06.11 I said yes to a coffee and got it together with three small packages of crackers and a small jar of marmalade. It is dark and hard to write here in the bus which continues in the direction north through north-eastern Argentina. The company we go with is called E.T.A Kurtz. Rain has been pouring down during most of the trip.

06.50 We finally arrived in Posadas, capital of Misiones province. My backpack was first not to be found in the trunk. It turned out that it was hiding behind some boxes. The two men from Canada and the gentleman from Australia are also here. In addition, there are also other persons and even rain here. Now we will take the opportunity to exchange or withdraw some Argentine pesos and buy us some bus tickets from here this coming Wednesday.

07.08 After that Christer and one of the Canadians walked around here at the station and asked a guard, we can now say two things. There is no exchange office here and the only ATM machine is located out in the rain on the other side of a major road. Now we hope that we can buy the next bus ticket with the credit card. Now news came, the proposed bus company doesn’t accept credit cards, but there are other companies that do. Should we switch company? Our three travelling companions have continued further. They have changed to a bus out to some small town where they will see some ruins.

07.19 We switched to a bus company with a VISA symbol on the window. It didn´t help, their card reader was not working. Christer asked about an exchange office and the lady said something about "bar, downstairs, exchange". Christer just left to arrange with money.

07.28 Christer came back without having run any errands. Then the young lady suddenly said, "exchange, city centre". Now Christer is on a new ATM hunt. Right now a mate-drinking lady passed me.

08.10 Christer made it to an ATM nearby and we got the money and tickets. It has stopped raining now. A taxi without a meter took us to the Hostel Vuela el Pez (http://www.vuelaelpez.com.ar) and here we are waiting for our room to be available. Two guys from England are struggling to get the TV to work. Now they received help from a local man. The price for the taxi seemed a bit expensive but what can we do? I wonder if the driver actually drove straight here.

08.18 The TV is on and we can check in two hours from now. We're actually here earlier than expected. According to the original plan we would arrive here tonight. Now it is time for a packed travel meal. We didn’t eat it much of it on the dark bus.

Inside our accommodation in Posadas, Hostel Vuela el Pez (flying fish).

We have views against Paraguay on the other side of the river.

10.26 We were forced to suffer through a number of episodes of the American TV series Friends that none of us appreciate while waiting for the check in. We also watched parts of a TV-show called "The New Adventures of Old Christine." I am sitting on the bed in our new room. We are as mentioned in Posadas and Argentina. Our room lacks a room number but it has a small radiator. Some form of demolition-/construction work is going on next door. We also have a pool view. The pool doesn't look that inviting. It is not clean and it's still really cold outside.

13.27 We've been asleep for a while, rested ourselves a bit. I do not know how cold it would have been in the room without the radiator. We are about to get some information about the accommodation, the city and head out to explore in our first Argentine city.

We walked to the center on Calle 25 de Mayo.

A tall statue sits outside the Palacio del Mate.

Argentina celebrates 200 years as an independent nation this year. The picture is from the Casa de Gobierno.

14.35 Information has been given and received, and we have walked along the deserted streets towards the centre. Next to our hostel is a newly built apartment building with a helipad, a good landmark if we go astray. We’ve made it to the Plaza 9 de Julio (9th of July Square). Here I am sitting on a bench. The shops are closed and few are out there. It's siesta, siesta although it is only +8˚. One of the few open places we've seen is the restaurant Italia.

15.16 We're looking at yet another statue. The text on the base says Misiones. Al Gran Libertador. Integral Don José de San Martín. XXIV-IV MCMXXV. The latter is a Roman numeral and means 24-4-1935. A dove sits at the general's outstretched right index finger. A few other doves are sitting on the horse's head.

15.50 We're back at the Plaza 9 de Julio. The stores are still closed for siesta. We need to change money. We want to eat and to buy some postcards would be fun. On our tour, we have seen three small horses. I think the race is Argentinean and called Falabella. The restaurant Italia that was open before is now closed. That's typical!

General José de San Martín (1778-1850), Argentine hero.

One of the small Falabella horses we saw in Posadas.

16.34 The banks apparently close already at 13:00 so there will be no exchange, however the ATM:s work so we do have money. We haven’t, however found any restaurants or postcards. We, but not our small backpacks were welcome at the supermarket California. The backpacks should be stored in lockers. A lady with a handbag, however, was welcome. Now I sit outside and guard the backpacks while Christer is shopping.

