Sunday, October 3, 2010 (Niagara Falls, ON)

We woke to rain and wind this morning...not exactly the kind of day that you want to be outside. But that is exactly what our plan for today is...take the shuttle into Niagara Falls and wander around taking in more of the sights.
Just before 10:30 we headed out with our umbrellas and walked to the campground office to pay for one more night and purchase our shuttle tickets. It was pouring out...yuck. After getting our tickets and checking the bus schedule, we learned that we had just missed the bus and the next one wasn’t for another hour...sheesh! Nothing else to do but go back to the trailer for a half hour or so.

Well, I guess waiting that hour for the bus was a good thing because when we headed out again at 11:15, it had stopped raining. We still had our umbrellas but we didn`t use them at all for the rest of the day.

Our first stop was the IMAX Theatre and the Dare Devil Museum. After purchasing the “couples combo” which included 2 medium pop and a large bag of popcorn, we headed in to watch the movie...called “The Falls”. It was basically a brief history of Niagara Falls touching on a few highlights...from an Indian legend to the war of 1812—not much was portrayed here...guess they didn’t want to insult our neighbours to the south by rubbing it in that we whipped their butts—to the 62 year old female school teacher who was the first to go over the Falls in a wooden barrel with her cat...to a man out in his small boat with his two kids and the motor stops. He is unable to get it going again so the boat gets caught in the current of the river and flips in the rapids. The young girl is pulled to shore just at the brink of the Falls but the man and young son go over the Falls along with the boat. The boy is later spotted by a tour boat at the bottom of the Falls...he had survived.

After the movie, we went into the Dare Devil Museum. It was a history of all of the people who had attempted...some successful, others not...to go over the Falls. All of the various contraptions used were on display.

Once finished at the IMAX theatre and Museum, we headed outside to find Clifton Hill. We took a rather long route but we eventually found it. Clifton Hill is a street that is literally like being at a carnival!

The street is lined with flashing neon signs advertising all sorts of things...from haunted houses to mirror mazes to a huge games arcade. There is a huge Ferris wheel called The Skywheel...it has enclosed gondolas instead of the open-air chairs. We decided to try it out and after a few tense moments as it first started to go up (I’m not very good with heights), I settled down and enjoyed the view. And what a view it was! We did about 4 or 5 rotations before they stopped it and we had to get off.

We continued up Clifton Hill and around back to where we had started...which happened to be by the Marguaritaville Bar and Restaurant. We went in and shared a sandwich and had a beer. When ordering, the waitress asked if we wanted the 20 oz glass and we said sure...what we didn’t realize was that the 20 oz glass included the glass (a $7.95 value) so when the bill came, it was over $40! The waitress was of no help when we told her we did not want the glass...she insisted that there was nothing she could do about it...that is the way it comes. So...the wraith of Dianne was ignited! I asked to speak to the manager. She was very nice and had no problem deducting the glasses...that reduced the bill to $27...still pretty expensive for one sandwich and 2 beer but a lot better than $40!!

By this point, it was after 3:30 and according to the bus schedule, the next one wasn’t until 4:30 so we decided to start walking. Just as we are stopped waiting for the crosswalk, our bus comes along...we tried to get his attention but he was watching the traffic as he turned left. We watched him stop a few blocks up...hmmmm...how long is he going to stay there....can we make it if we run? So, we thought we would go for it. Now, I know I have not been keeping up with my walking and it was very evident because I became winded very fast. Part of the problem also was that I had on my Skecher Shape-up walking shoes and they are not good for running...not an excuse...just part of the problem. Anyway, Steve kept running and made it. I finally caught up...yay...we did it! Then the bus drivers says that we had plenty of time...he was stopped there for another 5 minutes...sheesh!

Well, we had had 2 full busy days at Niagara Falls...it was time to leave tomorrow. We wanted to get down to Gilbert, West Virgina early for the Hadfield-McCoy TrailFest!