When a group of people travel together, you’re bound to have to make some compromises. Most likely, you’re gonna want to travel with people who share the same interests as you, but when you’re stuck traveling with family…well, God bless them, but sometimes, you just can’t get along. Especially when you all have different ideas about what an ideal vacation  is like.

And when a pastor declares something like that, we’ve got no choice but to obey it as God’s words. So we went. My parents got their wish. And I gotta say, it wasn’t half-bad.
The Thousand Islands is, as you’ve guessed an archipelago of islands by the lake between the United States and Canada. But unlike its name, it actually consists of almost 1,800 islands. It is a very popular destination for boaters, fishers, and campers, and used to be a vacation spot for the wealthy.
We did a quick last-minute research, and discovered a good deal for a 5-hour cruise around the area, with a break by the Boldt Castle.
Our cruise boat’s name was called the Gananoque Boat Line, and we arrived just a few seconds before it took off.
The fresh, slightly salty lake air blowing into my face and hair, the gaggle of excited tourists chatting in French, the delighted expressions of my parents, and the melodious glide of the boat across the clear blue waters…they were all lovely. They made me happy…but only for the first half hour. The whole ride was an hour and a half each way, and by the last hour, it all got a bit tedious for me.
The view was excellent, but do I really want to look at never-ending blue-green waters and pretty islands for a whole hour and a half? At least my parents were happy:
They made up for the boredom by being subjects of my amateur photography skills. Hee.
An hour and a boring half later, we finally arrived at Boldt Castle. I really had no idea what or why it was an attraction; all we knew at that moment was that it was pretty, and my parents like pretty. And they were right—it was pretty.
The Boldt Castle was built by George C. Boldt, a millionaire (and popularizer of the famous Thousand Island dressing), for his wife Louise. He loved her so much that he bought a whole island in the Thousand Islands, and constructed a castle from scratch fit for an empress, all for the sake of impressing his wife. The castle was designed to be a six story, 120 room castle—complete with tunnels, a powerhouse, Italian gardens, a drawbridge, and a dove cote storing exotic fowls.
However, the grand story ended in tragedy. Louise never got to enjoy her castle, because she died at an early age of 45. The castle was only partially constructed at that time, and George Boldt didn’t have the heart to continue with it in his grief. In fact, he died never having seen the finished masterpiece of his romantic gift.
But in 1977, the Thousand Islands Bridge Authority decided to acquire the property, and to rehabilitate the construction to the wonderful dream house George envisioned for his wife…except, now it became a dream house for tourists of future generations.

So thank goodness, George Boldt’s efforts weren’t a total waste after all. After all, though his wife may not have been able to live in this castle, it is now open to everyone to enjoy…like my parents, who look like they’re on their second honeymoon here.
The funny thing is, Louisa…isn’t exactly a stunning beauty. When I saw her picture, I was a bit surprised, because I was expecting someone dead-drop gorgeous—a least, enough to capture the adoration of the wealthiest man in that age.
I caught the expressions of the other people who observed her portrait curiously, and all of them made a “What the heck?” expression when they saw a plump, plain-looking lady instead. I couldn’t help chuckling, but was also doubly impressed by this love story. Louisa may not have been a beauty, but that only proved that there was more than lust in this relationship. It only made George Boldt’s love seem more sincere and real.
After our short tour around the castle, we stopped for a quick lunch. There was a concession stand, and we got several items to share:
BBQ Pork bun with coleslaw (unpictured).
Hot dog with mustard, relish, onions, and ketchup.
Chili con carne.
Pizza rolls with Marinara sauce.
And ice cream cones for dessert! I think this was my favorite part of the day.
And then we trudged back to the coast line for another hour and a half…I had to stand up and walk to and fro to keep myself from falling asleep. I also entertained myself by taking candid pictures of my family again:
Tee hee! I thought my dad looked a decade younger with his cap worn backwards like that!
And that concluded our tour around the Thousand Islands. It wasn’t the end of our Day 3 in Canada, though. We had a long, long drive from Kingston to Quebec, where it was finally my turn to have my ideal vacation. I think you can guess how it’s gonna be like, but you’ll have to find out on the next post!

Related posts:

1. Now That’s MY Kind of Vacation!
2. Series of Unfortunate Events in NYC
3. Nice! Very Nice! Very Very Nice!
4. My Parents’ Hometown
5. Oh What A Wonderful Trip!

Tagged as: BBQ, beef, chili, deep-fried, dessert, hotdog, ice-cream, lunch, pizza, pork, sandwich, snack