I am returned
Back from Niagara Falls. Considering hurry_sundown is there right now and omphale23 is heading up that way in a week or so, Niagara seems to be the go-to destination for fangirls. I had a great time with my man scarfe and, despite a slight hiccup with the hotel booking, we enjoyed ourselves thorougly.
We rented a car and drove south from our place in Hamilton, Ontario (which is about forty minutes south of Toronto) to Niagara Falls. I'd visited Niagara in 1997 when I was thirteen, and the city has really grown and changed in the last ten years. It's now composed of a lot of highrise hotels near the Falls, and the aged and cheap-looking boardwalk in Clifton Hills has transformed into a thriving nightclub/attractions district full of wax museums, funhouses, chain resturants and souvenir shops. The whole place is a lot cleaner and nicer-looking than I remember it being, but it is still easily the tackiest city in Canada.
scarfe and I arrived in the late afternoon and discovered that when I'd booked our hotel online the previous night I'd reserved a room for the wrong date. As a result we were charged as a no-show for the night before, meaning we ended up paying double for our one-night stay at the Days Inn. *l'sigh*. And we'd forgone the fantastically cheesy room with the heart-shaped jaccuzzi because it was a little bit more expensive! The front desk clerk at our hotel took pity on us and gave us a complimentary breakfast coupon for the Hilton, which is a beautiful dining room on the 33rd floor of one of the big hotel skyscrapers that line Niagara.
After we checked in we wandered down to the Falls to do the tourist thing. Having spent a summer working at a resort in the Helmnken Falls Provincial Park back in BC, I'm not terribly impressed by Niagara Falls since it can't match the sheer wild beauty of the waterfalls in Helmnken. But it sure is pretty. And misty. scarfe and I fanangled tourists into snapping pictures of us in front of Horseshoe Falls (pardon my hair!) and then we bought tickets for "Journey Under the Falls." This allows you to explore the tunnels under Niagara whilst wearing a sexy yellow poncho (again, please ignore the hair. I think the wind had some kind of personal vendetta against me). I foolishly wore inappropriate footwear (cheap sandals) while exploring the condensation-rich tunnles and scarfe had to keep a firm grip on my arm to keep me from slipping. We made it out to the viewing platform at the base of Horseshoe Falls, and we both got soaking wet thanks to the misty spray coming in off the falls. If you wear glasses or aren't thrilled by the prospect of getting wet (despite the sexay yellow poncho) I wouldn't recommend paying extra for this trip. scarfe and I are both nearsighted and so once we took off the specs we couldn't see much. However, it was neat to prowl around in the tunnels and listen to the thundering rumble of all that water pouring ovrehead.
After we dried off a bit we went to the Souvenir Emporium where you can buy a slice of Canadiana for prices that are only slightly inflated. I made out like a bandit with a tiny glass inukshuk, a spoon rest with a fantastically ugly painted rendering of all things Niagara, and naturally I made scarfe take a picture of me with a Mountie . (Okay. A Mountie uniform. But still!) I also got an RCMP magnet.
Having fulfilled our tourist duty we walked up to Clifton Hills, which is the aforementioned neon strip of wacky, tacky emporiums and oddities. We went to the Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum and had drinks in the Rainforrest Cafe. I made a fool of myself at the wax museum (although I stand by my yawning statement at the Lord of the Rings exhibit) and we learned some new and disgusting facts at Ripley's. After a ride on the Skyview Ferris wheel (which was very romantic and smelled only slight of feet) scarfe and I headed back to the hotel. I suffered a major asthma attack on the way home, which made for scariness since I don't have an inhaler. But I toughed it out and we ended up back in our room in one piece.
An air-raid siren posing as an alarm clock woke us up early (boo!) for our free breakfast at the Hilton, and then we headed out to Marine Land. Which was made of awesome. Killer whales are beautiful and I somehow managed to coordinate my outfit to match the orcas. *wins* scarfe and I fed the beluga whales (which are very friendly and good-natured) and then we went on a bunch of rides that promised thrills and excitement but instead inspired deep-seated feelings of peace and contentment in both of us. Maybe we're too old for thrill rides. Then it was on to a training/feeding lecture on marine life, and then an adorkable
display of trained dolphins and seals jumping and splashing around. We hit up the gift shop for tiny plastic sea creatures and a coffee mug, and then drove back to Hamilton. We're both sunburned, our feet are sore, and we smell like sea water but it was a very fun mini-vacation.
