The Falls

We have developed two habits on this trip. The biggest one is stopping at coffee shops. Oh what fun places and a chance to talk with the locals. Today we are in Utica, New York at Character Coffee. Don’t know what I expected but it was more stylish than I thought. I asked the barista why the name. She said, “I don’t know for sure but we do get a lot of characters in here.” 

Not far from the coffee shop we noticed a mural apparently in the process of being painted. Again the knowledgeable barista pointed out an artist rendering on the wall behind me of what the finished mural will look like. Cool!

We are on the “downhill” side of this trip so it’s time to come full-circle. We toured the Civil Rights Museum in Memphis and historical spots in Birmingham. One important person in history is Harriet Tubman. There is a house in Auburn, New York that serves as a national parks service museum to Ms. Tubman. Short on time, we didn’t tour the museum but we did drive by. Beautiful area. 

 

Our focus today was The Falls, or Niagara Falls. What struck me was the plumes of mist rising from the falls, visible long before arriving. Then the first physical sight was the tower in Toronto. Oh Canada! The sound of the water is thunderous. The mist is everywhere. The cruise boat far below filled with red raincoat-clad passengers looked like the tiniest bathtub toy. It is the gigantic scale that pictures cannot fully convey. 

What tickled me the most was a young boy, maybe eight-or-nine, impressed more by the birds in the lawn. Running near them and getting them to fly, then spinning around with his arms extended as if he was the master of the birds’ actions. He was truly living in the moment. 

At the beginning I mentioned two habits we are forming. The first: daily coffee stop. The second: daily hike. We hiked a bit of the Goat Island Scenic Trail but didn’t last long. Admittedly, all that water had us, and others, searching for restrooms. Unfortunately, one day a week they are closed and, yup, it was the day. So Papa and I left to find a Dunkin’ shop and coffee/restrooms. Did you know Dunkin’ is headquartered in Boston? Dunkin’ is prolific in the northeast!!