I might have otherwise titled this post, “How I Spent My Eclipse Vacation,” but the dense clouds that encased Niagara Falls, Ontario, on Monday, April 8 rearranged the highlights of the trip we had planned for witnessing the totality of solar eclipse. There were many silver linings to the vacation and I’ll share them all, though I won’t deny the disappointment I felt in staring at fully overcast skies, trying in vain to figure out which direction we were even supposed to be looking with our UV-filtering protective eyewear. Yep, it really was that cloudy. We didn’t expect that our best picture of the eclipse would be the social media wall in our hotel lobby.
Where are you, sun?
We ventured from our 15th floor hotel room, which offered a view of the American Falls, down a steep hill to Queen Victoria Park, a sprawling open space that abutted the main tourist attractions. The city of Niagara Falls had preemptively declared a state of emergency for that otherwise-ordinary Monday, anticipating a record crowd for this once-in-a-lifetime celestial event. The city was more than prepared, and as we scouted out a viewing spot on the lawn, we encountered people from every culture and every walk of life. Nothing like a natural spectacle (or two) to bring people together.
Occasionally, we heard an eruption of cheers from the thousands of other hopeful eclipse watchers, as the tiniest break in the clouds gave us new (albeit brief) optimism for great views and photos. Alas, the main things we witnessed were the sudden total darkness at 3:18 and a big temperature drop, as the moon covered the peekaboo sun. Even that was exhilarating though, and it was one time that I wished my iPhone camera did not automatically adjust for ambient light. It was much darker in reality than our selfie suggested. And then, about three minutes later, it was over. Les caught a few decent shots just post-totality— what looks like a sliver of crescent moon was actually crescent sun— and then we trudged back up the hill with the rest of the throng and hit the hotel bar for a consolation cocktail.
The other 5,756 minutes of our vacay
What we missed in eclipse excitement on Monday, we more than made up for with all of the other amazing things we had planned for our trip. Having grown up a few stones’ throws from Niagara Falls, I knew that we would have an awesome time, and seeing the falls up close never gets old for me.
Les had seen the American side once many years ago, but his visit amounted to a drive-by while in Buffalo for an event for his daughter, so he was excited to do and see as much as we could on this trip. The falls did not disappoint, and we were blessed with fantastic weather for our Voyage to the Falls, Canada’s equivalent to Maid of the Mist.
The power and magnificence of the Horseshoe Falls is something that everyone should experience at least once in their lifetime. This was my second time seeing it this way, and as our boat churned forward with every bit of power its engines could muster, the ride became unsteady enough that I put away my iPhone camera and just took it in. As far as I could turn my head in each direction, we were surrounded by the falls, which are as high as a 12-story building. The loud, rushing water flooded my soul this time around, and as I stared up at this mighty force of nature, I felt myself fighting back tears. Truly, an incredible experience. A few days later, we went underground into the tunnels behind the falls for even more exciting, up-close views.
Toronto!
On the Saturday before eclipse day, we ventured around the tip of Lake Ontario to Toronto, Canada’s largest city. Toronto is, among other things, the home of the Hockey Hall of Fame, and we spent a couple of hours exploring the history of Les’s favorite pro sport, even getting up close and personal with the Stanley Cup.
A few blocks down, we explored St. Lawrence Market, which is essentially a humongous carnival for food lovers. Vendors in the market peddled everything from fresh and cured meats, cheeses and baked goods to spices, specialty pantry items, flowers and even prepared foods. I could have easily spent the entire day browsing this indoor market, but we had an important lunch date across the street.
Another Blog Buddy!
When I started Comfort du Jour, I was hoping to find community with like-minded foodies. And I did find that, but I wasn’t expecting the comments sections of our respective blogs to become an incubator for such wonderful friendships. When Les and I finalized our decision to make Niagara Falls our eclipse destination, I reached out to Sandy, my blog buddy from The Sandy Chronicles. Sandy lives in Toronto for part of the year, and I’ve been intrigued by her experiments with International cuisines, as well as her posts about photography, art and travel.
We were so pleased that she was able to meet up with us for lunch at a fantastic Indian bistro she recommended, and we conversed about everything from food and travel to the sad state of American politics as we nibbled fish pakora, vegetable samosas and a delightful appetizer called sev puri. Those little gems were like flavor explosions!
The Indian flavors were so comforting and satisfying, and I am feeling inspired to try making some of these special foods in the near future. Sandy even turned me on to a book to get me started, and you can bet I will re-create that Punjabi old fashioned cocktail soon, too. I wouldn’t have guessed that chai spices would be such a natural pairing with bourbon.
From Toronto to Tuscany
How do you suppose we sidetracked to Tuscany from Toronto? By way of a cooking class, of course! We were fortunate to have insider information from Sandy, who had sent me a link to the “My Place for Dinner” cooking school, led by Deb Diament. The Tuscan cuisine class took place in a loft studio that overlooked the St. Lawrence Market we’d visited earlier in the day, and it was a great and relaxing way to wrap up the Toronto leg of our vacation. We were treated to white bean crostini and Italian wine as we explored how to make arugula salad with lemon vinaigrette, handmade pasta with chicken piccata, and an orange-polenta cake with fresh berries. Most of the foods and techniques were already familiar to me, but what I enjoyed most was watching my husband become immersed in the lessons. The whole experience was a treat, and I can’t wait to put Les to work at home next time I want to make fresh pasta!
This whole trip was a lot to digest— no pun intended, well, maybe intended— and I’m still breaking down some of our experiences, so there will be more to share later, including one very special meal we enjoyed. But for now, I’ll keep you in the dark about that. 😉
Comfort du Jour 