oui, merci

I don't need to go into all the details behind the decision to travel through Ontario on the way home from Boston with my daughter, other than to say we were moving her back to Wisconsin after her successful college experience. What is more important about this piece is the question posed to us while trying to enter Ontario, near Niagara Falls.

Our vehicle was packed completely full with my daughter's possessions. The Canadian border patrol agent took one look at us, after we delivered our passports, and said "you need to prove to me that you are just passing through and not intending to deposit your daughter and her belongings in Canada". The gentleman was very intense, twice shared he was not trying to be difficult, but insistent upon our proving we were passing through and not intending to stay. At one point he said "This is Canada. We do not have to let you into our country. And if you cannot prove to me that you are merely passing through I can assure you it is a very long walk around the lake."

I have to admit being intimidated, which is likely the effect the man was attempting to create. At one point I even had a brief thought of "how dare you...I'm from the U.S. Why would I want to live in Canada?". I didn't go there.

But it got me thinking about what I could do to demonstrate that I was just passing through. He used an analogy of what happens at the border of Mexico and the U.S. He posited that U.S. border patrol agents deal with carloads of people of Mexican descent claiming they are just wanting to come into the country for a visit and plan to go back.

While I did not like being put on the spot to such an intense degree, I admit that the task before us...and that of the border patrol agent...is rather significant. What proof is necessary to demonstrate that people are passing through? What would it take? It's not like I can bring a letter from home saying "my wife can vouch for me". Certainly I could have asked a Wisconsin congressman to write a letter on our behalf. I reckon a copy of my house mortgage would be some level of proof. My passport certainly was not enough.

In the end we gave the man my daughter's State of Wisconsin ID, and her college ID (it was expired). Having obtained what he needed, the border patrol agent said "just go".

I will live with this on my mind for a time. What can I do to prove I am not just passing through.