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“Welcome to the United States of America, Honey!”

“It’s his first trip abroad,” I say.

“Oh! Welcome to the United States of America, Honey!”

The woman smiles at Mark, who smiles back. He is just too happy to be out of the car seat, and he is enjoying watching fast food employees running back and forth between the cash register and the kitchen.

I’m waiting for my coffee at Tim Hortons. But this is not the Tim Hortons at the corner of our street—it’s a bona fide American branch of the Canadian franchise. My humongous cup even reads “roasted in Rochester, NY.”

We are in Ogdensburg, New York State. Mark’s first international trip. Oh, I’m so proud of him—so far, he behaves.

Okay, this is not exactly and new-and-exotic location. Ogdensburg is the closest US town to Ottawa, a quick one-hour drive from home. But still, technically, it’s the first time Mark goes abroad—the three or four international trips he took when he was in my womb (France, New York State, NY City, France and London) don’t count, do they?

Mark is one of us now, a mini-traveller. We got him a passport. Applying for his first travel document was a strangely formal affair that began with very precise passport picture requirements (no smiling, mouth closed, eyes open, etc.). Fortunately, Mark is kind of used to me taking pictures of him and it was easy to get a good headshot of him.

I filled out the passport application, still doing the usual double take—yep, that’s me signing in the “mother” case. We then queued for 90 minutes at the Passport Canada office to drop off the application, and we were told to come back two weeks later.

Indeed, a fortnight later, Mark’s passport was ready. He got the newer kind, a completely redesigned document with a chip, additional security features and some cool images of the country.

So we decided to test Mark’s passport—and his behaviour when confronted to a new environment—by taking a day trip to Ogdensburg. Mission accomplished!

We hang out by the St Lawrence River, enjoyed the local playground and shopped at Walmart for oh-so-exotic US products.

Mark, the mini-backpacker… yep, he is our son!

Bridge Between Canada and the US
Bridge Between Canada and the US
Ogdensburg
Ogdensburg
American Teens, Fast Food and Big Cars
American Teens, Fast Food and Big Cars
St Lawrence River
St Lawrence River
Little House on the River
Little House on the River
Pump Out $5
Pump Out $5
Gone Fishin'
Gone Fishin’
Mark in the Swing
Mark in the Swing
Mom and Son
Mom and Son
Mark in the Swing
Mark in the Swing
The St Lawrence and Canada
The St Lawrence and Canada
Ogdensburg Marina
Ogdensburg Marina
The St Lawrence and Canada
The St Lawrence and Canada
The St Lawrence and Canada
The St Lawrence and Canada
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Zhu

French woman in English Canada.

Exploring the world with my camera since 1999, translating sentences for a living, writing stories that may or may not get attention.

Firm believer that nobody is normal... and it’s better this way.

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