Iguazu

The Iguazu falls truly are as gorgeous in person as everyone says they are.

We walked the Upper Circuit on our first day and found ourselves about a mile into the Argentinian National park when it started to rain. Not a light rain, mind you. A torrential downpour fitting for a *rainforest* or a *jungle* because, oddly enough, that was where we were.

We ran where we could, but much of the path was on elevated metal grates that were slippery enough before the rain. So, we walked most of the trip back and smiled sheepish drenched hellos at the much more prepared folks walking into the park in their full rain gear.

Something about being caught in a heavy rain while it's warm is immensely joyful. I couldn't help laughing and smiling the entire time.

We were staying at the Sheraton hotel in the National Park, so we could walk up from the trail and enter the hotel without navigating the bus system as drowned rats. The staff met us at the back entrance with towels and we retired to our room, where we safely watched the storm. At points of high humidity (for example during a 4 hour downpour), the falls instantly create clouds as the fine mist created from the impact of the falling water rises into the atmosphere. This creates the image of smoke from a huge non-stop fire, both from land and from the airplane.

(Pictures to come)