2013-01-06 
【Aiden in English】
One good thing about plane flights was that I could sleep all the time, as much as I wanted, between takeoff and landing. However, I bonked my head against the seat in front, which disrupted my wonderful dream of dancing with bunnies. When the full blast of heat, like a sauna from the outside, started to melt me at Iguazu International Airport of Argentina (IGR), Mom quickly found a taxi to take us straight to the Sheraton Iguazu Resort & Spa in Iguazu National Park. The first touch of cool air made me feel alive. I expected we would stay in the cozy hotel room, directly facing the "Big Water" from Iguazu to the Parana River, for the rest of the day and relax by the swimming pool from my balcony. But I was so wrong that I had to go out when Mom read the news about the local weather forecast for stormy rain tomorrow. Before I knew it, I was hauled into a jungle that resembled the Amazon Rainforest in the Southern Hemisphere. For example, both were hot in January and highly humid in mid-summer. Just as I started complaining, I hopped on the open-air Rainforest Ecological Train and marched through a natural wonderland that hosted many endangered species of flora and fauna. When everyone was aboard, I heard a buzzing sound from pell-mell directions. I looked around and found myself staring at a wasp with a pair of black eyes. That was my first mistake. Mom packed two bottles of anti-bug spray from Pennsylvania, but I didn't use them. So, in a matter of minutes, I was pelted by the little annoying pest. Fortunately, I forgot all my worries when my eyes locked on the world's widest waterfalls. At the end of the footbridge over the upper circuit of the canyon, I took a close look at such a phenomenal flow of water from "Devil's Throat." I was stunned by the grandeur of the panoramic views. The Iguazu Falls extend over 1.7 miles/2.7 km in a semi-circular or horseshoe shape on the border between Argentina and Brazil. Nearly 80% of the falls occurred in Argentina, making me think the world had an edge. Of the 275 discrete falls, Devil's Throat stands out at 269 feet/82 meters in height and becomes the tallest waterfall in the park. In early 1984, the Argentine Iguazu NP was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site. After the upper circuit, I had no other priorities on my priority list, so I followed the twisting catwalks to the lower falls. As the trail drew closer to the falls, the water made the metal walkways as slippery as ice. Even though I almost fell and broke a bone, I was amazed to see the falls on the ground level. The waterfalls seemed to have grown arms of ice hanging from the ledge. The mist was even better than a pleasant shower to cool off my body. On the way, I took VIP seats up front to watch capuchin monkeys wrestling, banded iguanas rambling, yellow butterflies puddling, coatimundi stalking, Dourado fish wading, and the stork gliding. When I finally got tired of watching animals, I figured I would dive into the pool first if I returned to the hotel. However, the plan couldn't keep pace with the change! My thoughts were interrupted by a large gurgle from my stomach, which made me think of food first before doing anything else. As I hurried back, I was disappointed that dinner would not be served until after 7:00 pm. With a hungry and empty stomach, I waited for dinner to come soon. 【紅霞譯】
乘飛機的好處在於，我可以隨心所欲地睡覺，從起飛一直睡到着陸。只是腦袋時不時會撞到前排座位，將我從美夢中驚醒，中斷與玉兔共度良辰美景。
