Ridin' the rail!

We took a train today. Yesterday I posted that I had never been on a train and today David corrected me. I have been on a few trains - but they were all in Europe. (We took Italian trains between Venice and Milan. That too was a beautiful experience and one I hope to repeat!)

But I've never been on a train in the States. It was amazing but too short! Gettysburg Scenic Railway offers a variety of trips, with the Scenic route we took today being the shortest. It was also the only one offered as part of our compensation package with the campground, so free is free - we gladly accepted it!

Right now, they have a limited schedule but plans for next year will expand. Some of the other rides offered include a Mystery Dinner Theatre; Ghost Trains; Dinner Trains; Teddy Bear Express, Fall Foliage tours and the Santa Express. Rides last from 1-3 hours, depending on the tour. If you've never been on a train ride, it's a great experience.

Our buddy Skip went with us. The train was not crowded. Less than one hundred people were on the cars so we had room to spread out a bit. It was a little warm, but the windows were open and the ceiling fans in our car were spinning so it was not unbearable. The trip was a 16 mile journey passed battlefields, into woods and through small (don't blink you might miss it) towns towards Biglerville. We stopped just outside of town, changed direction and headed back to Gettysburg.

The rhythm was pleasant and soothing, the whistle varying and romantic. Our tour guide - I'm not sure if he's the conductor or not - was humorous and memorable and sported one of the prettiest handlebar mustaches I've ever seen.

I decided that one day, I will feature an extended train ride in one of my books, and one day I would personally take an extended train ride. What a regal way to travel!

Train ride

We are going on a scenic train ride Monday. Stay tuned for details! I'm so excited. My grandfather retired from the railroad after 39 years, but I've never been on a "real" train. (Those rides at Six Flags don't count.)

I'll post Monday evening.

We're still up north, but I'm already dreaming of the palm trees! 

Philadelphia

Philadelphia captured my heart.

We arrived in Philly the afternoon of July 4th. Our hotel, Society Hill Hotel, was located at the intersection of 3rd & Chestnut and although parking was at a premium, we did find one spot nearby. Check-in took place in the bar/restaurant below the hotel, then we made our way to the second floor.

This hotel is the oldest bed & breakfast in Philly. It has plenty of charm and the location is absolutely perfect. The condition is not so great, but I met the manager as we were checking out and he asked how we liked our stay, what they could do to improve and told me they were in the process of renovations. As long as they don't demolish the character of the place, it will remain one of our favorites of all the places we've ever stayed.

We were within walking distance of EVERYTHING! Two blocks from the Liberty Bell, 1/2 block from Ben Franklin's courtyard, printing press and post office, 4 blocks from the Visitor's Center, 2 blocks from the Delaware River. We walked everywhere, including down to South Street to try a cheesesteak at Jim's.

Ok - we tried all three major cheesesteak houses and our favorite was....(drumroll please)... Pat's. Just thinking about that cheesesteak makes me want to drive the 3 hours to get one!!! Neither of us could tell you what the difference was between Geno's, Jim's and Pat's, but Pat's was definitely the best in our book. Jim's had a great atmosphere - it was fun reading all the celebrity autographs on the walls as we waited in line.

Our tour of the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall was unforgettable. The staff of the National Park Service were knowledgeable, friendly and flexible - we saw several of them in a variety of places and jobs in our three days in town.

As we exited a security gate at Independence Hall, I asked the security guard about the fencing. It looked fairly new, and even temporary. She said the extra security had been in place since 9/11; before that time, the park was open to just roam the grounds like a city park. It's sad that terrorists forced this upon us, but I'm so thankful we can preserve such a beautiful site.

We studied Benjamin Franklin in depth while I homeschooled my son, so it was very emotional and heartwarming to walk in his footsteps and see his life in "action." The printing press, the underground museum and the courtyard offered tremendous insights to his genius, and glimpses into his personal life that we had not discovered in our studies. Then, to meet "Benjamin Franklin" in person, well, it felt like I had stepped back in time!

