Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Niagara Falls


My mother and I worked for the same company for a time. We taught people how to paint on cloth and almost any surface. Then we hoped to sell them the paints and other materials needed to do the painting.

The company was having a convention in Niagara Falls, Canada. We decided to go. My husband would care for our children. My father decided to go too so my youngest brother and sister also went because they were quite young.

Niagara Falls was not far from where we lived so we drove. Of course. And Daddy drove the whole way because Daddy always drove. And when Daddy drove what we did was get in the car and he would start it up. Then he would aim it and off we would go at top speed.

My father was a good driver. He just did not want to mess around. No bathroom stops unless absolutely necessary and who needs food anyhow? We were there in practically no time at all.

My family did a lot of road time as I was growing up so we had road games to keep us occupied. One of the favorites was watching license plates. Each new state was added to our list. It could be played while we tried to be the first to spot a haystack, a billboard with yellow on it, or a scarecrow. We watched for unusual names for towns and funny signs. It was fun.

We made the decision to go at the last minute so our hotel was not the same one where the convention was being held. That was about a block and a half away. But it was a nice place.

We were right next to the Ripley's Believe It Or Not Museum. They had oddities on display. My favorite is the giant faucet that is suspended from wires but not connected to a water supply. Yet water flows constantly from the faucet. Even though I know the secret of how it works it fascinates me.

Roughly two blocks away was Niagara Falls itself. All we had to do was walk across the park in front of the hotel, cross a little street, and there we were.

There is a viewing platform with guard railing to protect you from getting too close or falling in. You can walk right up to stand beside the spot where the water falls over into the pool below. Standing in that spot you can be hypnotized by the amount of water. It is almost like a crowd trying to get out of a crowded theater that is on fire.

It falls into the pool below and splashes halfway back up just from the force. Down there it bubbles and churns constantly.

There is an observation area behind the falls down there. We were not able to see it because they were working on it while we were there.

We did take a ride on The Maid Of The Mist boat. They provide each passenger with yellow rain slickers and hats to protect clothing. Then they take you right up next to where all that water lands after it falls from above. You are in the midst of the thickest mist ever.

After the ride you have to climb a steep set of steps to get back up where you belong.

In the near distance you can see the Horseshoe Falls. They are part of the Niagara Falls complex. We never did get down to see them because we were busy with meetings and workshops.

So during that trip we saw few of the sights. For myself I was happy to just stare at all that water roiling over the edge and down into the pool below.

All the way home my youngest brother and I drove Daddy crazy by making weird noises. Until he coould take it no more and yelled at us anyway. It was kind of fun being a kid again.

My mother and I stopped in Niagara Falls again many years later when we were on vacation together. It has changed so much.

There is a little strip mall type of place on the street we crossed to get to Niagara Falls. Most of the shops were closed while we were there. We did not go on Maid Of The Mist because Mom was not crazy about the water. But I did stand and watch that immense amount of water charge over the edge to the pool below.

15 comments:

  1. We were there once while my oldest son was in graduate school in Rochester. That “pool” is more properly called a gorge. Did you know it has been moving backwards (that is, upstream) for thousands of years as the water erodes the shelf? Or so they told me.

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    1. I did know that. The amount of water that goes tumbling over is mind-boggling.

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  2. I enjoyed visiting Niagara Falls.

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  3. Good memories, it made me think of my dad. His quirk was we always road in cars held together by his will. When my dad passed, every car he owned failed to run.

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  4. So interesting to read about the no-toilet-break rule. :-) I bet there were a few crossed legs along the way. :-)

    Greetings from London.

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    1. When we were little he would grudgingly stop and let us run into the bushes. He only wanted to get to where he was going. Then he wanted to be back home.

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  5. Niagrafall are on the top of my list of places where I want to visit dear Emma!

    My younger sister had visted there while she lived in Washington for many years

    Sorry that due to have official work you missed some fun but glad that you shared your boat in mist experience which is so thrilling!
    I agree that as time passes places do change and loose their older beauty

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    1. I hope you are able to see the falls someday. You would appreciate the beauty.

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  6. Our fathers were much the same it seems. Dad always drove, he never stopped on a journey except in an emergency, and he could drive all day and never get tired. Leaving the UK driving on the left and in Europe on the right. We just kept going until we reached our destination! Hope all is wel Diane

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    1. One year my parents drove several hundred miles to be with my children and me for Christmas. Immediately when Daddy got home from work they left and drove several hundred miles. We opened gifts and ate breakfast and later Christmas dinner. We were all enjoying ourselves. As evening approached Daddy turned to Mom and asked her if she was ready to go. He wanted to go home! He liked to sleep in his own bed. Mom insisted they stay all week and he eventually relaxed and enjoyed himself.

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  7. We visited Niagara Falls for the first time when we were living in VA and it took us quite a trip to get there as we had to drive 3 hours to take a train to NYC and then change to another train and do it all again on our return. But, we had a wonderful week there and the falls were awesome. We did take the Maid of the Mist boat ride and also walked across to see the falls from the Canadian side...besides I wanted to get my new passport stamped

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    1. We stayed on the Canadian side. Either side is something everyone should see.

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  8. My dad was about the same way when driving. We did a lot of road trips when we were little as Dad was in the Navy, and we moved around. My brother and I played games like counting a certain type of car. I enjoyed this post!

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    1. I will bet you also collected different states on the license plates. I spy was another favorite.

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