Mile 1755: O Canada – Part 1
Thursday and Friday proved to be rather lazy days where I spent time catching up on Internet-related issues and doing laundry. Yay clean clothes. Thursday night Jared and I went for dinner in the hip and trendy suburb of Royal Oak because…well frankly, we consider ourselves to be hip and trendy. Since I decided to stay Friday night to go to the Tigers’ game it was mildly disappointing to find the game sold out except for “standing room only” tickets. They were cheap though so off we went to Comerica Park in downtown Detroit where, yet again, I did not get shot.
Standing room only was actually a pretty good time…you meet lots of people also standing around and if you were lucky, as we were, to be able to lean up against a barrier most of the time you barely notice you’re not seated. Of course, the Tigers got their asses kicked by Kansas City which I will take full responsibility for…I’m an unlucky jinx.
Though Jared was nice enough to let me derail his life for three days, I thought I had best get going on Saturday morning. Canada was calling and Jared had a triathlon to run (which he won it seems) but before I left town I popped into the Detroit Science Center. A while back I heard about an exhibit that was traveling the country where donated human bodies were preserved in various forms to display the inner functions of the human body. Sara and Michelle told me that the exhibit was currently in Detroit so I had to stop in and check it out. All I can say is “wow!” Very, very cool. I especially found the fetuses at various stages of development to be very interesting. The prenatal display is, of course, rather controversial and roped off into a separate section for those who can’t deal though I found it to be one of the more interesting parts of the exhibit. And to all the moms out there…I don’t know how you do it. All the baby growing “stuff” is really tiny so it’s a little mind-blowing to imagine how it all grows human beings. Anyway, “Our Body: The Universe Within” will be in Detroit through Labor Day weekend so check it out if you’re in the area.
Considering that the only other border crossing I’ve made in a car was from San Diego to Tijuana, I can assure you that the crossing from the U.S. into Canada is an entirely different and generally more positive experience. I found it especially funny that the first thing I see upon entry into Canada is a Tim Horton’s (for those not familiar…Tim Horton’s is the Starbucks of Canada…one on every corner…sometimes more than one). As much as people love to degrade corporations like Starbucks and TH’s that are taking over the world…I’ll always have a place in my heart for TH’s as they do lots of great stuff for kids with their Tim Horton’s Children’s Foundation and are big supporters of a cause near and dear to my heart…Camp To Belong. Enough with the shameless plug…
Despite the usual out-of-America experiences (how many liters of gas fit in the Civvy? How fast is 100 km/hour?) driving in Canada proved to be blissfully uneventful. I had originally selected Niagara Falls as a stopping point between Detroit and the later goals for this week of New England and Montreal but I did not anticipate the mayhem that is NF. Oh my god. Saturday night in the middle of July proved to be about the worst time to go and hotel rates were running in the $300 plus per night range which is clearly insane. I had planned to stick around the next morning to at least do the much ballyhooed Maids of the Mist boat trip but after taking a few uninspired pictures (see below) and driving along the park road to get a view of the Falls, I ultimately decided that the best thing to do in Niagara Falls is to get the hell out so that’s what I did. Instead I ended up spending the night in beautiful and scenic…wait for it…Buffalo, New York. By the airport no less.
I am currently en route to Vermont on the New York Thruway typing to you from the free Wi-Fi in the service plaza. As lovely as the Thruway is, I think I’m going to pop off of it in a 100 miles or so and do a scenic drive through the Adirondack Mountains in NY. I will, of course, be taking lots of photos so stay-tuned for that. Before I go…a few thoughts on the trip heretofore:
4 Assessments from the First Week of the Extravaganza
Assessment #1: Michigan appears to have lots of prisoners. I saw many signs all over the state that read “Prison area. Don’t Pick up Hitchhikers.”
Assessment #2: Detroit gets a bad rap. Sure, the Motor City has its problems like any city but there’s lots of worse places to be. Cruise around with a local and you’ll be surprised.
Assessment #3: Comerica Park is nice though I can’t say it’s my favorite MLB ballpark…that honor continues to go to Camden Yard in Baltimore (sorry Miller Park fans).
Assessment #4: Niagara Falls claims to be the world’s honeymoon capital. If my FH (future husband) ever suggested a honeymoon in NF I would seriously reconsider the wedding. The Falls are impressive though…I just can’t recommend a Saturday in July.
Tags: 2 - MN/MI/Niagara Falls, detroit, Niagara Falls, Ontario
Stacey
July 23rd, 2007 at 9:39 am
I’ve heard that the falls are lovely but not something to spend too much time at, a bit of a tourist trap. I am looking forward to the pictures from the Adirondaks….
a
April 5th, 2008 at 10:53 am
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