RE spent waaayyy too much time over the years in line at Blaine getting in & out of Canada.

Yeah, crossing the border either way with the long lineups is a pain in the... The US-Can border is still closed to non-essential travel re Covid, was again extended yesterday til July 21. Been closed for over a year now. No US vacations again this summer it seems...

RE hotels would ask us for info when registering, we were "from Canada"

OH! So you pretended being Canadian at the hotel! This must be a very serious crime, LOL But i won't tell.