Friday, November 21, 2008

Niagara Falls

It was time to get our MINI Cooper serviced, and with MINI Coopers you MUST go to an authorized MINI to get the service (even BMW dealers aren't supposed to service MINIs unless they are also a franchized MINI dealer! For us that means a couple of hour drive to Williamsville, NY which is near Buffalo. So, we decided to make a mini-vacation of it.

On the first day, we drove the loaner MINI to East Aurora, New York (which is about 150 miles west of Aurora - go figure) to check out the Roycrofters museum and complex. If you are into the craftsman style, this is a worthwhile trip. East Aurora is a nice little town - and that's all I have to say about that.

We spent the night in the Quality Inn and Suites in Niagara Falls, NY. We have stayed there several times before and don't find any problems with the hotel. It is conveniently located within an easy walk to the New York side of the Niagara Falls park area and is very close to the Rainbow Bridge to Canada.

We did the obligatory walk down to the US falls. If you have never been there, it is a US vacation destination you have to try. Unfortunately, the best views of both the US and Canadian falls is from the Canadian side, still, both sides are impressive.

On Saturday, we drove over to Canada and drove north along the Niagara Parkway stopping by two Canadian Wineries in the Niagara-on-the-Lake area. Their wineries are different than the Finger Lakes New York wineries. Their tastings are more tightly controlled by the Provincial government - limited to just 4 tastings not to exceed 1 ounce each. Makes it hard to get a tasting of the full range of wines. Pellar Estates is my favorite of the wineries in the area, but it is an upscale tasting experience.

We walked around Niagara-on-the-Lake checking out the numerous shops and stopped at the oldest golf course in North America for a beer on their patio. Later, it was lunch in the Angel Inn - our favorite dining location in that area.

Back to Niagara Falls, NY for a final night and then back home along the southern edge of Lake Ontario and then south to Elmira.

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