Hotel Vale Verde Campo Grande

... even if he was a bit of a tool! And again, we met some really nice people and had a great time over the bonfire at night and killing time playing cards, which helped make the trip.<br><br>We arrived back in Campo Grande about 7pm, and the helpful guys at the hostel we'd stayed in let us use a room to get showered and packed before getting our 8pm overnight bus to the brazilian side of the Iguazu Falls.<br>

... taxi buggered off. I had hoped he'd stick around for me but hey. Got my stamp and then figured id go get the brazilian one. But turns out that the brazil immigration is 15kms away in Corumba. So i thought id get a taxi, but there werent any. So had to change my money with a street cambio, which is never the best idea, and set off walking to the brazil immigration hoping that d find a taxi on route, which i did, at a fair old price though. Finally got there ...

... house is. This is where the kitchen is and a lounging area and the 2 long dining tables and benches. Upstairs is the sleeping area which is an ope roo with about 25 hammocks strung up in 2 lines. The windows have mesh on the. It is getting dark and we know why, the insects are worse than any outback cap at hoe, millions flying about the lights. The camp is an eco camp so everything is recycled or reused if possible and waste minimised. The shower block and toilets basic but fine ...

... vent die aan het snurken was, maar toch her en der de nodige kwartiertjes slaap gevat. ****! Lisenka, wakker worden. De hele bus stroomt weer leeg. He? We hebben toch geen kaartjes meer, nou ja, snel inpakken en naar buiten. Stonden we daar om 4:00 am ´s nachts. Dit bleek gewoon een grote halte te zijn waar bijna iedereen eruit moest. Pjew, relaxt, dus wij de bus weer in en lekker doorsukkelen naar de grote stad, waar morgen een nieuw groot avontuur begint.

... bread rolls and yummy dulce de leche spread. Mmmmmmm. Refreshed and well fed we got organised for getting to the Pantanal. After a 4hr plus mini-van ride followed by 40min on the back of a jeep we arrived at our new temporary home - the accommodation was basic but had heaps of character. Not to mention everyone staying at the camp was sleeping in hammocks in one big raised room! Something I was apprehensive about but eager to try... and we didn`t wait long! It was ...

... and there were caimans. My stupid horse was walking toward it while I was trying to show him the other way!On the way back to the pousada we saw an armadillo and some deers, too. We had a good drinking session with everybody that night! <br><br>On the following day (21/11/08), we went for a walk to admire the sunrise. There were supposed to be loads of birds but were not any that morning. It is a sign of rain apparently (wet season is due soon), then we did a trip on the river for ...

... plants, and lots of colourful trees. It made us realise just how beautiful Brazil is. We are now really excited about our Pantanal trip which starts at 7.30 tomorrow morning and is going to last 4 days. If we don't write again soon, it's a pretty safe bet that we have been eaten by alligators!!!!

... England! We opted for a tour to a Ranch/lodge that was 5 hours drive from CG leaving the next day and the trip out to the ranch had some great and varied scenery from reminding us of Harrismith in SA to the Okavango Delta in Botswana. The lodge was nice and had much more than we had anticipated, with two pools, games rooms, hammoks, volleyball and badmenting courts and a football field. The area is very vaired with rivers and fields and teaming with ...

... and even a couple of tortoises. We passed on the night walk after dinner as not only were some of us tired and a little full from the great food, but the bug count had probably increased ten-fold and buzzy things in the dark are not some people's idea of a good time! We did, however, venture outside to watch the lunar eclipse from the Earth and see the full moon rise into the sky. Our last day was another long one with a drive back to Campo Grande to ...

... for the night as we would be up early for our first walk. With no bathroom we forewent the usual bedtime routine and just got into our tent and tried to sleep. I have never found sleeping in a tent that easy but when in the jungle its even tougher! Mainly due to the noise of everything around you and because you´re just sleeping on the floor. We eventually fell asleep hoping that we would make it through the night. The following morning we were up early due ...