I want to write more, but sometimes it doesn't happen. I don't know why, I have plenty to write about. That means this post is going to be split into two.
Happy 4th of July a little late. You know what they say in Iowa: Knee High by the Fourth of Julio. :) OK, that's what quarter Mexicans in Iowa say. Enjoy this picture of Iowa's wealth from the field of dreams right outside the factory I work at. If you are from the Midwest, I hope you are laughing at that last sentence.
Looks like the corn is doing well, huh?
Alright, now on to something interesting. For the 4th of July, Megan and I went to Toronto, Canada! I know some of you might be thinking, "Canada for the 4th of July?" Well, yes, it was awesome! It was weird going to a foreign country where the national language is English. We arrived late on Thursday night and went straight to the hotel. We got a deal on a nice room at the Holiday Inn next to the airport on Hotwire.com. It's normally $100 a night, but we only paid $54! Not too bad, huh?
Toronto is a very diverse place. We saw Africans, Chinese, Indians (from India), and Pakastanis. I think I saw a few Canadians. :) It seems like Canada has become what America used to be when it comes to immigration. We saw the CN Tower, the Harbour, and Chinatown. This is the best Chinatown I've ever been to! We ate some good food there. I loved it.
My favorite experience was when we were eating lunch at a restaurant and some Chinese people next to us were speaking Taiwanese. I've never heard it spoken outside of Asia! It was really cool.
On the 4th, we went to Niagara Falls. I thought they were cool, but nothing life altering. I think the waterfall on Maui was cooler. However, watching fireworks at the Falls were really amazing. It's weird to think it was our first 4th of July as a married couple. What a way to start, huh?
Before we went to Niagara Falls, we stopped at a little town called Niagara-On-The-Lake, Ontario. It's mostly overpriced, but it's a nice, romantic place to walk around for couples. The ice cream at Cows (reportedly the best ice cream in Canada) isn't anything special, so don't get fooled. I think Ben and Jerry's is better.
The view at the lake is wonderful. You can even see the Toronto skyline on the other end of the lake.
On Sunday, we attended church twice. The family ward we attended in Mississauga, Ontario had 5 missionary companionships there: 2 Spanish, 1 English, and 2 Chinese! It was so diverse and the testimonies were great! We attended a singles' branch and it was more of the same: diversity and testimony. I really liked it.
That afternoon we drove to Buffalo, NY for our flight home. We had to eat the mango we bought in Mississauga's Chinatown before we got to the US and barely finished before arriving at the border crossing. When the Border Patrol guy asked us if we had any food items, we told him, "We have a bunch of garbage from the stuff we just finished!" Haha.
Overall, we loved Canada. Yes, its taxes are high and a bit different than our taxes here in the U.S. but at least their roads are nice and crime is lower than here. I never felt nervous in Toronto. They did have a garbage strike crippling the city which was pretty gross, but I've experienced worse living in Taiwan. I'd definitely recommend going. Yes, I know Americans make fun of Canada a lot, but it's really pretty nice and you might end up liking it too!
Well, there's a long awaited post. I'll let Megan post the next one about our trip to Chicago and on anything else she wants to comment. Thanks for reading.
Jordan
