Crossing the border to Windsor!
Why choose an international meetup?
My French Meetup, The Wandering Francophones, has recently been enjoying meeting up with our Canadian members by finding restaurants just across the Michigan-Windsor border and meeting in Windsor for our meetup. This allows our Canadian bilingual friends to join us more easily than asking them to come to us (which they often do!). Crossing the border can be very easy, or it can be a massive headache, depending on several factors. Ensuring it’s easy for your members to join you on occasion can help to ensure you’ll have a successful language meetup for a long time to come.
To prep for crossing, we needed to ensure we had valid passports, a proper method of currency, and enough gas to get there and back. It doesn’t take long to get to Windsor from Southeast Michigan, so we didn’t need to plan as though we were going up north for a weekend trip.
Prepare for traffic and long lines
There happened to be an event going on downtown Detroit (and a cultural festival too in Canada) the very same weekend we chose to meet in Windsor, which led to some unfortunately long backups when heading to the Detroit-Windsor tunnel. I made the grave mistake of having lots of tea before embarking on the (normally) 40-minute drive, and quickly regretted doing so when I found myself parked in bumper-to-bumper traffic just outside the tunnel. What would have been 40 minutes ended up being closer to 1 hour and 15 minutes with the backups.
Plan for the unexpected
One of our members carpooled with another member, and they were held back by customs for a secondary search. This meant that they were a little later to the restaurant than the rest of the group (but not by much). You should always plan for unexpected stops when crossing the border as you never know if you will be pulled into secondary inspection.
Once I was able to get through, finding the restaurant was a piece of cake! We chose an Italian restaurant right near the border crossing that had free parking in the rear and on the streets in front. The restaurant, Cucina 360, was very accommodating to our large group, and the service was fantastic! I had the Mezze Maniche alla Carbonara, which was very filling and quite hearty, along with a glass of white wine. While we dined, a couple who appeared to be having their engagement photos taken was posing right outside our window, and we tried our best not to make silly faces (although it was difficult to avoid). After the meal, we were able to walk to the river to take pictures and enjoy the beautiful weather, as it was that close.
Check to ensure your cards will work
Because our American credit cards worked in the restaurant we chose, we didn’t have to stop for currency exchange before or after crossing the border. We just called the restaurant to make the initial reservation, and made sure over the phone that our cards would be accepted. It was as easy as that!
One of us had a hankering to visit the Caesars Windsor casino after dinner, so I decided to join her as I had about $30 CAD in my wallet from the last time I visited Windsor, and I wanted a reason to use it. I did pretty well in the beginning, but ended up losing it all in the slot machines. Oh, well – this is why I’m not a gambler.
We are fortunate to live so close to the border to be able to easily visit our neighbors to the North. Do you visit Windsor often? If so, what’s your favorite restaurant? Let me know in the comments!
