Trains, big and small!

Sunday, July 26

We took a walk around the campground for some much needed exercise, and I could see where the good ratings came from, as the lower areas are very wooded and lovely, and a nice stream runs through, where folks were dropping their lines or sitting on benches on the bank and enjoying the beautiful morning.  We got one of the last sites, having booked last minute, so of course, not the best.  At least now I get it!  

Chatted with guy about his Entegra coach, which he said was a piece of s _ _ _ _! Wow! Them’s strong words!  Then on to the days activities.

Being Sunday in a religious society, many things were closed, and we went resignedly to the Choo Choo Barn train display, not expecting much at 1700 square feet, when we had just seen 5000, but were we surprised!  While not as extensive, it was amazingly animated, with little people sawing and chopping, and even a firetruck and men arriving to put out a fire in a house!  Very cool, and we really enjoyed it!  Clem studied it closely, and was clearly enjoying himself.  And a train store right next door? Seventh heaven!!
                   

                                                     

Had lunch at a sandwich shop in what looked like
a train car….very cute! 

Then on down the street to the real trains, and a museum, which again, was very surprising and impressive! We only had two hours, and could probably used more, but it was really neat, with so many old cars all inside in AC, and a several more waiting for restoration outdoors. I have to admit, I do enjoy the old trains, and I took a ton of photos.  Some were quite special.  

The area has many traditional Dutch Smorgasbords, and we decided to try one, but one that offered a menu as well.  Glad that was the choice!  The food was so abundant!  Of the many offerings, I chose Miller’s for its history since 1931, and it was very nice, and also had a store in front, as other stores outside.  We didn’t have to wait, but if you did, you could be entertained!  The quilt shop had so many quilts, I just looked briefly and walked out!  Where would one begin??  The quilt shops here are many and a quilter could lose their minds!  Anyway, food was passable, dessert was great, including Shoo Fly Pie, and I was glad we went, though we would not return.  (The story was he fixed folks trucks, apparently at a Texaco station, and she fed the truckers waffles and chicken, and that is how it all started!  The hostess stand is the front of an old truck!  Cute!)

Lancaster and Bird in Hand

Arrived in Lancaster to what was rated very high campground, and discovered, much to my dismay, that it is at an Amusement Park!  Designed for little kids!  We are maybe 5 sites away from the roller coaster, and I am not happy!  Why the great ratings??  Oh well, we are here, and to see the area, so our 5 star accommodations will suffice!  And if I question Clem again on why, he is going to smack me, so let it be!!  

It was early enough, so we set out to see the Central Market in the downtown.  Surprised to see a similar Sailor/Soldier monument in the square, much like the one in Allentown.  In fact, I believe it had a confederate soldier, which they told us there was very rare for a northern monument. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was a duplicate.  But since I messed up my photo in Allentown.( that darn ISO again!) I can’t compare!  Maybe check them out on the internet.  Anyway, had some difficulty finding the actual market, with construction,(again like Allentown!) and a market mall, which lured us in thinking it was the place, and by the time we finally found it, it was closed!!  Nothing we read had indicated 2:00 on Saturdays!  Nor that it was only open three days a week! Pretty disappointing!  Beautiful building, built in 1736, and the oldest market in the U.S. Reminded me of a small Quincy Market, and I wish we could have seen it.  We stopped at the visitors center, where we were directed to stores and restaurants, looked at each other, and headed back to the coach!  

                 

We had driven thorough Bird in Hand on the way in, and I had spotted a hand rolled pretzel place, so we stopped there for a yummy treat!  The Amish gals were working hard in the heat and a busy day, but still had a smile for us, and bid us a good weekend.  Lots of buggies driving through town, and what looked like a few folks on bicycles, but while we enjoyed our pretzels, we realized they were really scooters, with bicycle sized tires.  All the Amish, right down to the smallest children, were dressed in bonnets or straw hats, and pile the family into the buggies to go out….to who knows where!  Saturday night on the town?  Glimpses into the farm yards show them sweeping, moving the buggies, etc.  Beautiful countryside, clean, neat barns and farms.  Quite lovely.  

We walked around Kettle Village, a better done, tourist attraction than the one in Mystic that we skipped, with shops and we had an ice cream, then headed back for the evening.  Pretzels and ice cream…..good dinner!!  

