So Much Water So Far From Home

With less than a week to go in our trip, Emily and I have decided to check off one of the last of Argentina's outstanding attractions. By travelling to Iguazu Falls, tucked neatly into the tri-border area between Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina, not only would we be able to see one of the country's most famous natural sites, we'd also be completing a four month circuit that's brought us clockwise around nearly the entire perimeter of Argentina. We decided that it was worth going a little bit out of our way.

We broke up our 24-hour bus ride from Salta with a stopover in sweltering Resistencia--a likable if disagreeably steamy city filled with all manner of sculptures and other public art. It being Sunday, all of the museums were closed, so we ordered a parillada and hunkered down in air conditioning. The nadir came later that evening when the waiter at a bus station confiteria refused to change the channel from a post-game soccer press conference to Dice-K's big start against the Yankees. We actually watched every pitch of the first four innings on MLB Gameday while waiting for our bus to arrive. It was pretty anti-climactic.

Because we hadn't slept in a bed in three days, we spent our first afternoon in Puerto Iguazu napping. But by the second morning, we were ready for the park. Aside for the Perito Moreno glacier, the falls at Iguazu are Argentina's most beloved tourist attraction. There are nearly 300 separate falls, spread over an area of more than 2 miles, and their lush, subtropical setting aids the overall effect immensely. They're taller than Niagara, and half again as wide, but they don't serve as a backdrop for anything like the Serial Killer Wax Museum, so there are some drawbacks.

At any rate, Argentina has done an admirable job of building many miles of fairly discreet catwalks around the park, allowing for a multiplicity of misty vantage points. Many of the areas were constantly clogged by tour groups, but we found some relief on Isla San Martin--a small island at the base of one of the more impressive sets of falls. Elsewhere in the park we observed caiman alligators, multicolored butterflies, and grotesque, wet-snouted coaties, which executed complexly choreographed maneuvers in an attempt to steal our overpriced lunches.

We left Iguazu in the pouring rain, with plans to return the next day in order to take a boat ride and hit the few remaining walking trails. Unfortunately, nearly 24-hours later, the rain still hasn't let up, leaving us with one more morning to try to make a run at it. Afterwards, it's back to Buenos Aires and then home. But stay tuned, because we're not quite finished posting. We're planning an epic best/worst list to wrap things up. -NSH