17.23 The sun peeps out. I'm sitting in a park at Avenida Andresito Guacurarí and Christer is standing up in the very same park. We are heading back to the hostel with our shopping bags.

18.23 We're back in our room. We hear drums a bit away. There is no unobtrusive drumming it’s a sound that can be heard throughout the city. We are about to go out and see where it comes from. Yes, we will eat as well. Bye Room! It was a short stop here.

Peter takes a rest on his way home from the supermarket California.

Roundabout at the intersection of Avenida Andresito Guacurarí - Calle Rivadavia.

19.08 The drumming came from some kind of performance behind a wall, probably inside a school area. After that we looked for somewhere to eat along the restaurant strip along the river Paraná. Sure it was nice there and the view along the river towards Paraguay was great, but there were no open restaurants. All that was offered were bars and ice cream parlours. Let's go to the centre instead.

19.40 The restaurant Italia that was closed earlier today has now reopened. It wasn’t possible to order pizza so we will have to settle with a steak and a chicken dish. When we ordered drinks we learned that a small bottle is called "chica" (girl). Argentina seems to have adopted their dinner habits from Italy and Spain. It is more or less impossible to eat dinner before 20.00. The restaurants are being cleaned and the tables are set at this hour. We were basically the first guests for the evening.

20.54 We are happier humans. We are full and in a reasonably warm room. It is now time to make the bed.

22.21 We both had a shower and have washed some clothes. There was a need for mainly the latter. Now I hope that everything dries before we travel on. The ideal thing would be sun tomorrow. We'll see how it goes.

Tuesday 20th of July

09.11 We will be having breakfast in bed this morning. No, there is no luxury service which is included. Breakfast isn’t included at all. We will be having self bought breakfast except the coffee, which I made in the kitchen. A morning without coffee is not a good morning. A morning without coffee makes me a less nice person. According to the radio, cattle has frozen to death in Paraguay. Enough is enough, now it's time for coffee and more.

10.20 Today it’s Friendship Day in this city and country. I've just washed some shirts and now they hang out to dry around the pool. Can they hang there? Will they be dry?

Peter has done some washing.

Our yellow home, Hostel Vuela el Pez.

11.42 We welcome the sun which warms us and the city.

12.18 We have a quiet day ahead of us in a pedestrian-friendly city, without too many sights to be seen. We’ve walked around a lot in the center. We’ve been looking for possible lunch restaurants, postcards and a post office. They have eventually been found after some difficulties. We also saw more Falabella horses and one alpaca. Now it will be lunch and writing of postcards. El Viejo Piñar is the name of the place which we have selected for our lunch.

13.07 It was good food to eat and fresh juice to drink. Postcards were written and now it's off to the post office.

13.40 We are temporarily at home. We'll check on our laundry and some other things.

Fountain and cathedral on the Plaza 9 de Julio, Posadas.

In Posadas, there are plenty of Falabella horses and even alpacas (small llama) which children can ride on.

13.49 The laundry was looking good and the dry clothes were brought into our room. The laundry that hadn’t dried was hung on chairs so that the sun and wind would dry them.

14.10 Now we are down by the Paraná river. It is plenty of water to say the least in the river. One can see trees and houses that should be on dry land standing out in the water. Adjacent to the sidewalk two boys are biking on the sidewalk, they might be brothers. You can walk for miles along the river on the new walkways, very nice!

Lots of water in the Paraná river.

View of the San Roque González de Santa Cruz bridge linking Argentina and Paraguay.

14.53 The sun continues to shine and it is a really warm and beautiful day today. We’ve strolled along the river and now I’ve just taken pictures of a statue of a man looking like a bishop and some kneeling children. The statue turned out to resemble the late Pope, John Paul II. Wherever we go, he has been there before. One wonders how many countries he visited.

15.07 We took pictures of the beautiful San Roque Gonzalez de Santa Cruz Bridge and also walked past the harbour with boats crossing the river. Both the boats and the bridge lead to the neighbouring city across the river, Encarnación in Paraguay.

Christer and Rio Paraná.

A boat fights the waves on the river. In the background tou can see the city Encarnación in Paraguay.

