Town full of charmsin Ontario

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Eliza Doolittle and Henry Higgins are spending their summer on the shores of Lake Ontario, in the pretty Canadian town of Niagara-on-the-Lake. The first time Eliza saw it, she must have gasped, "Owww, it's loverly."

I said something like that myself -- minus the cockney accent -- when my husband and I stumbled across it years ago during a visit to nearby (but worlds apart) Niagara Falls: "What a great place."

Even as he snickered at us, Henry would have had to agree. Here's why:

• Flowers everywhere -- cascading from hanging baskets, fences and rails and casting vibrant color across seemingly every yard and public space.

• Beautifully maintained homes dating from the early 19th century.

• More fine restaurants, shops, art galleries and artists' studios than can be covered in one visit.

• Small hotels, inns, bed-and-breakfasts, cottages and rental houses, but no high-rises, chain motels or traffic jams.

• Three intimate theaters within blocks of each other in which the Shaw Festival is presenting, this year, a total of 12 plays from early April through early December, including George Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion" with Eliza and Henry.

• Mile upon scenic mile of vineyards, fruit orchards, lush gardens and manicured parkland.

• More than 40 wineries producing ever-better, award-winning vintages in limited quantities hard to buy outside of Ontario.