Last week, my family and I took a trip to Canada's Niagara's Falls, and I can honestly say that when I returned to the States that I was completely satisfied with my experience. The Falls were as beautiful and as frighteningly powerful as I could've ever dreamed them to be and the attractions that allowed us to journey close to the falls were amazing. One of the first attractions that we did once we arrived on Canada's side of the falls was to take the Maid of the Mist boat ride. This boat ride is relatively cheap, only $14.50 American dollars, and believe me, this ride is worth every penny!

Before you actually can board the boat, the workers there will give you a blue rain coat, and many of you might be wondering, why would you need a rain coat to take a boat ride around the falls? Well, the boat actually travels very close to two of Canada's waterfalls, and you will get wet. The force of the waterfall as it hits the water brings forth a powerful mist that is actually more like rain. You will get wet on this boat ride, but you get so close to the falls, that it hardly matters.

While on the boat, I was actually stunned into a silence as we made our way closer and closer to one of the falls. From far away, you can’t really judge the enormity of these massive falls, but when you are close to it, you are actually shocked by how minuscule you are in comparison to this creation of Mother Nature. When you are close to the falls, there is the ever present sound of the Falls roaring in your ears, it is an experience to make even the most technology driven city folk stop and appreciate the beauty and the power of nature. In other words, you'll get some great pictures.

Besides the Maid of the Mist, another attraction that is offered on Canada's side of the falls is an attraction called Journey behind the falls, and as its name implies, it allows you to take a journey behind one of Niagara's waterfalls. One of the sore points of this experience is that the walk to get to the attraction is ridiculously long. They say that it is a 10 minute walk, but with tourists everywhere and crowded streets, this 10 minute walk is quickly stretched until 20 to 25 minutes. Also, the lines just to get to the falls are simply insane; waiting online will take you another 20 to 25 minutes, if you're lucky. Or if you're unlucky like me, it will be another 45 minutes online before you finally reach your destination.

However, this is an example where the pros outweigh the cons. The ticket to journey behind the falls is cheap, it is $11 and even cheaper for children under the age of twelve. Once you do finally reach the falls, you are given a yellow raincoat, because since you are going to be so close to the falls, you are practically guaranteed to get soaked with water. First, you will be whisked off into an elevator and taken 650 feet below ground into tunnels behind the falls. There are different passages to take as you journey behind the falls. Journeying forward will lead you to an opening and a space that is right next to the bottom of the falls. Make sure that you have your raincoat on and tied snuggly around your head when you venture out into this space, because you will get very wet, very fast. Being so close to the falls will fool you into thinking that you are being caught in the rain. This is a great place to take a picture of the massive falls, but as a warning, your camera or cell phone might get wet if you don’t cover it properly while you are taking the picture.

Going back in the direction of the elevator, there is another passage the leads you through a corridor that has information about the Falls plastered on its walls. The information is surprisingly interesting and the topics range from a little boy who fell over the falls and survived to how long it took for the very tunnels that we were traveling through to be built. Eventually, there is another opening, only you cannot go too far out (it is only a ledge and there is a bar blocking you from going any further) because you are actually behind the falls at this point. At this ledge, you can see and hear the rushing water as it goes over the falls. It's quite an amazing thing to witness.

There is another opening behind the falls further down the corridor, but it is the same as the previous one. Once I was finished with this journey, I traveled back to the elevator and the journey was over.

Canada's Niagara’s Falls is filled with many different tourists attractions, there are different rides, carnivals, haunted houses, and even houses of wax that fill its streets, but there are none quite as memorable at the Maid of the Mist and the Journey Behind the Falls. If you want to experience all of the beauty and the fury of the massive waterfalls, these are two attractions that you cannot miss.

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