Feb 27 - Buenos Aires to Iguazú Falls

Monday was mostly a travel day to our 2nd destination in Argentina, Iguazú Falls.  To be honest, I had never even heard of it before starting to plan for this trip, but Jim and Neil Ann have been before, and thought it amazing enough to warrant a return visit.  So, we met for breakfast at about 9:00 am, then I took a final walk around the neighborhood and enjoyed the cool morning before a final pack & short ride out to the smaller Buenos Aires Jorge Newbery airport, which is located on the north end of the city right alongside the Rio de la Plata.  

A 90-minute flight delivered us to Port Iguazu, a city of about 70,000 at the northeastern tip of Argentina that also adjoins the cities of  Foz do Iguaçu (Brazil), and Ciudad del Este (Paraguay).  Altogether it’s a metro area of around 650,000 inhabitants.  A satellite view of the Iguazu airport  shows it a few miles southwest of the falls, surrounded by nothing but dense jungle, and a tiny two-lane road in and out. Stepping off the plane felt just like arriving in New Orleans in July.

There are only two hotels in the national park, the Grand Melia on the Argentinian side, where we are staying, and the Belmond Hotel das Cararatas, a pink and white beauty on the Brazilian side, visible from here across the river. Even though the three nearby cities are only a few miles away, right by the falls it feels like we’re 100 miles from anything urban.

The view from my room’s balcony is about as spectacular as one could ever hope to see:

We were warned not to leave the balcony doors open and unattended, and I didn’t have to wait long to see for myself exactly why.  Within a couple of hours, I must have seen 6-8 of these guys scampering around outside:

We had another sumptuous dinner in the hotel restaurant, and planned for tomorrow.  Jim arranged a guide for all three days here, and we plan to start on the Brazilian side of the falls in the morning.  I hope that we also find some time to enjoy the spa and pool, which are beautifully situated too.  It promises to be a great week!

That’s the Hotel das Cataratas, in Brazil,
high on the bluff across the river