Water, Water . . .

I made the trek to Niagara Falls today. It seemed pretty hard to get near the falls on the American side what with the casino and everything, so I decided to take the Canadian route. They charge you to go over but not to get back. Going through customs took a while. It used to be easy. You'd drive up to the booth: "Where you born?" "Buffalo." "Anything to declare?" "No." "Have a good day." Of course, there would usually be a couple of cases of Molson's under the dirty laundry in the back seat. When I was a kid, I'd be sitting on it. I did have my passport. They wanted to know where I lived, why I was going to Canada, did I have any firearms, how long would I be staying? It was just the wait that was long. The Canadian side, though cleaner, is just as commercial now as the US side. Parking was easier to find though it was $20. They had all kinds of tours and exhibits. I just wanted to see the falls. It hasn't lost its power to mesmerize. At least I didn't feel compelled to jump in though I did fantasize about tossing a couple of tourists over the edge.



Right above the falls. The rush is amazing.




The Horseshoe Falls from Niagara Falls, Canada. It's always an awe-inspiring sight. The mist is always there. The small ships that take tourists right up to the falls basin is called "The Maid of the Mist."

I had a delicious frozen yoghurt made with real strawberries and blackberries blended together with a block of frozen vanilla yoghurt. Boy, was that good. Getting back to the US wasn't too hard. Of course, the US cops had to act like bad guys unlike the Canadian police. When I said I was from Hollywood, FL, he got out to check my license plate. I guess he hasn't heard of rental cars. They got a laugh over my plate. Oh well.

I took one more quick trip to the cemetery. On to Chicago tomorrow.