Last day in Kutztown campground

Saturday, July 25

Nice morning….surprised that several folks who pulled in last night have already left this morning!  Two fifth wheels with youngish couples, sans kids, were gone by the time I raised the shades!  And the A class next to us, with TWO couples, left shortly thereafter.  Not that I raised the shades that early….with the closeness of the sites, I left them down this morning while we had breakfast.  

I put a load of laundry in, and have been dusting and cleaning…even mopped the floors!  Fairly quick work in the small space!  Though I try to dust all surfaces, with Clem sneezing, and us picking up plenty of dust!  

It occurs to me that he seems more relaxed the last couple of days, and we are enjoying exploring, and sitting outside, and it just feels comfortable….like home.  Staying in one place for several days has been very enjoyable, especially with the nice weather.  I am not anxious to return to the heat that is south Florida right now, I must say.  

We leave this campground today for Lancaster, not far, and another 3 days there to explore. 

Allentown

Friday, July 24

The day dawned cool and sunny, and we took our coffee outside to enjoy the beautiful morning, and discuss our plans from here.  We are really taking this one as it goes!  

We decided we would go the short distance to Lancaster, PA tomorrow and stay a couple of days to explore the surrounding area.  And in the meantime, today’s exploration will be to Allentown, about 30 minutes from here.  Of course, Billy Joel’s song was on my mind, and I listened carefully to the lyrics on our way there.  Living in Allentown, coal gone from the ground, graduation on the wall, not as promised, getting hard to stay…..fascinating.  

Its a big town, and the houses are attached and crowded….at least the part of town we saw, which was not the best.  But our goal was the Mac Truck Museum, and you would not expect that to be in the best part of town!  The tour was so much better than I could have anticipated, and we donned our little bull dog pins, and thoroughly enjoyed our time there.  We actually ended up with a personal tour, as we were the only two at the time, which proved probably even more interesting!

Starving at 1:00, we looked up two noted restaurants, and opted for the Brass Rail, established in 1931, over Willy’s, the chili dog place!  Lunch was good, with Clem enjoying a cheese steak and a pierogi, which apparently figures into the area as it was featured at both restaurants.  Not my cup of tea, ever, he had never had one, so it was a good time to try!  

On to the Model Train exhibit, with little hope of it being very good, and we were pleasantly surprised to find a very large exhibit of both O scale and Ho, and tons of buildings, a circus, subway, working drive in theatre, and a huge lake where it rained and thundered during the half hour exhibit!  Very cool!

We had an issue finding the Liberty Bell Museum, but I was glad we persevered, as it proved very interesting!  Neither of us had any idea that it had been removed from Philadelphia and hidden under the floorboards of a church in Allentown!   An exact replica is now in the basement of the church, with stories of the way it traveled around the country for 30 years, before resting as it does now , fully protected, in Philly.  Each state capital also has an identical replica.  We were allowed to ring it with a rubber mallet, and the docent clanged it gently for us, and the sound is loud and  amazing.  A very fun, full day!

The campground filled up while we were gone, this being Friday, and we are less than pleased with it now!  Sites are close, and nothing between coaches, like bushes or a barrier of any kind, and you sit outside and look at the side of your neighbors coach!  Glad we are heading out tomorrow!  

Kutztown

Wednesday we headed west , and stopped in Kutztown to check out the area, get info on the festival, and see the Hex Sign Barns.  Girl at the campground says it isn’t much anymore, and did a good job of talking me out of it!  Parked early, and hung out again, read and napped.  Getting to be lazy this trip!  Lovely horse farm next door, and the beautiful animals are prancing in their paddock.  Nice campground, Pine Hill….but the road noise is a drawback.  Some folks are here for extended stays, though, which surprises us.  Had a BBQ dinner, and I walked around the campground, and even went on the swings, and enjoyed the scenery and evening air.

Thursday, July 23

The surrounding countryside is gorgeous, with huge farms, and tons of corn.  We played golf on Thursday at Berkleigh CC, former home to the LPGA, and it was a beautiful old course, with huge trees.  Not a lot of trouble, but enjoyable on a gorgeous weather day in the big trees with the breezes blowing!  Played with two nice guys who visit Florida, and were both double E’s like Clem!  

