September 2010, The Niagara Chapter
Place & Year: Niagara, USA / 25-Sep-2010 | 26-Sep-2010
Author: Vishwa
Just a week from returning to US after joining the marriage celebrations of my brother in India, I decided to join Krishna to Niagara. There were many reasons why I did not skip it amidst the fact that I was tired of my visit to India and enjoying at Rahman concert a day before; It’s going to be winter in a couple of months’ time and it’s already started to cool down. It will be next year if I miss this chance. Niagara was a place I always wanted to visit for its popularity and it will be bad if I don’t visit it living so close. Krishna has always been a great friend and a good company sharing similar likings and I thought I would enjoy the place better. Lastly I was pretty sure that Krishna will need help to take Ramya’s parents along with Praneel for they fall in both extreme age ends.
Pradeep took me to Newport on Friday late afternoon in his car. I purchased dresses for Krishna’s Newborn daughter and for Praneel. When we returned it was already 6:30 due to heavy traffic conditions towards Manhattan. It’s a Friday evening and I should have guessed it. I came back to office just to grab my bags and walked to the train station. I waited for about 20 minutes at Newark to get a train to Secaucus and then another 30 minutes there to get a train for Essex Street. Krishna picked me up from the station and we went to buy some groceries and medicines and reached home. I was thinking about pulling Ramya’s legs that evening but then she was having a temperature. I helped Krishna pack a few things for the next day and went to sleep by midnight. Just before hitting the bed, I realized that I have left my 4GB memory card at home and I have my 8GB alone which has crashed multiple times. Our initial plans were to start at 3:00 which looked unreal with the time we all went to sleep. I woke up at 5:00 and realized that Ramya’s parents were ready. It took me about 30 minutes to pack up. Finally we started at 6:30 from home. The weather was pleasant and we knew Niagara will be pretty cold based on what weather.com showed us last night. I was sitting in the front seat next to Krishna. As we hit the freeway, the sun slowly crawled above the horizon and in about half an hour time, it was as red as a fire ball. Krishna and me decided to capture a few shots of it in the SLR and searched for about 10 minutes before pulling over at an elevated location to get the right angle. We captured real good images of the sun and the vehicles crossing the bright star. We also picked a few shots of each other. Then we hit the freeway again pretty soon as we were already late.
Cave of the winds
As we travelled for another hour, I realized the color of leaves were strikingly beautiful. This is my first view of fall. Shriv has always mentioned about the beauty of fall in US and so has almost everyone who had been here during this time. The colors were just getting set for the coming season and it was already looking great. I clicked a few snaps from inside the car. We pulled over to a rest area in about 90 minutes and this place was real beautiful. The view of mountains and landscapes with the shadow of clouds passing and the patches of fall colors were striking. It was here, when I tried to use my camera it displayed a memory card error and when I restarted it did I realize the memory card was formated and I was left with no photos taken on the freeway. This memory card has always created problems in the past but never have I encountered this kind of a behavior. I always wanted to take my 4GB but then since I loaded the photographs taken at Rahman concert in my laptop last night, I left it on the table. With no choice left, I decided to get a new card when I reach Niagara. I still continued to take a few snaps hoping to get whatever I can from here on. We also had our breakfast there. It was a lovely drive and as we moved more towards the places where fall colors have set. The road was moving up and down the hills giving us distant views of curved paths around hills covered with trees of various colors. We stopped by at multiple places to aid Ramya’s parents to relax as they could not sustain the long drive without breaks. At each of these places, me and Krishna grabbed coffee and at times the ones with extra caffeine to get us going. By 2:00 in the afternoon we reached Niagara and had lunch that we got from home in car.
At first look I thought it was drizzling and then in a while Krishna explained that it was the water from falls carried by wind. We were definitely 300ft away from the falls and the volume of water that was in the air hinted me of the grandness that I will watch soon. We planned to have lunch on the lawn but later changed our mind to have it inside the car because of the water spray. We got food from home since Ramya’s parents were not comfortable eating outside. It is also hard to find vegetarian food that suite their taste. The food tasted great.
American Falls
We first got tickets for the ride called “Cave of the Winds”. You will be provided with a plastic overcoat to protect from getting wet and a pair of slippers. This helps you to avoid slipping on the path which is very wet covered with algae. After a few minutes wait in the line, we took the elevator to reach the end of the tunnel underground and walked towards the falls. The path takes you very close to the falls. This falls is called the “American Falls” which is artificially made. The actual Niagara Falls is named “Horseshoe falls” and faces Canada. This one is much smaller than the original one. As we walked close to the falls, we could see a rainbow that lasted for about ten minutes. The view was so graceful and I clicked a few pictures. The view from here covered only a part of the whole waterfall. We walked on a wooden stair case which was completely covered with algae. Ramya’s parents found it hard to walk on the slippery surface but Praneel was excited having fun. As we stood at the top, right next to the place where the water ends wind and water were pushing us away and I was almost wet with Praneel jumping around. Krishna took Ramya’s parents down in a few minutes fearing if they will take the cold. Praneel and I spend about ten minutes there enjoying the force of water after which Krishna had to take him back concerning his health. After taking the elevator back to ground level, we walked to near the Horseshoe Falls. We were hardly able to see the center from which the mist of water was raising. The location offered a view of running water from a long distance till it reaches the point of fall. It was also decorated with plants and tress offering a great sight. The amount of water thrown from the falls started to increase. I walked close to the falls and tried to take a couple of snaps while the rest kept away fearing the cold. The place was covered with lawn and trees planted at regular intervals. Gulls and squirrels were all around. I ran behind a squirrel to take a picture when I soon realized that it came so close to me when I gave M&M chocolates. I was even able to touch it. I continued to give a lot of the chocolates and tried to take pictures. Krishna also joined me in a while.
