On The Road Again - Day 3

We left Hershey, PA at around 9am today to continue our journey South.  Before making our way to Washington, DC we had a stop in Gettysburg.  Gettysburg is the location of one of the deadliest battles during the civil war.

The first place we explored on our self guided tour was the Soldiers' National Cemetery.

This is the location where Lincoln gave the famous Gettysburg address.

We saw quite a few markers and monuments along our tour.  But got out and stretched our legs on a hike up to the top of Big Round Top.

Then saw the amazing view from the top of Little Round Top.

After a picnic lunch, we made our way through Maryland, and into Virginia.  Our hotel is across the Potomac river from Washington in Arlington, VA.  We were excited to see the Washington Monument in the distance, as we approached our hotel.

Arlington is home to the Arlington National Cemetery: a huge national military cemetery.

I had no idea how many things in this cemetery were important monuments that I had heard about.  We stopped at the John F. Kennedy (and Family) burial.  Arlington House, Pan Am Flight 103 memorial, World War 2 memorial, Space Shuttle Columbia and Space Shuttle Challenger Memorials.

We had gorgeous views of Washington from the top of the hill! We could see the Washington Monument, the Pentagon, and the Capitol Building.

One of the coolest things we saw was the tomb of the unknown soldier.  We happened to be there during the changing of the guards, which is quite a traditional ceremony.

One thing that was quite interesting was how big the memorial is for the United States Marine Corps.  We expected it to be much smaller than it was...it's huge!

After a busy day with tons of walking in intense heat, we headed back to the hotel for dinner and a rest.  Tomorrow we cross the river into Washington, DC!

On The Road Again - Day 2

Today was all about amusement parks!  We started out in Knoebels.

Which is a free admission, free parking, awesome park!  You pay per ride...and on average, each ride costs about $1.75.   They welcome you to bring a picnic and come and go as you please.

There's something awesome about hand painted signs.  I really think it's a lost art! 

This place was truly a throw back to the amusement parks of the past.  They even had cassette tapes (of carousel tunes) and VHS tapes of the history of old fashioned carousel's for sale in the gift shop.

There were perfect rides for Logan, and some good roller coasters and fun rides for the big kids! 

It was super fun, and someone was totally tuckered out by the time we finished up!

We had some snacks in the park (if you go - you have to try the Frips!) - and a little lunch in the car before heading south to Hershey, PA!

The town is cute with street names like "Chocolate Ave" and "Cocoa Way".

We checked into our hotel, had a quick rest before heading out to explore Chocolate World!

There is a large Park area with a concert theatre, amusement park and Store area.  We decided that we wanted to stick to the Chocolate stuff, and skipped the park.

First, we did the "factory tour" - which wasn't unlike the 'It's a Small World' Ride at Disney.  We hopped into a cart that took us around and showed us a fun artificial factory, all while being sung to by happy milking cows!  The ride was actually fun, and ended with a free sample of chocolate!

Then we signed up for a chocolate tasting experience where we learned a bit about where chocolate comes from, and the proper way of tasting and evaluating chocolate.

Did you know that Hershey's Chocolate's signature flavour is known for having hints of old cheese!? Think about that the next time you're sucking on a Hershey's kiss!

After some exploring around the (huge) chocolate shop, we headed to a restaurant for dinner, and back to the hotel for a rest.  Tomorrow we head to Washington, DC!