International Travels

It seemed like for the past two weeks I had been on a constant schedule without rest, but it was all in good fun. First me and the family drove on up to Niagara Falls in the great northern wilderness. What was supposed to be an eight hour drive took around twelve long and painful hours, nearly two of which were spent in a line of cars at the border. After that trip everyone just wanted food and sleep, luckily we ran into what was one of the coolest restaurants on the trip. The Copacabana, named after the borough in Rio not the song by Mr. Manilow, is a Brazilian Barbecue and it was delicious! Any sides you want are all on the buffet table and servers come around to tables with giant swords holding different kinds of meats. If your card if face up you get meat, if it's face down you don't...simple. I highly recommend that anyone with a carnivorous mindset should go look into Brazilian Barbecue restaurants, they are surprisingly plentiful on the island and in the city.
Of course there was more to the trip than a trip to a meat lovers paradise. Tourist attractions galore is what you will find in Niagara Falls but they all manage to be entertaining, and a little degrading. The Maid of the Mist and the Cave of the Winds are the two popular attractions that get people ridiculously close to the falls. After donning a poncho that's thinner than a garbage bag you take off on your lovely adventure. The Maid of the Mist is located on either the Canadian side or New York side of the falls but the Cave of the Winds is located only on the New York side. The Maid takes you on a wet boat ride where you get to see just how gigantic the falls truly are.
Being that close to the largest part of the falls is terrifying and awe inspiring all at once. The Cave of the Winds seems to be nothing more than a walk on a boardwalk that runs adjacent to the falls until you reach the Hurricane Deck. This piece of the boardwalk is no less than ten feet from the falls and the daring people who stand on it get drenched. Both are awesome little stops that allow you to see the falls in all their glory.
Besides being around the falls and taking pictures of the gorgeous views we went to a casino, drank, ate, and went on one of the most insane hikes I've experienced. Devil's Hole State Park is a park in Niagara Falls New York and it is home to a nearly 4 mile walk that involves steep and slippery steps, narrow edges running adjacent to a rapid river, and coyotes. The walk was a blast and without a guide of any kind you almost feel in danger at times, especially when a baby coyote is following you around. The steps that lead down to the trail are something out of a Tomb Raider game and the views of the river that run next to the trail are incredible.
After our Canadian excursion we headed home and in eight hours our vacation was over, well my family's was. The next day I spent five hours driving down to DC for some quality time with the lady. Just a tip for anyone driving long hours alone, bring along either a comedian's Cd or listen to talk radio because you'll start to go inane on the ride if you don't. DC is an incredible city, if you know your way around. Getting lost in the heat looking for easy to find landmarks that no cop thinks you need help finding can be rough but there are some awesome places to check out in Washington. I won't go crazy listing everything to do in DC but if you have the chance head down to Georgetown or Bethesda and checkout Georgetown Cupcake. These little miracles are $2.75 each and are some of the most incredible desserts you will ever have. Their red velvet cupcake tastes better than most restaurants red velvet cakes and the pb fudge cupcake is just ridiculous.
So after nearly two weeks of traveling I am home and all is well. Expect more posts, hopefully on a somewhat daily basis, and email me at fisco316@gmail.com if you have topics, comments, insights, complaints, whatever. You can comment on my facebook as well just keep it classy.