BRAZIL!

So I couldn't think of a better title for this post. But who cares? Welcome to BRAZIL!!!! Need I say more?!

We were initially incredibly worried about going to Brazil, especially the capital Rio de Janeiro. The city had received mixed reviews from fellow travellers with regards to safety.

Well, so far so good *cross fingers* In fact, every chance for contact with Brazil has only seemed to improve our impression of the country.

Firstly, the visa application process was a breeze compared to what we went through to get our Bolivian visa at the embassy in Quito. We had read that the Brazilian consulate in Buenos Aires would take 1 week to process our application, whereas in Puerto Iguazu, it would take a mere 30min. The consulate in Puerto Iguazu was just a 5-minute walk from our hostel! It was a little hard to spot - it looked like any ordinary single-storey house along the road. If not for the crumpled yellow-green-blue Brazilian flag swaying limply in the garden, we would have missed the consulate for sure.

Armed with a clear folder stuffed with the usual documents necessary for a visa application (passport photos, yellow fever vaccination certification, bank account print-outs, letters from the office certifying that we are employed), we were a tad worried that we didn't have printed proof of intended travel in and out of Brazil. The hostel owner reassured us that all we needed were our passports and photographs.

And..... that was all that we needed! We filled in an application form, handed over our passports and photos (but not before correcting the officer's mistake of sticking my photo onto Dan's form), paid 84 peso each (about USD42) and went off to the supermarket to buy lunch. We returned 2 hours later to receive our lovely red booklets with Brazilian visas neatly pasted and stamped "valid for 30 days". Easy peasy!

Crossing from Argentina to Brazil is just as easy. We could hop onto any bus stating "Brasil" from across our hostel for 5 pesos (USD1.20), which brought us directly to the immigration outposts at the border. We got our Argentinian exit stamp and Brazilian entrance stamp really fast, boarded another bus (for no extra charge) and headed off towards Foz de Iguassu - the gateway to the Brazilian falls. It was the easiest, fastest and cheapest border crossing we had ever done!

Some tourists visit the Brazilian falls on a day trip from Argentina. Even then, almost everyone entering Brazil - even for a day - requires a visa. Citizens of the USA enjoy the special privilege of being charged an additional visa fee (on top of the processing fee that everyone pays), in reciprocation of a similar charge that the US imposes on Brazilians wanting to visit Uncle Sam. The Brazilian embassy seems to find great joy in reminding their northern neighbours - be it on their website or in person at the counter - why US citizens pay more than US$100 to enter Brazil. Tit for tat.

So everyone knows that they must have a visa to enter Brazil and that some time and effort is required on the applicant's part to obtain one before setting foot out of Argentina. We were incredibly disgusted with an Australian tourist who didn't bother with the formalities and hopped onto a Brazil-bound bus straight to the border. At first, he feigned ignorance when the border officials informed him that a visa was required. Then he pleaded that he would only be in Brazil for a day. When that didn't work, he insisted that his Australian friends had managed to enter the country without a visa - and had told him that he could do the same. The sneaky Aussie rat somehow got let through - I certainly hope that it was with a visa, and that they made him pay more to obtain it on-the-spot. The Brazilian authorities were really kind not to have sent him packing back to Argentina and wait out the weekend to obtain a visa through the proper channels - which was what I was hoping for. I was pretty disappointed to see him waiting to board the bus to Foz de Iguacu with us.

Ben-vindo a Brasil! Our 7th and final destination in South America

The town of Foz de Iguacu was the second thing about Brazil that impressed us. Coming from the Puerto Iguazu, a small red-dust village that is Argentina's gateway to the famous falls, we had expected Foz to be same. But the unpaved streets and hut-like buildings of its Argentinean neighbour were nowhere to be seen and instead, they were replaced with wide tarred roads and high-rise apartment blocks. Unlike the unimpressive small wooden arch that marked the entrance to the Argentinean falls, a stylish curvaceous visitors' centre welcomed us at Brazil's park entrance.

Since then, Brazil has turned out to be incredibly developed and modern, matching Singapore in many aspects and in some cases, outdoing our own city even. But more on that in our later posts.

First, we present the wonders of the Iguassu Falls from the Brazilian side!

Looking across the river to Argentina - the first full, obstructed view the falls

A must-have picture to record the moment

Dan trying to show how big the falls are - and failing miserably

Savouring the awe-inspiring moment at one end of the broadwalk

My eyes don't usually disappear when I smile - so I must have been really happy!

