May 30th means it's time to head to Ithaca!!! My first time home in almost 20 years. Actually, over 20 years. I haven't been home since I was 17, and I turn 38 this year. Not much over 20 years, but time is time.
Before Ithaca, though, we had a pit stop to make.
I was trying to take skyline photos of Cleveland for Kati, and I did not do a very good job. In my defense, it was 7:30 and I was tired and hungry. I am also HORRIBLE at cell phone photos. I don't know what it is about me that I cannot make my ability to take pictures translate to my cell, but I can't. Sorry, Kati!!!
A few months into planning this trip to Ithaca, I realized that heading to Niagara Falls and THEN to Ithaca only added an extra hour of drive time. I wanted to take the kids and Derek to Niagara Falls, as they had never been, and I wanted to refresh my memory of the place, as I hadn't been since I was little. OR HAD I BEEN THERE AT ALL? I fucking swear my parents told me they took me there as a kid. Turns out, they took themselves there when I was a kid and left me behind. I preferred the other version of their vacation, honestly.
But that freed me up to take my family to a place where NONE oof us had ever been, and that kind of thing excites me to no end. So! Here we fucking are, baby!! Niagara Falls, American side.
Now with a corner of splendor!
Rhyann was SO excited, she ran ahead of us to get to the falls, so she technically experienced them first. I loved seeing her be so pleased to see something, so I laughed with glee the entire way to the falls. I was giddy at seeing her joy, giddy about being with my kids, giddy about experiencing someplace new with my spouse, it was just an all around fucking great moment.
This is Bridal Veil falls, and we didn't really get a great view of it. Because we had such limited time in Niagara Falls, Derek and I made the tragic decision to not do any of the typical falls things, like Maid of the Mist or Cave of the Winds. I do not think the trip was poorer for it, but I was slightly bummed to not have the day to do those things.
This is the angle we had of the falls. The Canadian side is better, but there was a pretty stringent covid protocol in place. It isn't that we wouldn't have happily complied, it's that we all would have had to take quick tests (at 60 bucks a pop) and it didn't seem worth the almost 300 dollar expense for a visit that would last 30 minutes tops. But there's a little Maid of the Mist boat!!! We had such wonderful weather there. It was warm, but not oppressive, with gorgeous skies.
I wanted a photo of me and my kiddos, and as I was trying to get a long arm ussie of the three of us, a fellow tourist came and offered their services. Their services were not very great, but it got the job done. Here we are, getting solidly misted by the stupidly impressive falls.
In fairness, my long arm ussie wasn't any better.
Here are a metric assload of photos from my cell phone! I did take some photos with my camera, but like...they aren't that much different than these.
Rhyann climbed up on these pillars quite a lot, so I wanted to make sure I grabbed a few photos of her as she surveyed the falls.
I couldn't stop thinking of all of the people who saw these falls and thought to themselves, "fuck yeah man, I can survive that drop in a barrel!"
All things considered, it was not terribly crowded when we were there. As Derek and I had completely forgotten that it was a holiday weekend as we departed, I was expecting much larger crowds to wrestle through. But this is about as packed as it got. The park DID get busier as we left, but that wasn't our problem.
A lovely walking trail up the Niagara River! The kids and I did eventually wander up this for about a mile and a half, it was a lovely walk. There's an old...power station? Pump House? Something is in the distance, and I really loved the building. I think Derek got a photo of it, but I only shot on my wide, soo I don't have anything better than this that showcases it. Because I am a feckless twat.
A selfie! With 25% more splendor!
Here is Alex, taking in the sights. She was not terribly pleased about having to be outdoors. For her, the ideal trip to Niagara Falls would have either been a drive by in the car, or a photo walk via Google Maps.
The full view of where Alex was standing.
I wandered over to Derek's post, where he hadn't really moved much. It made him easy to spot in the crowd, though I would recognize him no matter how many people were around. He asks for selfies a lot more often than I think to take them with him, which doesn't say anything about Derek, it says a whole lot about me. It's been 11 years and I am still not used to being in a relationship with someone that is ok with being in photos with me, and above that, WANTS to be in photos with me. Anyway, I'm stunning.
I caught up with Alex, where she had been languishing away, counting down the minutes until we left, I'm sure.
Rhyann came and joined us, and I wanted a photo of all three of us. Instead, I got a photo of Rhyann, Alex, and Snidely fucking Whiplash.
