North to Ronks

Today we left the Capital, after one last, supreme breakfast at the Embassy Suites. First stop was the Gettysburg Visitor Center and Museum. Our visit there started with a short, introductory film about the events leading up to the important battle that took place there during the American Civil War between the Confederate and Union forces. Following the film, we watched a short battlefield presentation on a large cyclorama. It was an immersive experience in which you are standing in the middle of the battle that is raging all around you. We then toured the museum with its extensive collection of artifacts from the battle. By this time we were all ready for lunch so we drove into the historic town of Gettysburg to find a restaurant. We decided on a nice Mexican place.

Back in the car, our next destination on the route was an antique store located in Harrisburg, called "The Atomic Warehouse". On arrival, the first thing I saw as I approached the entrance was a rack of porn magazines. I got a bad feeling as I entered that this was not quite what I had expected. Very messy and disorganized. Lots of interesting items but not much in the way of vintage clothing for men that I thought would be interesting for the boys. However, all was not lost because Aaron found a 1970's era skateboard for $20.

Next stop on today's journey was The Hershey Chocolate Factory in Hershey, PA. We all love chocolate so this was a sure bet. It turns out to be more than just a factory with a retail store. It is a huge tourist attraction complete with tours, an amusement park, make your own chocolates and a restaurant. We take a tour of what I thought would be the factory, but it is actually a Disney style ride with cartoon characters and a simulation of all the steps involved in making chocolate. It was informative nonetheless. We all buy a chocolate souvenir and head back to the car for our final leg of the trip to our destination, Ronks, PA.

Ronks is just a small community, but it is in the heart of Amish farm country. I wanted to give the kids a chance to see a long lost, simpler life, free of many of the technologies that now complicate our lives. As well, we are staying in a rather unique hotel. The rooms are all repurposed cabooses!Read more