The Journey of a Thousand Smiles
Well, I should go to bed right now, but I was looking forward all day to documenting my recent last-minute mini-vacation to Niagara Falls. Unfortunately, writing clever comments on all those photos I just uploaded to facebook took a little too long. Pride goeth before a late bedtime, I guess.
Sometimes you can plan for months for elaborate vacations, and then you feel the pressure to really enjoy it because you spent so much time preparing and saving money for it. Which is why maybe some of the best vacations I've had are unexpected. This was one of them. When my brother told me a few months ago that he had to attend a conference in Canada near Niagara Falls, the seed was planted, but it wasn't until last Thursday night that I made up my mind and booked a hotel. So this post is more for me than it is for you--sorry, I'm being selfish this time. I just don't want to forget, because God went all out in His extra blessings this time. He definitely knows my heart well.
I packed up my car and left right after church. This trip wasn't just about the destination--it was definitely about the journey. It was such a beautiful drive! Maryland freeway melted into winding Pennsylvania highways which narrowed into New York two-lanes with the windows down. Listening to my favorite songs, talking to God, and listening to an audiobook was also a plus.
Then came the Canadian border. Dun-dun-dun. The only scary part about leaving America is that you have to turn your phone on airplane mode so you don't get charged an arm and a leg if someone calls or texts. Or if you forget and start using your data--it's only about $15 per megabite, literally. But there's something exciting about handing over your passport and being interrogated about why you are going to Canada PLUS turning off your phone PLUS those cute kilometer signs. It's almost like you're in another country. Almost.
I didn't get to my hotel in Hamilton until about 9 p.m., and by the time my brother and I drove around and found something that was open that wasn't Tim Hortons (no offense to Tim Horton's, we were just looking for real food), it was about 9:45. It was still an enjoyable evening catching up, eating our Canadian Mexican food til midnight.
Sunday was the day. We ate hardy donut breakfast around noon at "Tim Horton-Hears-a-Who" (as Donnie called it), and then drove to Niagara Falls. After driving around the large congested block twice, we landed a somewhat discounted parking spot in a private lot. The guy who took our cash told us he'd worked at the lot for 18 years, and a year ago he bought it from the owner for a million dollars. We all have our dreams, I guess.
We walked down the hill and toward the first Falls we could see. Donnie and I were both like, Wait...is that it? That doesn't look like...Ohhhh, there it is. The first Falls you can see from the Canadian side (from where we came from at least) is actually American Falls. It's a big one, but it's not the one you see in all the pictures--Horseshoe Falls, or Canadian Falls.
So naturally, after a brief American Falls shots, we migrated down to "the big one." Which is where everyone else was. Actually, everyone else was everywhere. Apparently, perfect weather and a Sunday means more people want to look at waterfalls. Can't blame them--we did too.
As we kept walking, we could start to feel the mist soaking us, even though it was still far away. The closer we got though, the less mist we could feel. But the view--between the millions of precious people's heads--was spectacular! I can see why it's a big deal. It was also entertaining to watch people try to awkwardly take selfies. I kind of wanted to take pictures of that, but then I would have felt awkward.
We decided to head back to the car since we'd only paid for two hours, and we were ready for a break from the crowds. Within a few minutes, we left the buildings and crowds behind for a peaceful two-lane road with beautiful houses on one side and a grassy bank next to the Niagara River on the other. Here and there, cars were just pulled off to the side on the bank, and people sat in their lawn chairs, fishing, talking, reading--just enjoying the afternoon. Seemed like the Canadians had a great
idea, so we decided to try it. Donnie pulled out the back seat in his Rav (he did offer to pull out the other one, but I preferred the grass), and we ate our snacks and caught up on our cell phone communication since we were able to get AT&T service from across the river. It was truly lovely.
Before leaving, Donnie decided to pull out his driver and make an attempt at hitting a golf ball to America, but it didn't work out, unfortunately.
We continued the scenic route until we ended up crossing into America and headed over to the American side of Niagara Falls. Which was decidedly less impressive. The town looks like it was probably thriving in the 70s, but kind of just surviving since then. We did find free parking though.
We walked down to the river that goes over American Falls. It was kind of scary how close you can get to all that raging water, actually. Pretty sure if you fell in, there wouldn't be much chance of swimming your way out of it. But there is always something fascinating about raging rivers. So much graceful power.
