What NOT to say to Customs Officials

After our memorable pizza lunch in Buffalo, we were headed to the border to cross over into Canada and see Niagara Falls.  As it was the 4th of July, we weren’t sure how long border crossing would take.  Luckily for us, everyone was leaving Canada, so our crossing didn’t take very long.  Maybe 20 minutes tops.  However, it was a very stressful 20 minutes.  For me at least.

Christina had her flowers left over from Laura’s wedding (and everything I read said NO fresh flowers/ produce/ agriculture could be brought into Canada) and she didn’t want to leave them behind.  Well, turns out, they don’t mind.  We also had some carrots and apples, which they also didn’t care if we brought them with us.  However, as the Customs Agent asked his final question, “Do you have any weapons?”  I immediately responded, “No!”  But Christina responded, “Yes.”  Imagine my stress and surprise… why did Christina have a weapon, and why had she not told me?!  What was going on!  The Customs Agent continued by asking her where the weapon was/ what it was.  As it turned out, it was a small self defense knife that Christina uses at home.  The Customs Agent wanted to see it, so Christina calmly walked him through the whole process of removing it from her purse…

“I am reaching into my purse.”

“I am removing the knife.”

“I am pulling it out of my purse.”

“I am handing you the knife.”

I couldn’t handle the stress.  I appeared calm on the outside, but inside I was freaking out! Her knife was not an issue, and we were allowed entry into Canada.  But man, talk about stressful!

We headed straight to check into our hotel.  We were booked for one night in the Embassy Suites Niagara Falls.  This was definitely our most expensive hotel, but we wanted to stay in a hotel with a room that overlooked the falls.  While expensive, we did not regret our decision at all.  We had an amazing view from our room.  Not to mention the yummy (free) snacks at the evening reception and the superb (also free) breakfast overlooking the falls in the morning.  Definitely worth the expense!