here is a selection from the almost 700 images we shot on our four-night trip to niagara falls, toronto and the finger lakes... yeah, that's why it's taken me so long to get these up! :)so, here's what we did! we drove up through upstate new york on sunday, oct. 18; just hitting peak foliage color, on the way, and it was a gorgeous drive! the first night in niagara falls was very cold, but the weather warmed up for the next few days. monday we started off at the bird & reptile kingdom, for the kid, but then we "did" the falls - walking along the cliff, taking the maid of the mist, going "behind the falls," etc., underneath such a lovely blue sky with sunlit white clouds... the next day we drove into toronto, saw the city and the CN tower, tried a few different restaurants (specifically, my husband had three different shawarmas for dinner!) then came back to niagara falls; that night we also got some shots along the cliff with the colored floodlights glowing through the mist. the next day we drove downstream to see a little more of what the falls region had to offer - niagara-on-the-lake, etc - then crossed back over the border and drove down to ithaca for the night. the following day, we spent the morning and early afternoon sightseeing along cayuga lake and seneca lake, with all their wooded banks aflame in autumn colors and the local vineyards laden with grapes... this was our only family vacation this year, and i'm glad to say even the little one quite enjoyed himself, for the most part! we stayed at the skyline inn and we were quite happy with the experience there. but more than anything, it was just a much-needed break, to have the time to ourselves, witness something as awe-inspiring as the falls, and - for me - to take pictures for myself... :)

just in case you're wondering, this one's from the bird kingdom's reptile room...

and this is an actual "java house" with each wall carved painstakingly from a single piece of wood... they have this kind of randomly located in the bird kingdom...

my son, on the maid of the mist...

"behind" the horseshoe falls

here we were by the water in toronto...

and this is one of the views from the CN tower

back in niagara falls, at night...

this is the "whirlpool" in the niagara river, downstream from the falls

ithaca falls, by cornell university...

a park we stopped by near taughannock falls

and, taughannock falls! they said this is three stories higher than niagara falls...

one of the rural, unpaved cross-roads between cayuga and seneca lakes: