Seeing both sides of the Niagara Falls

Canada has always been a destination that I wanted to explore and after spending as much time as I have on the US east coast, I don’t know why I haven’t just made the trip before. The opportunity presented itself, not just because I wanted to travel here but out of necessity. Living in the US, I had a visa that allowed me a six-month stay which was coming to an end and I intended to extend my visa by going to Canada and back, as suggested by friends.

Bags packed, car fuelled up and ready go, my father, grand mother (who wanted to tag along for the road trip) and I got in the car, reached the interstate, switched on the cruise control and just leaned back for the ride. The trip from Bergen county NJ took about 7 hours to the Canadian border and in that time we made two small stops for snacks and refuelling.

Upon reaching the border, instead of crossing immediately, we decided to first catch a glimpse of the falls from the US side. After parking our car, we walked along the stream all the way down to the falls. Whilst a pleasant sight, it fell well short of what I was expecting but then again, I wasn’t able to see the large falls from where we were standing. So, we returned to the car and headed towards the border to cross into Canada.

Entry into Canada was very easy and smooth, not quite the experience I usually have when entering the US and we were quickly allowed entry and drove into Canada. Once across, we initially got turned around and slightly lost however managed to find our way and found a decent parking spot along the promenade. 

After exiting the vehicle, we walked to the viewpoint and got a much better view of the US falls, however to be honest, I wasn’t at all interested in these falls as I saw bigger and more impressive falls no to far away and started heading in that direction.

Shortly after we noticed the breathtaking “horseshoe” falls and as we got closer, the noise from the falls grew louder and louder. I eventually found myself at the start of the falls, right where the water begins its descent and where the water appeared to be really shallow and it’s hard to believe that over 2 tons of water falls every second. It’s a mesmerising sight and standing so close to the falls makes it almost easy to believe how some people would just voluntarily just jump into the water.  

After a while we decided to move on, it was now time to get some real food. We cruised the area for a while trying to find an authentic restaurant to eat at. Eventually we spotted a place that looked really nice and cozy however not really authentic since it was German but you can’t always get what you want. Odd though, coming all the way from Europe to eat at a German place. The place was really lovely though and the food was great.

Satisfied and happy we made our way out of the city and onto the road to Toronto.

The Niagara Falls are an amazing sight and it’s an amazing feeling to be standing at the very edge of it and just look down the fall. However, It has to be experienced from the Canadian side as it offers a superior view. If someone tells you that the falls are great from the US side as well, don’t believe them as they may just be jealous Americans. 

Other than the falls however, the city itself is heavily commercialised and not worth a longer stay. Visit the falls, spend a few hours, grab a meal and then hop back into your car and drive the extra hour that it takes to get to Toronto.