Looks soft and cloudy - but actually soaks you to the skin

A wondrously-long broadwalk that snakes across the river and brings you face-to-face with the majestic falls

Wrong waterfall - wearing my Maid of the Mist poncho from Niagara Falls!

Getting close to the edge

Even Elmo and his twin were there. Can you tell me how to get, how to get to Sesame Street?

No raincoat! Wet!

View from the top of the observation tower

Wet but happy

I love the dark patches of green sitting in the river and lining the cliff walls alongside the falls

Stuff that dreams are made of

Both the parks bordering the falls are truly deserving of their national park status, as well as their UNESCO World Heritage Site titles. The thoughtful and sensitive design of the walkways snaking over the water and through the rainforest serve to introduce and guide visitors through the natural environment. The parks bridge the vast physical distance between civilisation and nature at it's purest. You don't spend days (literally 24 hours or more) traveling to Iguassu just to see the falls. You come to embark upon a misty-cal journey where you walk alongside nature to hear its roar, feel its pulse, touch its spray, and literally soak in the ambiance and immerse yourself in nature. Standing in the middle of the river, surrounded by 360-degrees of white pulsating walls of water, can make one feel really young and insignificant in the face of these ancient faucets.

Our photos simply cannot do justice to the wonder and majesty of the Iguassu Falls. The folks at home have asked that us to describe the falls for them - which is impossible.

We hope that the video that Dan has put together can do the talking for us. Enjoy.

Niagara On Viagra

Dear DanYilin,

This is the Niagara Falls leaving a comment on your blog, all the way from Canada/USA.

I have been a faithful follower of your fantastic travel blog ever since we met (and got wet!) earlier this year in May. I remember that the both of you, especially Dannie - who had never visited me before, were really excited to be here. We had a gentle ride on the Maid of the Mist - you looking so funny and alien-like in your blue souvenir ponchos - and that night, I put on a spectacular light and fireworks display just for you.

I hear from certain water sources in the river network that you were on the edges of Argentina and Brazil recently - no doubt visiting my arch enemy, the Iguazu Falls!

Photo proof that you were there!

You were here, standing on the edge of Argentina and gazing over the Rio Iguazu to Paraguay (left) and Brazil (right)

You had already witnessed me, the famous Niagara Falls - the most powerful waterfall in North America. What else were you hoping to find in the Iguazu Falls? Something bigger and better than I? You even visited Iguazu twice - once from Argentina, and a day later, from Brazil. I distinctly remember hosting you on my Canadian side only, and not from USA! :(

A little brown water droplet told me that you, Dannie, asked your wife while looking over Iguazu, "So what's so great about Niagara Falls again?" You even cracked one of your lame corny jokes that Iguazu is "Niagara on Viagra" !!!! Well you are just like that First Lady of ours - Eleanor Roosevelt, who reportedly exclaimed, "Poor Niagara!" upon seeing that big brown Argentinian-Brazilian monstrosity!!!! HUMPH!!!

Poor Niagara, poor Niagara. I'm so sick of hearing that. Maybe I'll just go drown myself. Just like the Guaira Falls in 1982 - the largest waterfall on earth - which disappeared totally, flooded and silenced by the building of the Itaipu dam, and is now virtually unheard of. Maybe then the constant comparisons in size, height and volume of flow will finally stop.

So what if the Indians in South America gave their waterfall the name "Iguazu", meaning "Big Water"? My Indians called me Niagara, meaning "Thundering Waters"! Now which one sounds more grand? You tell me.

In terms of height, my claims can jolly well hold water against Iguazu's. In fact, both of us aren't very tall. Iguazu's drops average at 65m while my largest cataract, the Horseshoe Falls, drops only 53m. To help you put things in perspective, each of the 3 hotel blocks at the upcoming Marina Bay Sands Integrated Resort already stretch 55 storeys, up to a dazzling height of 250m - practically dwarfing me! I can't believe that I, a great natural wonder, am a mere one fifth of a hotel block in your country!

But comparing Iguazu's biggest cataract - the Devil's Throat, and my Horseshoe Falls, I admit that I need to swallow my pride - just like how that devilish waterfall seems to swallow up the earth.

You walked a pretty long distance across the metal broadwalk to get to the Devil's Throat.

Accessed from the Argentinian border, the Devil's Throat plunges to a depth of 82m, so deep that to you tiny human beings, it might as well be a bottomless pit that ends in hell. Each time the Devil releases a bellyful of mist that rises 150m to almost twice it's height, visitors lining it's mouth get soaked to the skin. From the shrill shrieks and screams emitting from you squealers, you would think that people were being swallowed by the devil himself, and not just being treated to a good much-needed midday shower!

