Our Trip to the Falls

Hello all! I apologize for the delay, but I was swamped with work yesterday and wasn't able to post. But here I am now, so never fear! Our Victoria Day weekend was pretty slow as Devoted Husband was fighting a cold and the weather was overcast and gloomy. Not the best holiday weekend ever, that's for sure. The biggest bummer is that the weather has been beautiful since yesterday. Figures. Anyway, we decided to go to Niagara Falls on Monday and step on real U.S. soil for the first time in three months. The drive wasn't too bad. It only took us about an hour and a half to get there. We didn't have any trouble crossing the border and we were on our way. The first quest to find a place for lunch, but every place that we saw was closed or boarded up. We had a running joke that every restaurant in town had a sign in front that said, "Thanks for the Memories." I was so excited when we saw The Ground Round, a chain that I used to love as a child, but sure enough it was no longer in business. Rats! So, we wound up at the Ponderosa which is similar to the Sizzler restaurants. After lunch we headed over to Target. There are no Targets in Canada and when I lived in Southern California I would go to Target at least once a week, and more often than that as a rule. So, I was suffering from severe Target withdrawal. DH and I got a little misty-eyed as we pulled into the parking lot. It was all so very moving. Sniff. We actually didn't get much more than some household items, but that wasn't the point. The point was that we were back at Target and life was good. Once Target was out of the way, we finally headed toward the actual Falls. To say that this particular day was the off-season was quite the understatement. We parked in a lot that was completely dead. Guess why? Well, the parking lot was attached to was a defunct shopping mall. I sense a bit of an economic downturn in Niagara Falls, NY. We walked closer to the Falls and I would have pictures to show you, but DH didn't send them to me, so I will add them when I get home tonight. We didn't spend that much time at the Falls, but that's fine because I anticipate coming back for repeat visits. The Falls are very impressive. There is so much water, going so fast that I can't imagine surviving if you got caught in the current and pulled to the rocks below. We also saw the boat the Maid of the Mist but it was far too chilly to take that trip so close to the Falls. Plus, I don't think Baby Boy was up to it. But, as I said, I think we'll be back certainly before the end of the summer. We'll have to see the Canadian side of the Falls the next trip. So, BB was starting to get fussy and we packed up and went home. We made a controversial stop at a restaurant called Tucker's Marketplace. As you can see the sign resembles the sign for Macaroni Grill, a favorite of ours. But, it turned out to be just a buffet. And weirdly enough, at no point did they actually tell us how much the buffet cost. I only found out the cost because I overheard the restaurant manager talking to someone. It wasn't so much that we couldn't afford it, but still. Very weird. I know it sounds like a pretty mild trip, but it'll be seem so much more exciting when I get our pictures up. Trust me. Or not. A CANADIAN FACT! Niagara Falls has over 12 million annual visitors.