Buffalo, New York

It was time for us to shuffle, so we Shuffled off to Buffalo.  

Niagara Falls, New York

Now, this is what I call cascades and falls!

Niagara Falls is about a 35-minute drive from where we're parked tonight at the Hamburg, New York, Walmart.  Consort and I have been to the Falls once before when my brother and SIL were married a few decades ago.  The area around the Falls has changed dramatically.  Today there were lots of attractions and restaurants, food trucks, and an aquarium, along with a beautiful park, surrounding the Falls. 

It seemed as though there were a lot of people visiting the Falls this afternoon, though I'm sure it was a very small percentage of the normal volume.  (Anytime there's lots of open parking spots, you can be sure the place you're visiting is not at capacity.)  There were definitely enough people gathered together to make me nervous about catching CV-19.  Consort and I both voluntarily donned face masks.  All of the attractions and concessions, plus restrooms and water fountains, within the park were closed.  The only thing that was up and running was the Maid of the Mist boat tour.  

The hike to the Falls was about 400 yards.  The trail was well-marked, easy to follow, and entirely paved.  There were a few slight inclines, and three sets of stairs, but the view of the Falls was well worth the effort.

O Canada

This is the Peace Bridge, an international bridge between Canada and the USA.  From this bridge, we are about two hours away from my favorite Canadian.  Sadly, the border between the USA and Canada is currently closed.  Thank you, Coronavirus.  And I dare not say any more about that.

You're probably wondering what the iconic regional food is for New York state.  The closest I can come to a definitive answer is buffalo wings.  Here in Buffalo, they just call them wings.  We opted out of the buffalo wings -- consort really isn't a fan, and after last night's chili with allspice, I decided he needed a break.

I read an article written by a native of Buffalo suggesting the best local food stops.  At the top of the list was Schwabl's, a German restaurant established in 1837.  The author's recommendation was for the hand-carved roast beef sandwich on a kummelweck bun, so that's what consort ordered.  When he placed his order, he was asked how he'd like his beef:  rare, medium, or well-done.  We've never been asked such a specific question when ordering a sandwich, but here the sandwiches are made to order.  He tells me it was delicious.  I could not talk him into trying the German potato salad; he stuck with -- you guessed it -- french fries.  He did order the German coleslaw that was topped with a pickled beet and a sweet pickle, which I thoroughly enjoyed.  

I ordered the poutine.  Poutine is a Canadian dish that originated in Quebec in the 1950s.  The word poutine is Quebec slang for, "a mess."  The dish is made up of crinkle-cut french fries topped with cheese curds and, in this case, hand-carved beef cooked medium rare.  The whole thing is covered with brown gravy that I would guess is made by thickening au jus.  It was every bit as good as it looks.  (Maybe more, depending on your perspective.)

I believe tomorrow consort and I plan to stop over in Schenectady, New York.  Do not look to me for interesting food choices for your suppertime meal.  Our dinner for tomorrow will consist of salad without dressing, grilled chicken without marinade, and water.  Otherwise consort and I are going to look even more like these two than we already do!