Puerto Iguazu June 18 - 20

We left BA on our best bus to date (and probably the most expensive so far too) but were happy to see that our seats reclined fully and the foot rest lifted to a horizontal position meaning that we actually had a flat bed. Much better than a plane! After departure we were offered Martini or Whisky but we politely declined until the wine was bought round. I think the purser took a liking to us as he kept coming back and topping up our glasses whilst laughing at us - not that we were complaining. After this he then poured several glasses of champagne down our neck which we didn't object to as we were more than keen to get our money's worth. The dinner service started and we were given many canapes and as has been the case on many South American buses the meal consisted of lots of ham and cheese. Ham and cheese roll, ham and cheese on its own, ham and cheese inside a swiss roll, ham and cheese inside chicken. I think they like ham and cheese in Argentina! Breakfast was once again a delight and we pulled into Iguazu around lunchtime.

Upon arrival we were given an offer for a hostel that was too good to turn down and went and dumped our bags. After refreshing ourselves in the pool and shower (we were finally in the sunshine again) we headed to 'Tres Fronteras'. Puerto Iguazu is mainly a base for tourists that are heading to the falls but Tres Fronteras is a point in South America were Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina all meet, divided by a river. It would be nice to see at sunset but it is a twenty minute walk from town along a dark quiet street, so being the cautious girls that we are we headed back for more relaxation time. That evening the hostel had a bbq for a decent price including entertainment by a Columbian band. We were given endless amounts of amazing meat which puts our British barbies to shame - maybe someone can prove me wrong this summer!

Later that night we had a knock on our door and seeing as it was about midnight we ignored it, only for them to knock again. Unfortunately two German girls were checking into our room (and we thought we'd got lucky with a room to ourselves). It then turned out to be a nightmare as one of the girls had all of her belongings inside plastic bags (those of you that have travelled will know how much of a pet hate this is in dorms) and continued to spend 45 minutes getting ready for bed whilst rustling through her bags. Needless to say we were not impressed!

The first bus to the falls is around 7.15am, but we figured that that the first couple of buses would be extremely busy and we would get one a bit later. Unfortunately the other girls thought it was best that they get the first bus and decided to get up at 6am and spend an hour getting ready, once again rustling through a million plastic bags. She had to be one of the worst roommates ever! Anyway, this left us pretty tired and irritable but luckily we had an amazing day ahead of us!

We arrived at the Iguassu National Park and after queuing for the one ticket desk we entered the park around 10am. There are several different sections to the park but we thought we would build up from the smaller falls to the bigger and better ones. This also meant that we could avoid a lot of the tour groups that block up the pathways and viewpoints. The Iguazu Falls are a series of 275 waterfalls, ranging from 30m to 80m high and stretching for 2.7km along the cliffs.

So, first on our list was the upper walkway. This pathway takes you along the top of several large waterfalls, allowing you to feel the intensity up close, but also to see other waterfalls that are in the distance. It's quite difficult to put into words, so it is probably best to look at the photos (www.flickr.com/janineandsean). Due to the fabulous weather it also meant that lots of rainbows had formed by the falls, making it that little bit more spectacular. Apparently seeing them in the rain is also amazing as there is obviously a lot more water flowing (if that is even possible!). This walkway was a great introduction to the falls and only made us more excited to see the bigger ones.

Next on our route was the lower pathway. As the name dictates, this takes you to the bottom of the falls, still up close, to see them from another angle. Once again, amazing! Too amazing to even put into words. We couldn't help but stand there in amazement looking at the falls. There were also more tiers to some of the falls than you could see from the top and lots of really pretty butterflies and birds.

Further along the lower walkway you turn off and walk along some slippery, rocky steps before coming to a boat which takes you over to San Martin Island in the middle of the river. It is only a very short boat ride but strangely enough for South America, you are made to wear some peculiar life jackets. There is a really good view from the water of some of the falls and upon disembarking on San Martin Island you are greeted by many different butterflies landing on your body! We walked around San Martin taking in more awesome views of the different falls, but also finding a spot where hundreds of vultures seemed to be lurking. Great to see, but the floor was covered in poo we didn't want to hang around too long as I don't seem to have much luck when it comes to birds and the toilet!

After this we headed to one of the cafes for lunch, which for us consisted of some biscuits we bought outside the park, and an ice cream as everything else was too expensive. More to the point of this story, the seating area was surrounded by coatis (very similar to raccoons). These coatis have obviously changed their behaviour due to tourists feeding them, or leaving scrap s lying around and are highly aware that a lot of food is consumed in this area. So, the coatis lurk around hoping that you will leave them some food or even jump up on your table to steal some. Generally most people are aware of this and keep a beady eye on them and their own food. Typically though, a group of tourists, American I believe, sat down nearby and just left a couple of sandwiches whilst going to the toilet. On their return they witnessed several coatis stealing their expensive food and let out some very loud screams in shock! Quite amusing for us to witness though!

The final and biggest waterfall was still to come - we took the little train over to the other side of the park and walked over numerous bridges before reaching the viewpoint for the Devils Throat. 1800 cubic metres of water fall 80m down the sheer drop per second here! The power and intensity of this waterfall is just insane. Our mouths were open as even though we had seen pictures, it was a million times more amazing in real life. Standing right near the edge of this enormous, powerful waterfall and feeling and hearing the power was just insane. You could easily sit there all day staring in amazement. I have taken a couple of videos that I will try and upload at some point so you can hear and see the power for yourselves. We didn't spend hours there staring as a young South American guy asked to have a picture taken with me, and for once we refused, but he kept appearing next to me all the time! We left only to find them getting on the same train and sitting next to us!

After approximately six hours we had seen everything that we wanted to. The only path we didn't walk was the 7km jungle path as we were about to head into the jungle anyway! It really was an amazing place and definitely one of the highlights of South America, truly jaw dropping! That evening we were exhausted due to the rude roomies and hit the sack pretty early knowing we would be woken up in the early hours again!