Tourist Traps

the real Aripuca
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Yesterday, Laura and I had a relatively quiet day exploring some other things here in Iguazu in a really weird and touristy way that I haven't done anywhere else on this trip.  We went through a travel agent and this (I guess) is a typical tourist day.

First we went to La Aripuca, which is basically the weirdest tourist trap I've ever seen, ironic since it is actually a gigantic, 2 story tall replica of a trap the indigenous people used to trap birds.  The normal size Aripuca is only about 1 foot high.  La Aripuca is gigantic and it's made with humongous tree trunks.  When you first walk into the place, you are standing in the hollow of a tree trunk that is 1000 years old and everything at the place is made from wood. As strange as it was, it was also in a pretty place and they had set up a little cafe where you could just chill out and look at the Aripuca.

Me with the gigantic replica
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Then, we had signed up to go to see an indigenous community close to Iguazu.  The community is called La Arapea, and while the people seemed happy enough it was just so impoverished.  I felt like I should have been in a Sally Struthers video, seriously.  It was really sad. The weird thing about the tour though was that it was so.... exploitative in a way that made me feel really uncomfortable.  The children of La Arapea sang and danced for us and the other people on our tour (mostly Argentinians, who I have since discovered are very very strange around the indigenous people -- it's not like in Ecuador where there was a consciousness that they were also normal people just with different customs) stood and took photos and gawked and oohed and aaaahed like we were at the zoo or something.  It was really odd.

the replica
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And infinitely bizarre choice for an activity to accompany this was a drinks and dinner cruise on a catamaran that went down the Rio Iguazu.  We sat at a table with other Argentinians (we were the only English speakers on the boat of about 200 people, as far as I could tell), and they were interesting... a family from Bariloche in the south and another family from Buenos Aires province living about an hour from the city.  It was beautiful sailing down the river, being up close to the three frontier points of Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil, and the sun was setting.  About half way through the cruise, the boat slowed down and everyone jumped out of their seats to head to the Paraguay side of the boat where another indigenous tribe was on the beach singing and dancing and throwing fire for the boatload of tourists.  I think it would have been worse if we'd all been from the U.S. somehow gawking at all of this, but it was still really just very bizarre.  Then the boat pulled away, the music and dancing started and everyone went on their way with the business of enjoying the dinner cruise.

cool tree trunks
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It was VERY STRANGE. But interesting somehow too... actually for me it was more interesting to see the regular Argentinians reaction to all of this.  Today, I return to Buenos Aires on a noon flight and then it's on to the last three days in the country!!!  ah!

Random notes:

I was walking around town yesterday and came upon the lottery office, where you can buy lottery tickets and the like.  They have a huge board in the office where you can match up your dreams with numbers to form your lottery card.  Dreamt last night about being in jail with your mom and eating chocolates? 39-12-9.  Seems like as good a system as any!

from the inside of La Aripuca
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Also, while waiting for Laura for dinner the other night, I started talking to an Argentinian woman outside of the restaurant.  Even after I opened my mouth, she thought I was from Colombia!! She said I had a Colombian accent.  Either that's a huge insult to the Colombianos or a big compliment to me, which makes me happy though a little curious since obviously I've never been there but whatever!