{"id":1826,"date":"2016-07-23T03:57:24","date_gmt":"2016-07-22T19:57:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/?p=1826"},"modified":"2017-08-20T07:45:35","modified_gmt":"2017-08-19T23:45:35","slug":"20160716niagara-falls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/2016\/07\/23\/20160716niagara-falls\/","title":{"rendered":"Day Trip to Niagara Falls on July 16th, 2016"},"content":{"rendered":"

For the four weeks of summer workshop here at Cornell University, the organizers arranged a day-trip to Niagara Falls on the first Saturday, hoping that we get to know each other. For them, booking the bus to\/from Niagara Falls was all their job.
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\nThe images in this post are hosted on Imgur. Email me should there be any display problems.<\/span><\/p>\n

Then since the workshop consists of all but one Chinese students, the majority of whom come from Shanghai JiaoTong University (SJTU), the two teachers from SJTU that came along with the students volunteered to be everyone\u2019s moms<\/del> tour guides, sending emails about the itineraries, collecting money and so on.
\nWhile they are not professional tour guides, they managed to do a very good job. They picked the best two attractions of Niagara Falls given our rather short stay at Niagara Falls, and brought everyone back safe and sound. However, I was just not very sure about the way they govern the students. Diving students into multiple groups, with group leaders serving the sole purpose of head counting sounds like an easy solution of keep track of everyone, and it did. But with dozens of head counts during the day, I didn\u2019t think we were that far from the hand-in-hand, walk-in-line #KindergartenFieldTrip.
\nOriginally, we were told to gather at 8:15 where the bus would leave at 8:30. To me, this is just a subtle way of saying”gather at 8:30 but don\u2019t be any later than that”, or”SJTU students gather at 8:15, anyone else before max{8:30, when SJTU decides to leave}”<\/del>. So when I comfortably took the elevator down at 8:26, for a moment I really didn\u2019t know how to react or what to say when some SJTU students were coming back saying their teachers”mandated”they change on their”class uniform T-shirt<\/del>“. I recalled”class uniforms”in Tsinghua were really disposable objects, that when something really big and really important took place (and the students\u2019 requests based on whatever reasons they made up<\/del> for a leave were rejected to show solemnity of such events<\/del>), they gave us new uniforms to wear, partly because they could afford the new cloths for the importance of such events, partly because such events were so infrequent that nobody can find their old uniforms buried somewhere in their closets, if not trash bins. You know I could write a GRE essay about School Uniforms: Freedom VS Conformity. But since I\u2019m on the land of the free, in short I stand for #Freedom.<\/p>\n

So that\u2019s enough for the beginning of a post lauding the wonders of nature.<\/p>\n

In typical Chinese punctuality, the bus departed at exactly 8:38 in the morning.
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<\/br>Bus to Niagara Falls <\/br>Photo courtesy of Shi Hanyuan of SJTU.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Passing GreenStar Classrooms and Abandoned Railroad<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Passing Cayuga Inlet<\/p><\/div>
\nThe first part of the bus ride was New York state route 89 winding around Lake Cayuga, with lovely scenes of farmland, ranches, forests and of course, Lake Cayuga.
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<\/br>Lawn by Lake Cayuga<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Trees Along New York State Route 89<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Farmland by Lake Cayuga with Straw Rolls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Farmland by Lake Cayuga<\/br> This should be some vineyard. <\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Railroad crossing at Seneca Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Bridge Overlooking I90<\/p><\/div>
\nThen it was I90, no forests, no valleys, with farmlands almost all along the way.
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<\/br>Trees in a Swamp<\/br> From the bus, it really looked like that the trees had some disease and no leaves. It\u2019s on Google Maps that I learned this is a swamp.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Farmland along I90<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Farmland along I90<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>I90 South Grand Island Bridge Crossing Niagara River<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>I90 North Grand Island Bridge Crossing Niagara River<\/p><\/div>
\nI slightly adjusted white balance for shots on Grand Island Bridges, both here and later in the return trip. I seemed the bus windows would add a certain tune to the color, from which I tried to recover.<\/span><\/p>\n

