Friday, April 19, 2013

Cataratas do Iguaçu


Cataratas do Iguaçu,
or Iguaçu Falls,
one of the great natural wonders of the world, 
has been on my Bucket List 
since I first saw photographs 
of these iconic falls 
near the borders of Brazil, Argentina
and Paraguay.


Cataratas do Iguaçu
Iguaçu Falls
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Iguacu-004.jpg



So I'm sitting at the bar 
at Parkway Bar and Grill
with Terry for Friday Night Date Night,
and suddenly an image of the falls
fills a huge TV screen.
OMG!
How often do you see this on a sports channel?



Cataratas do Iguaçu
Iguaçu Falls


"Terry, do you have any idea 
how much I want to go there?"  I said.

"You want to go everywhere," says the Ever-Patient.

"I'll go anywhere, 
but I really want to go there!" says I.  
"I've wanted to go there since..."

"I know.  I know. 
Since you saw a photograph of the falls 
in some Richard Halliburton book 
in your grandmother's bookcase 
in Charlottetown,"
says the E-P.


Richard Halliburton
My First Hero


"Actually, I can't remember 
when I first heard of them.  
Maybe in New Worlds to Conquer 
or our Lands and People encyclopedias.  
But, it doesn't matter..."  


Iguaçu Falls
Source:  Wikimedia Commons:  http://wikitravel.org/en/File:DSCF4291.JPG


"I can't believe what I'm seeing!"



          Right after the picture of Iguaçu Falls,
          motocross bikes and big mounds of dirt
          fill the screen:

          X Games, Foz do Iguaçu.

          What???



I am so disillusioned ~
well, embarrassed at my ignorance
is more accurate.
I thought these incredible waterfalls
were hidden in a remote area 
deep in the primordial jungle.
Not!

Here, instead of primordial, 
is a world class sports event
with motocross bikes
flying over a bar almost 30 feet high.

Where have I been?


Brian Deegan jumping at X Games 17 in Los Angeles, 2011



I've been living in a Halliburton world
that has disappeared into the mists of time.


Iguaçu Falls


The falls of my imagination
are located only seventeen kilometers
from the Brazilian city of
Foz do Iguaçu ~
a city with a quarter of a million people!


Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná, sul do Brasil

You can stay at the Five Star
steps from the falls
and a short journey from 
a UNESCO World Heritage Site!

You can go on a full moon walking tour
and see a lunar rainbow!
A lunar rainbow?
Now that would be something!


 Lunar Rainbow
Victoria Falls, Zambia


Okay ~ I'm flexible.
Bucket List Item:
Take a walk under the full moon
to see a lunar rainbow
over Iguaçu Falls
with a massage
at the Hotel das Cataratas Spa
thrown in.

Now to convince the E-P!

And go dig up my copy
of Richard Halliburton's
New Worlds to Conquer ~
Even if it doesn't have
Iguaçu Falls in it,
it would be fun to read again! 

28 comments:

  1. Strange place in many ways I think!
    Quite a post again, Fundy!
    For sure I too would love to discover the pristine side of it... if there still is one!
    All I know it that it's a cross road for drugs and arms... and that it is not such a safe place from what I've read and heard...
    Sad-sad!
    Cheers!

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    1. Hi Noushka!
      I hope that you are enjoying a lovely Saturday.

      I know there are places in South America that are dangerous, but the US has drugs and arms issues too. And now pythons are running amok in the Everglades in Florida ~ now those are scaarrr-y!

      My brother Roy has been telling me for years that he feels safer in Kuwait than in the US ~ he likes to get a brotherly dig in whenever he can! He does love South America and has spent quite a lot of time in Argentina and Venezuela ~ the latter with bodyguards. Of course, he has spent time in Libya and Yemen too ~ with more bodyguards.

      When I go to South America (I refuse to say if), I'm just going to go do it ~ with eyes wide open, probably in wonder! I have a niece on each side of our family who have gone to Machu Picchu and a third who has gone up the Amazon. I am so ready. I'll send you some bird pictures ~ probably a little fuzzy ~ but you can posterize them on Picasa and they can be spectacular. LOL!

