Iguazu Falls

One of the 7 Natural Wonders of the world is located in Brazil.  This hot spot (quite literally) is located where Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina meet.  The falls are one of the most amazing sights I have ever seen.  Depending on the time of year there are 150-300 falls.  It blows Niagara Falls out of the water!  The second grade teacher and I made the trip together.  Our first morning we went over to Paraguay pretty much just so we could say we have been there.  It was nothing special, but it´s always nice to try out a new country.  On the bus ride over I saw these men selling food with their little picnic tables right in the middle of a few roads.  I thought it was rather interesting.

This river defines the border between Paraguay and Brazil.  

A shopping mall right over the border.  Things are supposed to be cheaper in Paraguay.  I didn´t find anything worth buying.

Then we went back to Brazil to a bird park.  There were birds, reptiles, and butterflies.  Here I am touching a Toucan...the Froot Loops bird!  I was a little nervous that long bill would come around and poke me!

Aren´t they beautiful?!

This bird was heavier than I thought!

Here is our first view of the falls from the Brazilian side.  I thought this was spectacular (which it was) and that we were seeing most of the falls.  Well, this is only a small portion!  We walked all afternoon seeing sights like this along the path.  

Here is a little video of a portion of the falls.

These lizards were crawling all over.

The next day we went over to Argentina.  We were able to take a short boat ride that went under two different falls.  That was really nice since it was well over 90 degrees each day, and it was fun.  We couldn´t see anything!

This is one of the most famous places or portions of the falls called Devil´s Throat.  The falls are shaped like a horseshoe, but tighter than the Canadian side of Niagara.  

A video of Devil´s Throat

This is a link to a youtube video of a helicopter ride over the falls.  

http://youtu.be/wndkgwcdDQU

The river between Paraguay and Brazil powers the largest hydroelectric power plant in the world.  We toured this in the morning before we left to go back to São Paulo.  

Brazil and Paraguay share it equally.  Here are their flags (Brazil on the left and Paraguay on the right).