World Canada Ontario Niagara Falls

Wilbur Family Summer 2012

Niagara Falls, Ontario Aug 3, 2012

We're celebrating Valerie’s birthday, and Savannah's 9th birthday early, in Niagara Falls, Ontario. It's a destination unlike any other we've seen on the trip. From the top of Skylon Tower (775' up) to the base of Horseshoe Falls (188' down), Niagara Falls is awe-inspiring. First things first…we all needed good showers! The last couple campsites had not been the best. Meanwhile, Savannah has many things picked out to do today; we might need to trim the list!! I know going to the Hersey factory is a top one. She also wants to make a wax mold of her hands. Before that we started with donuts for the birthday girl's breakfast party. Then off to the sights and sounds of Niagara Falls. First job, after breakfast, is to find a place to park the RV. The campground said there was a shuttle to town, but they left out the fact that it costs $10.00 per adult. Erik found a place not too far off for $5.00 to park. Savannah was making the plan for the day. First stop was of course short stops at gift shops as we walked. Then Family Fun House was the first stop. They took Gavin in with her, Lee and Chandler. Next they went to Family Play House. They had four more options to choose from with their ticket, but choose the play house again. I went to a gift shop and waited for us all to meet up. She had wanted Italian, but we were right at Hard Rock at lunch time, so we all met up and went there for her lunch. Eighteen dollars is a stretch for a burger and fries, and I was crazy and substituted onion rings, not asking if there was a charge. Of course there was an extra charge!! Anyway it was fun and they came out and sang to her. They brought a sundae with sparklers in it. That was special. We were then ready to take on the city again. Have I mentioned you need deep pockets to visit this city? There are activities for the kids and family everywhere, and each one is pricey. Next on our agenda was stopping at the coke store. I was expecting it to be like in Atlanta where you go around and get samples from around the world. This was cute as it looked like an old fashioned soda fountain shop. Samples were about 2 ozs for $1.00 per sample. I skipped that. Right through the door was the Hershey shop...a chocolate lover’s heaven! A delightful feast for the senses, the Hershey Store in Niagara Falls is 650 square meters of chocolate fun! As you entered there was a counter filled with huge cookies, cheesecake, brownies, chocolate covered strawberries, and numerous fudges. Then you went to ice cream toppings, Reese’s pieces, and everything you might want that Hershey makes. There were stuffed animals and shirts. Heather had told Savannah about this giant peanut butter cup. Well, we settled for a one pound peanut butter cup. Still pretty big!! We sat down at the coke fountain while Heather and Erik had their treats and I had coke from a bottle. After getting our chocolate fix we moved on to Bird Kingdom. It was only a few blocks away. It was fantastic. We arrived just as they were feeding the fruit bats. They were so active. Usually bats are just hanging around. The kids picked up scavenger hunt sheets as we entered. They had to check off different animals or hunt to see how many of this or that. There was also a small bird aviary with so many beautiful small birds. The kids found 16 different kinds. There was an enclosure with hissing cockroaches. There was a dozen…I didn't like that one. There were some reptiles and spiders, etc. Next was the large bird exhibit. It was like a Maya jungle. We saw a scarlet ibis among other lovely birds. After that we met up with Heather and Erik. They had just spent their time sitting by the falls. We walked through the lovely gardens to the falls. Niagara Falls never loses their appeal. It was roaring and spraying. Once we got there we spent a REALLY hot day at the falls!! We broke it up with a refreshing swim at the Scott's campground and then back downtown to watch an amazing fireworks display over the falls. The nightly illumination means you can enjoy them anywhere you have a Falls view. Happy Birthday Valerie and Savannah! Now it's definitely time to call it a day.

Advertisement