Big Water (Part 3- Monday Falls, Paraguay)

On our final day of vacation we packed up early in the morning and said goodbye to our cabin in Argentina.  We headed down to the river to take the Ferry back across into Paraguay.  When we had come in we crossed the bridge and had to swing through Brazil to get into Argentina.  But this time we wanted to try and ferry across and were so glad we did!  There were no lines- only a few other vehicles, it was simple to get stamped back into Paraguay and it was so much more fun.  As soon as our truck and trailer pulled onto the barge the men began to shove off.  A tug boat quickly pulled us away from shore and skillfully swung around so they were pushing us toward the intersection of the massive Parana and Iguazu rivers.  We soon realized that we were heading right towards the famed 'Tres Fronteras' (Three Frontiers).  From the deck of the boat we could see three colorful towers marking the boarders of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay!

Once we were on Paraguayan soil we began the long drive back to San Francisco with Connor.  But we hadn't gone far when I saw a sign for 'Salto Monday'.  I had heard about this waterfall and seen pictures of it before.  It is the largest in Paraguay and it was only a few kilometers out of our way.  On a whim I decided to add one more waterfall to our trip... one of Paraguay's own!  The falls were a short walk from the park entrance and once we entered the kids ran ahead.   Sarah expressed the same concern I had had when we went to Brazil after visiting Argentina, 'Wouldn't this be a bit of a let down after the Iguazu Falls?'  It wasn't.  There was a certain pride in knowing these were Paraguay's falls.

Do you remember the Guarani word for water, 'Y'?  I had mentioned in the first post of this series that it is pronounced kind of like 'uh' but the sound doesn't really exist in our English language.  Well, not surprisingly 'Monday' is a Guarani word and therefore is not pronounced like the day of the week.  You say it like, 'Mon-da-UH'... kind of.  Though I don't remember mentioning it to our visitor, this waterfall trip in a way touched on Paraguay's painful history.  You see, the Iguazu Falls used to reside within Paraguay's borders.  But after the devastating Triple Aliance War from 1864-1870, in which Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay formed an alliance against Paraguay, the country lost the Falls along with approximately 35% of its land and 90% of its male population.

For me, the roar of the Monday Falls brought about feelings of pride for the natural beauty that is Paraguay's land and culture.  Yet at the same time, having just seen the Iguazu Falls, I was reminded of all that Paraguay once was.  Standing in front of the Falls, I wondered, how much more must the Paraguayans feel this simultaneous pride and pain for their own culture... though they rarely talk about it. Our family crowded into a glass elevator which took us from above the falls down below them.  The view looking down on Monday Falls was spectacular but the experience looking up at them was completely different!  We could feel the sheer force of the water rushing down at us as mist flew all around us.  

Our adventure hadn't quite finished as we took the elevator back up and headed away from the falls towards the wooded area of the park.  There was a small, high ropes course and a zip line that I wanted to take the kids on.  Eli, Connor and I harnessed in for the high ropes course while Toby, Sammie and Silas waited for the zip line.

Connor had done ropes courses before but he said this one was particularly scary not just because of it's height or challenge... but because of the state of the equipment!  In good keeping with Paraguayan standards the equipment was simple and the safety regulations were fairly relaxed.

We were not so relaxed as we began to make our way, higher and higher, across the swaying cables.  Platforms dozens of feet up in the air gave us a bit of a break as we ventured from tree to tree.  At one point I took a deep breath and hugged the tree coming to find out it was covered in ants!  Thankfully they were not biting ants and I was able to keep my cool.

After we were safely back on the ground I spotted Toby, Sammie and Silas as they climbed up to the zip line!  All three of them were very brave and were all smiles as they careened down through the semi-tropical forest.

To finish off our waterfall vacation God blessed us with one last lunch in view of the mighty Monday Falls.  It was the perfect way to end our trip.  Being in close quarters together in some amazing places bonded us as a family and we were so glad to have been able to share it with our intern, Connor.  Best of all we had connected with God over the last three days as we witnessed His power and beauty in the Iguazu and Monday Falls.

'Deep calls to deep at the roar of your waterfalls; all your breakers and your waves have gone over me.  By day the LORD commands his steadfast love, and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life.'  

PSALM 42:7-8