We arrived in Buffalo late on Friday evening and renting a car from Avis at the airport, directly drove to the Fallsview Marriott arriving after midnight. (Canadian side) http://www.niagarafallsmarriott.com We had reserved a non-smoking room facing the falls as a treat..... The room reeked of smoke albeit having a wondeful view. Hesitantly calling the desk to see if we could have our room changed we were pleasently surprised to be upgraded to a jr suite with a wonderful sitting room w/fireplace overlooking the falls.... It pays to speak up!.

Saturday we spent being amazed at the natural wonder of the falls. Both the Canadian and American side are best viewed from Canada and we spent a quiet, restful day wondering along the promenade. We did the required, maid of the mist boat tour and the cable car that goes over the whirlpool and visited the marvelous gardens. Late afternoon we went out to the local airport for a 1/2 hour helicopter ride. George got some great pictures from the air.

I'm sorry to report that I have no lunch recommedations to give the list. Or maybe that is a comment in itself! Dinner was memorable at the hotel.

The food was excellent and the illumination of the Falls splendid!

Sunday we took our time driving to Toronto and stopped along the QEW at a couple of wineries. Talk about tourist friendly!..signs along the highway point out ,with a bunch of grapes, where the wineries are. We visited two: Birchwood estate and Kittling ridge Estate wineries. Interesting to see how they do things in Ontario. I guess winemaking is similar whereever you are! The wines were very good and we bought some to keep at Birchwood Estates. ( We did drink it before coming home though) Through Marta's job, we had gotten great rates and reserved a room at the Sutton Place hotel. 955 Bay St tel 416-924-9221 fax 416-924-1778; with breakfast included in the corporate rate it was hard to beat. Dinner was in Greek town...cant remember the name, but it had great mezes....Linda can you tell where??

Monday we spent in the ROM. The Royal Ontario Museum. Wonderful exhibits and a visiting collection from the Vatican. Truly enjoyable. I had to push George out of there so we could visit the CN tower, the Skydome and shopping at Harbourfront. Late afternoon, we drove back to Buffalo and stayed close to the aiport at a Red Roof Inn where we dined on some french bread, pate and wine we had brought from Niagara. Tuesday morning we brought back the car and came home. All in all a great short getaway.

Now, we are planning another long weekend in August to DC Its our 21st anniversary and we want to return to one of our old haunts. We lived in NY for many years and used to sneak a weekend or two a month in DC during the spring and summer. We have not been back for a few years....It's time. This year instead of one trip overseas, we are planning many long weekends closer to home................ Happy 4th of July to the folks here in the US.and to all our Zine friends!!

Regards, Marta &George Tamarac FL