A Day at the Seaport

As many probably know I am collecting points from Coca-Cola to cash in for various prizes. Well in 2008, I cashed in enough points to get three admission passes to Mystic Seaport in Mystic, Connecticut. Our family was en route to my cousin's wedding on Long Island, so we thought we'd take a detour and check out this place.

Isn't it always amazing how places you have no idea what to expect, they usually turn out to be really neat places. Mystic is right off I-95 and it is a very quaint little town comprised of Mystic, Mystic Seaport and Old Mystic. There are a lot of shops and places to visit along the riverfront.

Mystic Seaport is comparable to an interactive museum. It is a restoration museum of sorts. Back in the 1800s the Mystic Seaport was a big area of trade in the Northeast. As with time, things erode and deteriorate or the city expands. Mystic Seaport is a restoration of what the seaport was like in the 1800s. You can visit the Mystic Bank, Pharmacy, Restaurants and even homes from that time. But one of the highlights for me was where you can climb aboard fully-restored (and even some of the originals) ships from that day, including the Charles Morgan. They have an active shipyard within the seaport that restores ships from all over the world.



We spent two days touring here and really enjoyed it. If you're ever in Connecticut, I highly recommend you visit the town of Mystic, even if you don't go to the actual Seaport, the town itself is so quiet and rustic.

Off to Buggy Land

Am I the only one who is slightly intimidated by the Amish? Okay maybe intimidated isn't the right word. But wow, what unique people!

I know I could not go without electricity, muchless do all that manual labor on the farm. I think maybe for a day or two, it might be interesting to experience their life and see if you could endure but after awhile, I would want to return to the "real world" (or is maybe what they live in the "real world"? Hmmm...)

But Amish County is a beautiful place to visit. The first time I went was with a church group and we toured all around and shopped at some of the farms. The second time, I took Mom & Dad back while we were headed north and it was actually fun to drive your car down their roads. I don't think Dad initially believed there were actual horse & buggies that came thru town but once he saw them, he was shocked. The funniest sight I ever saw was a horse & buggy in the drive-thru window at the local bank. I wish I had taken that picture. But to this day, I still get excited to see a horse & buggy. I don't know why it mesmerizes me so.

It's hard to believe less than 30 miles from what seems like such a secluded area of the world is quite the opposite -- Hershey, PA, where all the chocolate is made. Guess you get a mixture of both worlds!

West Virginia - Wild & Wonderful

So I thought I'd do something a little different for my next few blog entries.

Lately, I've been going thru a lot of old pictures and trying to categorize them electronically. I've ran across a lot of pictures of places that I don't really even remember going to and some that have a lot of memories. Thought I'd post a picture or two of some places and share a few stories or facts about those places.

So let's start with ......... WEST VIRGINIA!!!



Can you believe this beautiful sight is in West Virginia? Well it is!! It is Babcock State Park and it is a very beautiful and peaceful place. You know, West Virginia isn't at all like what I thought it would be. Growing up, we've all heard stories about how the people in West Virginia are or all that is in the state is coal mines. Now granted there are a lot of coal mines, but there are a lot of amazing places in the state and I've only been to a few locations. I was very surprised with West Virginia and really fell in love with the state. It's such a peaceful place and very, very quiet.

Babcock State Park is pretty much isolated and very quiet. You can sit on the rocks and actually listen to nature rather than horns honking and all the local excitement down in Beckley. If you can, you definitely need to visit Babcock State Park & the Glades Grist Mill.



Talking about isolated, that is exactly how I felt when we visited Thurmond, WV. We were told by a former resident that back in the day, it was a thriving community of several thousand residents. Now there are less than 20. This was the true epitome of an epic ghost-town. My Dad LOVED it here; I was almost freaked out by it ... walking past empty store front windows and even an abandoned Amtrak station, it was a bit unnerving. There is literally only one way in and one way out and that runs right beside the train trellis. But if you want to see a deserted town, forget paying admission to go to Ghost Town, go to Thurmond - it's free!



The main reason for our stop in West Virginia was to see the New River Gorge Bridge. This is the world's longest steel bridge. It's so high off the ground, it is rumored that the Washington Monument could be placed underneath it. I was able to drive across it but that didn't show it's true power. You can climb down several grand staircases and get a lot of upclose views. Maybe it's just my weird sense in liking architecture but this bridge blew me away.

Don't let the stories you hear about West Virginia distract you from going. I would love to go visit there again. Just be prepared to either book a hotel well in advance or else you'll be like us and driving over to Virginia to find a place to stay (my only complaint!)

West Virginia ... Wild and Wonderful ... that's enough!

As Autumn Creeps In...

In just a few weeks, we can officially say one of my favorite sayings "Happy Fall, Y'all". It's hard to believe how fast 2010 has flown by and that it is already September. Labor Day has come and gone, so that means no more wearing white, (especially shoes!!) until after Easter. Now we can begin bringing out the festive fall decor. I used to detest this season, which blows my mind since the State Fair and my birthday both fall during autumn. But I suppose as you get older, you get wiser!

One of my favorite things to do during the autumn season is take our annual trek over the Great Smoky Mountains and visit Tennessee. Isn't it funny that while North Carolina has it all, some of the true North Carolinians go out of state for their vacations (ie: we go to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, when we want to go to the beach; and we go to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, when we want to go to the mountains!) Anyways, I love going to Harvest Fest up in the mountains and seeing all the colorful leaves, harvest displays, etc.

I look forward to getting my fall decor out of the storage barns and setting up some pumpkin scenes and enjoying this time of year. Hopefully the weather will be just right and many evenings can be spent outside enjoying this beautiful place that God has given to us. And don't forget, the North Carolina State Fair is just around the corner (October 14-24) and that is one PERFECT way to spend an autumn day!!