Argentina by Train - From Buenos Aires to Rufino - Laboulaye

Laboulage is in the Cordoba province right across the border from Santa Fe where Rufino is. It was named after a Frenchman who never stepped in Argentine soil, but was friends with President Sarmiento.

It is also the end of the railway line for cargo trains and not passenger trains, so I had to take a taxi to make it there which cost me double of what I paid for the train ride.

Cordoba province has a different pace from Santa Fe and Buenos Aires, in the sense that people are less preoccupied in making money and have a more tranquil way of life.

The town is quite picturesque except for the amount of mosquitoes that abound. I spent Saturday and Sunday and went back Sunday evening to Rufino to catch the train back.

Argentina by Train - From Buenos Aires to Rufino -Rufino

Everybody asked me, What is there to see in Rufino? Frankly not much, besides the train station and its main square with a church

But I thought it was going to be worst, it is not an ugly town and it does have several restos and pubs where people from the surrounding rural areas come to gather.

I got threre really early on Saturday morning and returned to catch the train back on Sunday evening where I got to taste a local beer brew and have some gnochis at a local pub.

Argentina by Train - From Buenos Aires to Rufino

I have posted before bout the trains in Argentina, This time I decided to take the Retiro -Rufino train on the San Martin Railway, leaving From its terminal in Retiro Buenos Aires and arriving in Rufino, Santa Fe.


The train Leaves at 8pm and arrives at 6am, being a bit slower that the other trains I travelled in. I tried to bring my bike along but was surprised to find out that the train i was travelling in did not have a luggage car, so I was left on foot.

But in all the trip was agreeable with comfy seats and at a rock bottom price, the highlight of the trip was when we crossed the Picasa Lake or "Laguna Picasa" right at sunrise, seen in the middle pic, I think the whole trip was worth only for that experience.

The Trip to Misiones - Posadas - The Jesuit Ruins - Santa Ana

After leaving Loreto I headed to the third site located in the area of Posadas which is Santa Ana, for this you need to walk 2 clicks back and forth, and as Loreto it is worth while visiting only if you appreciate archeological sites, since the area is basically in an abandoned state.

Santa Ana was the largest of the missions and boasted a magnificent church with a rounded staircase, unfortunatelly it was raised to the ground, but you can still see the outlines of the buildings.

 

The Trip to Misiones - Posadas - The Jesuit Ruins - Loreto

 

I was told at San Ignacio that it was worth visiting all the ruins or archeological sites, If you are not a die hard explorer I think you can settle with only SanIgnacio.

Since i has set aside the day to visit the ruins I decided to go to Loreto which is not too far if you have a car. However it can get tricky going on foot, just taking the bus, which are basically the lomg distance buses that travel Ruta 12 and that may or may not stop for you and drop you off on the same road so you can walk 3 clicks back and frth to the ruins.

When I got there I saw that Loreto is in an archeolgical dig state, but there is a small museum and the guide was very friendly and took me to visit all the site.

The Trip to Misiones - Posadas - The Jesuit Ruins - San Ignacio mini

One of the must sees close to Posadas are the Jesuit ruins, I will not write the whole story, but only tell you that this small cities founded by the Jesuits in the 1600s were built with the latest knowledge at the time in Europe and housed thousands of natives.

Only 50 clicks away from posadas you can catch several buses from the Bus Terinal that will get you there in less than an hour, I do recommend spending the day and visiting the other two missions even if they are in a more ruin like state than San Ignacio that was partially reconstructed.

 

The Trip to Misiones - Obera -El jardin de los Pajaros

One of the must go places in Obera is "El Jardin de los Pájaros"

Thanks to a german Lady named Frida bunkowski who created this bird sancturay in her back yard, you can now visit this park where some birds are held in cages as they get familiar enough to fly free and others are on the grounds along with native flowers

For a small entrance fee you can see most of the tropical birds found in the Misiones province.

 

The Trip to Misiones - Back to Posadas via Obera

Since my bus from El Soberbio left at 2am I decided to stop by Obera which is the second largest city in Misiones. It was one of those horrible rainy days when it pours continuosly.Also remember that Misiones sits on the tropic of Capricorn, so when it rains its abundant
Never the less I did enjoy Obera, there are several atractions worth visiting, specially when the weather is fair

The Trip to Misiones - Mocona Falls - The Falls

Once you are in the Park you will be driven to the edge of the river where you can board the small boat that will take you along the river to Falls Mocona which are unique because they run the length of the river for to 2-3 kilometers.
Dividing the Uruguay There is a fault line spliting it in half. When water levels are low, the water from one-half of the river crashes down into the lower half of the fault line, During dry season, the falls can reach up to 8 meters

Mocona is the original name in Guarani which translates to “that which swallows everything. "Actually at the length of the river between Argentina and Brazil, the water gushes with such force that it’s as if it’s swallowing everything around it.

Since visibility depends on the water level, you should check the forecast and ring the Park to make sure it is not closed, either due to drought or excessive rain.

The Trip to Misiones - Mocona Falls - " Parque ¨Provincial Mocona"

The Mocona Provincial Park in Misiones is a protected area which encompasses the area where the falls sit.

It comprises more than 1000 hectares of sub tropical jungle and it is right at the border with Brazil which shares the Mocona falls with Argentina.

There are tree main paths on which you can go walking and then the boat that takes you along the Paraná river where you can see the falls from the rivers view.
On the Brazilian side you can see the falls from above.

Along the paths you¨ll get to enjoy native flora and fauna and if you go at the right time, millions of Butterflies of an array of colours.