A second attempt failed to yield better results.
Here is my oldest!!!! I love so much that she's into taking photos. I'm kinda obsessed with it, actually. It's the only thing that makes me wish that I knew the technical aspects of photography, because I can't teach her how to see shots the way I do. So Derek has the most to teach her, and I truly am saddened by that. I would love to be able to teach her the things he knows, but I just don't know them. I did enjoy standing with her as she took her photos, though! And when she'd show me what she took, I was thrilled beyond words to tell her how much I loved the way she framed a photo. It's all I've got to impart. Makes me kind of useless, I suppose.
Here's the view from where we were standing. Rhyann got a GREAT shot of this on her camera, I am so excited to see everything she took the entire trip. I may have taken a few images from here, but I can't be sure. We'll see when I post all of mine at the end! Suspense. I love that for you.
Oh hullo, Canada side! I do wish I had been able to come take pictures from your vantage.
More photos of Rhyann, flexing her photography wings!!! Did I mention this thrills me?? It thrills me.
Alex did a lot of sitting around and wishing we would leave already, which bummed me out for her. I know that she enjoyed herself, she has said as much several times since we left, but I wish she showed more enthusiasm in the moment like she does for other things. Oh, well! I'm just glad that she can reflect on it now and say she had an amazing time If that means she sat around instead of running to and fro like me, Rhyann, and Derek did? Well that's just fine with me.
The founders of the feast again!
Derek was teaching Rhyann how to do a long exposure of the falls. Now THIS I could have taught her, but I was busy wandering around the entire area, seeing the things that were to be seen. I missed out, but I'm glad I came up with enough time to get a picture of the lesson!
Oh! Well well well! Look who got a notification that she was being welcomed to Canada! Me! The very same person who also was only on the Canadian cell network and not actually IN Canada properly. But if you won't tell, I won't tell.
Now, sorry to say, I got a bit bored of the splendor of the falls, and I wanted to take a look around and see what was up river. I grabbed the kids and told them we were going to go on a nature walk. I also may have told them we were in Canada, as I was still on a high from my watch alert, and also still an idiot.
Now this is probably going to be impossible to discern, but this is a gorgeous lady jumper eating her previous lover. I took a little video! I had to resize it, so I hope the quality is ok. I make no promises or apologies for the state of the video.
Midway through our walk, the kids stopped to investigate some bugs together. Now, this was another thrilling moment as their mom. When Rhyann was very little, I would take her for walks on days where I wasn't stuck in bed with crippling PPD. I would have her pick out her favorite rocks and sticks, and we would have to dig through dirt and bugs and all manner of stuff to find her favorites. She was always very thorough about it, she had to pick the best and compare all of them to each other. It was serious business. When Alex was little, I would do similar nature walks with her, though my PPD with Alex allowed me a lot more time than it allowed me with Rhyann. I was out of commission...oh...about 5 days out of every week with Rhyann? On a good week? With Alex, I had maybe one or two bad days a week. I only had it for two years with each of them, but it stole way more from me with Rhyann than it did with Alex.
So seeing them, together, on a nature walk with me, investigating nature and being curious and joyful, was emotionally overwhelming for me in the best way. I took way more photos of this moment than any rational person would, and I ended up deleting most of them because I felt foolish about documenting such a small moment. But this is my favorite of the three I kept.
This is the first of the tiny falls in Niagara Falls park...not Canada side, no matter what I was telling myself...that we came across on our little jaunt.
A view of the Canada side skyline. Majestic.
When we got to this falls, Alex was like, "mom I bet you would hurl yourself over the falls to be able to use this place for mermaid photos." She isn't far off. It's the best of everything I love in my photos...green and lush, lots of running water, lots of sky.
Two of the people I love very most in the wide world, pictured here NOT in Canada.
Here are the kids, at the place in our walk where we turned around to get Derek and get in the car so we could make our way to Ithaca!!!! They're taking photos of the little falls we were by. At least I assume that's what they're photographing. I could be way off.
One last view of Niagara Falls proper!
And after that pit stop, we were on our way. On our way to Ithaca, my wonderful, beautiful home town.
The drive was fairly uneventful. We did have to make two rather lengthy pit stops. The first was at Target while Derek got gas in Jasper. We were on the hunt for binders and toiletries, of which we only found the latter. After that we headed to Walmart and grabbed easy to make lunches for ourselves, and THEN we were on the road to Interlaken for realsies.
