Wherever You'll Go

Wineries, waterfalls and a wedding in New York

After being in only a bathing suit for a week, it was weird putting on pants. But when a dear friend calls and says “I’ll know you’ll be on vacation, but I’d like you to come to my wedding.”, you change your flight. It was that simple for me to be able to surprise Carin on her special day.

Ok, did you read my Virgin Islands post? Because the beaches were spectacular, but I couldn’t miss this special day. Plus I’d never been to upstate New York, and always wanted to see Niagara Falls. We arrived at midnight in Rochester, and were a little worried when we got to our hotel. The Inn on Broadway looked terribly haunted, but luckily I was too excited to sleep much. The next morning we had a few hours to kill, so we took a walk. We walked toward some music and stumbled onto the CariFest parade – a Caribbean heritage festival with superb music, dancing and costumes.

As we walked on, we stopped to talk to some race organizers. I was quite curious, being a cyclist myself, and found out there’d be a cycling event later that day. This became more important to us later, as we rushed to the wedding and all the streets were closed! Like I said, being a cyclist I should have known better.

But why were we rushing to the wedding at the last minute? Well, my husband noticed the Strong National Museum of Play on our walk. After convincing me it was for all ages, we spent the next couple of hours in childlike wonder. This place was amazing! Nostalgic games and toys filled the rooms (my husband pointing at a display case, “I had that G.I. Joe, and that one and oh! That one!”). Space Computer, the first arcade video game was on display near a giant Space Invaders, and there was a whole room of pinball machines. After we ran out of quarters and walked through Sesame Street, we found many new interactive games.

We headed back to the hotel in a downpour (we were still walking and it was getting late). We then had to navigate a city where all the streets are closed, desperate to be on time. Carin still didn’t know I was here and I wanted to surprise her before the wedding.

We made it just in time for me to pop in on the bride, and the look of confusion on Carin’s face was perfect. I’m pretty sure she was happy to see me, and it wasn’t just that she was about to walk down the aisle. After the ceremony, we celebrated and danced and laughed as the maitre d’ changed suits as least 8 times – we lost count. It was a night that perfectly ended with fireworks and the bride’s brother peeling out of the parking lot with the new couple in the backseat.

After the wedding, we got to spend the next couple days with our friends Erin and Ben. I met Erin and Carin 15 years ago in Spain. And although we live in different states, we’ve spent those 15 years vacationing around the world together.  I can’t say enough for my study abroad program (future post coming from my own foreign exchange student), and the lasting friendships it gave me, even though I’m still not fluent in Spanish.

We left Rochester and headed for Niagara-on-the-Lake – we had a wine trolley tour to catch. Fields and fields of vineyards greeted us after crossing the border. When I’d envision Canada, it included Jon Snow at the wall and furry down coats, but it was lovely and even warm. Niagara-on-the-Lake is a charming little town about 30 minutes from Niagara Falls. Vineyards, bike paths and Lake Ontario surround the town, with views of Toronto and New York. The fact that the city was almost completely burned to the ground in the War of 1812 was mentioned to us at least five times.

A firework spectacle, live band and what seemed like a million people surprised us when we drove over to the Falls that night. If you are looking for family fun, check out Clifton Hill and its tourist attraction mecca. Parking will run you at least $20 CAD anywhere near the falls.

Did you know that Niagara Falls is actually three distinct waterfalls? I did not, nor was I prepared for the extreme force with which the gallons of water flow. Now that was the true spectacle. We came back during the daytime, but weren’t able to ride the Hornblower (Maiden of the Mist on the US side) because there were approximately 500 people in line even on a Monday. We were catching our flight out of Buffalo later that afternoon, so we crossed the border to check out the US side. The Niagara Falls State Park, the oldest in the US, was packed with people, but it also had lots of hiking trails, so it was possible to get away from the masses. Although the view of the falls is better from the Canadian side, it was a little more peaceful in the State Park. A PSA – Please be mindful of the signs and don’t get into the river! We saw a few people doing it and of course so were their children. Please set a good example for your kids and don’t turn your vacation into a search and rescue operation.

Although we were sad to be leaving Erin and Ben so soon, we were eager to sleep in our own bed again. After going through the little airport in Buffalo, we realized we hadn’t had Buffalo wings yet! One tiny detour, and then, for real, we were headed home.

Tips:

• Catch the fireworks over Niagara on Sunday, Wednesday or Friday nights.
• Do NOT try to go over the falls in a wine barrel.
• Visit a winery or five.
• Check out the Cave of the Winds and let me know, the line was too long for us! They give you sandals with your ticket entry. Quite the marketing technique!
• Take your passport and view the falls from the USA and Canada. Its an easy border crossing by car or foot.
• Don’t worry about changing money, we had no issues paying in USD.