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FROM MEXICO TO ARGENTINA 2006 - 07

BRAZIL AND ARGENTINA - SWAMPS OF PANTANAL, IGUAZU FALLS AND BUENOS AIRES (Sept 2007)   photos

Pantanal. This vast wetland is one of the world's great wildlife preserves.  The best way to visit is on a tour.  During 3 days, we walked and rode horses.  There was also piranha fishing, a safari-type excursion and a boat excursion.  We saw a huge number of animals, mainly caymans, capybaras and monkeys.  Also many different birds, from big stork, the symbol of Pantanal, to noisy parrots and colorful toucans.  I think it's easier and a lot cheaper to see those animals in Bolivia (Rurrenabaque), but visiting Pantanal is a great wildlife experience.

Iguazu Falls

The mighty Iguazu Falls are the most magnificent in all of South America, and although I have been there before, I decided to visit again, but just the Argentinian side.  As in most National Parks, foreigners pay 3 times more then locals.  So when I was asked "which country are you from?", I replied "Argentina".  To my surprise, I passed as Argentinian!  In total there are 275 falls, including the amazing Devil's Throat, where the whole lake plunges 80m down with overwhelming force.  There is also a lot of wildlife in the Park, but most of it gets scared by the crowds of visitors who flood in even on weekdays.  It's worth getting there early and spending the whole day exploring all the paths leading to many smaller waterfalls.

Buenos Aires

The capital of Argentina, the birthplace of tango, seams more European then South American.  Only a century ago, Argentina used to be one of the wealthiest countries, and there are still a lot of elegant buildings and neat plazas. One of my favorite places is Puerto Madero, where old warehouses have been converted into restaurants and bars.  This year there was a bonus - a photo session for a man's magazine called Chicas FX was taking place, and I couldn't resist the temptation of placing one photo on this website.  I apologize for my weakness!

Here, in Buenos Aires, my one-year long journey was coming to an end.  I packed my bag the last time, throwing away old clothes and replacing it with bottles of wine I was hoping to smuggle into the UK.  I went to the airport 4 hours before my flight.  The first obstacle was my American visa, a little damaged because my passport got wet 2 times recently.  After this was overcome, the workers couldn't find my ticket.  I had to go to the office of Delta Airlines to get one printed for me.  It was taking a long time and I started to worry.  It was obvious there was a problem, but nobody knew what it was.  I was told I may not be able to fly!  After a few phone calls, they explained to me what happened.

A few months ago I changed my return date by phoning Expedia, from whom I bought this flight.  I asked to fly on the 22 of September, because the next day my ticket expired (it was valid for a year).  After that, I phoned Delta to make sure everything was fine.  What I didn't know was that Expedia made a reservation for me, but didn't issue a new ticket.  And that's probably because the computer didn't allow it.  And the reason for this was that my ticked expired at midnight 22 of September, but.... Greenwich Mean Time, not local time!!!  So my flight at 8.30pm from Buenos Aires left 30 min too late, it was 30 minutes past midnight in London.  I had the option of buying a new ticket, for a mere $1900!

Slowly, the reality of my position dawned on me.  There was no way I was going to pay that kind of money.  I returned to my hostel, nervously analyzing my new position and my options.  I decided to use it to my advantage and travel in Patagonia, something I was thinking about anyway. For technical reasons, I will treat it as a separate trip, called PATAGONIA 2007.    photos