      Take care, Noushka!

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  2. They say that the first step to making a wish a reality is to write it down. And you are very specific about your plan. Now send it off to the universe to fulfill. That would be a wonderful trip. I live about a150 miles south of Niagara Falls and these make mine seem like babies. I hope your dreams come true. Peggy from pa

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the encouraging words, Peggy! Lucky you to live so close to Niagara Falls. They are spectacular, and I have been fortunate to visit them twice in my distant past. My wish is off into the Universe ~ it's sent back a number of my dream trips, and I'm so grateful: Borneo, Singapore, Hong Kong, Cambodia, and Hawaii. I said repeatedly growing up, that if I made it to Hawaii I could die happy. We're off for my fourth trip in May, so I'm very hopeful about South America! Have a good weekend!

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  3. Replies
    1. Thanks Adam! I've dreamed about seeing them forever! It just never occurred to me that they now include motocross competitions and other non-primordial things! Have a happy weekend!

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  4. Very funny, but very true! No place is truly "remote" anymore on our planet. There are even cruises to Antarctica to see the bloody penguins, fer gawd's sake!

    I hope you and the Ever-Patient get to see the Iguacu Falls while staying at a ritzy hotel!

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    Replies
    1. Hi Debra!
      Would you believe that seeing the penguins in Antarctica is another BL item for me! The E-P actually interviewed at Raytheon for a stint in Antarctica as a shuttle driver on the ice ~ but we couldn't figure out what job I could apply for because I'm a chicken driver. So he passed on it in the end.

      Terry really wants to go to Uruguay, so the chances of me making the falls are high. He keeps looking for warm places to retire ~ but I'm not sure if he has noticed how close Uruguay is to the tip of South America. I've got everything crossed for Iguacu Falls: fingers, toes, arms, legs, eyes!

      I've had fun playing with the maps. I just need to figure out how to get the actual map on my blog ~ but I can now embed a link to a specific view of a map. Thanks again for your generous help!

      Have a wonderful weekend.

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  5. The Iguaçu Falls are spectacular! I'd never heard of them. I hope you get to visit one day. That would be a most memorable trip. Like you, I want to go everywhere! I keep wishing that we'd win that lottery ticket, so we can travel the world!

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    Replies
    1. Hi Martha! I've bought so many lottery tickets for the same reason ~ I'm generously funding the open space and park projects in Colorado as a result! I was trying to interest Terry in a short trip to Dodge City, Kansas earlier this week ~ every place has an amazing story when you start delving into it! Now it's more meat packing plants than Boot Hill, but that's okay. I hope you win a lottery and get to explore the world! Have a great day!

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  6. Replies
    1. Thanks Keith! I've see these falls and heard them in my dreams for a very long time. I just never saw or listened to the surrounding area! Silly me! Primordial or not, I'd go in a heartbeat! Have a great weekend!

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  7. Wow that is sure an awesome sight
    Would be grand to see for real in the sunlight
    And wanting to go everywhere
    Seems like you have been to many a lair
    Many places I would like to go
    Except for the over crowded and really germy ones that show haha

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    Replies
    1. Hey Pat! Hope everything is going your way
      this afternoon in your beautiful bay!
      I have been to many a lair,
      and I'd go anywhere on a dare.
      You should see the germs I've wallowed in
      in the places I have (tah dah: American pronunciation) bin!
      I'm still alive!
      On adventures I do thrive.
      Darn ~ I just need more money.
      Duh ~ isn't that perpetually funny!
      Have a good one,
      under the sun!

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  8. I know you WILL get there Louise...come hell or high water!!
    Makes Niagara look tiny!
    Now let's see....how to get EP convinced that this is a trip he'll never forget. Wok your 'magic powers' over him, he'll never have a chance!! lol
    Enjoying your weekend I am sure.

