One of the things we enjoy most about pet sitting is that we are sometimes allowed to take our furry friends out for a day trip in the car. (We actually bought our own back-seat hammock especially for this purpose). Today, the temperature coaxed us to visit Niagara-on-the-Lake and Niagara Falls, which is only an hour away from where we are staying. As soon as we had our caps on, Emma knew that we were going outside. After a moments confusion, she got in the back seat of the car and promptly made herself at home.
We had packed her bowl, a couple of bottles of water to keep her hydrated, and some treats so that she would have something when we were eating our lunch.
She was soooo good in the back of the car - sometimes thrusting her head in between us to smother us with kisses - sometimes digging herself under the hammock - but most of the time, her nose to the window sniffing at the passing air as we made our way south.
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| You'll never be starved of kisses when Emma is around! |
Arriving at Niagara-on-the-Lake, we stopped to get a sandwich and muffin, and made our way to our favourite park, Queen's Royal Park, overlooking the mouth of the Niagara River, opposite the American Old Fort Niagara. Emma was excited to get out of the car, and lap up some water from her bowl, and avail herself of the proffered treats.
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| Time to slake our thirst |
She really is a 'friend-magnet', as so many people stopped to ask about her, recognizing her breed (Portuguese Water Dog), and wanting to pet her. She lapped it all up, while we got to know several people - where they were from, how long they were staying in Niagara etc. We met a couple from Saskatchewan, a lovely woman from Cleveland, Ohio, and Marilyn, from Buffalo, NY., who is soon to become another Facebook friend!
After lunch, we drove to the Niagara Parkway, where we went for an hour's walk alongside the river.
Before we started off, we noticed that there were four elderly ladies sitting at a park bench and watching Emma. We took her over to them and they were delighted! They thought she was marvelous, and we told them that she was glad that we had taken her to see her four new 'aunties'. They were really chuffed at that. I wish we had taken a picture of her with them - they were such lovely people.
Returning to the car, Emma had another drink and some more treats before we set off for the Falls. She waited patiently with Mark, while I got her bowl out of the trunk.
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| She loved sitting with her Uncle Mark while waiting for treats |
We have visited Niagara-on-the-Lake many times in the past, and we didn't want to leave her in the car on her own, so we just drove slowly through the town, noticing the beautiful floral displays for which it is so well-known.
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| Horse and buggy in Niagara-on-the-Lake |
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| The Prince of Wales Hotel - this picture does not do the gardens justice! |
We decided to drive past the Table Rock area (where parking is $22.00), to a smaller parking lot at the Floral Show House (where we paid $5.00 per hour).
Once again, Emma was thrilled to be out in the open, and posed for several photos along the way back to the Table Rock. We couldn't help but notice the number of people who smiled at her as they passed us. We felt quite important!!!
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| She was eyeing the hotels... |
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| Even with the hundreds of people milling around, Emma was so good |
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| Another kiss for Uncle Mark |
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| The couple from Saskatchewan kindly took this picture of the three of us |
At Table Rock, we bought a couple of bottles of water and she was happy to drink some from our hands.
On the way back to the parking lot, she didn't mind us taking a few photos without her in them.
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| Beautiful fuschias that were prolific in the area |
After another hour, we got back to the car and gave her another drink, and some more treats. She had already relieved herself along the way, so we were able to encourage her to get into the back seat, once more, for the journey home.
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| Waiting for a handful of treats |
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| One tuckered doggy, ready for the ride home |
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| 'I may be tired, but I don't want to miss anything! |
Emma found Niagara-on-the-Lake - and the Falls area - charming, with lots of new tree trunks, fence posts, and bushes to sniff! She certainly won over the people who stopped to have a little time with her, both young and old!
She was a real pleasure to be with and responded well to everything we did with her. She's such a good-natured doggy, and we'll be sad to say goodbye to her on Sunday morning.
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