Celebrating Independence Day at Niagara Falls!

Rapids leading to the falls

Lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe!

Last night, I couldn't fall asleep. I figured I'd be exhausted after my long class, but I tossed and turned until 2:30 AM. I set my alarm for 6:30 AM, but ended up waking up around 7 o'clock. I picked out my outfit and packed my backpack last night for our adventure to Niagara Falls today, so I was down and ready for breakfast by 7:40 AM. After a quick breakfast with Sue and Natalie, I met up with the rest of my cohort on the first floor of RPCC. Mr. Chan-Law said we could go to Starbucks before our long car ride, so we headed over to Collegetown, which is a big hangout area for Cornell students. Then we were on our way!

About two hours and a trenta Cool Lime Refresher later, I had to use the restroom--bad. So we made a quick pit stop, but after that we were soon in Niagara Falls. We hopped out of the car, except for Mr. Chan-Law, who had to park the car, and searched for a place to eat lunch. We didn't look far. Hard Rock Cafe was right down the street and we unanimously agreed to eat there. We got a table and waited for Mr. Chan-Law. Fun fact: I love how Hard Rock Cafe plays music videos.

Anyway, after an enormous lunch, we went to the Maid of the Mist, the famous boat ride that passes right by the falls. It was a 45 minute wait and as we got closer to boarding the boat, we received blue ponchos. I got more and more nervous as we inched closer. I sometimes have irrational fears, but I was fine. Soon we were loaded onto the boat (on the second deck) and setting off towards the falls. I made sure my poncho was secure and into the mist we went. It was actually quite exhilarating, getting soaked (kind of) under the massive falls. It's definitely an experience I won't forget. The falls seem so dangerous and scary, yet they are so beautiful.

In our ponchos

View from the Maid of the Mist

The only bad part of today was that waiting in line to get to and from the ride was longer than the ride itself.I really wanted ice cream afterwards for some reason and luckily, so did my cohort! So we bought some ice cream, which was

delicious by the way, and decided to go to the Niagara Legends of Adventure Theater. It was a 30 minute film, depicting some of the great adventures at the falls. One man decided to cross it with a 3-inch wire while another decided to navigate through the "impossible" rapids. I liked the film. I wish I could have been with my family, too, though. My dad would've loved exploring all the exhibits and what not.

Unfortunately, by then, it was already 6 o'clock and we had a long ride home. (We also had to eat dinner and make it to check-in by midnight.)  So we piled back into our rental car and drove all the way back to Ithaca. We played games--I mean, did "bonding exercises"--in the car. For dinner we ate at Zaza's Cuchina, an Italian restaurant. I ordered chicken, as shown here:

Overall, I really loved hanging out with my entire cohort and Mr. Chan-Law, since we don't get to during the week. I also really appreciate the Ivy League Connection for providing me with such amazing experiences!

One last gorgeous view!