I had hoped to beat my dad and Caryn to the AirBnB, but I took a little too long at Target and Walmart. I think a cyst burst while I was in Walmart, I had to rush to the bathroom because it felt like I was going to explode blood everywhere. I had been abnormally puffy for the last couple of days, as well, so I'm pretty sure something ruptured. All told, I think an extra two hours was wasted making stops when we could have gone to the AirBnB if I weren't so pokey.
The AirBnB was gorgeous. I wish I hadn't procrastinated taking photos of the AirBnB, because I didn't end up getting any of my own. So I apologize to the hosts, I am going to borrow the photos they took of their home for the listing. We spent...I think 3K on the 10 days in Interlaken, which was a steal for the area, the space, and the amenities. We were greeted with some lovely local cheese and wine, a nice welcome letter, and a big ol' map of the finger lakes region and all of its goodies.
Such a CUTE place. Seriously.
Here's the living room!
The corner of the living room there is a glimpse into the shared downstairs bathroom, and my dad and Caryn's room. Alex ended up sleeping on the couch, though she was adamant we not pull out the mattress. She just splayed out all over the couch. She swore she was comfortable, so whatever works for her!
And more living room, with a peek into the kitchen!
The only thing that wasn't the greatest for us was the size of the kitchen table, but we ended up eating outside most nights, and a few nights not all of us ate at the house. But the kitchen is a lot bigger than the photo makes it look! Which worked out great, as we cooked A LOT.
My dad and Caryn's room.
And the shower:
Downstairs, check! So here are the stairs taking us to the top floor, where Derek, myself, and Rhyann stayed. These stairs were perilously steep, and dangerously dark. I felt like Indiana Jones every time I went downstairs for any reason whatsoever. Like I was traversing some dark tomb riddled with traps or some shit.
This little plant in the hallway rubbed against me a few times and I screamed each time, as I was obviously under the impression I was being viciously mauled by SOMETHING.
Here is the room Derek and I were in! That bed was so so so so comfy.
Here's the room Rhyann stayed in:
And the bathroom we shared upstairs:
And here's where we ate more often than not, out on the lovely patio. We were lucky to have almost perfect weather the entire time, save for one or two days toward the end of the trip, but we saved all of the indoor activities those days.
After unpacking the car and saying our hellos and putting our stuff in our respective spaces, we decided we needed to get some supplies for at least the evening's dinner and the morning's breakfast. So. We headed into Ithaca proper, a thirty minute drive from our AirBnB, and I was so. fucking. EXCITED to be home. Not just to be home, but to be home and heading too fuckin' WEGMAN'S.
Listen.
When I left Ithaca twenty years ago, Wegman's was just coming into its own. It was this luxurious, large store that was the perfect mix of local produce and big brands, with a little sandwich shop tucked in the corner. I had my first hand roll at Wegman's twenty years ago, and I really loved the vibe of Wegman's. I've thought about it for the two decades I've been gone. It's kinda like Whole Foods, if Whole Foods had a local soul. Don't get me wrong, I know Wegman's is a big box store like Whole Foods, but it as the hazy, matte patina of nostalgia and hometown love. So my bias refuses to let me see it as anything other than my hometown grocery store, even though Tops is the regional chain I grew up with, and the farmer's market is the best place for local goods.
I spent at least an hour shopping in Wegman's. I bought cheeses and goodies and a delicious blackberry tangerine seltzer that I'm still drinking, though I only have two cans left. I bought ground pork and hamburger to make everybody spaghetti with the sauce I made before we left for New York. I had my vegan chicken, cauli rice, and the most DELIGHTFUL mix of greens from Wegmans. Romanesco, kale, broccoli, string beans, onion, and herbed evoo cubes. I literally made this exact meal for myself every single night, and I was happy as a clam. Hooray, autism!! I love my hyperfixation!!!
And I believe after dinner, we all went to our respective spaces and went to sleep. It had been a SUPER long day for my dad and Caryn, and it's not like it was an un-long day for us, either. And that concludes day two of our trip. Day three is when the Ithaca adventures start. My favorite part of the adventure!
Oh! I almost forgot! Here are the photos I took with my actual camera at Niagara Falls. Nothing to write home about. I do have a great deal of regret about not spending the money to visit Canada side for photos with 100% more splendor.
OK! Moving on to day three for realsies.
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