Niagara Falls

We had a fantastic day at Niagara Falls! After two hours drive from Michelle's house, we spent ten minutes looking at the Falls.


Then we drove up to the botanic gardens a few miles north up the Niagara River Gorge. The gardens themselves were quite interesting, with a collection of mainly native trees, a little rock garden and varied herb garden; but the highlight was the Butterfly Conservatory, which I recommend to anyone who makes it to this neck of the woods.

There is a good explanatory display before you go in and then you enter a glass house filled with vegetation, including quite large trees; the temperature and humidity are all carefully controlled and fans create local breezes. There is a stream with a waterfall (this sounds like an idealised description from a mediaeval romance!) and the air is alive with butterflies. Their brightly-coloured wings brush your face and hair, and they frequently settle on your shoulders and clothing. Plates of juice or putrefying fruit are set out for them to feed on. The colours and the sheer numbers are amazing, and in one wall there is a hatchery where the pupae are hung up, having been brought from their native countries in that state.

Later we drove on along the Gorge side which is lined with some lovely houses and not a few wineries, so we did a little tasting.

Arrived at Niagara-on-the-Lake, we wandered round the pleasant little town, founded by loyalist refugees in 1778. By chance we came across the Shaw Theatre (actually quite well-known hereabouts). They were doing "Saint Joan" but it was sold out. However we got tickets for the associated Royal George Theatre, for "The Circle" by Somerset Maugham. We had time for a quick dinner in a restaurant before the show, which proved to be most enjoyable... The theatre was quite small and well preserved, I guess around 1850. The direction and acting were good, and the actors had even learnt (fairly) authentic British accents!


Pasamos un dia fantastico en Niagara Falls! Despues de manejar dos horas desde la casa de Michelle, miramos el famoso salto unos diez minutos.

Despues de eso, fuimos al jardin botanico un poco mas al norte por el cajon del Rio Niagara. Los jardines son bastante interesantes, con una coleccion de arboles - nativos en su mayoria - un jardin de hierbas, etc; pero lo mas interesante era la casa de las mariposas.

Al llegar, uno ve una exposicion interpretiva; luego uno entra en un invernadero lleno de vegetacion y de arboles; la temperatura y la humedad estan controladas, y existen ventiladoras para crear corrientes de aire. Un esterito baja por las piedras y cae por un salto. El aire esta llena de mariposas - alas coloridas te tocan la cara y el pelo, y vienen a descansar en la ropa y los hombros. Se les colocan platos con comida: jugos, o fruta a medio pudrir. Los colores y la cantidad de las mariposas son impactantes. En una pared hay una zona para las pupas. Las traen de su pais nativo y las cuelgan para que completen su metamorfosis.

Mas tarde seguimos lo largo del cajon, donde hay unas casas hermosas y unos productores de vino.

Llegamos a Niagara-on-the-Lake, y conocimos la pequena ciudad fundada en aprox 1778 por gente leal a la corona inglesa, que venia arrancandose de los republicanos despues de la declaracion de la independencia de los EEUU. Por casualidad encontramos un teatro y compramos entradas para una comedia de un escritor ingles, William Somerset Maugham, de 1920. Tuvimos tiempo para una cena rapida en un restorante agradable antes de la presentacion. El teatro era de mediados del siglo 19, muy bien preservado; la presentacion estuvo excelente...