After golf, we took our map of the barns and set out to spot Hex signs.  Well, that was interesting, as the map does not have road names, and we were figuring out where to turn by second left after the right off of Rt 143!  We did spot some, and enjoyed the beautiful countryside, but had to finally just plug in something we knew the address for and give it up!  Went into Kutztown and found a Dry Goods store , run by menonite women in traditional garb, and set on a farm next to a gorgeous stone house.  The big old stone houses around here are beautiful!  The store had more material than I had ever seen, and a quilting room, and my quilting friends would go bonkers!

Next back into downtown, which was much larger than we had expected, is celebrating some 300 years in existence, and has a university that is 150 years old!  Quite large, old, and charming town, and we stopped at Pop’s for a burger and malted, and Clem was in seventh heaven!  Tomorrow is our supposed last day here, so we need to decide where we head next!  I told him chart a course for home, and he wasn’t yet ready…..a switch!  We will see what tomorrow brings!

A surprise stop in Milford, PA

Tuesday we headed out for parts undecided!  I had mentioned several things which Clem was not really interested in, and I finally said, just chart a path toward home, and we will play it by ear.  We stopped at my now most hated campsite for the night, the Kittatiny Canoe place along the Delaware River!  Not that it is so awful, just that it really isn’t intended for big rigs, and has a steep , rocking entrance on a steep downgraded road, and I feel like we stick out like sore thumbs there……which we do!  Rocking and rolling in and out causes things to shift and fall, and I hate it!  Made Clem promise we would not stop again…this being the third time!  Good fortune this time, however, as it took us via a different highway exit, and we drove through the cute little town of Milford, PA.   We parked the coach, unhooked the car ( which we usually don’t do there), and headed out to explore. 

                       Note: do not visit on a Tuesday, or after 4, because things are closed! Odd day to close!

 Really cute, quaint town, though, and home to Gifford Pinchot, head of the Forestry, and his home, Gray Towers stands high upon a ledge above town.  We missed the tour, but drove up to see the estate and it was beautiful.  Had dinner at what I termed the local Cracker Barrel, and it turned out to be pretty good!  Especially the peanut butter pie!  Although, I have been getting little exercise, and eating too many goodies, and am feeling like this must end!!  The waitress grew up in the town, left, but has returned to teach school in what she says is an area that her generation are trying to bring back to its glory days.  No industry, it relies on tourism from the Delaware River, and attracts folks from NY and NJ, some of whom have vacation homes in the area.

Weekend in Connecticut

Our plan for today is to visit the Wolfs at their summer cottage not far from here.  Jan noticed on Facebook that we were between their condo and cottage, and wants to meet for lunch, so we will try to work that out.  We may just stay here a couple more days to see the surrounding area.  Saturday is Water/fire in Providence, and that is the plan, barring rain.  

Friday we caught up on laundry and some house keeping, and then on the way to the Wolf's, took  a drive through the towns of Old Lyme and Old Saybrook  which I found disappointing.  I expected quaint little towns, with fun shops to roam, and that was not the case.  Afterward, we drove to Clinton to the Wolf's , whose house is right on Long Island sound, and the cool breezes required donning sweaters and lighting the heat lamps for our lobster dinner on the deck!  What a great view!  I can understand why they love it, despite the fact that they say there is really not much else to do there.

Had some rain on Saturday, so didn’t see Joe and Jan, and hung out and read most of the day, which is something we may have done at home, and it was rather fun and cozy!  Sunday we decided to visit Mystic Seaport, thinking it would be cooler than golf, since we are now in a heat wave!  It was comfortable, as long as we got the breeze off the water, and were in the shade but it was a really hot and humid day! 

We enjoyed  the village, and our lunch at the tavern, and drove home hot and tired.

East Lyme and Essex

June 17, Friday 

Brrrrrr…..a seriously chilly morning at 57 degrees!  I don’t think it hit 80 yesterday, and low humidity…..gorgeous day!  We are in a bit of a cold front, apparently, as warmer temps and humidity due to return in a couple of days, but in the meantime, we are enjoying it immensely.  Though I have to admit at 64 interior temp this morning, we were tempted to turn on the heat! 