16.18 We walked along the river and walked in the area we were in during the restaurant search yesterday evening. Now we’ve retured home. Soon the water boils in the kettle on the gas stove and we can get our afternoon coffee. A dog can be seen on the roof of the house opposite from here.

17.42 Coffee, biscuits and good books were the ingredients of this afternoon's relaxation. Eventually it became too dark and we had to stop reading.

18.35 The clothes are dry and smell fresh. Now we shall kill some time before we head for dinner. It darkens outside and it is quiet here at the hostel. Now, someone went past and slammed a door.

A nice relaxing afternoon with good books.

18.44 The drumming just started again. It comes from a building called Escuela Normal Mixta (common normal school). It is time to slowly stroll towards a dinner place.

20.09 It is fancy here at the restaurant La Querencia. We’ve ordered two lomo dishes. So what is lomo? Well I don’t know. We were the first to arrive tonight as well but now a few more has arrived. Our beer is in an ice bucket on a table of its own. It's nice to be in a country where one can afford to eat at the city's best restaurant.

21.36 According to the guidebook dictionary lomo is a filet of veal. It was really good. It feels good to have tried what Argentina has to offer when it comes to meat. When we left the restaurant was crowded. They have late dinner habits in this country. Now we must pack our things for tomorrow.

22.27 Packed and ready! Now we can relax with some reading in our books. The radio plays "Holiday" with the Scorpions. Life is good. We have heard the Scorpions before on our travels.

A nice dinner at La Querencia.

Wednesday 21st of July

08.02 I just told Christer that the time is eight o'clock. We hear something through the wall, something that sounds like the clatter of crockery and cutlery. It is construction workers who have begun a new day at work. This has been a great place. The stove in the room has been very helpful. To sit in front of it after being outdoors is pure pleasure.

08.45 Most of the things are done. It is time to take care of the rest and we must arrange with a taxi.

09.24 The staff at the hostel arranged with a transport. The taxi smoothly took us to the bus station which is located on the outskirts of the city. In addition, the cost was only half the price of what it cost to go the other way when we came here. The taxi driver was curious and asked lots of things during the trip. We understood some of the questions.

10.33 We have the bus driver underneath. Today we travel with the company Expreso A. Del Valle. We have seats 1 and 2 and are sitting at the front of the bus's upper deck. A sign along the road says "Piluncho Lindström Mov. J Yaguarete" What is it? Lindström is a Swedish surname. Swedes immigrated to the province of Misiones a hundred years ago, maybe this "Lindström" is connected it? There are now about 300 kilometers to go until we leave this vehicle.

Traveling north along national road number 12.

A trip through Misiones.

11.50 It's raining and the cracked windshield is wet. There are more than 220 km to go. We have previously stopped in the small town of San Ignacio, known for jesuit ruins. There is even a hostel there. The soil next to the road is getting more and more red in colour.

13.14 There are now 123 km to go. We just drove past an old truck that was loaded down with bags and leaves. To the right is a small sawmill and now we stopped in Monte Carlo. There is a policeman in a green uniform sitting on a wall. His colleague and their car are standing beside. In addition to Monte Carlo there are also other "famous" places along the road 12 as we go along. One can mention Puerto Rico and Eldorado.

13.40 We’ve just reached the bus station in Eldorado. The rain remains in the air.

What lies beyond the horizon?

The bus makes its way through the small streets in the village of El Dorado.

15.11 We're finally there! It was a long but comfortable journey. It is warmer here in the small town of Puerto Iguazú, a clear difference in temperature. We had to remove the jackets right after we got off the bus. Here in town we just make a short stop at the bus station before we board a new bus, a bus that will take us back to Brazil. Now a guy came with an unicycle.

The international bus from Puerto Iguazu in Argentina to Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil.

15.45 It is now time to go by bus again. The bus will, for five pesos, take us across the border and the Iguazu River and into Brazil.

15.58 Things happen quickly here. Get out off the bus, to the passport police and be stamped out. Out from the passport police, onto the bus and travel further. Now we go over the bridge, it is a beautiful river view.

BRAZIL

16.08 We arrived to the border station and are about to enter Brazil. We received a transfer ticket from the bus driver, a ticket that we can use on the next bus which departures from here. The queue for the Brazilian passport police is long. It is a good thing that it does not rain. There are various nationalities in the queue, including some tourists from France.