The gargantuan Garganta de Diablo

BURRRRPPPPPP!!!!

Look what the devil coughed up!

In terms of the number of individual falls or drops, I'm sad to say that I don't measure up to Iguazu. In fact, it is a rather paltry comparison. I have an embarrassing grand total of 3 drops in my name (the Horseshoe Falls, American Falls and Bridal Veils) while Mr Big Water has a whopping 275 falls stretching across 2.7km. Too many even to name *SULK* Not fair.

I believe that you must have enjoyed walking along the lower boardwalk that stretches across the foot of the falls, bringing you face to face with Iguazu's flowing white curtains.

Standing where the falls meet the river

You walked across some of the smaller falls located at Iguazu's lower tier

Iguazu offered you the experience of walking through a lush tropical rainforest - something that I could not

From what my river network told me, you guys got a tad lost on the winding lower trail when you went in search of the embarkation point for your speedboat tour of the falls. Yeah, I guess you could highlight to the park administration that they need to put more directional signs pointing people to the boats, but where's the explorer in you? Methinks getting lost in the jungle adds to the sense of adventure! In any case, the winding path lead you to some pretty spectacular vistas of the falls. Right?

The Argentinian falls, as seen from the lower broadwalk. Two thirds of the Iguazu Falls are within Argentinian territory.

Magical - a white egret in flight through the mist

Time to get really really wet!

Plus, the spray from the falls were to prep you for what was to come on the river adventure! And I know what an adrenalin-filled ride that was - I could hear Yi Lin screaming all the way from Argentina! I hear that she was freaking out because the little boat was being tossed around by the force of the flow and huge waves (waves in a river eh?!) were dumping load after load of cold water over her head. How roughly Iguazu treated you! I, on the other hand, graciously hosted you on a ferry and gently floated you down the river, and let my waters rain on you for just a bit. And Iguazu didn't present you with big blue ponchos? Tsk tsk! No wonder people just run amok within the national park with their clothes plastered wet against their skin - or worse, only wearing their bikinis!

Speeding towards the Devil's Throat

Totally wet from head to toe - like how you Chinese say, "like a chicken that fell into soup"

I presume that after getting completely soaked on the speedboat ride, you guys headed for the upper broadwalk that stretches high across the top of the falls, right at the point where the river hurls itself over the edge and dives down down down into the plunge pool. The view from the top must have been magnificent, and the experience of peering over the edge and yelling to each other over the thunderous roar must have been an unforgettable one indeed.

I remember how impressed you were, standing at the top of my Horseshoe Falls as I threw unimaginable quantities of water over the edge every second. You stood watching in awe, realising that I have been doing this every second of my life for centuries, long before man discovered my presence; realising that I was Power, Heft, Speed and Grace all rolled into one; realising that it was impossible to stop me from running my course; realising that it was impossible to freeze time - that once a single drop of water sailed over the edge, it could never turn back. Realising that life too rushes you by, never once turning it's head to look back at you. That every second that ticks by is gone forever. (Oh, don't mind this silly old waterfall gushing and babbling away!)

Sad to say, Iguazu beats me hands down when it comes to prowess and volume of flow. On the average through the year, Iguazu dumps 6,500 cubic metres of water over its edge every second. During the rainy season of November to March, the rate of flow doubles to more than 12,000 cubic metres per second. I can only manage an average of 2,800 cubic metres! Puny :(

Looking towards the horizon, the falls stretching on as far as your eyes can see, bathed by mist rising from the plunging water.

A beautiful sight to behold: mystical waters rushing through a verdant jungle

I guess all these make Iguazu and its two national parks deserving of their UNESCO World Heritage Site status, bestowed upon them in 1984 for Argentina and 1987 for Brazil.


Alright, so maybe Dan was right. The Iguazu "Big Water" Falls wins this competition hands-down. The Niagara needs to get on Viagra!

Sigh!

Signing off,
Your Faithful Fan
Niagara Falls
USA/Canada

Villagers For A Day

Even with Singapore being such a small country, I've never walked from one town to another before. In-line skating yes (via East Coast Park), and cycling too, but actually walking like a pilgrim for hours and hours? Nope. The furthest I've walked was within the MacRitchie Nature Reserve in search for the treetop walk. I tried walking from our home in Bishan along the Park Connector Network to Kallang, but somehow found myself along the Pan-Island Expressway, decided against consuming lungfuls of vehicle exhaust and turned back. And I haven't yet attempted crossing the Southern Ridges from Telok Blangah Park all the way to Kent Ridge Park. (My, that's alot of things to try when I get home!)

