Paradise

I spent last weekend in paradise. I went with two of my fellow UPSers who are in the program to Iguazu Falls. They are in the NE on the border with Brasil and are surrounded by sub-tropical forest that are full of all sorts of exotic wildlife (tucans, monkeys, lizards, you get the drift). The forest was incredibly green and lush and the air fresher than I could have imagined. The dirt everywhere was a rich, sienna red color apparently caused by a high iron content. I think every hostel in the town of Puerto Iguazu had at least two hammocks. Entire families of four got around town on one motorcycle. The streets weren't paved but made of chunks of stone and the beautiful red dirt. Needless to say, it was probably the most relaxing environment I have ever been in. The bus we took was an all-nighter that left Retiro (the station in BA) at about 7 PM on Thursday night and cruised into Iguazu at about 10:30 AM Friday morning. Now usually, the discomfort of spending an entire night on a bus would have put me in a semi-uptight/cranky mood. But when we got into town I just couldn't help but relax. We checked into our hostel and went straight to the falls. The falls are absolutely indescribable. You really expect a unicorn to pop out of the bushes, everything is so unreal. There are huge groups of butterflies that will take flight and swarm around you if you happen to walk through them. They have no problem taking a time out and landing on your hand. The falls create a mist that hangs over the forest nearby and the island in the middle of the falls. Random wildlife will appear out of nowhere. For the first day we hiked around the trails of the lower circuit of the falls. The second day, we went on a guided tour called La Gran Aventura that included a little truck ride through the forest and a boat ride right up to the falls. And when I say right up to the falls, I mean we got off the boat ride soaked. It was incredible being so close to such a powerful force of nature. The second day we completed our hike around the park with a walk to the section of the falls called Garganta del Diablo. You can't actually see the bottom of this group of falls because the rising mist completely obscures the view. It was incredible.

On the way back top BA we had to stop in basically every town with a station along the way to fill up the omnibus and I absolutely fell in love with one of the towns. It was called El Dorado and it was just a little town but it had so much charm and character. We stopped there while the sun was setting and casting a pink glow over everything. It was magical. This trip made me realize that I am currently in a country with such a diverse landscape considering its size. Spring break is coming up and it should be another opportunity to se more of this gorgeous country.

Tierra Santa, the holy land?

I recently visited a theme park here in Buenos Aires. It was not the usual Six Flags or Raging Waters kind of theme park that one would expect back in the states. It was a Jesus theme park. Now, I'm still not quite sure what to think of this so I am going to have a serious moment here. I really welcome your comments and would love for this to open up some serious discussion about how the Christian community reaches out to those who are not a part of the community.

The park, for starters, was entirely made of plastic. They had plastic buildings, camels, people even palm trees despite the fact that right outside the park there were living, lush, real palm trees. The focal point of the park was the resurrection, which we were not able to see because of the wind. But apparently, a giant Jesus emerges from this hilltop, with the crucifixion scene right in front. Inside this giant plastic hill were representations of some of the best known stories of the bible (Adam and Eve, Abraham, Moses) along with the nativity story all presented through plastic, life-size figures and scenes. Outside the hill, there was a pathway that took you through every step of Jesus' trial up to the resurrection. The park included a mosque, jewish temple and church, of course, all plastic. It also had, sporadically, other figures that are important to Christian history. Martin Luther, Mother Theresa and Pope John Paul II could all be found awkwardly positioned next to buildings and figures meant to represent Jerusalem. Looking over the walls that bordered Tierra Santa, a water park was in pain view next door.

The park is run by the city of Buenos Aires. It is meant to be informative.

I still have many questions about the park that were not answered in any of the brochures or signs. Where does the money collected as an entrance fee go? Is it used in general city funds? Are the workers believers? Or just people the city has hired? Does the park have any support or connection with the churches of the city?

And of course, I have some deeper questions. Is it possible to reach people through a theme park? Is the city sincerely trying to educate or using the park as a source of revenue? Will people be able to relate the plastic events to something real? Can newer forms of media and entertainment be used by the Christian community without losing the intimacy, life and reality that is key to our religion? Are any people sincerely brought to the religion through the park? How many people lose interest in Christianity because of all the fakeness?

As I mentioned I'm not sure what to think about Tierra Santa. I do know that I walked away from the park thinking that it was one of the most bizarre experiences I have ever had. Let me know what YOU think.