting up close and personal with some of the most impressive waterfalls and natural landscape I have ever seen. Once again, I will let the photos do most of the talking, most. In short, there are many different walking paths and loops and you can take to see different parts of the park and all the different waterfalls. We decided to do almost all of them, and build the suspense slowly to culminate at the Garganta del Diablo falls. So first we just took a strolling path through the woods that ends at one fairly simple waterfall. The park has a train that connects the different trailheads, so from there we trained it to another set of walks. We were able to walk along the long chain of waterfalls that was visible from the Brazil side the day before, and then walk down to get right up next to the raging waters. In the middle of the whole area is San Martin island, and we took a short boat out there to get still another perspective on all the majestic beauty around us, and to get the closest look possible at the fantastic San Martin Falls. After climbing back up to road level, now many hours into hour day and quite fatigued, we took the train out to the final destination. A 1km-long catwalk leads you out over the water that eventually turns into all the falls. From this angle it all seems so peaceful and it is amazing to think about what becomes of all this water just a few hundred meters downstream. But as you get closer you the roar begins to build and you start seeing the mist rise above the trees and the horizon in front of you. The catwalk ends in a large viewing balcony that sits literally on top of the gigantic Devil's Throat falls. We stood there for a while, getting soaked in the spray and taking in the full sensory experience that this location has to offer.

By the night time we were pretty exhausted yet still managed to tackle another buffet dinner at the hotel, complete with an entire cake presented to our table for my birthday. Luckily we were only required to eat one piece each, and the rest was given to the dessert section of the buffet.

And so ended yet another unique birthday experience in my life. In recent years it seems that March has always found me in interesting locals to celebrate, whether it be snowboarding out in Colorado or California, sitting up on the cracked piece of ply wood that was my bed in Nepal, or visiting one of the biggest draws South America has to offer with my parents. It is fascinating what a magnificent outcome the simple combination of running water and gravity can have, the product of which is nothing short of miraculous, and I strongly recommend all people to go and visit this area as soon as possible.

PREVIOUS	top of page	home	NEXT