Middle Path seeker: Niagara Falls May 24

“Niagara Falls, located on the border between the United States and Canada, is a massive waterfall. It is the second-largest waterfall in the world. The name "Niagara" comes from the Iroquois word "Onguiaahra," which means "thundering waters". The Falls are known for their stunning natural beauty and immense water flow”

“The falls consist of three distinct sections: Horseshoe Falls, American Falls, and Bridal Veil Falls, which together form one of the most famous landmarks in North America. Niagara Falls is not only a significant geological feature but also serves as a crucial source of hydroelectric power and a popular tourist destination.”

Ducky came back from 1-month deployment in Kentucky on May 23. We went to Niagara Falls right after that. We stayed at Sheraton Fallsview, Ontario, Canada. It was a perfect location! Better than that, thanks to Ducky’s special kind of Marriott membership, our room got upgraded to Falls view! We could see the American Falls right from our huge windows.

This time, we did not get to prepare much. I did not have daily plan as what I did when planning for Japan trip. The only thing I did was to purchase the Maid of the Mist tickets which later, I found out, there was no need to purchase anything ahead of time at all, tickets could be purchased there for activities at Canada side or in the NY Niagara Falls State Park.

On Saturday May 24, once getting there, we did a long walk over the scenic walk path where we could enjoy stunning American Falls, Bridal Veil Falls, and Horseshoe Falls. Over the Horseshoe Falls, “Table Rock Welcome Centre” is located. We checked out the mall a little bit and walked back to pass the Nikola Tesla statue. At 10:00 p.m., we were happy watching the fireworks and colorful Falls from our hotel balcony.

On Sunday May 25, we went back to “Table Rock Welcome Centre” and we purchased tickets for “Journey Behind the Falls” and “Niagara Parks Power Station + The Tunnel”.
Both activities were so awesome and memorable. We could experience how powerful the waterfalls are. We could imagine ourselves working at the power station and how complicated and dangerous it would be. We got lucky as Nikola Tesla exhibit had been going on from Mar 8 – Oct 13 while we were there. At night, we walked over to the scenic path to see the Fireworks up-close.

On Monday May 26, we walked over the Rainbow Bridge to the US Niagara Falls State Park. There we did “Maid of the Mist” and “Cave of the Winds”. WOW! I love them both. The weather was very beautiful that day. For the Maid of the Mist, imagine when the boat passed the gigantic waterfalls and lots of mist spraying on you, and when the boat sat unmoved for a while close to the bottom of the Horseshoe Falls letting the powerful waves shake itself. For the Cave of the Winds, we did not miss the “Hurricane deck”. It is the ultimate MUST try for up-close experience. All activities we did really completed the experiences of the Niagara Falls.

Oh, I realized I did not mention about yummy food in Canada. The food seemed very expensive there, we spent about 30 – 70 USD there for one meal. But that is how vacation is for right?

This trip gave me a new taste and knowledge of Poutine (Quebec French), “a dish of French fries and cheese curds topped with a hot brown gravy. It emerged in Quebec in the late 1950s in the Centre-du-Québec region”. It was yummy and many restaurants created their own versions of Poutine with several kinds of toppings even with Korean BBQ.

We got to get our coffee and breakfast at Tim Hortons! Before that, I knew nothing about Tim Hortons and now I had learned from Ducky that it was like Canada McDonald. LoL This made me happy knowing that, I could tell everyone I went to Canada.

Oh, and yep, and my first experience with “Inniskilling Ice Wine”, the wine made from -10 degree C ice cold grapes from Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada. Thanks, Ducky, for buying the whole biggest bottle. LoL I guessed it was about 100 USD and even the biggest bottle, it was just a skinny bottle. It tasted very sweet and very easy to enjoy. It did not make me drunk. I really enjoyed It. It made me think about the warm German Gluhwein.

Oh and one more thing not to forget, I really enjoyed the soft serve ice cream at our hotel there. It was so thick, hard to melt and tasted super delicious.

On Tuesday, May 27, we drove back to Buffalo, NY. We just happened to find Canalside and the Navel & Military Park. I was so excited about the combat ships. We got to look inside USS The Sullivans, USS Little Rock, and USS Croaker (submarine). Wow, unbelievable! They looked so complicated to build and controls with medium size bombs, and very huge bombs to load and all that. And they sure hold lots of memories of the past. I prayed for those lost their lives in the ships. I am wondering how the combat ships look like in real life these days. After that we stopped by Anchor Bar for Buffalo wings. Anchor Bar "is most famous for claiming to be the birthplace of spicy chicken wings known outside the Buffalo area as Buffalo wings" Yum!