July 18th 2019
So this wasn’t a part of our original plan, because the original plan was to be in Argentina and spend a whole lot more time on the falls, But in travel, and especially on this trip, plans seem to change. So, unable to get into Argentina without risking a child trafficking arrest, we decide to check out everything that Foz Do Iguacu has to offer, and even sneak into Paraguay on a bit of a technicality, to get the boys there first international experience. And, of course, the day begins with the only logical beginning there is, a whole bunch of dinosaurs.
That’s right dinosaurs! Foz de Iguacu welcomes countless tourists every day and as such there is a ton of kitschy tourist attractions in town. Think Niagara falls but on a smaller scale and thankfully more removed from the falls. One such place is where we spend our morning a 5 in 1 megalopolis of tourism including but not limited to: miniature wonders of the world, a wax museum, and of course a giant dinosaur park. Thats where the boys most want to start so we dive right in and take some awesome photos. In lncluding some straight up not allowed ones, where we sneak into the unattended photo sets where they gauge us tourists for professionally taken photos, just adding to the already costly day at the museum.
We wander through the dinosaur filled jungle snapping tons of pics and enjoying each others company. It is sort of like a trip back in time, though it would be better if the dinosaurs were real. Of course who knows if I’d emerge alive. I like to think I’d survive, but I might have to use the boys as human shields, and that would suck a lot.
The dinosaurs done we head to our next attraction which we paid for, the wax museum. Believe it or not it’s the first time I’ve ever been to a full on real wax museum, and I’ll admit, it’s cooler than I thought it would be, even if I do feel like I’m in a scooby doo episode. Who am I kidding, it’s awesome because I feel like I’m in a scooby doo episode. Also because the boys are having a ton of fun and we are able to take some fun pictures with the countless quite realistic wax figurines.
Next up is probably what the kids are most hyped up for. We’re going to Paraguay! Sort of at least. Since I’m not looking to go to jail for smuggling children I’ve remembered of the useful and informative tour of Itaipu Dam, a massive hydro electric process split between Brazil and Paraguay. On the tour they take you to the binational area and even cross the river in to paraguay. For the boys this alone makes it worth the price of admission, but it also offers some beautiful views and some great information about a massive human achievement. This dam provides over 80 percent of paraguay’s energy and more than 10 percent of Brazil’s which is pretty cool too. Even if it leaves me with very mixed feelings since they decided to flood, and then blow up another set of falls the size of Iguazu to make the dam.
The boys, now having been to paraguay are feeling like full on international traveller’s. For the record at the time of writing they have been to 10 countries at the ages of 12 and 15. How damn lucky are they? Our final stop for the day is the tres fronteras or three borders, a museum and viewpoint from which you can look out at Argentina, and Paraguay, while standing in Brazil. We shout curses at argentina (though the boys have now been to Buenos Aires and enjoyed it very much.). We also enjoy finding a green screen and posing for photos. Printing them costs you, but snapping a pic of the digital version is free and works almost as well.
After dinner, on our drive back to our hotel, which is out near the falls now, having moved on from our too expensive yoga studio to a much cheaper room in a charming little farm house/hotel I can’t resist. Out front of the wax museum is a giant model of bumblebee from transformers and a nice Foz the Iguacu sign. They want some ridiculous some to take photos there during the day, but at night no one is there and they’ve even got floodlights to set the scene. Vinny and I run out for a quick photoshoot, while Felipe refuses. He is not impressed and, as I’ll only discover after, very worried we might get arrested. I do my best to explain to him that there is no victim and that I’m sure If police did come I could talk my way through it, but he stays mad for a few hours, and I feel bad about my decision, having had no idea how worried it would make him. Still, the photos are pretty fun.
We head to bead early. The next morning we have another long drive all the way back to curitiba, where we will spend one more night and then head back to Sao Paulo late the next day. This trip has been a lot of fun, and a great bonding experience for me and the boys. Okay it hasn’t been the three week long adventure through the Guyanas and Suriname that I’d planned, but it’s still been a lot of fun. And the first of many family trips to come.