The streets we walked were safe and beautiful. I've said numerous times since our visit that if I ever have to live in the north, Philly is my city of choice!

David surprised me our last night there. He had noticed a specialty shops in our walking and after a pizza he took me to this shop for dessert. Gelato! Since our trip to Venice years ago, we have searched high and low for gelato in the States that was comparable to what we had in Italy. Until Philadelphia, we had not found any to compare. Cafe Toscano even had Frutti di Bosco - my very favorite flavor. Of course, over here, the cost is ten times as high as in Italy, but if you factor the airline ticket into it....

I was remiss at getting the name of the place. I was so overwhelmed to find this delectable delight in what seemed an unlikely place that I never paid attention to the name. As we walked out the door, we met Benjamin Franklin. Immediately I was transported back in time and just stood there grinning at him as he walked by us. Then I turned and said, "Excuse me, can I take your picture?" He graciously smiled and nodded, and I snapped.

When we had the pictures developed, we realized he was standing next to the door of the gelateria and we could read the name in the picture. What fun!

We drove through Chinatown and snapped a few pictures; we passed Reading Terminal, but ran out of time to visit.

Philadelphia, we'll hopefully see you again one day!

Hershey

Our trip to Hershey's Chocolate World was great fun. The tour of the simulated process was interesting and informative; the rich smell of chocolate permeating the tour was a treat in itself. The souvenir shops were a little hectic, but a challenge to explore. The price range of souvenirs was varied, so I was able to purchase little "somethings" for my children, nieces and nephews.

We chose not to visit the amusement park, but one day may return for that purpose alone.

We enjoyed driving through town and seeing all the Hershey kiss lamps.

Washington DC

As part of our compensation package, our campground offered us bus tours of Washington DC.

With the first tour, the focus was mainly on Arlington Cemetery. Before going there, it would not have been at the top of my list, but now I'm so glad we did. It was a very moving experience and one I will never forget. We saw monuments commemorating astronauts, sailors and soldiers galore. The number of unknown soldiers was enough to break my heart.

The changing of the guard ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was reverent and precise.

After Arlington, we visited many of the memorials and monuments. We weren't able to see them all, but we plan to do that on our next trip.

The Iwo Jima memorial was massive. I had seen countless photos of it but never realized how large it actually is. Very beautiful and impressive.

The Korean memorial was my favorite. The lifesize statues of the soldiers, detailed down to their facial expressions, created a scene that was emotional and haunting.

I had expected the Lincoln Memorial to be quieter, more reverent, but it wasn't. Not sure if it's always that noisy, or if that day was an exception, but the noise was distracting. The statue of Lincoln is profound.

After viewing the memorials and monuments, we had two hours at the Smithsonian. David and I chose the American History museum as our choice for the day and plan to visit others on our next trip. This was a fun museum, but we were disappointed that a couple of different exhibits we had hoped to see were closed for renovation.

With so much to see in DC, we plan to one day come back to the area and spend more time there. One day is only an appetizer.

Baltimore

Our good friend Skip played tour guide (and photographer) on a trip to Baltimore. He's originally from there, and a retired postman, so we had the ultimate experience.

Our first stop when we got to Baltimore was Fort McHenry, then we went to the main area of the Inner Harbor. We explored submarines, ships and lighthouses. The area impressed me with its cleanliness and layout. Of course, the beautiful day made it even more impressive.

We took a water taxi over to Fells Point, an area I compared to Atlanta's Midtown, or Little Five Points. It was an eclectic mixture of shops, restaurants and parks, making it a perfect date spot.

Baltimore's World Trade Center offers a view of the town from its "Top of the World" Observation deck, but it was closed on the day we visited. (It is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays, so plan accordingly)

For an early dinner Skip took us to his favorite restaurant, Schultz's Crabhouse, where I ate my first Maryland crab cakes. Yummmy! The atmosphere in this mom-and-pop joint was fun and fishy (decor, not smell).

