Prologue completed: crossing the border into Canada

When I was a kid in the communist Hungary crossing the border to Slovakia - where most of our relatives lived - was a nightmare. We were not travelling often, maybe once every two years or so but I recall the nervousness every time we did. When the officer had a bad day (and they had that 8 out of 10) then they ripped apart the bags and searched everything in a very nasty and commanding way. We felt really vulnerable and possibly there did I got fed up with power plays. Although in the past years I got used to a more carefree travel within the EU this border crossing from the USA to Canada was a bit different.

I had my return flight booked from Montreal to Budapest for tomorrow. I have booked a suitable storage for the camper and the car for the next two weeks and we have our flights booked from Budapest to Montreal to the whole family, the dog included! So not making now would have launched an avalanche of problems. Therefore a little memory of the childhood nervousness kicked in as I approached the Canadian border.

There was a quite strict lady behind the glass wall and she kept asking questions. Why do I go? What is this temporary delaware plate on the car and the trailer? Why why and why? I kept answering and told her my plans, the coming weeks with the family and how excited I was to start this journey. She did not smile but listened. Then after a few more questions she finally said to pull over to the next available spot and their colleagues will be with me. This was already a good step forward and I parked the car and the trailer at the indicated spot.

In a few minutes a friendly young officer came to me and asked to open up the trailer. He was asking the same "why" questions and I told him our plans and the schedule of the coming days. He was more interested and asked more details about my plans. He was friendly and to the point and when he realised that my intentions are good and we want to explore Canada and the USA and then Mexico he smiled and wished all the best. I was let in to Canada as planned! When I left the border crossing I shouted loudly in the car to express how happy I was and to get rid of the tension from my childhood. This was a very exciting but also tiring few days. I drove 750 miles, consumed one gallon of coca cola, one family sized M&Ms, some more sweets and an AC under the bridge. Good that I had some spare time and spare money to fix all the difficulties and finally I parked my rig at the camping in Montreal. I have one night here and then have to go to the airport for my return flight. In less than two weeks we will be back with the kids and the real adventure starts!