Pineapple and Cinnamon!
Inflatable
Churrascaria
The serenity of viewing Iguacu Falls from the Argentine side was counterbalanced by an action packed viewing from the Brazilian side. I started off the morning observing the falls from a snazzy helicopter, getting awesome aerial views of the falls and moving rainbows around it.
Parque das Aves, a 5 hectare bird park, was next on the list to check out over 800 species of birds. However the only bird I had eyes for was the Toucan. Such a gorgeous bird, yet it looks totally fake with its outrageously oversized coloured bill. In most of my photos it looks like an inflatable plastic toy.
We also decided to get a tour with Macuco Safari de Barco. It consisted of a 3km ride through the jungle in a truck-train, a short 600m walk seeing the small waterfall, Salto de Macuco, and finally a ride on a Zodiac for a 4km boat trip up the river, over rapids and under the falls at a point known as the Three Musketeers. Got completely drenched from head to toe. Not one bit of me was dry by the end but it was refreshing and helped mask the heat of the day.
Parque National do Iguacu also offers a Trilha das Cataratas (waterfall trail) of 1200m which follows the shore of Iguacu river, terminating at Garganta do Diablo. At the end of the trail a manmade walkway allows you to walk out to middle of river, surrounding you with gushing waters; getting you again very wet! However it is none-the-less refreshing the second time round, thankfully just not half as drenching as the boat trip.
A group of us went to an all you can eat Brazilian steak house (Churrascaria) called Gauchos. Churrascaria is a 300-year-old tradition stemming from Brazil where ranchers BBQ large portions of marinated beef, pork and poultry on skewers over an open fire pit. Gaucho's celebrates this tradition by carving 14 varieties of skewered meat table side.
You started with the salad bar which also had rice and mashed potatoes but the star of the show here is the meat. When you returned from the salad bar you turned over your table disc to green and the fun began. Waiters constantly circled around tables offering skewers of various meats, exquisitely cooked for everyone. Specific slices of meat could be chosen from the skewer before the waiters sliced them onto your plate and you didn't have to wait long for the meats to come around either. Choices included beef sirloin, pork loin, pork ribs, fillet mignon, meatballs, sausage, lamb, chicken (and even chicken hearts which I can gamely say I tried - a wee bit rubbery for my liking though, so no seconds for me on that front!). After two hours, once we had had our fill, we turned over our discs to red, signalling that we had been defeated and could not eat any more. Along with the meat the waiters also brought skewers of warm pineapple coated in cinnamon - this went down exceedingly well with the ladies of the group and we kept calling the guy over for more, and more, and more - which they eagerly brought us and reverently sliced.
All in all it was a fun relaxing night, and we all went back to camp with achingly full bellies - groaning as the minicab driver launched over speed-bumps; thankfully he ceased such behaviour after the second bump (probably worried that one of us might spew in his vehicle).
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