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    Replies
    1. Hi Jim!
      It's so good to hear from you!
      The chances of me getting there are quite high ~ I just have to act like I'm seriously considering Terry's suggestion of retiring in Uruguay. I mean we have to do an exploratory trip to check it out, and Uruguay is not that far away from Iguacu Falls.

      Terry has wanted to retire everywhere that's warm and cheap and anywhere but Smith's Cove. We have a lot of exploratory trips to do once he retires. I'm still hoping for Colorado as a permanent base, but I know better than to plan. The Universe takes delight in screwing up plans and in shooting you off in a new direction!

      I hope you are enjoying your weekend! Saturday for me usually means sleeping in!

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  9. Richard Halliburton ~~~ what an amazing story he would have to tell about sailing the junk ~~~ alas not to be told. His life reminds me of a TV show years ago I used to love Adventures in Paradise with Gardner MacKay sailing around the South Pacific. That would have been the coolest life.

    Those waterfalls are so huge. When I saw Niagara I thought those were mammoth. Can't you just feel the spray on your face now.

    If you DO go, enjoy every moment I know you will!

    ron

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    Replies
    1. Hey Ron!
      I wish RH had written that story! I was devastated when I learned how he and his junk vanished. I read his books over and over when I was growing up, and I have most of them now. Another collection to complete. Halliburton was handsome and fearless, and I was completely in love with him growing up!

      I can feel the spray and hear the roar. The force of the falls in Yosemite when they are in full run almost knock you over when you get close to them, so I can just imagine what these would be like. Guaranteed when I get there, I will write about them! I am entranced with lunar rainbows which I have never seen!

      Have lots of fun with Sophie and Jim this weekend!

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  10. Hi Louise! That is a nice item for your Bucket List! My in-laws have been and I think it's on my husband's Bucket List. Maybe we can go one day when our girls are older and will remember the trip! Hope you make it there soon and are able to blog about it!!! I can live vicariously!!! (Smile)

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  11. Hi Audrey! Wow! You're the first person I've known who knows someone who has been to these falls. Awesome! I hope you do get to go there with your hubby. For sure when I make it, I will blog about it! I live a lot vicariously too! Have fun with your girls and hubby this weekend!

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  12. Hee hee yes, there are international airports close by the falls waiting for you! Still, it definitely deserves to be one of the seven wonders of Nature :)

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    1. Hi B&R! You sound like you've been there! That would be awesome. I voted for the Bay of Fundy tides to be one of the new seven wonders of the world, but it didn't happen. :( Hope that you are having an enjoyable weekend!

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  13. What a beautiful place. I hope you can manage to get there because it would be lovely to read about. I suppose you would have to hire a guide but I wonder how close you can actually get to them? And I wonder how high they are compared to Niagara Falls? Thanks heavens they have not become a cheap tourist mecca like NF.

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    1. Hi Francie! The falls are glorious. From what I've read, Niagara is about a third shorter. You have to go on a group walk with a guide to do the moonlight walk ~ and that's only if you stay at Hotel das Cataratas. If you look at the second photo you can see a bit of the hotel's parking lot. In the sunset photo right after the motorcycle one, you can see a walkway that goes right out by the falls. I'm not sure if that is the Argentina or Brazilian viewing spot. Guaranteed, I'll post all the details when I get there. I refuse to say "if!" I hope you have been having a good weekend!

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  14. Hi Fundy, It is Barb - this area has always been on my list of places to visit. I will be very jealous if you get there first - ha, ha. What amazes me is that I have never heard of Richard Halliburton before!
    Cheers,
    Barb

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  15. I'm stunned! You haven't heard of Richard Halliburton! Unbelievable! He's monumental in my past! It's because of him I went to see the headhunters in Borneo! We better go to the falls together!!! And you've been to the Galapagos ~ talk about jealous! Hope you''re doing well!

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  16. Hello Louise,
    Wow, what a special place! I hope you get to visit it for us!!
    Ivan

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  17. Thank you, Ivan! And when I do, I'll be sure to post about it! I can't believe it! It's snowing again, and the ground is covered in snow again! Hope it's warm and sunny in France!

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