We will definitely return to Baltimore.

Gettysburg

We arrived in Gettysburg March 19, 2005 in the midst of flood season, I think. It rained so much the first two weeks we were here, David said we should have brought an ark rather than an RV!

Gettysburg is surprising in many ways. Even though it is a northern town, it has a slight "flavor" of Southern in some aspects, but it's still almost impossible to find good tea here!

I will edit this particular post over the months as we visit a various attractions and I will also create another post with restaurant listings.

Attractions visited and my comments:

• Auto tour of Gettysburg Battlefield. We took this tour within a few days of arriving here. For me, it was very emotional. I am not a history buff, at least with dates, generals, etc, but I do love the social aspects of studying history. Driving along and listening to the tape while looking out at the battlefields made the war come alive to me. I envisioned young men, brother against brother, battling for their cause. By the end of the tour I had put a dent in our tissue box.
• American Civil War Museum. This was formerly the Wax Museum, but they changed the name in the last year or so. After getting tickets, we walked through a turnstile into a very dark hallway which guided us to numerous vignettes. Wax figures of prominent citizens during the Civil War era told the history leading up to the war. The figures were a little on the spooky side, some appearing very real, others appearing very waxy! But the storyline was good and led to a theatre. There we were treated to a movie, with a lifesize diorama depicting scenes the movie described. The most moving part was when President Lincoln "arrived" to give the Gettysburg Address.
• Cyclorama. The National Park service is closing down in November 2005 for two years. During this time, they will build a new facility a half mile away where the Cyclorama will then be moved. The old building will be torn down and that portion of the battlefield will be restored to that era. The painting is magnificent. A must see!
• Gettysburg Diorama. This wonderful display is in an unlikely location, a campground store. But the owner has done a wonderful job with the miniature pieces, thousands of them, and the story offered is very good.
• Hall of Presidents. This was a fun exhibit. Lifesize wax figures of every President are on display through a program that offers a glimpse into each of their lives. Truly fascinating. It was here I learned that Eisenhower was a talented artist. For some reason, that made him seem more "real" to me, rather than a figure in the history books. This museum also has an Eisenhower display. The former president retired to Gettysburg after his presidency, so the museum focuses on his life here. Very interesting.
• Lincoln Train Museum. A train-lovers' joy! Visitors are encouraged to examine hundreds of miniature model trains, push buttons to start other trains moving around tracks and then take a simulated train ride on the train which brought Lincoln to Gettysburg in 1863. A wonderful place to visit for kids of all ages.

The journey begins

I'm a little late getting this blog started, so for the first post, I'll back track.

We left GA the end of February and headed to Tampa to claim our "new" RV. Arriving at the owner's home, we panicked. We had seen pictures online of the location, it appeared to be located in a "regular" neighborhood. But it was on a farm with dirt roads, and even a one-lane (barely) wooden bridge to cross. We weren't sure we could get the 5th wheel out of there!

The deal went smoothly and soon we were on the road. We had made reservations in Tampa with Lazy Days RV Park, by staying there we could take their one day driving course for free. The four days we were there, we were able to get acquainted with our new home, and find out all the things wrong with it. Thankfully, the RV had come with a 3-yr warranty, or we would have probably taken it back to the seller before the day was through.

The driving course was fun. Jim was our teacher, and by the time we were done for the day, we were confident we could park the thing "easily." Ha!

We then headed for Selma where we visited with David's family for a couple of weeks. While there, we took the RV to a repair center and had all of the warranty work done on it. That took a bit longer than expected, but God's timing is always perfect and things worked out beautifully.

Then the campground called and asked if we could come early; we were eager to get our adventure started so we agreed.

I didn't realize that homesickness would overwhelm me for a day or two! We had our "home" with us, but we didn't bring Jonathan, Zach, Daddy Frank or Rebecca!