Monday 4 May 2009

Wet 'n' Wild in Brazil


Now, I want you to close your eyes and imagine................oh no, wait, hang on a minute. This isn’t going to work, is it? First of all, I suspect some of you may have been a wee bit mislead by my title of Wet ‘n’ Wild in Brazil and are now imagining scantily clad Brazilian supermodels frolicking and bouncing in the lightly breaking surf off a shimmering, golden beach or perhaps a wet t-shirt competition during the Brazilian equivalent of Spring Break. Now that is definitely not where I was going with this, so just push those thoughts out of your mind.............well, at least try..........and let’s get back on topic.

Of course, the other reason that closing your eyes is not going to work is that if you did, you would not be able to read the rest of this blog or be able to see some of the most amazing scenery that we have encountered on our tour of South America so far. So, keep your eyes open, but let you imagination run wild as I try, probably unsuccessfully, to describe the glory that is Iguaçu Falls.

Iguaçu Falls are found on the border between Brazil and Argentina, so I really should have titled this post Wet ‘n’ Wild in Brazil and Argentina, but that just doesn’t sound quite as catchy. They are not the highest falls in the world – that honour goes to Angel Falls in Venezuela, at 980m and they are not the widest (in terms of a single curtain of water) falls in the world - that honour goes to Victoria Falls (at its highest flow) in Zimbabwe, at 1600m. However, they do have the highest average annual water flow of any waterfall in the world. Now, doesn’t that make you want to rush off to your nearest travel agent and book tickets! No? Probably not, because no matter how many numbers and figures that I throw at you, none are going to give you that spine tingling, goose-pimpling, hair-standing-on-end feeling that you get when you are actually there, feeling the spray hit you in the face and hearing the noise battering your eardrums almost to breaking point. Even pictures, that speak a thousand words, cannot convey the physical presence that is Iguaçu Falls.


So imagine a fine mist rising up in front of you. The mist dances and swirls, raises and falls, a curtain concealing one of the natural wonders of the world that opens and closes to give glimpses of what lays ahead of you. Now imagine a low, deep rumble. The bass line of this symphony of falling water reaches you, stirring feelings of impending awe, arousing anticipation, calling you closer, ever closer. As you draw nearer, the noise increases. New threads of sound twist and twirl in the air, the water crashes and booms, burps and gurgles, splashes playfully and thunders terribly as the water careens along the confines of the channels and waterways that lead it inexorably to its plunging destiny. Nearer still, and you can now feel the fine mist hitting your face, clinging to your clothes, a infinitesimal part of the great falls settling in diaphanous droplets on the strands of your hair. And then..............then.............the chasm opens up before you and your breath is taken away. Gone in the roar and thunder, lost in the spray and mist.


One of the reasons that I fell in love with these falls was their sheer physical presence, the awesome power of the water, its overwhelming strength, its tremendous force and intensity. You felt as though nothing could stop it, nothing could stand in its way and prevent it from going wherever it desired. The different walkways and viewing platforms gave you many opportunities to immerse yourself in this relentless, ever moving spectacle. In some cases, this immersion was literal. One of the walkways lead out over a bench midway up the largest falls, the Devil’s Throat. This walkway should not be taken by the faint-of-heart or those without a change of underwear. As you reach the end, you look up into a sheer wall of water as it thunders over the ledge high above you. Look down and you see a boiling, roiling mass of chaos. The air is drenched in water, the mist coalesces around you, water flies into your face and before you know it you are soaked through right down to your knickers.

If wetting your pants once is not enough for you, you can always hop aboard one of the high speed power boats that will give you a real up close and personal view of the falls. I am not convinced that taking a boat right up to the falls is such a good way to see the falls. You certainly do get to appreciate the sheer force and might of all that falling water. It hammers down on your head and body, taking divots out of any bare flesh. It pounds onto the boat and slams into the surrounding maelstrom of water that rocks and throws the boat every which way. Meanwhile, the noise is deafening. Your eardrums are assaulted by the intense roar and howl of the water barrelling down into the gorge and you cannot hear yourself think “what the hell am I doing here?” And I certainly did not see much since most of the time my eyes were clamped shut tighter than a mussel at low tide. It was either this or experience the feeling of having my eyes power washed out of their sockets. All that water soon infiltrated all the nooks and crannies of my body and my skivvies were soaked once again.



