Ciudad del Este

In Puerto Iguazu, Argentina, we got on a local bus to Paraguay. The cost was 7 ARS, just about 2 USD. The bus drove north towards Brazil, and when we got to the border the bus just passed through the immigration checkpoints. 30 minutes later we crossed another river, again without stopping for the migration checkpoints. We asked the bus to stop, and it let us off.It was dark already and we walked back to the immigrations office in hope of getting our passports stamped. We had heard stories about people who got checked when in the middle of the country, or when exiting. And without stamps they had to pay large fines. We soon learned that we did not have to worry. The immigration officer gladly stamped our passports, gave us information about a cheap hotel, and wished us good luck. We assumed we could need it, and got a cab to hotel Catedral.

When arriving we saw three stars priding the sign, but did not get our hopes up. Hotels in Paraguay were more likely than not to operate on a different star scale than we do back home. Our room had two beds, a bathroom and a TV. Sheets were included, and that was all we needed. We were both hungry, but we did not have any local currency. I still had a little Argentinian pesos, and found a guy who would trade 50 pesos for 50000 guarani. That was more than enough for a nice dinner in a restaurant a couple of blocks from where we stayed. We tried to walk around a little to find an ATM, but it was dark, strangers hanging on the street corners, and we were afraid of getting lost. The money would have to wait for another day. The rest of the day we spent trying to figure out what to do in this town.

Ciudad del Este is a relatively small town, mostly known for it's tax benefits. There is no sales tax in this town, and it is right on the border of Brazil and Argentina, so a lot of people come here to shop, especially for electronics. The markets in Ciudad del Este is also famous being a hub for stolen goods. If anything is stolen in South America, you can buy it there. Youri and I checked out the markets, but the prices they started on were a lot higher than at home, but there was a large potential for bargaining. It was raining as we walked around, and we were soaking wet.

The other thing Ciudad del Este is famous for is the near proximity to even more water. About half an hour on a local bus, and you arrive at an area called Itaipu. The Paraguayan and Brazilian governments decided on building the longest dam in the world. They of course flooded large areas of farmland to build the reservoir, and many towns had to be relocated.

The bus ride out to the dam was very interesting. The buses are the shape of American school buses, but they always have a lot of colors. They have wooden floors, and the driver has an assistant. To figure out which bus to get on was not easy at all, but after asking enough people, we found it. The bus dropped us off at an intersection, and we had to walk the rest of the way down to the Itaipu visitor's center. It was construction work on the freeway, so we did not have to worry about the traffic. Along the road there were a lot of large ant hills, or maybe termite hills. It was cool to watch them stick up of the ground everywhere.

The visit at Itaipu was free. They put us in a bus with two Argentinian tourists, and gave us a guide. We got to see several parts of the dam, both from below, the side, and the top. The dam was so massive, and so long that it was hard to photograph. Now this is the second largest dam in the world, as the Three Gorges Dam in China surpassed it as the largest, a few years ago. To build this gigantic dam, waterfalls more impressive than the Iguazu were destroyed. There were some large slides where they release excess water. They were built so that the water did a massive jump at the end, and it was a beautiful view from the side. It would have been so cool to do that slide, that we are surprised no one has done it.

Paraguay and Brazil share the electricity 50/50. The country which does not need all of their part can sell it to the other part for a reasonable price. Brazil, of course, consumes a lot more energy than Paraguay, who only uses 5% of the total outcome. Brazil buys the other 45%, but the prices they pay are far below reasonable. This, of course, is not mentioned in the pamphlet or by the guide, but the people of Paraguay are bitter over this "abuse".

There is really not that much more to say about Ciudad del Este. It is a quite average town, with a lot of junk for sale. We did not manage to find a map of the city, but since everyone speak spanish, with a very thick dialect that is, we were able to ask our way around. In Paraguay they have two languages, Spanish and Guarani. Most people in the southern part of the country, and in the Capital Asuncion, speaks Spanish, so it is easy to get around. The currency is also called Guarani, and it is about 800 PG to one Norwegian Krone.

Anywhere we went, people would ask us two questions; Where were we from, and what were we doing here. This included immigration, hotel employees and the tourist information booth. People don't see many tourists here, except from Brazilians and Argentinians.