We did a LOT of walking in America. That's a good way to summarize it. We walked to American Falls, then over to Horseshoe Falls, then the looooong way over an island (we got a little disoriented) back across the raging river to the car. Then we drove over "Rainbow Bridge" to the Canadian side of Niagara Falls again. (Donnie was getting good at answering all those border patrol questions. All I had to say was that I was from Maryland.)
This time I paid for parking, since I was really excited about going back so we could take the "Journey Under the Falls" tour. I'd heard from several sources that this was a worthy way to spend your time and money at the Falls. So we did. And it was! We took an elevator down while a very tired-looking college-aged kid gave his brief instructional speech. Then we exited and dawned our bright yellow ponchos before heading down the tunnel for a self-guided tour. We first found our way outside, at the bottom of the Falls. The mist soaked our ponchos, and the sight and sound was breathtaking. Several times I had to consciously close my mouth. It was just so big. And I was just so happy to be there. And so thankful that my brother could be there too.
After taking all that in, we went down the longer tunnel behind the water fall where there were two port-holes where you could see the water, and the thunderous sound of the giant waterfall echoed through. Someone had told me that it reminded them of the verse in Revelation where God's voice is described as having the sound of "many waters." I could definitely imagine that.
After one more trip out to see the base of the Falls, we headed back up the elevator and went on the hunt for some food. We skipped the exciting restaurants in favor of some classic American IHOP. (Hey, it is "international.") We had plenty of time to continue our discussion on spirituality in everyday life (although it sounded more complicated because Donnie is in grad school so he likes to use big words like "metalogical"). Mostly because they took a long time getting our food, which they apologized for several times, and even brought us two extra bowls of fruit each to make up for it! It was a win-win.
On the way back down to the car, we got to see the Falls all lit up--a lovely sight! Except that it seemed that the middle lights on Horseshoe Falls were out, but we were too tired to care by then.
The day ended with a good night's sleep before parting ways--Donnie heading back to his "exciting" meetings and I heading back to Maryland.
My adventure wasn't quite over, but don't worry, this blog is getting very close to being over, because it is getting late. The highlights of the journey home included:
THE END.
Sometimes you can plan for months for elaborate vacations, and then you feel the pressure to really enjoy it because you spent so much time preparing and saving money for it. Which is why maybe some of the best vacations I've had are unexpected. This was one of them. When my brother told me a few months ago that he had to attend a conference in Canada near Niagara Falls, the seed was planted, but it wasn't until last Thursday night that I made up my mind and booked a hotel. So this post is more for me than it is for you--sorry, I'm being selfish this time. I just don't want to forget, because God went all out in His extra blessings this time. He definitely knows my heart well.
I packed up my car and left right after church. This trip wasn't just about the destination--it was definitely about the journey. It was such a beautiful drive! Maryland freeway melted into winding Pennsylvania highways which narrowed into New York two-lanes with the windows down. Listening to my favorite songs, talking to God, and listening to an audiobook was also a plus.
Then came the Canadian border. Dun-dun-dun. The only scary part about leaving America is that you have to turn your phone on airplane mode so you don't get charged an arm and a leg if someone calls or texts. Or if you forget and start using your data--it's only about $15 per megabite, literally. But there's something exciting about handing over your passport and being interrogated about why you are going to Canada PLUS turning off your phone PLUS those cute kilometer signs. It's almost like you're in another country. Almost.
I didn't get to my hotel in Hamilton until about 9 p.m., and by the time my brother and I drove around and found something that was open that wasn't Tim Hortons (no offense to Tim Horton's, we were just looking for real food), it was about 9:45. It was still an enjoyable evening catching up, eating our Canadian Mexican food til midnight.
Sunday was the day. We ate hardy donut breakfast around noon at "Tim Horton-Hears-a-Who" (as Donnie called it), and then drove to Niagara Falls. After driving around the large congested block twice, we landed a somewhat discounted parking spot in a private lot. The guy who took our cash told us he'd worked at the lot for 18 years, and a year ago he bought it from the owner for a million dollars. We all have our dreams, I guess.
We walked down the hill and toward the first Falls we could see. Donnie and I were both like, Wait...is that it? That doesn't look like...Ohhhh, there it is. The first Falls you can see from the Canadian side (from where we came from at least) is actually American Falls. It's a big one, but it's not the one you see in all the pictures--Horseshoe Falls, or Canadian Falls.
