Last days in Cananda

Ziggy, my travel companion through Quebec, and I caught the train back to the south of the Quebec province to Montreal. I wanted to spend 2 more nights in Montreal before heading onto Niagara Falls in the south of Ontario. We parted in Montreal where she headed onto Ottawa, one of only a few major cities I didn't get around to seeing on my Canadian journey.

In Montreal I checked back into the hostel I stayed in the first time around and as it happened even got the same room. My hoody which I'd left there two weeks earlier was still hanging in the room.

But Montreal itself had changed in the two weeks I was gone. It was now much more colourful. The Maples now had fresh spring green leaves, and flowers everywhere were flowering. Many streets were lined with various tulips. It made the city look really pretty.

I spent the night in as it was washing night again. Washing isn't too bad a chore when you can have a beer at the hostel bar while your clothes tumble around the machines next door. At the bar I bumped into Emma, a Swedish girl I had a beer with back in Quebec. The backpacker trail seems to yield a lot of the same paths.

The next day was my last day in Montreal so I wanted to do all the sights I didn't have time for during my first 5 day stay. So in the morning Emma and I checked out the Biodome (a rain forest, North American forest and antarctic habitat all in one building). It was pretty much just an indoor zoo but I enjoyed watching the beavers and otters under the water.

The rest of my day was spent walking around the city, including a hike through the parkland up to Mont Royal for some killer views of the city.

The weather in Montreal was now great. Sunny clear blue skies with 24 degree air. It was starting to feel like summer. Who said Canada was cold?

I finished off Montreal that night but yet another Montreal pub crawl, which ensured that on checkout morning the next day I was feeling very ill.

I didn't want to know about life. I had a few errands to run in the morning so I forced myself to do that, pack, and get on the train to Niagara Falls.

I passed out almost instantly upon boarding the train. I slept most of the way from Montreal to Toronto and then changed trains to Niagara Falls and again slept the entire way. I felt a bit guilty given that the intention of doing Canada by train was to see the scenery.

The train station in Niagara Falls is downtown, a few kilometers away from the touristy area. Seeing as I had slept all day I decided it was time to get some exercise so I lugged my backpack across the city by foot and got some fresh air. And the air was indeed fresh, and drizzly. Shame the Montreal weather didn't follow me.

As I walked through quiet back streets of the city, still far from my destination, I head a noticeable humming noise. It sounded like a factory perhaps. But as I kept walking I could still hear it and getting louder. Could I hear the falls, from over a kilometer away?

I could. As I got to the main drag in the touristy part of town near the falls, I could definitely hear them. I couldn't see a thing though, it was foggy and misty and drizzly. I could barely make out the bright lights of the casinos. I'd have to explore tomorrow instead.

When I found eventually found my hostel in the fog, I walked in to be greeted with “Hi, you must be Daniel.”

“Uhh... yeah. Am I the only person staying here or something?”

It was a small hostel but no, I wasn't the only one staying. The hosts just had a really personal touch. This hostel was unlike any place I've ever stayed. The owners were your friends, and you felt like you were in someone's house as a guest rather than lodging in a backpackers. It was great. I was welcomed immediately by Danish girls offering me some of their beers. I loved this place!

The beers helped cure my day-long hangover and I ended up going out on the town with some British boys.

The next day it was time to go check out the falls. The road to the falls was a ridiculous tourist mecca. The Clifton Hill strip is bright like Las Vegas and full of crappy attractions like Surfers Paradise. There are like seventeen wax museums and other tourist destination specialties like Ripley's Believe It Or Not and Guinness World Records museum. Each of these purported attractions have music blaring along with recorded voice messages telling you why you just have to go in. The whole experience is quite distasteful really.

But the street isn't long and before you hit the end, you see the Niagara Falls. Once at the waterfront of the gorge you can see the American Falls immediately opposite and the grand Horseshoe Falls to the side. The amount of water gushing over those cliffs is amazing. Us Aussies can only dream of seeing so much fresh water.

By night, the waterfalls were flood lit by colourful floodlights, making sure that you always had a good view of the falls. Also by night, many of the restaurants converted into bars. I went out to check out some of the spots with a group from the hostel and the nightlife was good for what is essentially a small place. Although a large proportion of the patrons seemed to be 19 year olds from across the American border who were underage to drink at home.

When I saw the Falls at first I thought, “nice, but I imagined them to be bigger”. Well the next day I experienced them the way they were meant to be experienced. I went on the Maid of the Mist, which is a boat that takes down the gorge right almost underneath the waterfalls. As we approached each of the Falls on the still sunny afternoon, the wind would suddenly pick up. The sheer pressure of all that water pouring down was enough to create a strong wind, blowing mist into my face. When we were under the larger Horseshoe Falls, surrounded by vertical walls of water, I just stood there on the boat letting the water be blown onto me, and it was an amazing feeling. I'd never experienced nature quite like this. The fresh water water smacking me in the face while all I could do was see white was one of the highlights of this trip. I just stood there until my eyes began to sting. As the boat backed off, I realised my head was completely drenched. Lucky they gave out ponchos to cover passengers' clothes.

I spent the rest of the afternoon sitting on one of the many hostel balconies just enjoying the sunshine. That night was Friday night so the Americans from over the border really started to roll in to town, as well as various Canadians coming down for a long weekend. Apparently it was a special weekend because it was the official start of the summer season, where camp grounds and tourist attractions would open their doors. That night, they had their first fireworks over the Falls. Lucky I was there to catch it on the last night. I went out that night with two Melburnians as there were 3 of us in the small hostel, one of them working there.

The next day I had a flight booked from Buffalo airport to Baltimore. Buffalo is a city in upstate New York not too far from Niagara Falls.

So I got up and walked across the Rainbow Bridge to the American side of Niagara Falls, checking out the American views of the falls on the way. The Canadians get the better perspective but at least the Americans haven't got a tourist mecca. Instead, they have a nice park surrounding the falls.

I didn't make it to the American side of town in time to catch the 2 buses I was meant to take to the Buffalo airport so I had to shell out for a $70 taxi. This was by far the most expensive per-mile journey I had made all trip, seeing as that was the same price of my flight that day.

Whilst waiting at Buffalo airport I found a small bar at which I ordered some Buffalo Wings – which was my one aim for Buffalo. The way salloon style eateries work in North America is that you get free softdrink refills...or "pop" as they call it here. So I just sat there drinking multiple refills of iced tea (they have lemon iced tea on tap everywhere) after I finished my wings. Best value airport meal ever -- not every day you spend only $15 at an airport for a meal, 4 iced teas and a coffee.