Oh. Ma. Ga.

Every time I think I can't possibly see another thing that blows me away, I see something else that blows me away.

We spent the day at Parque Nacional Iguazu, something I'd been looking forward to since October. A guy I met in Cuenca, who had been traveling for a year, said it was the most amazing thing he'd ever seen. Not just in his travels, but EVER. As I said, I listen to those people.

We arrived early and decided to do the Sendero Macuco walk first.

watch for snakes, people doing laps

Wise choice - the trail was empty other than a few capybaras, wild boars and cai monkeys...

... as well as lots of birds and a bazillion butterflies (that would be with us the whole day).

neither a bird nor a butterfly

The wildlife were easily spotted. Nature guide? We don't need no stinkin' nature guide. At the end of the trail we reached the first waterfall of the day, Salto Arrechea, which reminded me of Wahkeena Falls.

Very nice. But nothing compared to what I was about to see.

Next up was Garganta del Diablo, the park's main draw. You go about 1100m across a metal catwalk over the river to reach the head of the falls...

As you get closer you start to hear it.

And then you see it.

oh

ma

gaaaaaaaaaa

Stunning doesn't even begin to describe this. Photos and video won't do it justice. The penguins were awesome and the jaguar was intense but this was the first time I was actually breath-taken on this trip. Watching the water made me dizzy. It was incredibly loud. It was enormous.

Niagara Falls Schmiagara Falls

Spent a while there absorbing the scene and taking dozens of photos, then visited the lower and upper circuits in the afternoon. These offered their own Portland-esque hidden waterfalls as well as views of some gigantic ones.

that one teeny solo waterfall near the center of the photo is equivalent to Multnomah Falls, for perspective

There was a constant rainbow from the mist at the big waterfalls and the sun kept the butterflies out and about.

for the leprechauns

seeing double

my new BFF

Even the tourists were kind - everyone seemed happy to be there.

I mean, wouldn't YOU be happy to be here?

And as the perfect ending, on the bus ride back to Puerto Iguazu Kim spotted a blue and yellow toucan. It was the last thing to check off on her "hoping to see in the jungle" list. In my other toucan experiences the birds were hard to spot, but this one was just sitting in a tree by the road. Must have been a rescue toucan.

There's not much else to do in Puerto Iguazu other than visit Tres Fronteras (where you can see Paraguay and Brasil from Argentina) which we did on Thursday...

Paraguay to the left of me, Brazil to the right, and I'm stuck in the middle with Argentina

... so we are now Uruguay-bound. Planning was way too easy once again. Hopefully our travel and weather luck follows us to the next adventure!