Iguaçu Falls appear to be never-ending. As you walk along the walkways, you encounter fall after fall, walls of water that stretch ahead of you and behind you. Just when you think it can’t possibly get any better, it does. You reach that final walkway, the one that snakes out for one kilometre over the immense body of water that is sliding inexorably and relentlessly beneath your feet towards the edge of the abyss. At the end of this walkway, there is a platform that sits right above the entry to the Devil’s Throat and you can stare down into that maw of hell. The water leaps out over the edge, tumbling down and down until it disappears into the bedlam below. Streams of water twirl and twist, break into a million droplets and then coalesce into a new stream of water until it vanishes into the foam below. Watching falling water is like watching fire. It is mesmerising. It never stands still, it is never the same. It moves and shimmers, it spurts and stutters, dances and flies. One pattern flows into the next, as one veil of water finishes its fall, another one begins. Add to this the cacophony of noise that surrounds you. The air vibrates, the walkway hums with the music of the falling water. The vibrations move through your body, pulsing through your muscles, flesh and bones as your blood pulses through your veins. You are enveloped by the throbbing, pounding rhythm that is Iguacu and you could stand there all day, hypnotised by water....................well, I could, but Mr. DBM had other ideas and so I had to drag myself away from this feast of sight and sound and head back to normality.

19 comments:

Anonymous said...

Bitch

Don't Bug Me! said...

Moon: That really isn't very nice, is it? I am sure that your mother didn't drag you up that badly.
PS. Love the camera bag!

Anonymous said...

Good, I am pleased, as it was very thoughtful of me, not to say generous ... remember the 24th is not too far away ..

I am also very jealous, it looks fantastic, and I can imagine the noise and thunder of the falls ...

Cortes said...

The narrative makes me feel as though I was there, and the photos, as always, are wonderful. I know two others who have visited this area, and both were as impressed as you. Once again, a little envy on my part.

Baino said...

It's interesting how the water was brown when you were there. When Clare was there it was blue and clear. Ever changing is right. Even the Brasilians love their falls. She brought back video and that doesn't do the roar of the water justice! Lovely post. Feel like I've almost been there . .almost!

Don't Bug Me! said...

Cortes: Thank you!

Baino: The water was brown because it was running so high and fast - there had been a lot of rain. Although blue water would look nicer and I was some what disappointed with the brown photos, the amount of water thundering over the falls was just spectacular. Some of the viewpoints and many of the paths were actually closed since the were covered in water.

Audun said...

Hi, I love the picture and your description of the falls. Only problem was that it made me want to go there NOW......
Have a nice day

Don't Bug Me! said...

Hi Audun! Thank you for popping round. Sorry about the tempting holiday opportunity - pop by again later and I will have some more locations to tempt you!
I have just been to see some your photos - quite lovely, although I couldn't understand a word of what you wrote!?!

Jay said...

Ah, that was lovely. I do love a good waterfall, and yes, they are awesome in the proper sense of the word. Standing at Huka Falls in NZ and Niagara on the Canadian side are among the most memborable events of my life. The sheer physical presence of all that moving water, that beautiful, inexorable motion, that living yet impersonal power and force ...

And yet my favourite part of your excellent description is this -

" ... my eyes were clamped shut tighter than a mussel at low tide. It was either this or experience the feeling of having my eyes power washed out of their sockets."

Good one, my dear. I'm happy to say that I don't know that feeling! ROFL!

Don't Bug Me! said...

Jay: Would you believe that I have never been to Niagara? In fact, in the 15 years that I have been in Canada, I have never made it beyond the Rocky Mountains. Never really saw the point - B.C plus the Rockies - what more could you want?

Mary Elizabeth said...

Spectacular post.
Mary Elizabeth @ Now and Then

Don't Bug Me! said...

Welcome, Mary Elizabeth! Thank you for your kind comment. I am only half way through my travels through South America, so come and visit again. Unfortunately, I never made it to Venezuela, but I have plans to go there one day - Angel Falls is on my list.......

Carolina said...

WOW

I popped over from Jay's dusty hoverfly after reading your comment.

Now I'm off for a pee, after all that talking about waterfalls, and then I will return to try and find your photoshopped toad.

Great post.
Enjoyed it very much ;-)

Carolina

Don't Bug Me! said...

Carolina: Runing water and full bladders are not a good combination. Glad you enjoyed the post and that you are now one of my many followers - hang on, I only have four. Well, I am glad that you are one of them!

Rinkly Rimes said...

I've been to Victoria Falls in Africa so I can guess how magnificent your are!

Don't Bug Me! said...

RR: Hello! Victoria Falls were amazing, but I found Iguazu Falls to be even more incredible. Maybe because they were in full flood when we were there, but Victoria Falls were well passed their maximum flow.

Baino said...

I'm kinda with Moon here. ..you write so beautifully for a scientist. I hate your whale pics because all I saw was a hump and a fluke (no pun intended). Clare and an Argentinian with whom I have had the great pleasure to work with for four years agree that Iguazu is unbelievable!

Don't Bug Me! said...

Baino: Thank you so much for your lovely comment - I really appreciate it. If you want to see whales, you need to come and visit British Columbia - we have lots. Now that would involve quite a long flight for you, but it would be worth it. You are welcome anytime. Have a wonderful time in Melbourne!

Ricardo said...

Great blog and lovely narrative.
I live in Brazil and I haven´t been there yet... whata shame. Next vacation for sure! Nice tip