In conclusion, BEAR!
We rented a car and drove south from our place in Hamilton, Ontario (which is about forty minutes south of Toronto) to Niagara Falls. I'd visited Niagara in 1997 when I was thirteen, and the city has really grown and changed in the last ten years. It's now composed of a lot of highrise hotels near the Falls, and the aged and cheap-looking boardwalk in Clifton Hills has transformed into a thriving nightclub/attractions district full of wax museums, funhouses, chain resturants and souvenir shops. The whole place is a lot cleaner and nicer-looking than I remember it being, but it is still easily the tackiest city in Canada.
scarfe and I arrived in the late afternoon and discovered that when I'd booked our hotel online the previous night I'd reserved a room for the wrong date. As a result we were charged as a no-show for the night before, meaning we ended up paying double for our one-night stay at the Days Inn. *l'sigh*. And we'd forgone the fantastically cheesy room with the heart-shaped jaccuzzi because it was a little bit more expensive! The front desk clerk at our hotel took pity on us and gave us a complimentary breakfast coupon for the Hilton, which is a beautiful dining room on the 33rd floor of one of the big hotel skyscrapers that line Niagara.
After we checked in we wandered down to the Falls to do the tourist thing. Having spent a summer working at a resort in the Helmnken Falls Provincial Park back in BC, I'm not terribly impressed by Niagara Falls since it can't match the sheer wild beauty of the waterfalls in Helmnken. But it sure is pretty. And misty. scarfe and I fanangled tourists into snapping pictures of us in front of Horseshoe Falls (pardon my hair!) and then we bought tickets for "Journey Under the Falls." This allows you to explore the tunnels under Niagara whilst wearing a sexy yellow poncho (again, please ignore the hair. I think the wind had some kind of personal vendetta against me). I foolishly wore inappropriate footwear (cheap sandals) while exploring the condensation-rich tunnles and scarfe had to keep a firm grip on my arm to keep me from slipping. We made it out to the viewing platform at the base of Horseshoe Falls, and we both got soaking wet thanks to the misty spray coming in off the falls. If you wear glasses or aren't thrilled by the prospect of getting wet (despite the sexay yellow poncho) I wouldn't recommend paying extra for this trip. scarfe and I are both nearsighted and so once we took off the specs we couldn't see much. However, it was neat to prowl around in the tunnels and listen to the thundering rumble of all that water pouring ovrehead.
After we dried off a bit we went to the Souvenir Emporium where you can buy a slice of Canadiana for prices that are only slightly inflated. I made out like a bandit with a tiny glass inukshuk, a spoon rest with a fantastically ugly painted rendering of all things Niagara, and naturally I made scarfe take a picture of me with a Mountie . (Okay. A Mountie uniform. But still!) I also got an RCMP magnet.
Having fulfilled our tourist duty we walked up to Clifton Hills, which is the aforementioned neon strip of wacky, tacky emporiums and oddities. We went to the Ripley's Believe It or Not! museum and had drinks in the Rainforrest Cafe. I made a fool of myself at the wax museum (although I stand by my yawning statement at the Lord of the Rings exhibit) and we learned some new and disgusting facts at Ripley's. After a ride on the Skyview Ferris wheel (which was very romantic and smelled only slight of feet) scarfe and I headed back to the hotel. I suffered a major asthma attack on the way home, which made for scariness since I don't have an inhaler. But I toughed it out and we ended up back in our room in one piece.
An air-raid siren posing as an alarm clock woke us up early (boo!) for our free breakfast at the Hilton, and then we headed out to Marine Land. Which was made of awesome. Killer whales are beautiful and I somehow managed to coordinate my outfit to match the orcas. *wins* scarfe and I fed the beluga whales (which are very friendly and good-natured) and then we went on a bunch of rides that promised thrills and excitement but instead inspired deep-seated feelings of peace and contentment in both of us. Maybe we're too old for thrill rides. Then it was on to a training/feeding lecture on marine life, and then an adorkable
display of trained dolphins and seals jumping and splashing around. We hit up the gift shop for tiny plastic sea creatures and a coffee mug, and then drove back to Hamilton. We're both sunburned, our feet are sore, and we smell like sea water but it was a very fun mini-vacation.
In conclusion, BEAR!