Catch up pt. 1

Hello all,

Sorry about the blog neglect. Thought it was time to dust off the computer and actually post something.

After leaving Bonito we travelled to Foz do Iguacu on the border between Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay. Consequently we decided it wouldn’t be a bad idea to pop over to Paraguay, if not to buy cheap electronics, then at leas to get another stamp on our passports. We got neither of those.  In our 5 hours in the country, we only encountered gringo” prices for goods, and we didn’t even stop at the border crossing, let alone get a stamp on our passport, so if anyone asks, WE WERE NEVER THERE! However the major highlight of Foz was the Iguacu Falls. Our visit coincided with the end of the wet season so the falls were not at their strongest, but they were still incredible.

 

Beautiful downtown Paraguay           Crazy Paraguayan manikin

Brazilian side of Iguacu falls

We also visited a bird park next to the Iguacu Falls National Park, which contained all types of brilliantly coloured birds up close, including toucans and, my personal favourite, hummingbirds, which just seemed to hover dead still in the air in front of us. We also got the opportunity to hold a baby boa constrictor and a macaw, which was brilliant.

 

 

The next destination was Puerto Iguaçu, on the Argentinean side of the falls. Amelia went on a boat ride under the falls, and we spent a day in the Argentinean National Park. The views of the falls were not as spectacular on the Argentina… with one exception. On the Argentinean side you could go right up to the top of the biggest waterfall, the devil’s throat, which was an amazing experience, seeing so much water spill so far down.

 

A few free camps from Puerto Iguaçu we arrived in Buenos Aires for the second time, which, after experiencing Rio and other South American cities, was actually much cleaner and safer than our first post suggests. As Amelia put it, “I can’t smell the piss anymore.” We fell in love with the city, and since we had already done most of the tourist activities, we had a great time walking the streets at our own pace, visiting markets in Recoletta, San Telmo and Palermo, eating dinner after 12:00 and going out to local bars at night. My one disappointment was missing the Bocca Juniors play Argentinos at Bocca Stadium due to it selling out. Oh, and we got a false 20 peso note in La Bocca (we think) which we have been trying to get rid of unsuccessfully, but it makes a cool souvenir at least.

An Exhibition of painted bears     Shoe shops everywhere in BA(Australia’s bear was done by                                                        Ken Done and was crap)

After saying our goodbyes to Buenos Aires, we headed southwards to Patagonia and free camped (using our sleeping bags for the first time)on our way to Peninsula Valdez, a national park on the coast of Argentina. The landscape was unbelievably similar to Kangaroo Island it was like being home. The park contained various forms of wildlife, including guanacos (an orange llama relative), rheas (a native emu), foxes, penguins, elephant seals, sea lions and even some orcas chowing down on a sea lion.

The Local Penguins

Baby Sea lions frolicking

We stayed the night at Puerto Madryn, a Welsh-settled town just south  of Peninsula Valdez, where the locals apparently spoke Welsh-Gaelic as well as Spanish. They even had their own rugby club. Our two nights there were pretty uneventful, we just checked out the town, leached internet for emails etc.

We’ll try and fill in the rest in the next couple of posts.

-Samelia-