17.04 The queuing is finally over. We just avoided getting rain on us. The whole queue got to squeeze in under the ceiling when it started raining heavily. The friendly police officers completed the travel documents for us. I wonder what they wrote. Nothing bad I hope.

17.12 We've been waiting for the next bus and talked to a blond guy, possibly an Irishman. He will travel by bus to Rio de Janeiro and we did not have time to ask him about his origin. It is far to Rio de Janeiro. His coach would take one whole day. It's been a while since I visited Ireland by the way. I wonder when I´ll return there?

A long wait before entering Brazil.

17.24 After a long wait a bus appeared. But not from the company we went with, Celeste but from Itaipu. Just as it went, we looked at the transfer ticket and realized that the company name is Celeste-Itaipu, hell! More waiting.

17.41 Another Itaipu bus came and we climbed aboard. Now a lot of passengers left the bus. Good bye to you!

18.01 We got off the bus at a bus station in central Foz do Iguaçu, Terminal Urbano and are now looking for a bus to take us to the major bus station close to our next accommodation.

18.33 We gave up searching for the bus and took an easier alternative, a taxi. Now we´ve checked in at yet another hostel. This time we´re staying at Klein Hostel (http://www.kleinhostel.com) in Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil. We stay in room number three on the first night. The next night will be in a dorm. We had only booked a campsite, a tent!? Now!? Where on earth were our thoughts when we booked? We have at least ordered a homemade dinner. It is served after 20.00.

20.10 There was a knock at the door. Dinner is ready.

21.00 We had chicken, rice and salad for dinner. Outside the rain falls. There are other travelers staying here at the accommodation. These include a Dutch couple; imagine that we more than often encounter Dutch tourists on our trips, and three English-speaking women. At least one of them is from Australia.

23.03 We have treated us something from the hostel bar. It was a rum and coke, without rum, each. Now it starts to rain again. I hope it rains off until tomorrow. We have to get on an excursion.

Thursday 22nd of July

07.34 We here water pouring outside. The rain, unfortunately, continues on this day as well. We have slept well, really well. It is time to start charging for a new day. It consists of eating breakfast, pack things, change rooms and do a tour.

10.04 With a good breakfast in the stomach and the properties regrouped in another room, a dormitory, we are ready for some outdoor activities.

The city's name is growing here.

A photo from Avenida Costa e Silva. The weather is not cooperating today.

10.27 We walked through rain and wind and made it to the bus station for long distance buses. It is time for the exchange of dollars and pesos. We need the Brazilian currency real. We are in an office here at the bus station. A nice man waved us in here. This is some kind of tourist agency. Our helpful friend has gone to retrieve our money. Now a few French tourists came in here. We will soon leave the bus station to go to the center were we arrived yesterday. First, we have a small matter to accomplish.

11.12 We have purchased a ticket for Friday's trip to the next country, Paraguay. It was not easy to find the ticket office since the company we're going with sell their tickets through another company. We are now going with a local city bus to the other bus station. This bus has a turnstile. It is tricky to get past, not for well grown people.

On most Brazilian city buses, you pay the ticket at a turnstile on the bus.

11.36 The bus arrived and we went to the next bus. No ticket or turnstile passage was needed. The transition to the next bus, No.120 is included in the ticket fare.

11.48 We are on board to say the least a crowded bus and it has gradually taken us through Foz do Iguaçu.

12.32 We arrived at the beginning of the excursion area. The trip here went past a convention center filled with tents and people and also past the city's airport. Today's excursion is to see the amazing waterfalls at Iguaçu (http://www.cataratasdoiguacu.com.br). They are like so many other things we've seen on the UNESCO World Heritage List. We’ve bought some food before we go out into the wild. There were soft drinks and sandwiches for lunch inside the cafeteria of the entrance building.

12.51 Entrance fee is paid and the ticket collector has been passed. A guard welcomed us. He greeted Christer in English and me in French. According to our tickets we are apparently from Switzerland. In Portuguese it is easy to get Suécia and Suiça mixed up. One can visit the waterfalls in both Argentina and Brazil. In Argentina, you will get closer to the falls and it is also cheaper, but here on the Brazilian side, the national park is larger and provides better views of the entire area.

Peter at the Iguaçu National Park´s information board.

Warning about poisonous dangerous caterpillars. Don´t touch the trees!

