Wrapping Up The Trip

The research trip to North America is coming to a close. We are currently in Canada and fly back to Australia in a few more days. Towards the end of my stay in North Dartmouth, I took the bus to Boston with Okan Ala, one of the students I was working with. Boston was an interesting city, obviously full of history. We arrived at about 8 a.m. and walked all over town all day. The walk along the harbor was pleasant, and we made our way to where the USS Constitution ("Old Ironsides") was docked. The guided tour of the ship was free of charge, and genuinely interesting.



After lunch at a family Italian restaurant on the north side, we wandered back to a large shopping area, browsed the shops, watched some street performers (one from Sydney, even), and enjoyed some good coffee. As evening approached, we began walking across the city to the REI store. We finally reached our destination after about an hour and a half of walking, and I found a couple more small items I wanted at the store. Afterwards, we went to a Turkish restaurant with one of the other researchers who has done inkjet printing of cells to discuss his work over dinner. The last bus back departed at about 9 p.m., and I was back at my motel around 10:30.

It's been nice to see Canada again, and to get a brief tour of the University of Waterloo from Michelle's uncle. When we first arrived, it was unseasonably warm, and one day I was wearing just shorts and a t-shirt. However, winter has begun, and we are seeing snow flurries. Most of the area here is farm country, which can be nice in some ways -- but the downside is all the towns are quite small. The land is mostly rolling hills -- no real mountains. Probably the worst aspect is this entire area is downwind from Detroit, so all the pollution there blows through here. Toronto has become so expensive that these small farm towns are becomming outer suburbs. Cookie-cutter houses are going up everywhere, and the construction quality appears marginal. For now, we don't really see ourselves coming to this area -- primarily, because the university doesn't really have any research groups that fit in with my work so far. If we come to Canada at all, it will likely be around Ottawa or out west.



We got lucky while the weather was still pleasant and went to Niagara Falls. The site is impressive, and it's plain to see that the energy of all the water is massive. The Canadian side definitely has the better view. The falls in total consist of Niagara Falls, which is a wide, straight waterfall, and Horseshoe Falls, which is shaped according to its name and seems more powerfull. We paid for the tunnel tour, which begins with an elevator descent of 100 or so feet. The tunnels themselves are painted white and large enough that most people should not feel any claustrophobia. The tunnels are dug so that there are two branches that lead to observation doorways behind the falls. The noise is fantastic, and indicative of the amount of energy dispersed. A third branch of the tunnel leads to an observation deck near the base of the falls. The entire site is worth a trip.



We are now looking forward to getting back to Australia and returning to a normal routine again, not to mention enjoying warmer temperatures.