About St. Catharines
The SCM 09 will be held at Brock University in the town of
St. Catharines located in the Niagara region of Ontario. St. Catharines is known as "The Garden City" because of its many gardens and green spaces.
It was built in the late 1900's along the Welland canal that connects Lake Erie and Lake Ontario and many of the original Victorian brick buildings
are preserved in the old part of the city. The region has many tourist attractions that are well worth a visit. Click here to see a gallery of photos from the region.
Niagara Falls
The major attraction of the area is, of course, Niagara Falls. The Falls are formed when the Niagara River flows over the Niagara Escarpment, which is the former coastline of an ancient sea that once covered much of what is now eastern North America. The Niagara River forms the border between the US and Canada and Niagara Falls is actually two sets of Falls, one on the American side and one on the Canadian side where the river flows around Goat Island. An excursion to the Falls and a trip on the boat "The Maid of the Mist" to view them close-up is planned for the conference.
Wine Country
Surprisingly, the Niagara peninsula is on the same latitude (43°) as southern France and central Italy. The rich soil and long hot summers make the region ideal for the production of wine and it is known for its gourmet restaurants scattered throughout the countryside. There are about 60 wineries on the peninsula, most of them clustered along bottom of the escarpment where the soil is particular good for growing grapes. The conference banquet will be held at one of these wineries and tour of their wine making facilities is planned.
Unlike most wine regions, the winters in Niagara are very cold thus it is known internationally for its ice wine. For this type of wine the grapes are allowed to remain on the vines until they freeze in the winter. After several days of temperatures below -8°C the grapes are harvested and pressed while they are frozen. When the grapes freeze, the sugar is concentrated in the centre of the fruit and so the juice obtained by pressing the frozen grapes has a very high sugar content. The wine made from this juice is a sweet dessert wine with a rich fruity flavour. Apart from ice wine the area is also known for its Riesling and Chardonnay and many of the wineries also produce excellent Rosé. A tour of the local wineries is highly recommended, particularly those in the Twenty Valley to the west of St. Catharines.
Niagara-on-the-Lake and Fort George
There are several historic sites along the Niagara River related to the war of 1812 between the newly independent United States and British Upper Canada. Brock University, where the conference will be held, derives its name from the British General, Sir Isaac Brock, who defended the peninsula from invading American forces. Fort George which served as the headquarters for the British during the war of 1812 is a National Historic Site preserved by Parks Canada. The town of Niagara-on-the-Lake, located on Lake Ontario at the mouth of the Niagara River, is the former capital of Upper Canada. Many of its early 19th century buildings have been preserved and the small shops and boutiques along the main street make for a pleasant outing.
Toronto
Toronto is Canada's largest city and it lies at the heart of the "Golden Horseshoe" urban area which is home to about 8 million people. It is probably the most ethnically diverse city in the world and more than half the current population were born outside Canada. The neighbourhoods of Kensington Market, The Danforth and The Beaches are just a few of the areas of the city worth visiting.