Poor Niagara?

Rochester, New York

I’m a big fan of waterfalls.

I’ve visited the spectacular Iguazu Falls in Argentina, which span over two miles and are comprised of nearly 300 individual falls. Next month, on my trip to Africa, I’ll spend several days at Victoria Falls, the largest single waterfall in the world. This afternoon, we made the 80 mile drive to Niagara Falls, the most “powerful” falls — every minute, 35 million gallons of water rush over the edge — and an impressive sight right here in North America.

It is rumored that upon seeing Iguazu, first lady Eleanor Roosevelt declared: “Poor Niagara!” But while Iguazu is undoubtedly amazing, Niagara isn’t anything to scoff at.

We meandered around the park, taking in the view from the observation deck and then crossing a short bridge to Goat Island. Watching the sheer volume of water was spectacular, although we both felt that the towering and ugly buildings on the Canadian side detracted from the quintessential natural waterfall setting.