Rochester

There are many places called

Rochester in the USA, but this one is in

New York state.

It sits next to Lake Ontario, one of the Great Lakes, and is roughly directly opposite Toronto. People say “upstate NY” but it isn’t, it’s “Western NY”. Getting to Rochester is not easy. There is an airport, called an ‘international’ airport because it flies to Canada, or used to. Otherwise you need to go to Chicago, Washington or somewhere similar and change, or to Toronto and then drive around the lake, perhaps stopping off at Niagara Falls. There are some points of interest to the city. It is the home of Kodak, and you can go to visit George Eastman’s house for a tour or an exhibition or a film. There are the High Falls waterfalls. It is the home of Xerox, the Eastman School of Music, the Susan B Anthony House and more. It is also the home of Wegman’s supermarkets, always worth a visit. It’s not far from Buffalo, and there is a lot of nice countryside around. The Finger Lakes are an acceptable drive away. You used to be able to get a fast ferry to Toronto, but this stopped years ago. We have been told that the centre of Rochester is being re-developed. Last time we were there it was very grim. There are no specialist bear shops. If you don’t have a car, getting around is tricky as the bus service is a bit, well, odd and erratic, if inexpensive. Winters can be harsh (it’s the lake effect) and summers hot. Technically, the weather is described as ‘fickle’.