We encountered some traffic jam on the last mile of our bus ride. I guessed that\u2019s due to roadwork in Niagara Falls, New York which slowed traffic down.
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<\/br>Visitor Center where We Had Lunch<\/p><\/div>
\nHaving gotten off the bus, we were herded by two SJTU teachers into this visitor center (or mall shall I call it). It\u2019s a wise decision, as it had a floor full of fast-food restaurants. I must say catering for a busful of people wasn\u2019t easy.
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<\/br>Lunch at Visitor Center<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Lunch at Visitor Center<\/p><\/div>
\nSuch a lunch of burgers, fries and soda cost me 16.11 USD including tax and tips. It\u2019s very American, in its style of”meat with no veges”(which I really didn\u2019t like), in its pricing based strictly on demand rather than cost. <\/p>\n

After lunch, we headed for the Cave of the Winds, where sandals are free and mandatory, which could be later worn at Maid of the Mist cruises (great piece of advice from SJTU teachers).
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<\/br>Sign of Niagara State Park Entrance <\/br>Photo courtesy of Shi Hanyuan of SJTU<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Raging Niagara River <\/br> Shot from Goat Island bridges. <\/span><\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

Then it\u2019s Cave of the Winds. Since this is some sort of (government-run) state park with education in front of profits, we managed to get 9USD education group ticket, which was quite a discount from normal adult prices.
\nSince Cave of the Winds transported its visitors down to the canyons with only two elevators, it was quite a long wait.
\nBy the way, as a major attraction, Niagara Falls is not short of Pok\u00e9mon shops. However, it seemed my carrier T-Mobile was overwhelming cautious about not allowing its users to connect to Canadian networks by accident, during the long wait at Cave of the Winds (and later at Maid of the Mist), I didn\u2019t get any mobile signal. So I was basically standing there among the Pok\u00e9mon shops, unable to do anything.
\nHowever, there\u2019s a gull preservation site nearby (Thank Pok\u00e9mon Go for that information). So thanks to T-Mobile for its mobile coverage (or the absence of it), I got some great shots of sea gulls flying by.
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<\/br>Raging Niagara River <\/br> Shot from Goat Island bridges. <\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Gulls Flying By<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Gull Sitting on Street Lamp<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Gull Sitting on Street Lamp<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Gulls Flying By<\/br>I really liked this angle.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Gull Sitting on Street Lamp<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Gulls Flying By<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

After quite a long wait, we got down to the canyon. There\u2019s free yellow raincoats available at the elevator exits.
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<\/br>Horseshoe (Canadian) Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Skylon Tower Across the River<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Water from the Falls<\/br>Not far away from the American Falls, and there\u2019re water drops all in the air.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Birds near Niagara Falls<\/br>Guess the bird sanctuary really helped.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

At Cave of the Winds, there\u2019s actually no cave (there used to be, obliterated in a massive 1954 rockfall though). What it has to offer was those reddish passageways leading very close to the water.
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<\/br>Birds near Niagara Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Raging Water from Niagara Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Niagara Falls Water into Lower Niagara River<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Raging Water from Niagara Falls<\/br> I stuck my hand (and my cell phone) out of the railings for these shots.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls Water<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls Water in the Air<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>

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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>

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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>

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<\/br>Maid of the Mist Cruise Passing By<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Birds near Niagara Falls<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

That\u2019s the end of Cave of the Winds experience. There\u2019s an island nearby (Luna Island) that stands in the Niagara River overlooking the passages of Cave of the Winds. Since I travelled in a group and the teachers wanted us to be easily summonable, I didn\u2019t went there. From the following photos, it seemed that Luna Island is somewhere nearly as close to the waters as Cave of the Winds, with the convenience of not getting drenched, and it\u2019s free (I guess).
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<\/br>American Falls and Luna Island Observation Deck<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls and Luna Island Observation Deck<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls and Luna Island Observation Deck<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

After multiple head counts and having made sure everyone\u2019s present, the teachers led us to Maid of the Mist cruises.
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<\/br>Nikola Tesla Monument near Cave of the Winds<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Raging Niagara River<\/br> Shot from Goat Island bridges.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Raging Niagara River<\/br> Shot from Goat Island bridges.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Raging Niagara River<\/br> Shot from Goat Island bridges.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Raging Niagara River<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Raging Niagara River<\/br>I was quite surprised to find some logs in the middle of this water. <\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls from Niagara Falls State Park<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls from Niagara Falls State Park<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls and Horseshoe Falls from Niagara Falls State Park<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls and Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

