Travel Journal
Live the adventures of Dan Walker's travels through reading his travel journal. The travel journals are listed below in descending order of date. To search the travel journals, use the keyword search at the bottom of the page.
Journal Entry:
Friday, November 18, 2016 12:32:23 |
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Argentina 2016: 3 - Iguazu Monday, November 14, 2016
After breakfast the hotel arranged a taxi to the downtown airport for a 1hour 50 minute flight to Iguazu. We had to check our bags, as they allow only 8kg (18 lb) for carry on and they weigh them. On arrival our arranged Alamo rental car was ready for us, and as the entrance to the falls is only 6 km from the airport it was the first stop. Admission is 330 pesos ($US 22) per person. We had to pool resources, as they take only pesos or Brazilian Reals - no credit cards. By pooling resources we came up with the fee. A walk of half a kilometer got us to the train, which is included in the admission price. A ride of just under 4 kilometers and a 1 kilometer walk out an elevated walkway over the Iguazu River took us to the "devils throat" set of waterfalls. A platform is built over the falls, where beautiful double rainbows and be seen down in the mist created by the roaring water. The mist also provides welcome cooling on a hot, sunny day. Along the walkway are shady benches that we made good use of. Our drive into town was successful after a couple of reversals. A variety of maps and Google Earth printouts worked for navigation. At the St. George Hotel we were shown to a large, well equipped room with three beds. After a swim and beer in the large pool we ate in a BBQ restaurant across the street, where except for a chunk of meat I had the food wasn't great and prices were high. Prices in Iguazu are often more than in Buenos Aires. Tuesday, November 15, 2016
The hotel smorgasbord breakfast had a good selection of fruit and cereal, plus European style meat, cheese and pastries. Leo wasn't feeling great, so remained in the hotel to rest. George and I walked to a government money changer about 7 blocks away, asking a young lady for directions. She didn't know, as she was on holidays from Columbia, however she found out and then accompanied us. The peso is dropping quickly against the colon - at the airport it was 14.7 pesos for a dollar, in Buenos Aries it was 14.9 and today it was 15.44. Our new friend spoke no English, buy my Spanish was good enough to find out she was searching for an area with several of tourist attractions, so we walked back to the hotel to get the car and drove her to the first of them, a display of huge trees, and a massive wood house built out of the trunks of enormous trees, with each log from a different type of tree. After driving her to the next destination on her list George and I went through the City of Iguazu to see the monument where the three countries of Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina meet. The duty free shop here claims to be the only one with duty free from three countries. We could see the ferry boats going down the Iguazu River and crossing the Parana River on the route between Argentina and Paraguay. In city center there is a street with leather shops, where George bought a nice jacket. Back at the hotel we went for a swim, then George relaxed by the pool while I did some writing. Leo joined us to drive to Refrain Restaurant for dinner in Fos de Iguacu, Brazil, in pouring rain. There was a huge buffet, and a wonderfully upbeat song and dance show with performances from all the major countries of Latin America. It was extremely well organized, and was one of those shows that left everyone feeling great. We had to have passports stamped leaving Argentina, something that wasn't necessary when we were here with the Rolls in 2011. There was no one at the Brazilian immigration going or returning. Wednesday, November 16, 2016
After breakfast we drove to the Brazil side of the falls. Once again it was necessary to clear immigration in Argentina but not in Brazil. In 2011 we drove the car right to the falls, but now there is a parking lot and the final several kilometers are by double deck bus that makes about 4 stops along the way. Here credit cards and various currencies are accepted for admission, and the bus is included in the price. There were improvements at the falls as well. A long walkway goes from island to island ending at a platform with a view towards the "Throat of the Devil" falls. The elevator down to river level is the same. I was seated right at the edge of a powerful set of falls while waiting for the guys to walk to the viewpoint and back, watchingswallows disappear behind the falling water where they have nice, cool nests and several kotamundis, a raccoon like animal, running around my feet hoping for scarps of food. In downtown Foz de Iguacu we hired a taxi to take us to Ciudad del Este, Paraguay, crossing the bridge over the Parana River. We were driven through beautiful park areas looking for a nice lunch restaurant. The excellent lunch consisted of beer and a hot selection of meats and sausage served on a hibachi type heater. On the way back I bought a new wireless mouse for my computer for 9 US dollars. The taxi only cost the equivalent of $36 for the 3 hours we were in Paraguay. Returning to the hotel there was a border check in Brazil, and in Argentina both immigration and customs, including having the trunk inspected. Leo had a rest while George and I had a beer and a swim, then we all went to the three country border monument before stopping for an unremarkable dinner at the restaurant where George and I had a beer yesterday. When the bill came there was some drama, as they said the credit card machine was not working. Between us we scraped together all but about $8 of the total of the bill, and they accepted that as full payment. When George bought his jacket yesterday we had the same story about the credit card, so it seems the whole area is affected. |