Niagara Falls: Someone please remind me why are we doing this to ourselves?

As a day trip from Toronto we woke up early and in 1.5 hours we were at Niagara Falls.

"You can’t even see the waterfalls because you can’t open your eyes" Clemente

I grew up in Misiones, Argentina, very near to the Iguazu Falls. The first time I saw them I was about 5 years old. And I still keep going and seeing them every time I go back to Argentina to visit my parents. I know the falls by heart. They are gorgeous, wild, and majestic. You can only feel very little when you are standing in front of them, they remind you of the power of nature. A visit is a jaw-dropping, visceral experience. You can spend hours walking the narrow jungle paths and be surprised with ant eater bear, toucans and plenty of coatis, and if you are lucky you could even spot an Argentine jaguar. Iguazú Falls are simply astounding. For this reason I was very intrigued to visit Niagara Falls (maybe it is my Argentinian blood that wanted to compare them and see which ones were “better”).

The fact is, that they couldn’t be more different.

They are not even comparable.

The first shock for me was upon arriving to the Niagara Falls, you get out of the car and you feel like you have arrived in Las Vegas or Disney World. Suddenly rollercoasters, giant dinosaurs, 4D cinemas, neon shows signs, concerts halls, hundreds of souvenir shops and more fast food joints than you can count show up out of nowhere. It is, of course, a children’s heaven but not exactly the same as the rain forest which surrounds Iguazú. There is no other way to the falls other than walking through all of the attractions to get to the elevator that takes you to the boat to get closer to the water.

“You arrive to the Niagara Falls, and you feel like you arrived to Las Vegas”

Is is Las Vegas? Is it Disneyland? .....No! it's Niagara Falls !

When you finally make it through the crowds, pulling your children out of the arcades and reminding them that you went there to see the falls (but of course they couldn’t care less as they only want to keep fighting zombies in the 4D theatre), you arrive to this super well organised staging area where the adventure begins.

You queue, you put on your red coats, you jump on the boat, the boat starts moving towards the waterfalls, water starts splashing….with one hand you grab one child to try to keep him IN the boat, while your husband is holding the other two. You put one leg around the rails to hold yourself tight (at this point the boat is shaking, not moving), children start complaining, they are wet, they can’t see anything and they are getting squeezed amongst the tourists as they all rush to one side of the boat to snap their soaking cameras. With your free hand you try to take a decent photo where at least one of your kids is not screaming. By then you are soaking wet, and you can’t really appreciate the beauty of the falls as you are hunched over in a protective posture trying to avoid the onslaught of the water and keep your children from being washed away. At that point you are begging to go back to the shore.

30. Min. Of. This. Washing. Machine. Style. Boat. Ride. And. That’s. It. Finished.

Back to the arcades and fast food joints. I think I deserve a hamburger with chips.

No wonder why former lady, Eleanor Roosevelt, reportedly exclaimed "Poor Niagara" upon seeing Iguazu Falls for the first time.

My not so happy, soaking wet children.

Sumarizing, it was a fun experience. The Falls are not as outstanding as the Iguazu falls, but there are still beuatiful. I was pleased to finally get to know them. and for the children, the amusement park was a hit.