So naturally, after a brief American Falls shots, we migrated down to "the big one." Which is where everyone else was. Actually, everyone else was everywhere. Apparently, perfect weather and a Sunday means more people want to look at waterfalls. Can't blame them--we did too.
As we kept walking, we could start to feel the mist soaking us, even though it was still far away. The closer we got though, the less mist we could feel. But the view--between the millions of precious people's heads--was spectacular! I can see why it's a big deal. It was also entertaining to watch people try to awkwardly take selfies. I kind of wanted to take pictures of that, but then I would have felt awkward.
We decided to head back to the car since we'd only paid for two hours, and we were ready for a break from the crowds. Within a few minutes, we left the buildings and crowds behind for a peaceful two-lane road with beautiful houses on one side and a grassy bank next to the Niagara River on the other. Here and there, cars were just pulled off to the side on the bank, and people sat in their lawn chairs, fishing, talking, reading--just enjoying the afternoon. Seemed like the Canadians had a greatidea, so we decided to try it. Donnie pulled out the back seat in his Rav (he did offer to pull out the other one, but I preferred the grass), and we ate our snacks and caught up on our cell phone communication since we were able to get AT&T service from across the river. It was truly lovely.
Before leaving, Donnie decided to pull out his driver and make an attempt at hitting a golf ball to America, but it didn't work out, unfortunately.
We continued the scenic route until we ended up crossing into America and headed over to the American side of Niagara Falls. Which was decidedly less impressive. The town looks like it was probably thriving in the 70s, but kind of just surviving since then. We did find free parking though.
 |
| American side |
This time I paid for parking, since I was really excited about going back so we could take the "Journey Under the Falls" tour. I'd heard from several sources that this was a worthy way to spend your time and money at the Falls. So we did. And it was! We took an elevator down while a very tired-looking college-aged kid gave his brief instructional speech. Then we exited and dawned our bright yellow ponchos before heading down the tunnel for a self-guided tour. We first found our way outside, at the bottom of the Falls. The mist soaked our ponchos, and the sight and sound was breathtaking. Several times I had to consciously close my mouth. It was just so big. And I was just so happy to be there. And so thankful that my brother could be there too.
After taking all that in, we went down the longer tunnel behind the water fall where there were two port-holes where you could see the water, and the thunderous sound of the giant waterfall echoed through. Someone had told me that it reminded them of the verse in Revelation where God's voice is described as having the sound of "many waters." I could definitely imagine that.
After one more trip out to see the base of the Falls, we headed back up the elevator and went on the hunt for some food. We skipped the exciting restaurants in favor of some classic American IHOP. (Hey, it is "international.") We had plenty of time to continue our discussion on spirituality in everyday life (although it sounded more complicated because Donnie is in grad school so he likes to use big words like "metalogical"). Mostly because they took a long time getting our food, which they apologized for several times, and even brought us two extra bowls of fruit each to make up for it! It was a win-win.
On the way back down to the car, we got to see the Falls all lit up--a lovely sight! Except that it seemed that the middle lights on Horseshoe Falls were out, but we were too tired to care by then.
The day ended with a good night's sleep before parting ways--Donnie heading back to his "exciting" meetings and I heading back to Maryland.
My adventure wasn't quite over, but don't worry, this blog is getting very close to being over, because it is getting late. The highlights of the journey home included:
- Crossing back into America and using my phone GPS again.
- Driving through the tiny town of Wales, New York just as they were in the middle of a Memorial Day gathering in their tiny town square. Veterans lined up in front saluting. Flags flying everywhere. A gun salute. The whole thing. I wished I could stay...but I drove through slowly.
- Stopping at Stony Creek State Park for a quick two-mile hike. I loved seeing hundreds of families barbecuing at their picnic tables and taking their kids up the creek for a swim. It reminded me of my childhood, and the things that are still right about America.
- Eating a veggieburger from their snack shop. It was the closest I could get to grilling out on Memorial Day. I ate it in the car on my way out though.
THE END.
DEEEEELIGHTFUL.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. Let's plan a spontaneous trip together sometime soon ;)
this is definitely one of those unexpected good things that happen to us. It didn't slide by you unnoticed, sounds like you both soaked up this golden opportunity.
ReplyDelete