There is a lot of hype about Iguazú Falls - before I arrived I was trying not to get caught up in it and to keep my expectations low because, after all, it's just a waterfall, how exciting could it really be? I had previously visited Victoria Falls in Africa but during the dry season so it was mostly just cliffs - it didn't quite live up to the postcard pictures of the waterfall. However, I was luckier with my timing at Iguazú and I had a fantastic, fun couple of days there - admiring breathtaking views of the falls from the banks, from the air and from a boat in the waterfall itself! Plus the many rainbows that form in the spray, the thousands of butterflies that live there and the large spiders that build webs among the forest treetops. And, despite staying in the sleepy Brazilian town of Foz do Iguaçu, I had two great nights out.

The Falls are on the border between Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay. We spent the first day exploring the Falls on the Brazilian side of the border and the second day on the Argentine side - each side offers quite a different perspective on the Falls so I was glad that I saw both. We were accompanied by our gorgeous local guide Eduardo for whom guiding tourists around Iguazú Falls seemed to be a bit of a family business, with many of his relatives doing the same thing.

First up, I took a helicopter ride over the Falls, which was great fun and allowed me to appreciate the immense scale of the river and the forest around the Falls. Then I spent a couple of hours walking along the edge of the canyon on the Brazilian side of the Falls. The weather was incredible - staggeringly hot.

Along the way I saw small lizards, large spiders and more butterflies than I had ever seen before in my life - huge groups of them! The path on the Brazilian side ends at a walkway that reaches out into the water. Alongside the walkway some of the falls drop into a pool forming beautiful reflections. From the end of the walkway there is a great view of the 'Devil's Throat' - the largest and most impressive of the waterfalls at Iguazú. Several rainbows formed in the spray - it was breathtakingly beautiful.

In Foz do Iguaçu I stayed at a very nice hotel with its own swimming pool, which was very welcome in the heat. In the evening we went to a Latin American dance show combined with a fantastic buffet dinner (very tasty meats and every kind of food imaginable on offer!). The show involved traditional dances from many different countries and traditions - Peruvian dance, Mexican mariachis, Argentine tango, an Evita tribute, Brazilian samba... One of the highlights was a gaucho dance that involved swinging rocks on strings - it terrified an unwitting Japanese tourist who volunteered to take part!

The following morning I crossed the border into Argentina again and joined the hordes of tourists racing to get a close-up view of the Devil's Throat. I took the miniature train that runs through the National Park and then followed that path that took me right to the precipice of the Devil's Throat. From there, I could better appreciate the force, noise and sheer volume of the water passing over the Falls. Then I had lots of time to explore the forest. There were colourful fish and birds and lots more butterflies. I saw huge spider webs woven between the trees above the paths (I was scared that a spider would fall off one and onto me!).

Later I took a speed-boat trip along the river at the base of the Falls for quite a different view. It went right into the bottom of one of the falls so I got completely drenched - crazy but fun! On the way back I saw a group of 'coatis' walking around - they are funny little racoon-like creatures (apparently they bite so I didn't want to get too close!).

That day was 17 March, Saint Patrick's Day, and between me, Bernie, Trish, Denise and Rita, there was enough Irish blood and patriotism to coordinate a Saint Patrick's Day celebration and rope in the rest of the group Eduardo told us that an Irish bar had recently opened in Foz do Iguaçu. There was an enormous supermarket in the town where we managed to find green glitter glue, green food colouring, green balloons and suchlike so, all dressed in green and decorated with glittery shamrocks, we set off! First, Julio took us to an all-you-can-eat pizza place that did a variety of weird and wonderful pizza flavours such as strawberry and chocolate pizza (it tasted much better than it sounds!). Then on to Ballina's Irish Pub. We expected it to be packed, being the only Irish bar in a town full of tourists on Saint Patricks Day. As it turned out, we were the ONLY people there! This worked out pretty well as the staff LOVED us with all our green paraphernalia - they let us wear their funny Saint Patrick's Day hats and brought us free cocktails. Denise and I bought some of the staff t-shirts that had glittery shamrocks on them. It was a great night and we had a lot of fun