Impressive Iguazu - Argentina

In October 2012 we went on our first trip to South America, and so far our only one. Though not because it wasn't good... because it was good!

We had decided to fly into Argentina, and out of Chile. After booking our flights we sat down to decide what we wanted to see and do. Most people might plan a trip the other way 'round, but this method works for us!

On our way to the main falls

So what did we want to see? It came down to Buenos Aires (of course!), the area around Salta on the Argentinian side of the Andes, the area around San Pedro de Atacama on the Chilean side of the Andes and of course.....  the Iguazu falls!

Many birds near the falls, like this black vulture

The Iguazu falls are basically a big collection of waterfalls, and it is simply impossible to seen them all at the same time, unless you take a helicopter ride. The sheer size of it was like nothing I could of imagined.

We did spot a monkey!

Most impressive is the moment when you walk onto the viewing platform at the 'Devil's Throat'. Hearing the the roar of water while you are surrounded by the eternal mists is a moment to remember.  But not one that I could photograph. I suggest you use Google for better photos!

This is a tiny butterfly we spotted, but look at that pattern...

We spent a whole day in Iguazu National Park, as we wanted to get most out of our ticket of course! The walkways near the falls are where the most visitors are, and these can get busy at certain times. Though not nearly as busy as I expected them to be. You walk to the falls on walkways, that are either paved or boardwalk.  You get amazing views of the falls from any different angles, and you can see many birds. We saw different vultures and even a toucan!

Wild guinea pigs! I used to have a guinea pig as a pet

But it is possible to do some really nice, pretty secluded walks through the park. And while you seen mostly the omnipresent coatis at the main routes, you can see some pretty nice animal life if you wander a bit. One of the walks we did was from one entrance to the Devil's Throat. You can take a little train as transport, but walking is nice too!

And to give an impression of the Devil's Throat, this is a short video.

Sunrise over El Tatio

During our trip from Argentina to Chile we crossed the Andes mountain range: an experience in itself... But once on the Chilean side of the Andes we arrived in San Pedro de Atacama. 
San Pedro de Atacama is a little oasis town in the Atacama desert, and a good base from which to discover the surrounding area. One of the trips we made was to El Tatio.

Crossing the Andes

El Tatio it is a geyser field, and its name means the grandfather. El Tatio is 4320 meters above sea level and has over 80 active geysers. This makes El Tatio the second highest (in elevation) geyser fields in the world and the largest geyser field in the southern hemisphere.

El Tatio right before sunrise

We were told that El Tatios is at its best at sunrise, which ment leaving San Pedro at 4am... oh my! And, being at both high altitide and in the desert, it was COLD! So there we were, waiting in the middle of the night (4am is not morning!), in as many layers of clothing we could fit, in the dark, for our minivan.  That came about 45 min later :(

We were packed in the minivan with a few other tourist, and drove off to El Tatio. Some 90 minutes later, over mostly gravel roads, we arrived, about 15 minutes before sunrise.  The temperature at that point was about minus 10'C. The area looked like a misty moon landscape.
Various little ice pools were encircled by stones.

Sunrise

And then the sun rose.....
Some of the pools started bubbling, and the ice broke. Misty fumes rose all suround us. It was like magic.
As with most touristy places with natural hot water, our guides sed the thermal heat to cook us breakfast. Hot chocolate and hard boiled eggs. Or half raw eggs if you use the wrong puddle ;-)

As the sun rose we could warm ourselfs in the thermal pools.
I decided to just warm my feet though: the air temperature still was only around 10'C, not really my favourite temp to get undressed in!
So, as you might''ve guessed: it was a bit to chilly for me, but on the whole it was really worth it!

Even the birds looked cold