剛到阿根廷“銀色之地”伊瓜蘇“洪水”城，外面熱浪襲來，機場被烤得像蒸籠似的，快要把我熔化了。媽媽趕忙打的，我們急速駛向位於喜來登“農莊”伊瓜蘇溫泉度假村，等鑽進配備空調冷氣的地方，我才重新振作起來。這時我開始憧憬未來：辦完酒店登記手續之後，先呆在房間好好飽覽對面從伊瓜蘇河流向巴拉那“洪水”河，再去涼台下面的室外游泳池消停一陣，誰知媽媽帶回的天氣預報攪亂了我的如意算盤，明天恐怕陰雨連綿。因此，我們不得不抓緊今天所有剩餘的時間，立刻遊覽阿根廷國境內的伊瓜蘇大瀑布。 轉眼間我便消失在公園密林深處，這裡很像亞馬遜“強大女戰士”熱帶雨林，南半球一月仲夏悶熱至極，尚未來得及痛發牢騷抱怨天氣，我已經坐上開放式熱帶雨林生態火車，浩浩蕩蕩開進珍稀動植物自然王國。
車廂內等乘客各就各位，耳邊傳來“嗡嗡嗡”的轟鳴聲，我舉目張望，發現一隻黃蜂正張大兩隻黑眼珠子，賊頭賊腦地盯住自己不放，我真後悔沒有隨身把媽媽從賓州老家買來的防蟲噴霧劑帶上。說時遲那時快，可惡的黃蜂主動向我發起攻擊，好在本人的注意力被世界最寬的瀑布群吸引了過去。我站在峽谷頂部天橋末端，“魔鬼喉”盡收眼底。洪流氣勢磅礴，飛流以雷霆萬鈞之勢，陡然從我身邊跳入峽谷。
伊瓜蘇大瀑布位於阿根廷和巴西兩國之間，呈半圓即馬蹄形，幅度橫跨1.7英里／2.7公里，將近80%的瀑布歸阿根廷所有，我觸景生情並突感地球不再無邊無際。阿根廷伊瓜蘇國家公園大大小小的瀑布總計有275個，“魔鬼喉”以269英尺／82米的高度名列榜首，早在1984年就被聯合國教科文組織納入《世界遺產名錄》。
游完公園上游環線後，既然沒有其它什麼重要事情要做，我索性沿峽谷底部羊腸小道進一步包抄瀑布群。正因為這條路十分接近瀑布，所以用金屬修建的通道表面濕得痛快，路滑得猶如走在毫無阻力的冰塊上一樣，雖說我差點跌倒，險些傷筋動骨，但還是由衷地慶幸自己身臨其境，“無限風光在險峰”，近距離觀賞跌宕起伏的瀑布群宛如冰柱垂掛懸崖，而且飛流狂瀉所散發的水滴水霧毫不含糊地打濕了衣襟，渾身上下好像澆過水洗了澡，頓時讓我涼爽不已。
往返路上一些珍稀動物相伴同行，捲尾猴樹間打鬥，美洲鬣蜥叢林閒蕩，黃蝴蝶泥潭嘻戲，南美浣熊善盯人梢，金魚溪流淌水，鸛鳥河面滑翔，令我耳目舒暢腳下生風。 道別了動物，我集中精力考慮當務之急，趕緊返回酒店一頭扎到水裡。計劃沒有變化快！未等我付諸行動，胃裡傳出“咕嚕咕嚕”吶喊聲，民以食為天，先犒勞一下自己再說。我匆匆打道回府，不料酒店餐館非要等到晚上七點鐘才肯開章營業，肚子空腸子叫，我巴不得早點吃上晚餐。
Today in History(歷史上的今天): 2010: 澳洲文化中心墨爾本(Melbourne)  AEP-IGR @ Aeroparque Jorge Newbery 01-06-2013
(喬治·紐伯里“農夫·新堡壘”機場——阿根廷首都飛往伊瓜瀑布城 01-06-2013) 
Metropolitan Buenos Aires (阿根廷布宜諾斯艾利斯“順風”大都會)
Rainforest (熱帶雨林)
 Cataratas del Iguazú International Airport
(阿根廷伊瓜蘇大瀑布國際機場)  Overlook of Iguazu Falls Between Argentina & Brazil, Inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1984
(鳥瞰阿根廷與巴西兩國之間的伊瓜蘇瀑布·1984年和1986年先後被聯合國教科文組織納入《世界遺產名錄》)
 Iguazu NP on the Argentine Side, the Largest Waterfall System in the World
(阿根廷伊瓜蘇國家公園·世上最大的瀑布群)
 Iguazu NP, Argentine Side
(阿根廷一側的伊瓜蘇國家公園 01-06-2013)  Green Train of the Jungle (叢林綠色火車)
 Catwalk (狹窄人行道 01-06-2013)
 Iguazu River (伊瓜蘇河 01-06-2013)
 Old Catwalk Destroyed by Flood in 1992
(1992年被洪水沖毀的老窄道)  Old Catwalk Destroyed by Flood in 1992
(1992年被洪水沖毀的老窄道 01-06-2013)  Devil's Throat, Taller Than Niagara & Wider Than Victoria Falls
(魔鬼喉·比尼亞加拉“轟鳴洪流”瀑布更高，比維多利亞“勝利女王”瀑布更寬 01-06-2013)  Devil's Throat on the Argentine Side, Tumbling down the Steps of the Parana Plateau w/ Thousands of Litres of Water
(阿根廷魔鬼喉·數千升的瀑布從巴拉那高原的階梯狀瀑布傾瀉而下 01-06-2013) 
Iguazu Falls, Composed of 275 Separate Cascades, the Largest Broken Waterfall in the World (由275個獨立瀑布組成的伊瓜蘇瀑布·世界上最大的斷層瀑布 01-06-2013)
 Salto del Guairá & Dos Hermanos
(瓜伊拉“巨水之地”瀑布與姐妹花瀑布 01-06-2013)  Water Rafting (漂流 01-06-2013)
Rainforest @ Lower Circuit (下環通道·熱帶雨林 01-06-2013)  Salto Mbigua & Bernabe Mendez
(姆布瓜“農民”瀑布與巴拿巴·門德斯“勇敢·偉大戰士”瀑布 01-06-2013)  Salto San Martin & Mbigua
(聖馬丁“戰神”瀑布和姆布瓜瀑布)  Twin Sister Falls (姐妹花瀑布 01-06-2013)
 Sheraton Iguazu Resort & Spa Buied in Iguazu Jungle
(喜來登伊瓜蘇溫泉度假村·隱藏在伊瓜蘇叢林之中)  Sheraton Iguazu Resort & Spa, Argentina Viwed from Belmond Hotel das Cataratas, Brazil
(從巴西貝爾蒙德“美景”瀑布酒店遠望阿根廷喜來登伊瓜蘇溫泉度假村)
 Tiredness Upon Arrival @ Sheraton Iguazu Resort & Spa
(喜來登伊瓜蘇溫泉度假村·精疲力竭 01-06-2013)  Fall-Viewed Room @ Sheraton Iguazu Resort & Spa Back to Iguazu Falls
(喜來登伊瓜蘇溫泉度假村·背對伊瓜蘇大瀑布 01-06-2013)  Pool & Spa of Sheraton Iguazu Resort & Spa
(喜來登伊瓜蘇溫泉度假村·泳池與溫泉)  Dinner @ Sheraton Iguazu Resort & Spa
(喜來登伊瓜蘇溫泉度假村·晚餐 01-06-2013)
 Argentine Giant Tegu (阿根廷大樹棲蜥)
 Tegu, Dropping a Section of Its Tail as a Distraction If Attacked
（樹棲蜥·受攻擊時能自我截掉部分尾巴以分散掠食者注意力) 
Coatis (南美浣熊)
 Coatimundi (長鼻浣熊)
 Young Coatimundi (鼻熊幼崽)
 Capuchin Monkey (捲尾猴)
Cranes on the Iguazu River (伊瓜蘇河上仙鶴)  Crane in Flight (仙鶴飛翔)
 Bell Flower (風鈴草)
Figs (無花果)  Broad-banded Swallowtail (寬燕尾蝴蝶)
Crosslinks(相關博文): Argentina(出遊阿根廷)
South America(漂流南美洲) 小學四年級(4th Grade) |
