Jan 2007

Today was a very busy day for us as we went to Niagara Falls! We made the hour long local bus trip to the American side of the falls and upon arrival we went up to the viewing tower to view the America Falls and part of Niagara Falls. It was absolutely spectacular although slightly different to what we expected as the falls seperate the two cities of Niagara - one American, the other Candadian so either side of the falls is crowded with buildings all offering amazing views.

After catching the Shuttle bus to the Island where we were able to go down to the observation deck of the America Falls. NOrmally the decks are quite close to the falls but being winter they remove some of the decks because of the weather but we still managed to get wet in the spray which was really what the experience was about and we were both relieved we didn't have to wear the little bright yellow ponchos that is norma during the summertime.

After visiting the Falls we ventured over to the American viewing platform of Niagara Falls. The view was amazing and you got a real sense of how powerful the falls really are. The falls had a massive mist rising from the centre of the river below so we were not able to see a complete view of the horseshoe shape but we definately got the idea!

We then walked across the Canada bridge to the Canadian side of the falls an the view of the falls was absolutely spectacular. After going through customs we saw the view of the America Falls from the Canada side and honestly the view is so much better from the Canadian side. You view the falls directly face on whereas on the American side you look back on the falls so it is harder to view them in their entirity. As it was getting dark we decided against walking up to the Niagara viewing platform mostl because the mist was incedable and bloced out most of the falls making it hard to see the Horsehoe shape. We decided instead toget some dinner and then comeback to see the falls at night.

The view in the evening was amazing and we were both so glad that we saw the falls at night. The horsehoe falls were a little har to see - again due to the mist - but the America Falls were breathtaking. Unfortuently as it was so dark our photo didn't turn out as we had hoped but the experience was unforgettable.

After crossing back over the bridge to the American side we vetured back to Buffalo for some much earned sleep!

This morning was an eary morning as we caught a shuttle to the airport at 6.30am. After having a few problems checking out of the hostel we managed to arrive safely at the airport where we then boarded our flight to Buffalo and arrived in the town just on dusk. The hostel was really friendly and were so helpful and full of information, but being a sunday in down town Buffalo we were a little light on entertainment so the helpful staff suggested joining the Library for $1 and enjoying free unlimited internet. Downtown Buffalo is more of a Financial District so on weekends it is dead quiet and that is not an exaggration. We probably saw maybe 3 or 4 other people on our way to the Library. The main street is closed to traffic as there is a tram that runs along the street so there really isnt any need for people to be in the streets on a sunday afternoon. We spent the remainer of the afternoon in the Library.

As we wandered back down the empty streets towards our hostel we stopped at TGI Fridays for dinner and tested out the local delicacy - Buffalo Wings. They were a little different to what we expected but we managed to clean of our plates before heading back to the hostel for an early night as we prepared for tomorrow - Niagara Falls!

Today was a rather slow morning as we wound up our time in Chicago. We spent the day visiting the Lincoln Park area which we discovered was close to our hostel. It was a lovely area full of shops and restraunts and we found a wonderful internet cafe with full faciltites where we were able to catch up on the website and keep informed of our travels.

We ended the day having dinner in a typical American style diner where we enjoyed good old American burgers before heading back to our hostel for bed and the glorious task of packing!