Niagara Falls and Montreal Vacation 2015

I have to thank my good friends Peggy and Steve for a wonderful summer road trip to Canada. So from our homes in South Jersey we traveled through scenic New York on our way to Niagara Falls. First we stopped and viewed the falls from the American side and then we went onto the Canada side. We were thrilled to be at the park there where you could experience the power in both sight and sound. It was overwhelming to the senses. Our room on the Canada side had a view that was the best that I have ever experienced in my life. The awesome scene was ever changing. My mind filled with questions of ways of measuring what I have seen. How fast is the water moving? How much water is going over the edges? How did all this begin? Was it a sudden shift in land that started this or was it a gradual evolution? I still have to search for some of the answers to these questions. I have had some exciting hotel room views: busy cities, dreamy views of the Caribbean with palm trees, and panoramic views of the Atlantic Ocean but none could compare to this natural wonder--- just an unforgettable view.

 

What more could I want in a resort:  a natural wonder, high end shops in the attached mall, wonderful buffets, and a theater with top attractions. There were stained glass ceilings, magnificent domes, large sculptures and perfectly landscaped gardens.   I have photos of the falls from the room but I wanted a type of selfie with part of the room, the window and our view of the falls but I failed to capture that dramatic photo. So I want you to know that the room view was equal to being outside along the walkway.

These photos are a mix of the Falls----some from the American side and the park there and others from the Canadian side and some from our hotel room.

We stayed at the Fallsview Casino Resort Hotel that is connected to the Hilton Hotels. I can not imagine a nicer hotel in a fantastic resort. The impressive domed entrance featured a a unique sculpture fountain. This dome was illuminated and changed colors at night. Here it is in its red phase:

The Fallsview Resort's main entrance had a fountain under the dome. It is called the Hydro-Teslatron named after the inventor Nikola Tesla. It features a water and light show after dark. It took almost two years to build it.

Me with my Canon camera that I used:

 

When you are visiting Niagara Falls all other attractions pale but we did visit a bird sanctuary of sorts and the place has seen better days but I enjoyed it and I met this man with a cowboy hat.

 

 

So find my hotel below----the Fallsview Casino hotel----I will edit this blog when I can be absolutely positive that I was not staying at the Hilton Hotel there.  When you are in the room you feel like you are so close to the shoreline but in any case you can see that the Fallsview Casino tower is between the two parts of the falls---in my opinion the best location. 

 

 

Note the rainbow that could be seen from our hotel room:

 

 

After our three day stay at Niagara Falls we had a lengthy road trip to Montreal.  We stayed in the old city at a smaller Marriott Hotel called the Spring Hill. The hotel was tucked into an alley and even with all the modern navigation aids (two GPS devices, an app on the phone, and a map) we had a difficult time finding the place.  My friends have relatives that live in the city and we visited their home and they treated us to a wonderful meal at one of their local restaurants.  We enjoyed getting a unique perspective of the city from a native born French Canadian.  He found his beautiful wife long ago at the Jersey shore.  We got to meet two special pets-----a papillon dog and a Scottish cat.  They also showed us the way to a casino that had a top-notch live band that was not tucked away in some private club as they do in Atlantic City but it was out in the open with patrons dancing the night away.  I would imagine a visit there in winter would transport your mind to envision you were visiting some Caribbean Island.  Our hotel was blocks away from the Notre-Dame Basilica, the quaint shops and the street performers and the little craft kiosks. Food was expensive so I appreciated the McDonald's that was a block away and if I got lost I could always ask where is McDonald's.  Some have said that the French Canadians are not friendly.  I did not find that to be the case.  I talked to a few shop owners.  Many were immigrants but some were authentic French Canadian.  I felt a bond with those people because my father-in-law who died when my husband was an infant was French Canadian from Montreal.  I enjoyed sharing my story with one shop keeper who had the time to chat.

 

 

 

 

         After our dinner we shared dessert:    

 

   The magnificent Montreal casino complex:

 

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Here is a movie crew in the streets of the old city:

Notre-Dame Basilica has drawn visitors since 1829 with its Gothic style, sky-blue interior and exquisite details.  It has a ten ton bell is only rung on special occasions and can be heard across the city.  The stained-glass windows in the Notre Dame Montreal depict the history of Ville-Marie (Montreal) and were imported from France.  Also impressive are the wood carvings of the prophets. Tours of the church of Notre-Dame in Montreal run daily from 9am-4pm, though you can also go in on your own from 8am until 5pm. There are other cathedrals in the city but I am told that if you have to pick only one to visit it would be this one.  So we were lucky to include this one to visit. I hate to use this over-used word but the church was awesome.

The confessional:

We had taken a narrated bus tour but we did not learn too much from that tour. But we did a drive-by the St. Joseph Oratory.  The oratory was founded by Brother Andre of the Congregation of the Holy Cross in 1904. He got the inspiration from St. Joseph, the patron saint of Canada. Followers of Andre deem him to have been an incredibly confident and daring man, who made an impossible dream come true. Today, the oratory is open all year round in line with Catholic traditions.

The Basilica’s octagonal copper dome is one of the biggest in the world.  The 300 hundred steps are climbed by 2 million visitors every year and the basilica can seat 3,000 people. The oratory accepts all kinds of visitors, not just Catholics.  As you ride away from the city you can catch glimpses of the dome.

A glimpse on a cloudy late afternoon leaving the old city:

Took a walk into the entrance of the subway system:

So we left Montreal after three days and headed for the border of the United States and then traveled south through New York stopping briefly at Thousand Islands.  Later we traveled down through the Adirondacks.  I remember going to Canada was easy at the customs to enter Canada but the return took us almost an hour in line to go back to the States.  My friends had passports but I had a passport card that is only good for the Caribbean and for Canada.

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