Back in the U.S.A.

I flew back to Buenos Aires from the falls and then back to Lima, Peru for one night before flying back to MN. The adventure was absolutely amazing, and I met so many interesting people from all over the world. I was a little disappointed to miss Carnaval in Brazil and would have liked to make it to Uruguay and Ecuador as well, but it's great to be home again, and I definitely plan on returning at some point. My list of places I want to visit around the world has also grown significantly after hearing other travelers recommendations.

I'm not sure whether the culture shock was greater when arriving to Peru, or when returning to the states after being gone for so long. I still have to catch myself from ordering food, saying hello, good-bye, and thank you in Spanish. Thanks to everyone for all reading about my travels and for all your comments. If I get really motivated, I might keep the blog going....but that's a big IF.

Angie

Iguazu falls, illegal border crossings and Carnaval

I flew from Buenos Aires to visit one of the world's greatest water falls - Iguazu falls. It sits on the border of Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay and is about 2.5 miles long (four times the width of Niagara) with over 275 individual waterfalls that plummet 269 feet into the gorge below. Apparently the flow of water can reach up to 450,000 cubic feet per second, which isn't hard to believe after listening to the thunderous crash of the water rushing over the falls. The pictures don't come close to doing justice to grandiosity of the falls as one can't come close to capturing them all in a single picture.

I had heard that it's good to see the falls from both the Brazilian side and the Argentine side. Brazil is one of the few countries that Americans need a Visa for, and I don't have one. However, I had heard you can get across by taking a taxi, so I asked at my hostel. They were a bit hesitant, but they eventually said that I could take a taxi to the other side for $50 and pointed me to an unmarked car sitting outside. The driver had me get in the front seat and insisted that I wear a seat belt that obviously didn't come with the car and didn't actually connect to anything. Not sure what his rationale was for this, and I would be truly shocked if Argentina had any sort of seat belt law. The whole border crossing was a bit odd too; the taxi driver told me not to say that I was from the US, but I still had to show my passport at border control. I was a bit worried that I might get stuck in Brazil and not be able to find someone to take me back to Argentina. Much to my surprise, my cabbie wasn't going anywhere, and I had my own personal tour guide for the afternoon. He waited for me for a couple hours while I visited the Brazilian side of the falls and then took me to a great bird sanctuary and the look out point where you can see all three countries. He got me back across the border showed me around the town and finally brought me back to my hostel. He was a bit sketchy in that he was a pretty touchy feeling and complimentary for a taxi driver, but he definitely earned his $50.

The hostel I was staying in was one of the nicest ones I've stayed in with a great pool out in front and a very social atmosphere. I met a bunch of people that night and ended up staying up until the wee hours of the night chatting. One of the most interesting comments I heard that night was from a guy from Ireland..."I traveled in South Africa for a year but that's just not enough, so this time I'm traveling for three years". Impressive to say the least, but yikes....three years in a hostel??? I overslept a bit the next day - which I blame on a malfunctioning alarm clock rather than my lack of sleep. I went to explore the Argentine side of the falls and kept running into a guy I had met in my hostel from Hawaii. He showed me an "off-limits" area that he had discovered earlier in the day, which required us to do a little bouldering over some rocks and an old abandoned boat. It was fantastic to get up close to some of the waterfalls and away from all the tourists. I had a little trouble getting back down however as my legs weren't long enough to reach some of the rocks. I had to jump one particular section, and it would have been a significant fall had I not made it, but I didn't have many options. Fortunately I made it and didn't have to find out the what the ramifications would be of needing to be pulled out of an off-limits area. That night we went into the town for a parade the town was having to celebrate carnaval. I think Argentine's must start dancing as soon as they're able to walk - many of the dancers in the parade appeared to be around five years old. People lined the streets and ran around with spray cans dousing unsuspecting spectators with foam soap.

I spent about a week and a half in the energetic, beautiful city of Buenos Aires, with elegant, Parisian-style architecture, wide avenues, sprawling parks, outdoor cafes, and free tango shows abound. I tried to get tickets to a futbol game, but unfortunately they were sold out. I did however get to hear the roaring crowds and see the confetti sailing through the air as I walked by the stadium on my way to visit the the famous "Caminito" in the neighborhood of La Boca. La Boca is considered one of the oldest neighborhoods and was built by Italian immigrants, but it is generally not considered safe outside the touristy Caminito area, which is famous for it's multi-colored houses. The San Telmo neighborhood is known for it's Tango, and I took a lesson there and went to see a show at the famous Cafe Tortoni. Sitting next to me were two girls from D.C., and through our conversation we figured out that they know some of the people I worked for during my fellowship at NSLIJ. Small world. The following day, I walked into a random cafe next to my hostel and ran into three people I had met on my Ruta 40 trip. A bit surprising given that B.A. is somewhere around 13 million people.