Falls and Family

A blog post by Adam. For somewhere between 30 and 40 years my father has dreamed of going to Igauzu Falls on the border of Argentina and Brazil. And so as he neared his 70th birthday he decided that was he wanted most to mark seven decades - a trip to Igauzu Falls. When we decided to travel to Latin America it made perfect sense to meet in Argentia to celebrate with my father (although about 9 months after his actual birthday). Thus, the decision to come to Argentina, along with Mina, Jorge, and my parents.

Iguazu Falls is on at least one list of the seven wonders of the world (as it turns out there are many lists, some of which have incredibly surprising entries). Without a doubt it is deserving of such an honor. The falls are seeminglingly endless, one after another, creating a wall of water beyond the imagination (and for now, you too will have to imagine it because I don't have access to any of our pictures).

We spent two and half days in the national park on the Argentinian side with the family (to get into Brazil we would have had to apply for a visa and pay a bunch of money and this seemed far too much for just one day...also, there isn't nearly as much to see on the Brazilian side as on the Argentian side). We pretty much saw everything there was to see. We did every hike the park had to offer, the park's two boat trips, one of which takes you right under the falls, and a drive through the forest looking for animals (with almost no animal sightings). Melissa and I actually stayed one additional night and visited the falls by moonlight, which was its own incredible experience.

In the end, however what made the trip special was being with family. Traveling in family as a child is a given for most American childhoods, as are the backseat squabbles among siblings that accompany these trips. But traveling to interesting places in family as adults is something far more rare. With busy adult lives mearly scheduling a trip is challenging, but in some cases I think having the desire to do so is equally elusive. With our limited vacation time and limited budgets it isn't easy or sometimes possible to decide to spend such valuable resources traveling with family. Aside from traveling to Bolivia, Guyana, and the Dominican Republic to visit Mina, I believe this is the only time I have traveled with my parents as an adult (not including trips to weddings, reunions and other family events in the US). And it isn't clear if such a trip will happen again. Which made this such a special experience. All of us, as adults, were exploring unchartered territories. Together we tried Yerba Mate for the first time. Together we met previously unknown family. Together we got drenched in the spray of Iguazu, and road a boat just above the falls. Together we ate a lot of dulce de leche ice cream. Together we had some good laughs as well as more serious conversations; the kind of conversations that could only take place because we are all adults.

Ultimately, I feel incredibly lucky to have a family with whom I have the desire to vacation and that in spite of my annoying ways we all seem to get along. And I feel lucky that I was able to take advantage of this rare opportunity. As with our time with Mina, this may not happen again, but I can be sure that whenever I hear the name Iguazu I will remember family as much as I remember falls.