A coati was curious and wanted to meet the tourists.

13.20 Well, this is really mighty, incredible amounts of water that falls from precipices. Birds hover above and coatis paw around. On the shuttle bus from the entrance down to the falls we saw a Russian tourist in a jersey from Sierra Leone's national football team. Christer has taken a family portrait of a mother, father, daughter and a stuffed coati toy. The picture was taken with the family camera.

13.28 There are all kinds of exotic wildlife in this park. In the forest there are coatis. They are curious but not to be fed. There is a prohibition signs for it. Signs also warned of the toxic caterpillars of a type of moths that can be found here. The moth itself is harmless but the caterpillars cause some deaths each year in southern Brazil. The caterpillars sit on tree branches and trunks of trees and are difficult to spot.

Cataratas do Iguaçu (Iguaçu falls) at the border between Brazil and Argentina.

A very good walking path along the waterfalls.

Waterfalls you should see and listen to.

13.48 Here it is like in a poorly groomed ski slope, fall after fall after fall after fall. One view is more impressive than the others. It is incredibly powerful. There is a paved walkway along the falls with many lookout points. We are far from alone here. Lots of tourists pass through, many of them bought the white raincoats with hoods so it sometimes looks like a big Ku Klux Klan meeting here.

14.03 Now we're finally down at river level. We have walked down right next to the river. A long causeway leads into the river. It is wet in the air, both from rain and from the falls themselves. It is powerful to say the least. The waterfalls are 160-260 waterfalls of various sizes with an average water flow of 1,500 cubic meters per second.

Many photos are taken here.

A bad spot for a swim.

14.27 We are in a part of the falls which is known as Garganta del Diablo (Devil's Throat). Here it is both eye-and ear-splitting. It's amazing what nature can create. Rain falls from the sky. Is that rain or spray from the fall? Across the river lies Argentina waiting, waiting there for us but it is in vain. We are not going there again, at least not on this trip. There is a long walkway into the waterfalls. We only went halfway out. The wind turned our umbrellas to satellite dishes and rain/spray made us very wet.

14.38 The rain has increased and we have been hiding under a roof. We will take some last photographs and then move up towards the bus stop above.

Through this footbridge you can go far out into the waterfalls. Waterproof clothing is recommended!

Peter is doing his best to remain dry.

15.02 The tour draws to a end, ending the waterfalls and cool animals for now. Now we are in bus queue, we think, anyway. Before we went here, we looked at the river above the falls and also saw tourists on the Argentinean side. We also saw crafts for sale. The prices were on par with what our entire trip costs.

15.11 Of course it was the bus queue. There are many who want to ride the bus back to the entrance. It will require a number of buses before everyone can leave.

16.51 We managed to travel with a bus to the entrance of the building and then waited for the bus 120 into the city. Our feet will now dry for a while before we leave the central bus station Terminal Urbano. Now we will look for postcards and good food in the city center.

Huge owl statue in Foz do Iguaçu.

18.23 Postcards were found in a small shop. The food will be business as usual on our travels. We will eat Chinese food. We are at the restaurant Hokila (http://hokila-restaurante-chines.com). It did not open until 18.00. We walked around the center for a while before it was dinner time. We decided after careful consideration to skip the chop sticks and chose "ordinary cutlery" to our meal.

19.17 Christer ordered a noodle dish and I had a pork dish with rice. They wondered if I wanted a large or small bowl of rice as a side dish and I ordered a small. It sure was small. I did not even see it. It didn’t appear on the bill either. On entering the bus station, I paid for both but only Christer had to pass the turnstile. It didn’t turn as it was my turn. I had to go through a gate instead.

19.59 The local bus stopped near, and not at, the bus station we were supposed to go to. We continued to the next bus stop. It took us closer to home. Now we have made our beds and will go out in the common rooms. More things remain.

22.22 Things are pretty quiet here at Klein Hostel. People watch TV, surf, play electronic football game (with great resolution) or mostly just taking it easy.

Appendix:

The text mentions a sign saying "Piluncho Lindström Mov. Yaguarete J". Juan Carlos "Piluncho" Lindström is a politician in the Peronist movement Yaguareté in the city Oberá. He is a descendant of the Swedish emigrant Adolph Alexander Lindström who came to Oberá in 1905.