I left Lewiston on Tuesday with a day to fill before returning to Syracuse. Susan recommended visiting a town across the border called Niagara-on-the-Lake. Boy, am I glad I did! What a find!
I crossed into Canada again - this time at Lewiston-Queenston crossing, just minutes from the Hittles' house. I was through customs in no time, and found myself on a peaceful drive along the Niagara River. The road was lined with biking paths being put to good use. Indeed, I found a bike rental store in town - apparently quite popular!
On the other side of the road were vineyards, one after another, many offering ice wine - a dessert wine made from grapes that have frozen on the vine. A few practiced something I'd noticed at vineyards in Italy: a rose bush was planted at the end of each row. Disease/infestation shows up in the roses first, so there's time to try to save the grapes. I've often wondered why I haven't seen this done in Oregon vineyards...
Here and there, in between the vineyards, were orchards, many with fruit stands offering fresh peaches and cherries. Trees laden with soon-to-be ripe pears appeared alongside the fruit for sale. Guess I know what they'll be selling next!
All of a sudden I found myself in the town where the Niagara River meets Lake Ontario - Niagara-on-the-Lake.
What a lovely town! Everywhere I looked there were beautiful plantings - flowers were everywhere! In beds, hanging in baskets, planted in window boxes, in medians... Even the morning glory doing its own thing on a fence looked just right.
Second only to the flowers were charming Victorian homes, some still serving as residences, others converted to galleries or other shops.
Visitors took horse-drawn carriage tours past the clock tower at the center of town...
... and were in and out of shops, galleries, and restaurants, all up and down Queen Street. The place was bustling with people. I loved the play on words in some of the shop's names.
I ate lunch at Zee's, where, seated on the veranda, I enjoyed a salad with smoked salmon, herbed goat cheese, beets, and pistachios with a light lemon vinaigrette - yum!
My biggest surprise, though, was the discovery of the Shaw Festival, apparently one of the leading theatre companies in North America. They perform works of George Bernard Shaw and other playwrights of his era in four theaters in town, and performances were ongoing during my visit. Wish I'd known; I could have seen a play or two and stayed the night. This is definitely on my To Do list for the future. It would make a great anniversary destination sometime...
Before leaving town, I drove down to the park, complete with gazebo, that borders Lake Ontario. How can any one place stand so much beauty?
At the spot where the river meets the lake, you can see a fort, just across on the other side.
The river was busy with sailboats - a perfect day for it.
I'm so glad Susan suggested this charming destination before I left the area. I must say, it was a delightful place to spend an afternoon.
I crossed into Canada again - this time at Lewiston-Queenston crossing, just minutes from the Hittles' house. I was through customs in no time, and found myself on a peaceful drive along the Niagara River. The road was lined with biking paths being put to good use. Indeed, I found a bike rental store in town - apparently quite popular!
On the other side of the road were vineyards, one after another, many offering ice wine - a dessert wine made from grapes that have frozen on the vine. A few practiced something I'd noticed at vineyards in Italy: a rose bush was planted at the end of each row. Disease/infestation shows up in the roses first, so there's time to try to save the grapes. I've often wondered why I haven't seen this done in Oregon vineyards...
Here and there, in between the vineyards, were orchards, many with fruit stands offering fresh peaches and cherries. Trees laden with soon-to-be ripe pears appeared alongside the fruit for sale. Guess I know what they'll be selling next!
All of a sudden I found myself in the town where the Niagara River meets Lake Ontario - Niagara-on-the-Lake.
What a lovely town! Everywhere I looked there were beautiful plantings - flowers were everywhere! In beds, hanging in baskets, planted in window boxes, in medians... Even the morning glory doing its own thing on a fence looked just right.
Second only to the flowers were charming Victorian homes, some still serving as residences, others converted to galleries or other shops.
Visitors took horse-drawn carriage tours past the clock tower at the center of town...
... and were in and out of shops, galleries, and restaurants, all up and down Queen Street. The place was bustling with people. I loved the play on words in some of the shop's names.
I ate lunch at Zee's, where, seated on the veranda, I enjoyed a salad with smoked salmon, herbed goat cheese, beets, and pistachios with a light lemon vinaigrette - yum!
Alas, I did not stay to have Afternoon Tea at the Prince of Wales Hotel and Restaurant.
Nor did I stop in at the library - a stately building!
Before leaving town, I drove down to the park, complete with gazebo, that borders Lake Ontario. How can any one place stand so much beauty?
At the spot where the river meets the lake, you can see a fort, just across on the other side.
The river was busy with sailboats - a perfect day for it.
I'm so glad Susan suggested this charming destination before I left the area. I must say, it was a delightful place to spend an afternoon.
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