Then it\u2019s Maid of the Mist cruises. Since this is in essence a private company, group tickets weren\u2019t that much cheaper. The experience of being overwhelmed by water is still worth the money, I shall say.
\nIt was a more boring long wait, without internet (and thus Pok\u00e9mons), even the gulls didn\u2019t bother to fly this high.
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<\/br>Rainbow Bridge connecting America and Canada<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Maid of the Mist Cruises that I’m About to Board<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Maid of the Mist Observation Deck<\/br> They built four elevators in this building, so as to transfer visitors from ticket booths down to ship dock for the cruise. Besides the almost negligible function of providing a better view of the canyon, I really think stairs (or ramps as their Canadian counterpart across the river) may be a better option, especially with their nets hanging nastily in the air. <\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Last of the Passengers Boarding Maid of the Mist<\/p><\/div>
\nThen it\u2019s the boat ride of Maid of the Mist.
\nI found that the photos from my cell phone looked a lot better when I photoshopped them a little bit, especially the waters.<\/span>
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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>

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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>

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<\/br>American Falls & Cave of the Winds<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls & Cave of the Winds<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Birds (mainly Gulls) Resting on Rocks<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Raging Water From Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Raging Water From Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls and Maid of the Mist Cruises <\/br>I was quite lucky to be among the first to board the ship, so as to find an advantageous spot on the port side. After Horseshoe Falls, I found that selfie stick seemed to be a good option for those unable to get a spot on the perimeter of the ship.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls and Maid of the Mist Cruises<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls and Visitors to the Maid of the Mist Cruises<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls and Visitors to the Maid of the Mist Cruises<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Old Power Plant on the Canadian Side <\/br> I don’t know why this isn’t on Google Maps<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls and Visitors to the Maid of the Mist Cruises<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

That\u2019s the end of Maid of the Mist cruises.
\nAt around 20 minutes, the cruise was actually quite short. But the experience of getting close to the waterfalls and pounded by falling waters was phenomenal.
\nBy the way, I was pretty sure that with water all in the air, my camera won\u2019t survive this ride. So when the boat was really close to the waterfalls, (and also in Cave of the Winds when I was really close to the waters), I took photos with my cell phone. Even so, there\u2019s water all over my cell phone. So I was quite relieved that my cell phone survived the day, as I heard rumors that some of the cell phones were so splashed during the tour that they won\u2019t boot again.<\/p>\n

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<\/br>Canadian Hornblower Cruises <\/br>Actually this company is California-based.<\/span><\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls Up Close<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls Up Close<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Passengers Disembarking Maid of the Mist Cruises<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls and Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls and Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>American Falls and Horseshoe Falls<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Pigeons on Niagara Falls State Park Ground<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Police SUV Roadblock<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Niagara Falls Roundabout <\/br> One of the few roundabouts in the city, that\u2019s where our bus had been waiting for us.<\/span><\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

We left Ithaca at half past eight, arrived at Niagara Falls just before 12. Our original plan was to get on the return trip at 6 in the afternoon. However, with all the queues and the relative low efficiency of group traveling<\/del>, we had the bus driver waiting until half past 6 before returning to Ithaca.<\/p>\n

So it\u2019s near sunset, and the setting sun was casting beautiful sparkles on the Niagara River.
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<\/br>Setting Sun on Niagara River<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Setting Sun on Niagara River<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>I90 Traffic on Grand Island<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Niagara River<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Yachts Parked on Niagara River<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Buffalo Airport Tower<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Ranch on I90<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

Halfway later, it was really sunset, and the sun was casting a spectacular golden shade on top of everything, trees in particular.
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<\/br>Farmland on I90<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Trees Along I90<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Shopping Malls on I90<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Moon in the Sky<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Sunset Glow on I90<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Sunset Glow on I90<\/p><\/div><\/p>\n

Then we turned onto New York State Route 89, when the sun had set behind the hills, leaving fiery clouds in the sky, as I ended the day with some wonderful shots.
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<\/br>Sunset Glow on New York State Route 89<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Sunset Glow on New York State Route 89<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Sunset Glow on New York State Route 89<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Sunset Glow on New York State Route 89<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Sunset Glow on New York State Route 89<\/p><\/div>
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<\/br>Sunset Glow on New York State Route 89<\/p><\/div>
\nEND<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For the four weeks of summer workshop here at Cornell University, the organizers arranged a day-trip to Niagara Falls on the first Saturday, hoping that we get to know each other. For them, booking the bus to\/from Niagara… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[166,2],"tags":[168,169,167],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1826"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1826"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1826\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2652,"href":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1826\/revisions\/2652"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.huangyizhou.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}