Day 4 - Heading to Brazil

A reprieve from the busyness that is Villaricca - the pool and beautiful surroundings of  Granja Mariposa.

Beautiful flowering trees on the way to Cuidad del Este

On Oct. 30, we traveled east to Brazil to visit Iguazzu (or Iguacu) Falls - one of the most spectacular waterfalls on the planet. On the way, we visited Itaipu Hydroelectric Dam just out side Cuidad del Este on the eastern edge of Paraguay. It is the 2nd largest hydroelectric dam in the world, but the largest operating one in the world. China has a bigger dam, but it's not fully operational yet. 

Yep - this was the tour bus we rode on to see the Itaipu Dam.

The spillways

It's difficult to imagine the enormous size of this place. Looking at the catwalks in the center of the upper half of the image will shed some light on the size.

We stayed at the Rafain Palace Hotel and Convention Center in Foz de Iguaccu. A lovely courtyard was full of orchids.

A panoramic capture with my iPhone