With all that time to spare in Otavalo and all the good food that we had been wolfing down, we decided to take up Lonely Planet's suggestion to walk to a nearby artisan village called Peguche and the waterfall park, named after the village (Las Cascades de Peguche). Adeline, our new friend from France, also confirmed that Peguche was a mere 30-minute walk from Otavalo (but then, she and Nicolas aced us to the summit of Fuya Fuya, remember?)

The fresh, crisp mountain air in Otavalo is best savoured outside of town. After choking on 2 weeks worth of vehicle exhaust in Bogota and dust from the roads on every long distance bus journey, we really appreciated the oxygen treat that this Andean region had to offer (except for when the occasional vehicle put-putted by, kicking up a cloud of dust.)

We were pretty much the only people on the path, definitely the only tourists walking that route that day. A few local women, with babies and vegetables wrapped up in the same piece of cloth and secured tightly onto their backs, hurried past us. The babies' legs dangling from one end of the makeshift cloth haversack and the tops of leafy green stalks sprouting from the other. Stray dogs scampered past (gotta watch out for their fresh doses puppy poop on the pavement) and bored cows mooed mournfully at us.

The Ecuadorians seem to be ardent fans of DragonballZ or Naruto. The DVD stores carried many Naruto cartoon series (pirated of course) and the mural that adorned the wall of this humble provision store was pretty impressive.

Las Cascades de Peguche is housed in a neat little park, fronted by artisan (nooo... no more shopping for us although I was sorely tempted to get one of those little woolen caps) and food stalls bearing steaming pots of sweet white corn. A cobblestone paths guides visitors past the camping area and delivers them right before the waterfall.

Finally - the pony he had always wanted

Las Cascades de Peguche

I tried scaling the rocks to get nearer to the falls. But they were totally covered in algae (or was it scum?!) and slippery to touch. After much slipping and sliding and repositioning my hands and feet in various rocky crevices, I finally managed to haul myself up - palms, pants (which had just been laundered!), jacket and camera bag (sorry Roy!) stained in a murky palette of greens and browns. Ugh.

Trying to get a firm footing on the slippery rocks

Ah-ha! Slightly unglam, but I managed to hike my foot up onto a high ledge.

Still, it was pretty shiok cooling off under fine spray under the gushing falls.

Woooooosssshhhh!

The picture of victory. Messy mist-matted hair and all.

Satisfied with making a total mess of our clothes (okay, just my outfit - Dan somehow managed to remain scum-free), we left the waterfall park and trekked on to Peguche, planning to have lunch at the little village. It was really quiet for some reason, there didn't seem to be anyone around. We could hear the clacking of looms behind the brick walls but there was no activity whatsoever on the streets, except for food trucks delivering local produce to the stores. Before realising it, we had strolled right past the village centre and found ourselves along the Panamerican Highway outside the village!

Trying to find some life in Peguche. Where's everybody?!

The rumbling in our tummies prompted us to check our watches and we realised that we had been walking for 4 hours straight. We ditched all hopes of finding anything to eat in Peguche and lumbered back to Otavalo. We felt like real villagers for a day, walking from town to town on foot! Tummies empty and bladders bursting, we stumbled into a Shandong-run chifa for much-needed nourishment in the form of chalaufan with chicken wings (Dan's choice, of course) and deep-fried wanton skins (yes, only the skins. Strange!)

And then it was back to our hostel for what was meant to be a short late afternoon nap. We woke up at 8.30pm when Adeline knocked on our door to make arrangements to visit the animal market together the next morning (stay tuned for Dan's entry on that!) It's a good thing she did, otherwise we may have slept till midnight and woke up all bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and very hungry!

Ah well, time to wake up and head back to the chifa for dinner!

We Have More Fun When We're Wet

I like rappelling. If I think back to my army days, I would say that rappelling was the physical activity I was best at. When we passed out from BMT, I was selected to rappel down the side of the building while the other tougher guys did stuff like Log PT (whew!). Then during the camp's open house for teachers from MOE, I was again selected to do an inverted rappel from our jump tower. Now that was really fun!

So upon our arrival at San Gil, when we looked at all the activities possible, I knew that rappelling down a waterfall was a must.

Juan Curi Waterfall is about 20km away from San Gil, in an area called Charalá. The bus dropped us off directly in front of a bare-bones kinda farm, which also served as the entrance station to the waterfall. 'Entrance station' is stretching the truth a little though. After submitting the coupons we purchased for rappelling, and signing documents that waives the operators of any responsibilities, we were directed down a path that was strewn with cow poop for a half-hour hike up the mountain.

