We stayed in Iguazu for quite a few days. Our hostel was lovely and again had a pool. We spent long days there chilling out, drinking beer watching the geccos and humming birds....idyllic. The only down side was being electrocuted . In our room someone had left one of the pins of a plug which had snapped off and was poking out of the socket. The socket was just below the light switch. In the darkness one night, as my hand fumbled its way across the wall to find the switch, I got seriously zapped!!!.... We tried to explain it to one of the staff but I think he thought we were just doing the sign for 'happy'..!

Iguazu was a very relaxing place. One day we walked along the Parana river and came to a point where three countries meet; Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil, all seperated by about 300 meters of water, like a great big watery crossroads.

We found it very difficult to drag ourselves away from Iguazu; the place was hot, relaxed and the peope were lovely but we had to get to the other side of the border and into Brazil.

The border crossing posed no probs and we made our way to a town called Foz.

Not much going on in Foz and we only stayed a day. We toyed with seeing the otherside of the falls from Brazil but after being told that the Argentinian side had the most spectacular view we decided to visit Parc De Aves (bird park) instead. Ok doesn't sound the most interesting place but actually it was fascinating. There was an amazing array of parrots, toucans , camans, Goliath tarantulas !!...as an artist Ray was in heaven. Loads of photgraphic reference for his paintings when we get back to the UK, but the icing on the cake for me was capturing a video on my little Samsung Galaxy phone of three humming birds whirring around a nectar feeder. The footage was captured by accident. I was just homing in on one of the tiny birds who was sat in a tree. Suddenly he flew off. They are so fleeting, flitty and fast I was nt even sure I had captured it until I played it back. Surely that has to be a rare moment for even the most skilled cameraman? Beautiful sight, I was very pleased with myself! ( see video section above).

At lunch time we stopped to listen to a Brazilain band, including; keyboardist and harp player with an added bonkers bongo bloke.

Listening to the crazy music I took a wander over to a gnarly tree and was suddenly aware of one of the branches moving. Just as I realised it was an oooffing great snake, a ranger bloke came running up. As he picked up the snake , he gestured to me "would you like to hold it?".......Now snakes have never really bothered me, spiders are my big phobia and if it had been Mr Goliath that I saw in the tank earlier there would have been only dust where I had been standing.. but I nonchalantly said " oh, go on then!"...Well the agreeing and the doins were two very different things. I had nt really realised how big the snake (an Anaconda) was. I stayed quite calm as the guy put it around my shoulders and neck and I was fine until it turned its face and slithered towards my hair. It was a very strong creature and extremely determned..I think it must have thought it looked like a nice warm nest site! He/she looked and felt all warm, soft and beautiful but I really didnt want it near my face!!...Ray took a quick pik and the bloke untangled the snake from my neck. If you look at the attached photo, I think you can just make out a very calm terror in my eyes!!

Feeling that we had nt quite had enough chilling and relaxing in the sunshine , that evening we caught a bus to a little island on the South East coast of Brazil.... Next stop Florianopolis !