Date of Entry:  December 21st 2015

Date of Writing:  January 3rd 2016, Salta Por Siempre Hostel, Salta, Argentina

Okay, first things first, despite the english sounding name, if you go around asking to get to Monday falls people won’t know what you’re talking about, that’s because this beautiful place is actually pronounced Moon-die  (Mooon-Diee or Moon-da-ugh depending on who you ask)  and the name comes from the guarani word which means robbed river.  They can be difficult to get to using public transport only because of the name confusion and because if you tell people you want to go to the cataratas (waterfalls)  they will tell you how to get to Iguazu, so when you’re asking for info be sure to say Salto “Moon-die ” en Paraguay!

Even with my generally good Spanish it proves to be a bit of a struggle when I head out of hummingbird hostel to the main street nearby and try to find the right bus to get on.  they say Monday and I’m told that’s the one I need but twice i climb aboard and am told no, that is not the bus going to the falls.  So here is what was going wrong, basically the buses labelled monday go to Avenida Monday, but not all of them go to the right part of that street, Monday 5 and 6 dont, monday 8 does and should also have signs for Franco on it.  this is how you find the right bus, which a friendly elderly couple eventually explains to me.  The bus fare is 2500 Guarani (60 cents CAD) and once i get on the right bus I just ask the driver to tell me when I need to get off.

After a roughly half hour ride through the hectic streets I’m told to get down at a busy street corner and to walk left.  Luckily from here, the directions to Monday falls are well marked by large billboards in the middle partition of the street.  The bus doesn’t take you straight to the falls though, instead you’re left a little over a kilometer from the park entrance, but turning left on the main avenue, following the billboards and eventually heading right just passed a sports complex through more rural surroundings going down a hill and around a bend will get you there easily enough even despite the heat.

Before reaching the entrance to the park I’m treated to one instant glimpse of Monday falls, which if they were found anywhere but so close to Iguazu, would be a serious tourist attraction.  But so close to the most impressive waterfalls in the world, this place is practically empty, making it much more worthwhile to visit, for the serenity of being alone alongside nature’s beauty.

I get to the entrance and ask about a student price.  The entrance fee to this site has grown quickly over the past few years, now at 50,000 Guarani (12 CAD)  for foreigners and 20,000 Guarani (5 CAD) for people from Paraguay.  I don’t know if this is official policy or not but as a student they only charge me the 20,000 which is a nice little bonus.  Thanks again university of Ottawa for a 5 year student card in a one year program.

Inside the entrance I find a charming park under a thick canopy of trees, with a few closed food stalls, and a zip line program.  I’ve also been told there’s some sort of survival course run by a really cool guy in the park where you can camp beside the falls, but I have no more information other than the word of some dutch tourists I’ve met in Salta that it exists and is awesome.  the park is full of pleasant trails down to the falls, lots of flowers, butterflies, and more than a few Iguana’s roaming around.

The heat is absurd and I’ve eaten absolutely nothing all day and not much this past week, since it seems to be the only way I’m capable of losing weight, something that is long since overdue.  For that reason I don’t waste that much time exploring the park, instead heading straight down towards the rush of the falls, where I am entirely alone except for a few workers who are building an elevator to take you down to the lower balcony. After enquiring I’m told it’s meant to be open and operational by mid January 2016 and will make this place way more awesome, as, in my opinion below a waterfall is usually better than above.

I spend a good chunk of time out on the lookouts, fighting the temptation to jump the little fence and take the stairs down to the lower observation points which are closed off, but figure the workers who have ben chatting nicely with me, might not take that so well, so instead I stay by the falls, enjoying the company of the countless butterflies drifting in the intermittent sunlight, though the short periods of rain are more than welcome in the 35 plus degree day.

Eventually I check my watch and decide it’s time to head back, after all I’m leaving Paraguay today to spend a few days in Foz de Iguacu, the town on the Brazilian side of Iguazu falls.  It’s bigger than the Argentinean town, and offers a bit more to do.  As I leave the park a butterfly decides it needs to say a long goodbye to my bag.

I make the walk back to where the bus dropped me off and then continue along that street to the next main street following the advice of two friendly locals.  Paraguay doesn’t get many gringo’s and maybe because of this the locals are excessively friendly and as I walk I find myself wishing I had more time to spend exploring this unexplored country, though I may stop by again in April 2016.

At the main street I catch the bus back to hummingbird hostel asking the driver to let me off by Macdonalds and fighting the temptation to go in there, before heading back to the hostel, collecting my bags and grabbing another public bus towards a small terminal near the shopping district.  From there I make the stupid decision to walk to the border, across the friendship bridge and a decent ways into brazil to find the local bus to the urban bus terminal, all in 35 degree weather.  I think it’s safe to say I lost at least 3 pounds of sweat on that walk and I am utterly relieved when I get to the surprisingly awesome Iguassu guest house just a few minutes from the urban bus terminal in Foz de Iguacu.  This is where you should stay if you want a social but non party hostel in Foz De Iguacu, because it’s just awesome.

I refresh and relax before heading to a huge modern mall and enjoying a subway sandwich  (In case you’re looking for a new Jared who doesn’t commit serious crimes subway?)  before going to the cinema to see the new star wars movie, enjoying some city non travel luxuries.  I mean my name’s Luke, how could I not see it?