Now I’m the biggest fan of Niagara-on-the-Lake… who knew?
With July being the height of summer, there is no shortage of things to see and do, all within a close and affordable trip from Toronto. Treat yourself and your partner to those summer vacations without spending a fortune on gasoline or taking 3 days to travel to your destination. Every once in a while, you really just need to get away to something more laid back and scenic – take the opportunity to explore something outside of your metropolis and experience things that are different from your normal way of life.
The Girl suggests that we go to the Niagara region, specifically the small town of Niagara-On-The-Lake. This is a part of southern Ontario famous for its wineries, antiques, and of course the popular Shaw Festival – a theater festival celebrating the works of playwright George Bernard Shaw. I was hesitant at first as I largely heard the area drew a larger crowd. Regardless, The Girl continued to make preparations for the day despite my fears of this generation gap. “It won’t matter after I go to the wine tasting,” I thought.
It was decided that we would both take Friday off and start our little trip to the Niagara region around 11am. ! Walking down the QEW, we watched slowly as the city faded into suburban bliss, the developments dotted along the highway turning into bungalows with expansive gardens, and finally rows of grape trees perfectly lined up one after another for as far as I could reach. the view
Our schedule of activities consisted of grabbing a bite to eat, a wine tasting, and then attending the morning performance of “Mrs. Warren’s Profession.” The area itself is pleasing to the eye; Large trees and lush gardens envelop the area as you wind your way down winding lanes towards the main strip of town on Queen Street. This is where most of the action takes place. Unique gift shops, restaurants, old historic buildings, horse-drawn carriages, hotels and two of the Shaw Theaters line the grand street neatly as people stroll leisurely from one side to the other.
After a short drive down the strip, parking and paying a dollar for an hour (a dollar!), we headed to the “Stagecoach Family Restaurant”, a bustling restaurant with prompt and courteous service. I ordered a BLT and The Girl opted for a very authentic Greek salad at a place that didn’t look like it would serve one. Our meals came and went quickly, the staff gets the throngs of people in and out in a timely manner (no rush) to cater to their constantly packed house.
The Niagara region is well known for its many vineyards, providing the country and the world with award-winning wines. After driving around and exploring the scene, we settled on Pellar Estates Winery, a sprawling vineyard with a beautiful building that houses the wine tasting and event areas for those special occasions. The place literally transports you to the wine tasting hubs of the world like Nappa Valley, especially when that trip to California isn’t exactly in your budget right now.
Our sommelier Mike greets us with a warm welcome, something we have grown accustomed to since coming to the area – everyone is friendly! For the next hour, he educates us on the different methods of wine tasting, while he makes us feel like he’s not selling anything at all. We learn about proper tasting techniques, how to enjoy your wine, and how the glass makes a difference when tasting. We make sure not to take in too much of the tasting; We still have to go see a play! After some recommendations from Mike we headed out, with a couple of bottles for later at home of course!
We finally reached the last destination of our fun little day trip away from the city, a performance of Bernard Shaw’s “Mrs. Warren’s Profession.” One of Shaw’s racier works (the house program tells me it was banned practically everywhere when it was first produced) centers on Mrs. Kitty Warren, a working mother who supports the daughter of she lives. Upon learning how her mother got so much wealth, scandal breaks and mother and daughter fight each other over love, sex, money and morality.
The play is in the large “Festival Theatre”, Shaw’s flagship 856-seat theater used for large-scale productions. With a cafe and outdoor patio, we decided to enjoy another drink before the show starts and also take a walk in the surrounding garden. The production is as spicy as described. I’ll admit that Shaw’s “Pygmalion” is one of my favorite plays of all time, so I have nothing but good things to say about this playwright.
With our day drawing to a close, we lazily walked back to the car and returned to the grind and noise of the city. Overall, the trip was a great change of pace, and we’re thinking of coming back for a weekend to try out some of the beautiful bed and breakfasts or inns in the area. For a fun, interesting and relatively inexpensive trip, the Shaw Festival [http://www.movietrailerlive.com/ct_0001_Shawfest] Along with the town of Niagara-On-The-Lake it is a great place to relax the soul and stimulate the mind!