From Left - Ramya's Mom, Dad, Krishna and Praneel
After spending sometime there, we walked to a snack bar and grabbed some French Fries and coffees. Since Praneel was insisting on taking a ride in tram around the place, we got into one and reached the Niagara Visitor Center where the movie based on adventures of Niagara was screened. After purchasing the tickets we had to wait for about half an hour when Krishna got a Cheese Pizza for Praneel. After giving two of the slices to Praneel, Krishna and I shared the rest. By now the show had almost started. The movie was enjoyable though not great. As we came out of the place, it was cold and Ramya’s parents weren’t able to manage it. The jerkins were in the car trunk. We almost ran to take the tram which took us near the parking area. After making them wear Jerkins, sock and gloves they were feeling much better. It was dark by then and Krishna wanted to show them the falls lit by lights. So we walked to the American falls to have a view. The sight was great but Ramya’s parents weren’t able to enjoy it much because of the cold. Krishna and I decided to return back at night to photograph the falls. We went back to car and drove to the hotel. It was a 15 minutes drive.
A View of Niagara at night
The hotel was nice. Since everyone were super hungry, right away we opened up the food we got and finished almost all of it leaving back just a few Idlies for Ramya mom’s next day Lunch. This is because of her aversion to have food outside. In the next half an hour, Krishna somehow managed to put Praneel to sleep. It was about 11’O clock. We packed our cameras and tripod and drove back to the falls. After parking, we walked to a viewpoint that offered a good view of the lighted area. The place was almost deserted except for a few who also had a tripod and camera. We smiled for ourselves thinking about the kind of crowd who come to the falls at midnight. The place also offered a good view of the brilliantly lit buildings in Canada border. I walked here and there around the same place and pictured the falls in lights of various colors. The photographs of buildings and a giant wheel also came out good. After enjoying for about an hour, the lights were turned off at 12:00 and we walked back to the car. It was now when I realized that my hands have already becomes numb getting exposed to the cold for long. We reached the hotel almost dead tired and hit the bed. We were fast asleep in less than a minute. Our original plans were to get up early and have a walk on the bank of the river in the soft light of dawn. It was already 8:30 when I woke up. Due to some reason Ramya’s mom had a bad headache. This upset everyone. We tried to bring coffee and stuff to make her better. Unfortunately I did not bring the medicine kit that I usually have with me and neither did she have it. As she was taking rest, we all got ready and had breakfast. Finally at around 11:00 she felt a bit better and we checked out of the hotel at 12:00. I grabbed a coffee and reached Niagara.
View of Niagara falls from the observatory tower
Today we planned to go for the “Maid of the mist” ride. We purchased the tickets for this and walked on the observatory tower to reach the elevator that will take us to the boat. The view from observatory tower was remarkable. We planned to spend some time here taking photographs after the ride. As we reached the boat, the authorities held our tripods as it is not allowed to be carried on board. The boat started in a few minutes. It took us through the American falls. At a distance this falls offered a new and grand look. It did not look so huge when we went for the “cave for winds” ride. The view was amazing with water thrown all over us. We continued to get wet in spite of the plastic coat that we were wearing. The beauty was enhanced with the sea gulls crowding over the water surface looking for fish. The boat slowly moved towards the Horseshoe Falls. I’ve only had a look at a part of this falls. As we turned into the curve, there reclined one of the greatest forces of nature. Tons of water gushing into a juncture so powerful that you can only see the mist filing the place. Gulls were flying all around. The sound of the falls added to the vibration in atmosphere. It was spectacular. The boat turned around the horseshoe curve and took us back.
Niagara backdrop and I
We then walked back to the observatory tower and clicked pictures of the falls. From this point you could see the whole expanse of both American and Horseshoe falls. After spending some time in the tower and walking in the lawn along the river, we drove the car to an Indian restaurant and had Lunch. We grabbed coffees from a nearby Starbucks. In about five minutes, the coffee spilled over my dress over the stomach as it slipped off my lap in a bump when the car started from a signal. I had to get down and clean it in the cold wind. From here we almost drove no stop for four hours as everyone except me and Krishna slept off. Then we had a break and reached home by 10:30. After having Dinner, Krishna drove me to my house. Though it was very late, I transferred the pictures to my laptop, had a drive through them and hit the bed.