The Trip to Misiones - Mocona Falls - From "EL Soberbio" to Mocona Falls

Once you made it to "El Soberbio"you still have 70 clicks to go to get to the "Parque Provincial Mocona" where the falls are.
When I was there there were few options, maybe paying an outrageous price to go by taxi or walking, there were no regular bus services from the city to the Park.
So thanks to the owner of the Hostel in Posadas I managed to get in touch with the staff that work at the park and get a ride on the van that goes back and forth to the park to bring them there.
I did pay a fare, but it certainly was very little compared to any of the means of transport.

The Trip to Misiones - Mocona Falls - El soberbio - where to stay

There are many lodges to stay outside El Soberbio, most require some type of transport. But if for some reason you are stuck in the city with no mobility.

I do recommend the place I stayed, called Guaramboca, located at Avenida San Martin 699, right beside the biggest super market called "Ceferino Rodriguez".
It isn't a luxury hotel but it is pretty comfy with all the commodities for a night stay.

The Trip to Misiones - Mocona Falls - El soberbio

 

After an 8 hr trip I arrived at "El Soberbio" a town which I thought would be more rustic, but that thanks to being border with Brazil benefits from the trade of a Border city.

There is not really much to see but the town is quite tidy and sports some mega supermarkets and wine store that acomodate Brasilian who cross over for meat, wine and gas that is cheaper on this side.

It also has a a small "Costanera" or river side walk from which you can see neighbouring Brazil and the boats that go back and forth bringing people and goods. At the time I went there the border was closed due to Covid, so it probably was contraband being crossed.
There was something curious about "El Soberbio" and that was that most of the people are bilingual in Spanish and Portuguese, but some use Portuguese as their first language even though they are Argentine, something I have not seen in other cities.

The Trip to Misiones - Mocona Falls - From Posdas to El Soberbio

So, one of my in province trips in Misiones was going to Mocona falls, so I took the bus which has really crappy times and is very slow, basically leaves at 10am and arrives at 7pm.This can be avoided by renting a car or paying a ridiculous price for an excursion.

The buses are comfy and cheap, and considering that rainy days in misiones are an all day non stop event, I took advantage and did my travelling back and forth on rainy days.The buses leave from the Posadas bus terminal which can be accesed by bus otr taxi.

The Trip to Misiones - Posadas - Encarnacion - crossing by train

There is a fun and simple way of crossing the border in between Posadas, Argentina and Encarnación, Paraguay. There is a small train that unites both cities that can be taken on week days for a small price, unfortunately the argentine state run railroads do not have any interest in promoting tourism, so like many other trains that go to attractive destinations, it doesn't work on weekends or holidays.

Also last time I was there it was interrupted due to  covid, but if we return some day to a certain normality it will be probably be working again.

 

The Trip to Misiones - Posadas - Encarnacion

As Posadas sits on the southern shore of the Parana River, the city of Encarnación in Paraguay sits on the northern shore.
Both cities are in sight of each other and can be accesed walking, by car bus or train. In pre covid times it was very easy, now with covid restrictions it can be harder.
people from both sides regularly come and go to buy cheaper goods on both sides.


If you cross from Argentina to Paraguay you might be interested in tasting some typical Paraguayan food or some junky electronics or gadgets that are cheaper on the Paraguay side.

The Trip to Misiones - Posadas - Duomo - Ice cream

Posadas is generally more warm than cold, and during the summer it can get pretty sticky, so no wonder you have ice cream parlours all over the city, now unlike Buenos Aires where you have a variety of chains and franchises, in Posadas and most other cities in Misiones the king of the hill is Duomo which has a very good ice cream in quality and cost.

I have visited several of its stores in various trips and was always satisfied with the quality of the product. I do not know why there are no competitors, except some small ones which I was not very impressed with.

The Trip to Misiones - Posadas - where to eat "Itakua"

Most of the better restos in Posadas are located along the riverside walk or "Costanera". On one of my daily sunset photo wals I spotted "Itakua" which means "Cave " in Guarany Language.

The place is quite nice and has an outdoor deck with wee to the river, they specialize in pizza but also have a variety of fish and meat dishes, when I was there they had a discount on weekday evenings with 40% off on pizza and drinks, which definitely caught my eye, since I paid less than the cost of a greasy burger, so I wnt there twice and was very satisfied both times.

The Trip to Misiones - Posadas - where to stay

In Posadas you will find a range of very fancy Hotels for a cheap price but with the coldness typical of those establishments.
I generally crash at Hostels not only cuz they are cheap, or that I just need a clean bed and shower cuz I spend all day roaming around, but also for the intel provided by local people that own those places.
Last time I was in Posadas most of the Hostels where closed due to COVID, I was referred to " Como en Casa Hostel" located at Junin 2129, close to Plaza San Martin which is one of Posada´s main parks.
Gotta tell you that is pretty basic but comfy and its owner Mauricio is a great guy who set me up with contacts to all the places that I wanted to visit.

The Trip to Misiones - Posadas - Balneario El Brete

If you keep walking on the riverside walk or "Costanera "in Posadas you will wrap arround one of the small peninsulas and end up in one of the city´s beaches.



The "Balneario el Brete" is a nice beach at the shores of the Parna river, a greta place to rferesh from athe heat, take great sunset shots and pose at the I´ve been there sign with the name of the city.

 

The Trip to Misiones - Posadas - La Costanera

Posada's biggest feature is definitely its River side walk or Costanera, which spans the whole peninsula shaped city.

At its peak at sunset or sunrise in that order, or for a walk with some breeze from the Parana River at anytime of the day.