Exploring Iguazú: one of the top natural wonders of the world
Que tal? The academic semester is already over, and I can’t quite believe it! I will be returning home in a few weeks. However, in the meantime, I will be traveling quite a bit to various locations in Argentina. I recently returned from a trip to Iguazu where I was able to explore one of the wonders of the world; Iguazu Falls (in Spanish: Las Cataratas de Iguazu. It is unquestionably a natural wonder! On June 12 – 15, two of my friends and I traveled to Iguazu to explore the falls and other places located near it. It was a blast traveling around Argentina without being preoccupied with academic responsibilities. We enjoyed freedom, food, and laughter while also enduring food poisoning and other small incidents. However, I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything else, because every little thing contributed to the trip and our time spent together.
Iguazú
June 12, my two friends and I met at the bus station to catch our bus that would take us to Iguazu. We traveled from 12:15 pm on June 12 to 9:30 am on the following day. The bus ride was surprisingly comfortable since the leather seats reclined and there was a lot of space to stretch our legs. When we finally arrived in Iguazu, I was so excited to finally see another wonder of the world. Iguazu is completely different from Cordoba; it is exceptionally tropical. Exotic birds and animals were wandering around the park and the city. It was a magical experience to finally be in a place that I never thought I would get to visit.
While we were in Iguazu, we stayed at Hostel Park, which is located only a few minutes walk from the downtown area. We payed a little extra just to have a room for three so that our belongings didn’t get stolen. I have to say, the decorations weren’t the most appealing. The blankets on the beds varied from bright purple to garish orange. It was frightful.
Even though, in Argentina, the winter season was upon us, the weather was very nice and humid. That meant we hadn’t escaped the mosquitoes here. However, it was nice that we were experiencing warm temperatures even though it was winter. Many tropical plants and palm trees lined the roads. It felt like paradise. We continued our explorations into the downtown area where we grabbed a delicious Italian lunch. The food was to die for; probably the best pasta I have ever tasted.
Las Cataratas de Iguazú
Since we had planned such a brief trip, we immediately set out to see Iguazu falls. At the falls, there were many colorful butterflies, exotic birds, and other animals roaming about the park. Many of them weren’t afraid to come up and gaze at us curiously. We first walked up above where the water falls and viewed the water rushing over. It was amazing to see the amount of water that was cascading down. Hearing the roar of the water and feeling the mist of it on my face felt surreal. I took so many photos and in the process got soaking wet. At Iguazu, there are a total of approximately 300 waterfalls along the stretch of 1.7 miles long edge. It is a sight beyond imagination and I am extremely thankful that I got the opportunity to travel there. From the top of the waterfalls, we were able to see the other points of Paraguay and Brazil which also border the Iguazu falls. We continued on our tour of the falls walking down and around to view the falls from a lower level. From here, I saw the extent of the falls more completely. On one side, the view of the Garganta del Diablo was clear, while on the other side there was an uncountable number of waterfalls. There was a rainbow and I could also see the boats full of tourists slowly making there way dangerously close to the water falls. We approached the viewing spot for the Bossetti Falls which was practically underneath it. Feeling the spray landing lightly on my face was refreshing considering how humid it was while walking around. From there, we continued descending until we got to the water. We opted to ride one of the boats that gets very close to the falls. It was amazing yet terrifying how closely we got to the water that was furiously cascading down. The noise drowned out our screams of delight and awe while the mist soaked us to the bone. This experience was frankly staggering and completely impressive. Although our time at the falls was short, it was worth the long trip and the exhaustion. I would love to return some day so that I could wander around the trails more thoroughly.
Adventure to the shopping mall
Saturday, it poured rain, so we weren’t that motivated to go explore outside. Finally, however, we got thoroughly sick of being cooped up and decided to go to a popular Duty-Free shopping mall. However, little did we know, that we would be crossing the Argentine border to arrive at the mall. Therefore, when they asked for our visas, we were flustered and didn’t know what to do since we didn’t have them with us. When we had arrived in Argentina, we weren’t required to have a visa to enter. Before our 30 days expired, we applied for a visa, however it wasn’t a sticker that you put into your passport, but a large piece of paper. Neither of my friends had brought it with them, and I had left mine back in the room. I was honestly frightened that we would be stuck there and that we wouldn’t have anyone to come and help us get out of the mess. However, after questioning us for quite awhile, the border officials finally let us go and we went to the mall. Tip: always remember to bring your visas with you when you are out traveling. You never know when you will need it. The mall was stunning in its architecture and interior design. The candy section looked like a scene right out of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory.
Ice bar
After our adventure at the border, we just wanted to relax and unwind. We searched popular activities to do while in Iguazu and going to an ice bar was one of the top results. It sounded like fun, so we headed over there in a taxi. At the ice bar, we received puffy parkas and gloves to protect ourselves from the cold while we were inside. There was a time limit of 30 minutes before we would be escorted out. Inside the ice bar, there were ice couches and seats, ice statues, and an ice bar; of course. The drinks were served in ice cups, and were unlimited for the 30 minutes. After such a trying day, this experience was a great way to lighten the stress and fully enjoy our time.
Casa de los Pájaros
Our final day in Iguazu, a taxi driver recommended that we go to La Casa de los Pajaros to see many of the typical birds and other animals that are prevalent to the Iguazu area. The last day we were thinking that it would be enjoyable and relaxing before we had to catch our bus back to Argentina, however this was not the case. The previous day one of my friends got a minor concussion and my other friend was suffering from a cold. I was the sole person without problems. However, that changed when I started to feel nauseated while we were strolling around looking at the birds. I’ll spare you from all the details, but it turns out I had food poisoning. You can imagine that having food poisoning while trying to enjoy the birds and other animals was a challenging task. However, we all survived and boarded our bus promptly at 4 pm back to Cordoba.
Although many situations and conditions arose that we hadn’t foreseen, we still enjoyed our time in Iguazu immensely. We grew in our cultural and historical knowledge and came to understand another small part of the overall culture in Argentina. My friends were also a tremendous influence during this trip while we laughed, joked, suffered, and groaned together. It was undoubtedly an unforgettable journey to a location situated very close to two other borders. This adventure has greatly impacted me as an individual in a hugely positive way. I will continue to revel in the Argentine culture and history for the remaining time that I’m here and put my Spanish skills to good use.