Good Morning Officer!

The bus ride from Curitiba to Foz do Iguaçu (Brazil) was 9 hours or so. I slept pretty well, other than waking up here and there and hearing this guy snoring. I am not sure why, but the only thing I could think to do was clap my hands as loud as I could to wake him up and shut off the snoring. I have tried that before with some other snorers, but it never seems to work. It was annoying, but not too bad because I kept falling back asleep. But there needs to be some regulation on that. If you have a big gut and breathe heavily while awake, they shouldnt even let you on the bus.

I eventually got into a very deep sleep and did not wake up until the bus reached the station in Foz do Iguaçu. I didnt even wake up, the driver somehow knew that I had not left and had to come wake me up. I think it was because all the bags were gone except mine, and he came to see if someone had not left the bus. I was pretty groggy and had earplugs in my ears still. I got off the bus and saw that my bag was the only one there. I went over to it and, while standing next to it, took out my earplugs. I forgot that they were still in and I was very tired still. While I was putting these earplugs into my smaller bag, this policeman came up to me and asked, with a machine gun ready to go in his hands: what do you have in the bag, comrade? I was startled for multiple reasons. He was the police, he had a machine gun in his hands, he said comrade. I was so startled and tired that I had to think for a second, and just said--clothes. That was true. I know that they patrol bus stations and lots of other places looking for drugs and all. He told me not to leave my bag there and I was very confused. I hadnt left it there, but then later I realized what had happened and that they took out my bag without realizing I was still inside the bus. I was still trying to think straight and just said--sorry, I fell asleep. It was pretty wild and, even though my mind was not working well, it woke me up!

I got on a bus to go to the Argentine side of the border. The city in Argentina where I will be staying is called Puerto Iguazú. I had to get out and get my passport stamped at the Brazil customs, and then stop at the Argentine customs. It took a long time, but I finally made it to my place at 10:30 or so. The exchange rate here in Argentina is outrageously good for Americans. As good as it ever was during my two years in Argentina. It is incredible how similar this city is to where I have been in other parts of Argentina. Same people, same buildings, same smells, same three-legged dogs. It is great to be back in Argentina. I went to the last part of church, which was cool because I saw a guy from my mission who is the branch president. And then I walked to the area where Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina meet. Then I took a bus to Ciudad del Este in Paraguay, but only got out at the terminal because it didnt seem very interesting. Good if you are looking for cheap electronics, but I was not in the market.

I had some good Argentine food and went to bed early. It is nice to finally have a towel again! Haha, the last month I lived without one. I would stand in front of the fan, or shake myself off like a dog, or something like that. I was too stubborn to buy one. The dumb things I did to save money. I washed all of my clothes the last two months and lived half the time without a towel. Ridiculous. Next post will be about my times today at the waterfalls of Iguazú.