Day 79: Puerto Iguazu, Argentina

Get there early! That`s the best advice we can give you. Iguazu Falls is a huge tourist magnet (obviously–it`s amazing!!) and there are certain times during the day that sends waves of tour groups rushing in. The absolute best way to see the falls is on your own, at your own pace. Everything is so clearly marked and well laid out with walkways and maps and trail signs, there is literally no way to get lost even if you wanted to!

Us at the falls

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Day 78: Puerto Igauzu, Argentina

This morning we happily checked out of Foz de Iguazu and took a city bus (labeled “Argentina,“ cost 3 reals) across the border into Argentina. We walked around the tiny town trying to find a place to crash for the night and came across the Anahi hostel, about 15 minutes walk from the bus terminal. It`s a clean, well run establishment where we paid $7.14 (breakfast included) each for a couple bunks and a shared bath. The daytime manager speaks 3 languages and is a funny, hyper man who will make sure you are well taken care of. After a fabulous lunch at Il Fratello (the best calzones outside the States) and top notch service on a budget (come on, everything we do is on a tight budget!), we wandered through the town seeing it with news eyes without the weight of our backpacks. Read the rest of this entry »

Day 77: Foz de Igauzu, Brazil

Some people just don`t take rejection well. This guy was one of those people. In fact, he was so bad at taking rejection, he came within literally 2 inches of being smashed by the front of an indifferent city bus. Read the rest of this entry »

Day 76: Curitiba, Brazil

Happy Birthday Morgan!!

Today started with the idea of doing some tourist sightseeing before we head off to Iguazu Falls on the night bus. We wondered around the city, walking through large parks that dot the city, wondering back through the zoo, and eventually happening upon a giant organic food market.

Giant statue in one of the many parks

Giant organic market

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Day 75: Curitiba, Brazil

After many weeks of searching and sifting through piles of pizzas, hamburgers, and pastels we finally found some actually “authentic Brazilian food.“ The sign proudly vouched for the authenticity of said food and we took the bait. It was a crowded self-service buffet at lunchtime in the historic center. A cheap, slightly dingy interior to match the slightly cheap, dingy store front but it was clean enough and there weren`t flies covering the buffet. We each grabbed a tan plastic lunch tray and scooted our way down the line. Rice, beans, sausages, cabbage salad, stroganoff…wait a minute! This isn`t Brazilian food–it`s more like German food! What?! Read the rest of this entry »

Day 74: Curitiba, Brazil

In a city that trades recycling for fresh garden vegetables, it`s difficult to see where exactly those vegetables go. Restaurant fare is mostly fried foods and vegetable markets are few and far between to the eyes of a newcomer unfamiliar with the secrets of the city. Despite its progressive recycling programs and current and green initiatives, Curitiba isn`t exactly the greatest place for fresh, healthy food. After having come in from a long night bus through Sao Paulo, we were ready for a nice big meal, hopefully void of pastels (fried pastries with cheese or meat inside) or cheeseburgers. It took a while but we found something meeting our requirements.

Lindsey and the meat-cake-pizza-things

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Day 73: Trinidade, Brazil

Lin looked down at her knees. They burned red like fire and bits of tiny broken shells stuck to them like barnacles. Saben sat several feet farther out where the water was deep enough for him to protect his knee. Unable to help herself,  Lin sat back down in the shallow, forceful surf just feet off shore and let the waves pull her body toward the sea and then spit her back up on shore like a beached jellyfish. The air was so hot she didn`t care about scraping her knees on the sand as she was tugged and tossed around. She just wanted to cool off from the blistering sun. Read the rest of this entry »

Day 72: Paraty, Brazil

Today was another slow day of Saben dragging his bum leg around like a wounded dog. Internet, Ice cream, Lunch, Ice cream, Internet… Until a chance meeting on the way back to the hostel.

“Well, hello!“ Anytime someone speaks to us in English, they`re nearly always trying to sell something. As it happened, we were standing on the foot bridge overlooking the muddy water and suspected someone was wanting to sell us a boat ride. Turning around slowing in preparation for a polite “No, Obrigado,“ we were stunned to see who had spoken the words. It was the sweet English couple we sat with at the soccer game in Rio! How funny that we should meet again, in this place at this particular moment! Read the rest of this entry »

Day 71: Paraty, Brazil

A rainy day with a twisted ACL can only mean one thing: stay indoors and do nothing. Read the rest of this entry »

Day 70: Trinidade, Brazil

It all started with a sweet lonely puppy.  She was clearly bored and her owner nowhere in sight when she spotted us walking down the beach. Like her, we were strays today too.  Her sweet eyes kept glancing at us, hoping we would see her and acknowledge that she was there too. And with such sweet brown eyes, how could we not? Read the rest of this entry »