Onward to Ontario!

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The moment we approached the US-Canadian border, we knew we were in for something special. We had been anticipating a fair amount of difficulty getting into Niagara Falls, what with our car laden down with everything but the kitchen sink, but instead we were greeted by what had to be the friendliest border guard in the planet.

“Where you headed, eh?”
“Niagara Falls, Toronto and then camping in Bruce Peninsula, sir”
“Oh, Bruce Peninsula. Is that up by Tobermory? Great little place. Have a cabin up there…”

Turns out it is up by Tobermory and he had quite the story to tell about.

“You all do a lot of biking?”
“Not yet but we hope to.”
“I took a bike trip recently….”

And indeed he had, all around the Great Lakes. In the end, several stories later, we offered him our ID’s thinking that, you know, it being a border crossing those sorts of documents would be necessary, but we were wrong. He’d filled the time running our plate number with stories of his travels in the area, leaned back in his chair, noticeably resisting the urge to prop his feet up on the desk. A few cars started to line up behind us, and he seemed dismayed to wave us on through, wishing a safe and happy trip. The moral of the story is, if you want to escape to Canada, just make sure you’re driving a car with valid license plate and you’re good to go.

For miles on both sides of the border we had seen endless rows of power lines and generator stations and as we drove along crest of the Niagara escarpment into Niagara Falls, it suddenly made sense—hydroelectric power. Not only are the falls a great place to take pictures and romantic walks, they also serve a very real purpose in providing electricity for what we could only guess would be a significant proportion of residents in both New York and Ontario. We checked into our Bed and Breakfast right on schedule and decided to take a late night walk to an overlook, leaving the majority of the sightseeing for tomorrow.

The rush of the river down below the bluffs could be heard long before the falls came into view, and unexpectedly, as we rounded a corner, the American Falls came into focus from behind the treetops. The sheer amount of force and flow of water is breathtaking. While Niagara may not be the tallest, or the widest, it certainly boasts an impressive amount of water per minute over the edge. The mist rises up from below and catches us in the face. It’s a rather cool night, even though it was in the 80s F earlier today, and we stay briefly before deciding to turn back. Neither of us brought a jacket. There’re fireworks above the water tonight in celebration of Memorial Day but we decide against it. It’s nearly an hour walk roundtrip to the falls from the B&B and it’s late, we’re tired and fireworks are….fireworks.

We wake the next morning to the scent of French toast and freshly baked muffins wafting up the stairs. The Niagara Inn B&B is empty except for us, but our hosts have spared no amenity. The muffins are delicious. I consider asking for the recipe, decide against it, and then later read in the guestbook that I was not the only one considering such a request! Our hostess is an ex-pat born in New York but now a dual citizen. She came up here to retire and assists in operation of a string of Bed and Breakfasts in the Niagara area. The “perfect job for retirement” she says. After breakfast we repack the car and walk down to the Niagara area. Finally, our first true day of the trip.

The Niagara area itself is well kept by the Niagara Parks Commission. Flower beds filled with red tulips bloom and hedge rows are neat and orderly. We had the park to ourselves last night, but even at this early morning hour the tour busses are already starting to roll in and with them come the crowds. Other than looking at and admiring the falls from the above, there isn’t much else to do in this area that isn’t ‘touristy’ so we throw in the towel and join the masses. Like sardines, our royal blue ponchos reflecting sunlight like fish-scales, we’re herded onto the Maid of the Mist to be taken by boat up towards the base of the falls. The falls look grand from above, but look enormous from below. The spray from the American Falls causes those who initially resisted donning their poncho to hurriedly secure their raingear over their clothes. As the boat trudges towards the Canadian Horseshoe Falls, the mist becomes heavier and we find ourselves shrouded in a blanket of white. The call of seagulls gives the area a coastal feel, even though we’re pretty far inland. Before we know it, the rocking of the boat starts up again and we’re headed ashore. Would we do it again? Maybe…maybe not, but it’s definitely worth doing at least once, in our opinion.

After spending the great part of the morning in Niagara Falls, we’ve had our fill of sightseeing and head north towards Niagara-on-the-Lake, a lesser known town upriver with a bustling wine industry. Many of the wineries are closed as the season isn’t fully in swing, but Riverside winery welcomed us with its open doors and friendly, knowledgeable wine steward. Vidal ice-box wines are the specialty of this area and though pricey, are worth every penny. The grapes are processed at 9F, well below freezing, to maintain ridiculously high amounts of sugar in the final product. This is not only a dessert wine, it is dessert in and of itself. We buy a bottle to save for a special occasion without realizing that the temperature inside the car will surely cause it to lose quality in the next several months. To counter the heat, we’ve now reserved a significant proportion of precious cooler space to preserving the flavor this bottle! I’m sure it will be worth it. Several other varieties are nice—their Riesling is drier than I expected, but it has a fresh, flinty finish that sits well on the palate, and they have a few good table wines—but space and funds are limited.

What began as a relaxing trip through wine country turns into a frustrating ordeal as we enter Toronto in search of our hostel. Parking proves nearly impossible (no thanks to the lady at the desk who gave us the wrong information) and we didn’t know we had to have a deposit per person for linens and keys, meaning I have to leave my ID as collateral. Eventually we get settled in and, apart from the initial difficulties, the hostel turns out to be clean, spacious and catering to a good group of individuals from around the world. With only one night in Toronto, we try to make the most of it.

This city is an eclectic hodge-podge of cultures. Indian restaurants and coucouseries are a dime a dozen mixed in between sushi houses and beer gardens. The area we’re staying, our Queen and John St., has a young, chic urban feel much like the neighborhood of Seattle. Apart from the homeless man that kept wandering up along the patio, accusing the more well-dressed patrons of being CIA and conspiring about the Vietnam war, and our waiter who could “definitely do for, man” until he up and disappeared, our dinner at Asian Flair was moderately priced and tasty. The spicy Thai eggplant melted in my mouth and Andras’ General Tsao’s chicken was moist and well seasoned. The night life doesn’t start around here until nearly 10pm, right around the time we usually head in so as to wake up at a decent hour in the morning, but we did find solace at Rex’s Jazz and Blues Bar, voted the best Jazz house in Toronto, with shows playing at 6:30 and a second set starting at 9pm. With a couple of local beers on tap, we snapped our fingers and tapped our feet to the acoustics of string bass, piano and percussion. These musicians are something else! The drummer alone was a sight to behold both visually and aurally. The hours quickly passed and before we realized it was already well passed our time to turn in. Have to get up early if we’re going to be able to get to Bruce Peninsula tomorrow.

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Photos

Niagara-on-the-Lake
Grapes growing in Niagara-on-the-Lake with Lake Ontario in the distance

Self-Portrait
On the Maid of the Mist

Close-Up of Andras
Playing around and taking photos in the park.