Puerto Iguazu, Argentina

Ons voorvaders van ouds het op 'n tyd geglo dat die wêreld plat was, en sou daardie siening wel die waarheid behaal het, sou ek kon indink dat die eindpunt van die aarde moes lyk soos die plek waar ons onsself nou bevind...Iguazu watervalle. 
Dit is 'n massa bruin water wat diep uit die tropiese oerwoud uit vloei en dan die afgrond in val met so 'n donderende mag dat die bodem verewig verskuil word onder 'n briesende wolk van mis...Geen wonder hul noem die deel waar hy die hardste val "Garganta del diablo" nie, die duiwel se keelgat... 
- Albertus van der Merwe, Puerto Iguazu, 9 Mei 2016

Puerto Iguazu and Las Cataratas del Iguazu 

We arrived in Puerto Iguazu on Sunday morning the 8th of May, tired from our first overnight bus trip but happily surprised by the mild tropical weather when we stepped off the bus. First thing we did when we checked in at our hostel was put on a pair of shorts and some plakkies...man did that feel good...breathe voetjies breathe!

We stayed at the Petite Hostel on Caraguata street, a very quaint and relatively well priced hostel not too far from the town center. We headed straight back into town after donning our summer gear only to be caught 10 minutes later in our first tropical rainstorm...asi es la vida! We bought our bus tickets to the Iguazu National Park for the next day and found a local supermarket to buy some groceries for the next couple of days...Have to budget "n ding dood" after Buenos Aires!

Directions to waterfall: Just follow the river...

The following morning we headed to the park to see the main attraction of Puerto Iguazu, a series of waterfalls situated about 20km from the town and surrounded by lush tropical jungle. I don't even want to know what the guys who discovered this place must have thought when they first laid eyes on the 'Cataratas' because it's an awe-inspiring sight!  

Kristi in awe...

The entire waterfall is huge, not so much in height but in width, it's as if an entire section of the river just caved in leaving a broad, sheer, single cascade and creating the awesome spectacle that we see today. 

The Iguazu National Park has done a great job in laying a series of walkways, each section allowing visitors to see different views of the falls and running through swathes of beautifully lush jungle to get to the different viewpoints. 

There is even a little rail track with a train to take you to the Garganta del diablo, or the devil's throat, which is a viewpoint from right on top of one of the fiercest sections of the falls. This viewpoint allows one to come breathtakingly close to the 'abyss', so much so that you will be soaked by the mist spewed up from the thunderous mass of water being hurled into the bowels of the earth...

We spent all day walking along the walkways, the lower and upper levels, and still did not manage to get to all the spots, which includes going over to the Brazilian side for another different view of the cataratas. Then you can also get on a boat (quite costly) that takes you close to the falls but I thought the walkways already take you as close as you could get before yelling Geronimo00000! What does look quite cool though, and which we didn't get to do is crossing the river to San Martin island which is situated right at the bottom of falls - there's a short hiking trail around the little island which should be fun and with some spectacular views of the falls.

It was a great outing which Krisit and I thoroughly enjoyed and well worth a visit if you are ever in Argentina.