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Back on the airwaves!
Not sure what location the blog says, but this posting is from Iguazu Falls! Cannot believe we actually made it here after airport nightmares! This is pretty much a tropical heaven, as far as the Killian family is concerned. There are signs posted asking visitors to vote for Iguazu Falls to be the eighth wonder of the world. It has our vote!
Our hotel is the only one within the park itself. It is a Sheraton- sort of a massive convention-type place, but the natural beauty of the area overpowers this downside. From the hotel entrance, you immediately see the falls in the distance, rainbows and all. From the pool at the hotel, you actually look from the Falls into Brazil. Argentina and Brazil are divided by a section of the falls called "Devil's Throat"- you have no idea how accurate this description actually is! We hiked to this area later in our day there- you are surrounded by massive falls, the center of which you can't even see because there is so much spray blasting from far below. The park has built metal walkways all over the river and falls, so at time you are literally hanging out over these sections in mid-air. Not such a great feeling for those of us who are a little afraid of heights! Thatcher had no issues.
We started the day traveling in a big motorized raft up the river towards the falls. The plan was to check out several angles of the falls and then actually go jnto some of them for a super-shower. There were two small issues with this game plan. The first is that Thatcher caught wind of the program early on, and once he (and I) actually saw the falls close-up, the thought of venturing anywhere near them lost it's appeal completely. The second was the crocodile sighting just prior to boarding the boat. We spent much of the upriver expedition talking Thatcher into believing that 1) the boat would not capsize and 2) that we would only be getting a tiny bit wet by the falls. Thatcher is pretty darn smart and didn't believe any of our reassurances. We did survive, however, and he actually had a blast once it was over. Unfortunately, Multnomah Falls will never be very interesting again.
We spent the remainder of the day hiking all around the park, checking out the vast number of falls, the wildlife and terrain. Each of the kids had butterflies land on them and stay put for long periods of time. Thatcher's new best friend, Fred, was the champion at this. He went from Thatcher's hand, to his ear, to his hat...for about 30 minutes! Although we saw lots of lizards, toucans, quotamundi (a raccoon-type creature), it was the butterflies that the kids found most captivating. Kendall had one on her hand that was a deep, electric blue and black- like something out of National Geographic.
We were sad to have missed a day in this area due to the airline strike, but were really glad to have made it at all.
- comments
Kristen It is delightful to hear of your journies. I had never heard of the falls - but your experience reminds me of when we saw Niagra Falls with the kids when they were about your kids age! So ominous! It looks stunning! I am thrilled to have some insight as to what you are up to! Enjoy!
Carolyn Meeker Seeing this gorgeous photo reminded me that years ago Matt Lauer visited Iguazu Falls during one of his "Where in the World is Matt Lauer" segments. I made a mental note that day to add this beautiful location to my "bucket list"...Thanks for sharing - I am so glad you made it there!