March 6 - 10, 2019
'We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us...' -- anonymous
So, time to seek faraway landscapes and reinvigorate our senses! We flew from Buenos Aires to Puerto Iguazu and checked into the ingeniously designed retreat of Loi Suites (more about that later) inside the wild Iryapu jungle & Ibera wetlands 
Taking the trains to the trail heads is the right call...as there is an entire day of walking in store for us due to the extensive upper and lower circuits on the Argentine side
Plush crested Jay bird with blue eyebrows was plentiful throughout the parkland
The Argentine side of Iguazu park has quite an extensive spread of terrain of varying altitudes which allowed for both an superior and inferior circuit...being our first visit & given the forecast for rain later in the afternoon, we originally planned for hiking only the upper paths. Surprisingly though, both our energy level and weather god held up quite well as we were able to hike main routes of entire park in one day!
long exposure (left pic) versus regular (top) - hard not to take a zillion pics of these thrilling views to savor later ... with ppl, sans ppl, groups of ppl ...lol
'you don't take a photograph, you make it'
--Ansel Adams
Grace is finding this pair of sympatric nature's ode to water when you're just walking along the length of an everyday brook
Having some time remaining in late aft before meetup with our hotel driver, we decided to embark on the boat excursion to the foot of the lower circuit falls ... the adventure was getting interesting when as soon as we boarded the open air jeep transport, dark
clouds gathered and the skies began to look ominous...
Can you spot the small alligator resting on the edge of the sandy riverbank? (pic above)
the boat ride took a route to circle Ilha San Martin and put us right underneath the Salto Mbigua before sending us to the Brasil side of Salto Tres Mosqueteros ...our trepidation re getting rained upon was rendered laughable indeed when we got a total drenching beneath the lukewarm waterfall ...fun selfies everyone! lol
completely waterlogged, squishing in my footwear along wooden suspension bridge of Loi Suites leading back to our suite at the end of a long day
after cleaning up ..ready for dinner back to the main Naipi restaurant food was delicious and the views of the well-lit pools inviting... yet, we both had gotten enough dosing of rain and waterfall for the day; will savor a nightcap by the Tiki bar overlooking the interconnected pools
Next morning, back to the top patio - the property is linked with a series of hefty wooden suspension bridges where below, well laid rocky trails fringed with native vegetation and magnificent trees beckon guest to take an exploratory stroll thru this 600 hectares of lush rainforest
due to the forecast for showers in the AM, we lingered over abundant breakfast selections and decided to spend half day in the resort to simply appreciate Loi Suites' secluded tranquility .. punctuated by the fluttering of many indigenous colorful species of clymena butterflies
We took some meandering paths leading to various areas of the estate marveling at the artistic hand of man carving a lovely oasis of comfort in an untamed subtropical jungle
walked the stone paved steps down to the Iguazu river from the hotel via an orchid trail ... admiring the beautifully arranged landscapes with blooming bushes, exotic trees & lush jungle vines
its a bit surprising that even though the rooms are set deep in the heart of dense vegetation, there seems an absence of bugs or mosquitos to impede on ones enjoyment of the balcony surrounded by copious plants & soaring canopy of trees
'I wanna soar like the birds & the fly like butterflies'...each morning the sounds of a pair of resident toucans pay a visit to the breakfast guests ...I finally took a pic of one of them high atop the tree branch
arranging for a driver transfer to the park ~ 15 mins to the falls and 10 mins to Puerto Iguazu (main town)
The walk along the Passeio Garganta do Diabo is very scenic... glad to be able to have a do over of this hike on a different day & in afternoon this time where the sun is at a more favorable angle for photo taking
@ Devil's Throat again, this time more enjoyable with the warmth of aft sun right on our faces & also much less windy... so FYI - we recommend if one is short on time or only 1 day, do the Garganta del Diablo in the afternoon
my new iphone 8 came in handy - not only was it waterproof, was fun to experiment with its loop /bounce /long exposure featuresOver heeerree!!
'Cry a river, build a bridge ..' -->
Tip : the 2nd day park entrance is 1/2 price so if possible can do the Argentine side consecutively as we did... Pic left - the last fall of lower circuit (Salto Bossetti)
Our last evening here - enjoying the peaceful ambience after casual dinner on lower Tiki Bar restaurant 
On the morning of our 4th day in Loi Suites, we hired the same driver to take us to the Brazil side (Foz do Iguacu). The distance to its park entrance is about 20 min from our hotel, although we did need to duck into the immigration office on Brazil side to get our passports stamped. We had a tourist visa from 2 yrs ago but it was not necessary to show
(left) loop function iphone8
Beyond epic, stunningly beautiful... quite an indescribable scene.
Iguazu falls are taller than the Niagara Falls and wider than Victoria Falls... the Iguazu river is over a kilometer wide and it plunges over the rim of the Parana Plateau , which was blasted out by an enormous volcanic eruption more than 130 million years ago
really worthwhile to visit!
In total 275 individual drops stretching for 2.7 km make up the largest waterfall system in the world. The Iguazu river system joins the San Antonio river - the point where it forms the boundary between Argentina & Brazil thus a multitude of these water veils straddle both countries
It is said that before Iguazu waterfalls were made, the rivers that fed into the area were calm. Yet there was one condition to this pact - the Caigangues Tribe had to sacrifice a beautiful girl each year to Mboi, the snake god. Each yr several tribes would come to witness the sacrifice. One year, that's how Taroba met Naipi, the girl who would be sacrificed. He pleaded for her to be spared... but his requests were denied...Taroba and Naipi then fled at night, enraging Mboi. To prevent their escape, Mboi split the river, creating the raging waterfalls ...
Then to prevent their union after death, Mboi turned Naipi into a stone and Taroba into a tree. That is how they were separated. It is only when the sun desires for there to be a rainbow that the two are once again united. Of the 275 falls that Mboi created, the most impressive is known as the Devil's throat - where Naipi and Taroba are said to reside under the eyes of Mboi
Not as many trails as on the Argentine side - a good half day or a day is sufficient to see course through the park
iphone pic on a loop ...@ Espaco NaipiAwesome power of the last fall in Foz do Iguaca side before we exited
