Foz do Iguaçu lies on the border between Brazil, Paraguay, and Argentina. The highlight of our time here was visiting Iguaçu Falls and Itaipu Dam. The falls were breathtaking and a sight I will never forget. Iguaçu is much taller than the Niagara Falls, with multiple individual cascades. The main attraction of the falls is Devil’s Throat, and there is a path where you can walk in front of the amazing falls. The falls were so strong that I could feel the mist as the water went plunging down. The weather during our visit was perfect, and we even saw an amazing rainbow. Additonally, we saw native animals around the falls and in a nearby aviary, such as Coati, Capybaras, and Tucans.
Itaipu Dma is a hydroelectric power plant on the border of Brazil and Paraguay. During our tour, we went inside the dam, which was a new experience for me. In the control room, half is run by Brazilian employees and the other half is run by Paraguayan employees. I will never forget standing with one foot in each country. Next, we learned about and saw one of the turbines. The dam is massive and generates up to 14,000MW of electricity. During the bus tour, we saw the external structure of the dam and its spillways. The pictures I took during this trip do not do it justice. The viewpoints were absolutely breathtaking. It is inspiring to see how Brazil uses their rescorces to harness sustainable energy through projects such as Itaipu Dam.
Swanson School of Engineering 