Brazil for a Day

If you only have one day to explore Iguazu that's a shame. Ideally, you should spend one day on each side of the falls. While, Argentina is home to over 80% of the falls, the Brazilian side offers an unique perspective, not to be missed. Linda, one of the solo travelers I met the day before, and I organized a minibus in Puerto Iguazu and it couldn't have been any easier. The van picked us up in the morning in front of her hostel. We were the only two passengers for the day. The driver took us to the boarder, took our passports through customs and delivered us to the falls. We never had to get out of the van.

The Brazilian side of the falls are special for the vast panoramic views of the fall, not seen from the Argentine side. Here you are really able to get a feel for the scope of the falls.

Once through the main entrance a bus takes you to a midway point. Here you can walk the long, but easy, pathway that meanders along the cliff, stopping at several vantage points.

The path ends with a metal bridge spanning out toward the center of the mid-point of the Devil's Throat. Then, from there, you take an elevator up to get one last panoramic view of the area before returning back to the man entrance where our driver was waiting to return us to Argentina.

Here in Iguazu was the first time I was finally feeling like a "traveler", the same way I do in Asia and Central America. Most of this trip has been centralized in big cities, urban areas with five star dining and shopping. It's been more like taking a holiday in Europe than following the backpacker route. Here I started to meet people, and hang out with other travelers. Last night I took Sue and Linda back to the Brazilian market so I could share my find with them. It was great to just talk for hours about life and travel and the world. I missed that.

Linda made friends with one of the women who runs her hostel and mentioned that I was interested in learning more about the mate tradition here in Argentina. She let me try some of her mate, which tastes like a very strong, slightly gritty (although that's not the best word to describe it) green tea. I had been warned by some that it's an acquired taste, but I actually liked it. And it seems like the only way you can experience it for real is to get to know a local. She actually took us to the shop where she buys her mate and showed us her favorite brand. I picked some up. Now I just need a mate gourd and straw. But I might never have tried it if I weren't back on the traveler path and meeting people, making friends with locals.

Tomorrow Linda and I go our separate ways: Linda to Brazil and me to BA to see Marc. My solo adventure is coming to a close.

Returning to Argentina

I was up early. Too early. I knew Marilu was being cautious and although I tried to convince her that I didn't need to be at the airport three hours before my flight even though it was international and that is what the airlines recommend, but she was insistent. And so I was up at the butt crack of dawn to catch the collectivo to the airport, which is much more economical than taking a taxi. So I had plenty of time to kill at the airport. In fact, my airline didn't even open it's check in counters until an hour after I arrived.

Today was spent primarily in transit, flying from Santiago to BA and then BA to Puerto Iguazu, with a 3 hour layover in between. Unfortunately not really enough time to leave the airport and explore. The upside, I got to watch the Uruguay Football Team run through the terminal, trying to catch their flight home. The downside, Puerto Iguazu is the Argentine side of Iguazu Falls, so that meant a full flight and tons of other tourists, including an American high school rugby team trip. I'm actually quite shocked at how few manners I saw from those boys. Yikes!

But once I landed in Iguazu everything melted away. Suddenly, I finally felt like I was traveling. The airport and city are in the middle of the jungle so it's verdant here and the earth had a rich red tone to it. I had my taxi driver drop me off in the center of town and I went from hostel to hostel until I found something I liked. This was more like it. When I travel like this I'm not used to reservations and plans. I'm used to hopping from city to city on a whim, listening to other travelers for advice on where to go, what to do and where to stay once you're there. I like the adventure, the unknown and the ability to make a decision based on my own insight rather than what I read in the Lonely Planet.

I explored several options, one was more expensive than I wanted to pay, another felt too desolate and in one I walked in, saw three young girls outside smoking look me up and down disparagingly and then look back at each other and I realized that I didn't want to stay at the "cool" hostel where the young girls looked at me like I was OLD. Ugh. When did I get old? I settled on a hostel called "Peter Pan", very near the bus station and an easy walk to the center of town. The owner was welcoming and showed me to a private room near the pool. Perfect.

I set off to explore the town, which is small and quaint but decidedly a tourist trap. Yet the vibe here is very different from any other place I've been on this trip. Perhaps because it's a travelers town. It's more rural and feels culturally different from what I'm used to. It's impossible not to relax here. Most of the restaurants and bars here cater to the tourist trade, focusing on pizza, sandwiches and pasta. When you've been on the road for 9 months and you're living hand to mouth on the travelers budget I get it, but I only have three weeks so I want to opt for something more authentic.

I discovered a small market, just beyond the tourist center of town. Here stalls offer a variety of olives, cheeses, cured meats, wines... Apparently, it's the Brazilian section of town. After wandering through the market I grabbed a table on the street outside one of the stalls. I picked a stall with other people dining there, knowing that the locals always know best. There's no menu, and nothing to guide you so I just pointed to one of the cheese and salami platters on the table next to me and asked for one of those and some wine. That strategy worked out just fine. Soon I was sipping wine on the street and had a small plate of different cheeses, meats and olives stuffed with garlic and salami and cheese on my table. Just enough for one person. It was so good and cheap and perfect. And the best part - I was the only gringa there!