Post 23: You have to go here before you die

June 02, 2018

Post 23: You have to go here before you die

I really have no words to describe how incredible today was. It was definitely one of the best days of my life, I do know that.

It rained for most of the day, and it was around 50 degrees F, but that did not stop us at all. We packed tons of changes of clothes, lots of bug-spray, and we were set.

We started off the day with a safari ride through the rain forest. They told us that it would be possible to see jaguars and pumas, and although we didn't end up seeing them, it was completely and utterly wild to think that it might be possible. The ride was so fun in itself because we were just flying past all these trees we had never seen before on this tiny muddy path, and the air was so clean and it smelled so good. The only experience I've had with safaris like this has been the safari ride at Animal Kingdom in Disney World, which is great, but this was a real-live safari. It was incredible.

After the safari on land, we switched to a boat. One of our tour guides told us as we got on the dock, "Have a nice shower!" in broken English and it was the funniest thing I'd ever heard because we all knew we were about to get drenched in cold water. We put on life jackets and zipped up our hoods as tightly as possible.

We rode down the river, taking in the view. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. I felt like I was dreaming, and I don't think I could possibly begin to explain just how beautiful it was. But I will say that you have to see it before you die.

Towards the end of our boat ride, our tour guide drove us right under the falls. Literally. We were absolutely drenched and I was laughing so hard that my face hurt.

The boat ride was just the beginning. We went white water rafting next! We put on life jackets and helmets and signed wavers and we were all set. We were split into three boats -- my boat had Josie and I in the front, Ethan and Prof. Pfluger behind us, Jennifer and Renato behind them, and then Aika and Maria in the back. It was so funny because we were all screaming and laughing simultaneously.

The rapids were kind of big, like ones that I've rafted on in Colorado, but they only lasted for a short period of time. This was totally fine with us because they gave us a chance to jump in the river and swim. The water was actually warmer than the air, so we didn't want to get out once we were in.

By the time our rafting was finished, it was only 12:30, but it felt as though we had been there for at least two days because we had seen so much. We still had another 6 hours in the park.

We dried off and changed, and then we headed out to hike down the side of the mountain with incredible views of the falls. Every view was amazing. If you focused in on just one waterfall, it was beautiful by itself. And then you looked at everything and it was almost overwhelming. I really cannot explain this with words.

It was so loud, misty, and cold. Everything was white, especially as we walked out on the platform on the edge of the falls. There was water everywhere... you could literally taste it as you walked around. The views were so beautiful that they were disorienting. I've experienced this at the Grand Canyon. It's almost as if your brain cannot believe that it is real.

Although I did not want to leave, it was nearly 3 at this point and we were starving, so we hiked up to this restaurant at the top of the cliff. We sat outside with a panoramic view of the falls, and ate everything we had worked off in the morning.

For the rest of the day, we took a second safari for about a half hour, and when most of the group went kayaking, a few of us decided to go on a second boat ride which was equally as incredible. We did a bunch of donuts out in the middle of the river. It was very relaxing, which was what I needed. It gave me time to actually appreciate what I was seeing and to reflect on the day. I still felt like I was dreaming, but I was able to think about just how awesome that dream was.