Caravana Schedule
12 december 2000
Tyler, Shay and I are in Colonia de Sacramento, Uruguay.
Knowing that we needed to reach Tierra del Fuego by Christmas Eve, we reluctantly parted with the other 3 vans south of Sao Paulo and made our way to Foz do Iguacu.
We visited the falls on the Brazilian side and then crossed over to the Argentinian side. Both are stunning. The falls are half again as tall and wide as Niagra Falls and consists of hundreds of falls. In addition, both sides are situated in parks where reside some 500 different species of butterflies. Since we have arrived in the springtime of South America, it was fantastic. According to the guidebooks, the catwalks on Argentine side were damaged a couple of years ago by flooding. In fact, many of the paths are under reconstruction. The walkways on the Argentine side tend ato be much closer to the actual falls. We took only the upper path, which meanders across the tops of several falls with wonderful views of the permanent rainbows across the falls. In addition, I spotted a toucan on the wing and we were treated to the company of a fearless family of coatis for at least a half hour. On the Brazilian side, there is a walkway leading down to a beautiful bridgeway right out in the middle of the falls. For the less intrepid, there is also an elevator which takes you directly down into the falls. We truly enjoyed both sides. After a walk in the falls, we decided to spring for a boat ride into the falls. Since the water is still too high the boat couldn't actually go into the Garganta del Diablo (Devil's Throat) but we definitely did get wet. From Iguacu, we drove across the Missiones section of Argentina and re-entered Brazil. Soon darkness started to overtake us and we pulled off the road at a sign for Mormoco. There we found a sign pointing toward Parque Gehlen. We started off to find the park. We found ourselves in a very rural, farming area and didn't see the park. A car was behind us so we asked and the gentleman in the car directed us.
What we found was a delightful surprise. The family Gehlen, owners of a lake full of fish, had built a homemade waterslide of what appeared to be a very long, narrow and heavy tarpaulin tied to pilings driven into the lake. We pulled in to ask permission to spend the night. The park was closed but the whole family was there. Not only did they take us in but they turned on the waterslide for us. They had indoor bocce ball, fooz ball, pool tables, and all the beer we could drink. Shay not only got to go fishing, but actually caught fish for dinner. The mother of the clan insisted on cooking for us, including frying the fish that Shay pulled out of the lake and frog legs, a new food for both Shay and Tyler. They talked us into staying another night and the second day one of the sons pulled in with a whole pig which he butchered on the spot and grilled for us. We were up way past our bedtimes again eating and drinking with this wonderful family. We would recommend the Parque Gehlen to anyone who travels through this area.
Since we once again found it impossible to leave on time, we decided to hurry it along. We drove and slept and not much else and have now arrived in Colonia del Sacramento, Uruguay. We've booked passage for ourselves and the vans on the 6:45 pm ferry for Buenos Aires which arrives at 10:00 pm. We would have preferred to arrive earlier in the day but not all ferries take vehicles. We probably will pull into the first hotel with secure parking and try to find the Buenos Aires Amigos de Caravana tomorrow.
Jeanne
