Oh Canada!

The best part about being home for just over five months now is that some of my favorite Peace Corps friends are coming home now too! The crew that started six months after us are home! I took my first, and much needed, vacation after a crazy summer in mid-august when I went to Western NY State to visit my good friend Ros. She had a joint birthday/homecoming party and I was stoked to be invited without having to wear a costume (Remember last year's R themed costume party??).

I flew in on a Friday night, and Ros was sweet enough to pick me up at the airport. In a bit of a travel nerd aside, I was able to add a new airport to my list: Buffalo! I can't remember the last time I flew into a new airport. It's probably been 3+ years! We spent Saturday celebrating everything that was Ros, and spent Sunday recovering from Saturday. Let's just say that Mrs. Marohn makes really good coffee.

(I'm the one that didn't go to college with any of the others.)

Everyone else had to go back to work, but I took some vacation days to play tourist. On Monday Ros was a great driver/tour guide, and took me up to an adorable little town in Canada called Niagara on the Lake. I for some reason didn't take any pictures. The town is nicknamed The Loveliest Town in Canada (glad I didn't drive too far to see that and hope the rest of Canada isn't that underwhelming) and famous for being a stop on the Underground Railroad as well as home to the annual Shaw Festival. The region surrounding Niagara on the Lake is known as wine country, and was covered by HUGE vineyards. I wish we would have had more time and money to stop and enjoy that aspect. The whole area reminded me of Door County, Wisconsin, and Niagara on the Lake felt like Egg Harbor. Only, it was in Canada.

So - to get there we obviously had to cross the border. We drove, and it wasn't too much of a pain. They actually asked us more questions leaving the US than they did when we came back. This also marks the third time I've entered a new country on foot. It also means I'm 3 for 3 on entering a country on foot and not getting a stamp in my passport. That seems sort of sketchy, but oh well.

On Tuesday we got up and drove to Niagara Falls. Special shout out to Ros for giving me the tourist experience, even though I'm sure she's done this a million times with visitors. We checked out the falls park area a bit, and like troopers, we got tickets to go on the Maid of the Mist, the boat that takes you right up to the falls. Below are pictures from the observation deck above the falls, and from the ride on the Maid of the Mist. It was a pretty cool experience. Water is a very powerful element!

(A view of the huge observation tower off to the side of the falls, from the Maid of the Mist.)

(Ros and I rocking the ponchos on the boat.)

(Coming into the small part of the falls, some serious mist and water falling.)

(Everyone else on the boat about to get all wet.)

(A view of the Canadian part of the falls, the Horseshoe Falls. Look how tiny the Maid of the Mist boats look going into the falls!)

(The American Side of the falls - smaller, shorter and more violent!)