We were fortunate that there was a local family who was also going up the waterfall, providing some company and motivation up the slope. After all, we can't lose out to the kids, right?

Yi Lin got herself a nice walking stick to climb to the waterfall. Yes, that's the one in the distant background!

The family split off after awhile. Grandfather, Mom, 2 sons, 1 daughter and 1 daughter-in-law went off directly to the plunge pool at the base of the waterfall, leaving only Dad to continue the arduous trek upslope with us.

It really wasn't that long before we arrived at the waterfall (though our aching thighs told us it was still wayyyy too long).

The higher part of the falls that we rappelled from

The setup at the waterfall is really simple. The operators just wait for people to turn up and then they hook them up off they go! Despite it being a really wet activity, you can bring a bag, camera and whatever other stuff with you. If you have a camera, they oblige by helping you take a few photos, before putting everything into a waterproof bag and sending it down via a separate guy line.

Gloves and helmet provided by the operator and (icky) shoes provided on loan by the hostel

The Dad of the local family went off first, while we took our time taking pictures of the lovely surroundings. I went second, as the wife wanted her husband to be a guinea pig to make sure it was safe.

Despite my supposed experience with rappelling, the gushing water does make it slightly tricky. I slipped once before being reminded to keep my feet apart to maintain my balance. Slipping is not a big deal though. The thing about rappelling is that when the line behind you is taut, you can literally release both hands and you would not move. Your body weight actually acts as a brake to prevent you from sliding down non-stop.

I started moving down, and the cold water started soaking me. As the water landed on my helmet, I was reminded of the Ford Punto that we once took for a test-drive in the rain. The Ford Punto had a really thin roof and the rain was clattering down so noisily that the wife and I had to shout at each other. This was similar, but much more rhythmic and soothing!

The 80m descent is such a rush!

With typical Singaporeaness, I found that I was rushing myself in my descent to make way for the wife to join me. Then, through the cascade of water, I could dimly see the wife being hooked up to another line and making her way down on my right. Nice!

Since the place was not crowded, I decided to just stop and really enjoy the scenery while waiting for her. After all, when you're in the midst of a waterfall, there are rainbows all around. Oooh... pretty colours!

The wife finally made her way down to my level, and we shared the sweetest kiss ever before making the rest of our way down. It is really so much better having company. We were whooping and cheering our way down, and the family below was cheering us on too. What a sense of comraderie!

Mission accomplished!

Feeling strong and mighty!

Upon reaching the base of the waterfall, we unhooked ourselves and stripped down to our swimwear so that we could dry our clothes on a convenient ledge.

There is really no time limit on the amount of time you can spend at the bottom of the falls. Since it was not crowded, and there were families around, we actually felt pretty safe and secure.

Lush greenery near the waterfall

Yi Lin spent a lot of time just admiring the rush of the falls, and luxuriating in the serenity of our surroundings. But you could swim in the plunge pool if you wanted. The water was constantly being refreshed by the waterfall, and felt totally clean.

Tranquility

There is also a little ledge about 3m above the pool where you could jump from into the pool. I, of course, had to do that. It was just like jumping from our liveaboard in the Maldives, except that the water was not salty, and way colder. But that's me. I like stuff like that. Just make sure you ask the locals where is a safe place to aim for though.

First jump!


This was supposed to be a head-first dive, but I chickened-out halfway

I also had to prove my manliness by climbing up the lower ledges of the falls. It was really quite scary because the rush of water obscured my vision completely, and the ledges were slippery. But there were sufficient handholds in the rocks to make this possible.

Damned fun!

And damned tiring!

Yi Lin's version of climbing the falls was just to walk along the ledge where the water was falling to take a picture, then retreat

Mother and son who are into adventure sports taking their turn with the rappel. The kid was only 10 years old!

After a bit more of monkeying around, we decided to make a move. So it was back down the same path to the farm, where we changed back into our slippers which were way more comfortable.

I always wanted a day at the waterfalls like this!

It was a pleasant surprise when the father of the 10 year old boy who rappelled after us offered us a ride back to San Gil. The family spoke very good English, and the kid was talking all the way about the adventure sports that he likes (climbing, rappelling, rafting), stories of animals that he has come in contact with (tarantulas, boa constrictors) and his favorite plant (the venus flytrap). I think he was probably one of the most well-spoken and well-mannered 10-year-old I've ever had the pleasure to meet!

All in all, a really great day!