Ontario, Canada. That was the destination for most of my Italian relatives. They sailed to New York and then crossed into Canada. Or as my grandmother did in 1920, sailed directly to Quebec, Canada.
The destination for my grandfather Angelo in 1913 was Fort Frances. He was going to join his brother-in-law who had arrived in Canada in 1910. My grandfather would work for Abitibi Paper Mill in Fort Frances until 1920 when he took his family to International Falls, Minnesota.
This is the bridge built in 1912 by Abitibi Paper to connect the US and Canada, with the dam shown on the Rainy River.
I still have lots of cousins in Fort Frances. The few I keep in contact with I actually met through Ancestry. But I have cousins all over the province, as far east as Toronto - also met on Ancestry.
As a kid, going to Canada on Sunday to visit my mother's oldest sister was a routine, though I must admit I never liked going through the Detroit-Windsor Tunnel.
And then I started thinking about how Canada never seemed like travel to a foreign country. It was so close. And how many times have I vacationed there? I've lost count. So, I started looking at names of places I've visited and realized I could probably do an A to Z on the province.
Here are all the cities I can think of off-hand where I've visited alone or with my family and friends:
Amherstburg (to get to the old Bob-Lo Island in the Detroit River), Agawa Canyon (train trip is great), Belle River, Chatham, Elora Gorge, Eden Mills, Fort Erie, Guelph, Hamilton, Ipperwash Beach, Kingston, London, Leamington, Manitoulin Island (great hiking and wilderness), Niagara on the Lake and Niagara Falls, Ottawa, Point Pelee, Queenston, Sarnia, Scarborough, Stratford, Toronto, Thunder Bay, Tobermory (so you can get the ferry to Manitoulin), Windsor, Wawa, York...
So, now I am wondering where all the photos are, cause they are not on my computer. Must be back in the days of film.
If you have never visited Ontario, I highly recommend it. Of course, right now, that is difficult. But someday.
Agawa Canyon:
Travelling to France doesn't feel like going abroad to me. I'm a short distance from the Eurotunnel where I can drive onto a train, sit for a while then drive to Calais for lunch, pop to Carrifours to buy some snails and baguettes, and drive home again in time for dinner!
ReplyDeleteI've not been to Ontario, and despite having close relatatives there, I've not visited Canada - yet!
After Brexit, can you bring snails back to England? It's confusing to us Americans. My Canadian cousins would come to Detroit to shop and then sneak stuff back to Canada. And I sold a stereo unit to someone online and when he came to pick it up he asked for a phony receipt so he wouldn't have to pay duty at customs.
DeleteNever been to Ontario! But living not too far to the Canadian border (not as close as you, though). I've been to Quebec and Montreal numerous times. And a few years ago, my husband and I drove to Prince Edward Island. It was a two-day drive and we had arrived around six in the evening. At five the following morning we were awakened by a phone call to let us know that his father had died unexpectedly. So we re-packed the car and had a two-day drive back.
ReplyDeletePEI is definitely a place to see. Too bad a family death cut your visit short.
DeleteGood ole Ontario....it does have a lot to offer and one is Agawa Canyon which I have yet to do and see. When we visited my moms brother and his wife in Ann Arbor, my dad would always go through the tunnel because he knew how scared I was of the bridge. I loved the tunnel but my mom hated it.
ReplyDeleteLOL. Well, the tunnel is closer to my home and to my aunt's house in Windsor. But the bridge is not much better IMHO.
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