We arrived in East Lyme at Aces High Campground on Wednesday afternoon, hot and humid day, and we stayed in and relaxed.  Yesterday we left early and took the Essex Steam Train and Steamboat Ride down the Connecticut River.  We opted for the open rail car to improve our view, but most of that was through the woods.  When it opened up to the river view it was very nice, and because the car was an additional charge, and the ticket guy was pushing the better comfort of the bench seats, we had the car to ourselves, with the exception of one young guy and his dad!  A young man clad in 1880’s attire was calling Extra, Extra, and handing out newspapers with news of Coolidge as we left the station with the conductor calling all aboard.  Rocking and rolling down the rails was quite fun, despite an occasional cloud of smoke or dusting of ash and bits of coal!  We moved forward in the car to eliminate the ash!  The steam whistle and horn blasted through each intersection, and amused drivers waved. Clem has never been willing to take one of these rides, but he enjoyed it, and maybe will now do some others, as long as they are not really long in length.  This one was just right.

 

After the trip, we drove to Gillette Castle, opting for the bridge rather than the ferry that takes you across the river.  We had taken Chris there when he was young and we lived in CT, but did not remember it well.  Very interesting place, and what a setting on the river!  Cost a million dollars to build in early 1900’s!  Peculiar place built by an eccentric actor who created the Sherlock Holmes character as we know him, and not written by Doyle.  Good story, interesting place.  Dinner at the G——- Inn for the ambiance on the river, was less than wonderful, but it was a neat old place and adjacent to Goodspeed Opera House, where La Cage was playing, or we would have taken in a show.  (I would have anyway, but Clem was not game!)

We were settling in at the coach, when a young man came over and said he was going to be a nosy neighbor.  He said they had been walking around, and noticed all the A class, but of course, it was our pocketbook! haha!  They have 3 small kids, and a fifth wheel with two bunkhouses!  Plenty of room for the kids to have a play area.  They are here for their daughters dance competition….7 years old.  Nice guy, and we chatted a while before he headed out to get some firewood that was perhaps cheaper than the 7 bucks they want here.  

Our neighbors to our right were gone when we got back, surprisingly.  We had chatted with them the day before when we got in. They had been on a caravan, Fantasy Tours, to the maritimes with a group they had taken one to Alaska with.  From Idaho or somewhere, they were headed to Rhinebeck, and then meandering on home.  

While thinking about “neighbors”, I have to mention the couple next to us at Minuteman.  We discovered they sold their house and all their belongings, and moved into a B+!  Newbies…..no tow car…..definitely learning the hard way, and having considerable troubles with their coach!  They blew the 30 amp service so badly, they were running their generator when we got back one evening.  Clem finally went to see if he could find out what was going on so we didn’t have to listen to that all night!  He was tinkering under the hood, and finally called a repair man.  We chatted with them the last morning at length….said they were into the “small house” movement, so decided to do this!  

Our time in Boston has flown!

July 15, 2015

Well, we leave Boston today, with mixed emotions .  It has been so nice to be near the kids, and see them when we can.  We planned tons of exploration for weekdays, when we figured we wouldn't see the kids, and have not done much of the plan.  But we have seen the kids often, played golf, hung out with Ogrodnicks, and had a very nice time!  I could stay longer, or we could move on.  I think Clem feels the same way.  We enjoyed playing the golf courses, which are so different from Florida, and will buy a card next year for Shaker Hills while we are here.  We have booked a month for next year, and can adjust down, but are assured of a site.  We had to move to a site with no sewer in order to stay the extra week this time, and we made it, but not without a couple of showers at the camp facility!

We toured Gloucester with Ogrodnicks, and went to the Sleeper-McCann House, home of the country's first interior designer.  We have been in many historic homes, but this one was the most unusual, and very interesting.  No photos, unfortunately.

We went to Battleship Cove with the kids, which was very neat, and we all enjoyed going in the ships and the submarine.  The Isabella Stewart Gardner museum is still on my list, and we will have to do it next time! haha!! 

A search for a Roadside America listing resulted in Lizzie Borden house! Check one off!

It was rainy for the 4th, so we went to the movies with the kids and saw the amazing Pixar movie, Inside Out, which everyone enjoyed. Then Kimble's for ice cream!

We also went with the kids to the De Cordova, and were unimpressed by exhibit, but enjoyed the grounds and sculptures.  Kind of warm and humid, and we headed home tired after a full day that day.  A plan for a second  BBQ at the coach was changed to their house because it was too hot, and Clem joined the girls in the pool before dinner.  By the time we ate, it was nice enough to sit out on their porch, which was nice.  

Heading to CT next,and some exploring and relaxing there.  Clem wanted to head south rather than north, which I believe means he is nearing his end! We are planning this trip as we go, and have considered meeting Florida friends who are in the northeast, but will most likely see Karen and Howard at their summer house on the shore.