New Jersey~~part two of our trip

So, Tuesday morning found us on the road again--
And I have to admit that when we talked about
taking this trip, I was NOT excited
about driving through the Eastern states.

I didn't want to fight the traffic,
make my stomach worse,
and most importantly,
I didn't want to have "discussions"
with my husband as we pass the exit
we just should have taken.

Thanks to my mother-in-law, Rhonda
none of those things happened!!
She had just purchased a Tom/Tom
and when Ron asked to borrow it--
she kindly said "Yes"--
I can't tell you how much I fell in love
with this little piece of technology--
or, I should say,
how much Ron loved it--or" her"--
with that calm, seductively clear voice
and her rational and timely directions!!

Jealous? me, never--
well, maybe I did think twice when he
gave her a British accent--
but, all in all
I approved of the "third-wheel" in our car!!
In case you don't know what a Tom/Tom is,
here is a photo--

strange to give it a guy's name and a female voice!!
but I guess a man would hesitate to buy it
if they called it Jane/Jane--
but I digress . . . . back to our trip--

the scenery was beautiful...

As we were studying the maps at home,
Ron noticed that we would be driving through
Springfield, Massachusetts-
the home of the
Basketball Hall of Fame--
so of course we had to check it out...

I'm excited...

Ron's just enduring my "documentation"

cool hall of fame --
players photos and brief stats

Ron with the Boys of Basketball....

demonstrating his skills....

A nice way to spend a couple of hours--
now back on the road--

Ok, so all was going well--
driving along--singing to the music--
taking photos of the scenery...
when I noticed,
Oh, no--
tom/tom is taking us a different way then
the google map and atlas
(i had brought them along as back-up--
yes, I had doubted the skills of the tom/tom)

The maps had us skirting the wonderful
New York boroughs of the Bronx--
Tom/Tom wanted to go right through it!!
Who do we trust?
Ron said that driving in the Bronx
was part of the
"New York experience"
oh goody, was my reply--
now I can cross THAT off my bucket list!!

But, we did as Tom/Tom said--
and saw the skyline of the Bronx

ok, in the interest in truth in blogging--
I swiped this photo off the Internet, because I was
too nervous as we drove
to remember to "document" our journey!

In fact I had put my camera and phone away
and didn't take photos of anything from here on--
I didn't get a photo of the upper deck
of the George Washington bridge--
I didn't get the sign for Hackensack, NJ
and sadly didn't get a photo of
Mick and Joni's wonderful house.

But, Tom/Tom took us right to it--
no back-tracking, no wrong turns--
you'll have to take my word for it--
but the proof is--
WE MADE IT!!

And they had dinner waiting for us--
good friends!!
Then they gave us the hard task of choosing
what to do the next morning--
our choices:
Hyde Park
(Vanderbilt's mansion/Roosevelt's home)
or
Gettysburg--
well, when they mentioned
"Gettysburg"
Ron's eyes lit up--
background story:
when our kids in AP History
came to the civil war section
Ron took over the
"parental involvement" role--
He loved it--
He has watched the Ken Burn's
documentary soooo many times!!
so since it this was his birthday trip--
being the good and amazing wife that I am--
I said "yes" to Gettysburg--
(hidden motive?
we have to return so I can visit Hyde Park!)

We left the next morning at 7 am--
after Joni had come home from work at 2:00 am
what a friend!!
We talked and laughed as Ron drove
through the countryside--
it was so beautiful--
but again--with all the talking I forgot
to take photos --
I am sad that I don't have the photos
of the Pennsylvania Dutch countryside
and their "hexes" on their barns--
but check out this site
www.800padutch.com/
beautiful area--
but the reminiscing and re-acquaintance time
was worth the lack of photos.

I was so surprised by the Visitor Center at Gettysburg
It was just opened last year and it was wonderful
(another visitor offered to take our photo--so here we are)

opps, this is in the wrong order--
here is the photo I took-BEFORE the
kindly gentleman offered to take our picture above.

and here's Ron and I thoroughly enjoying our trip

Inside the museum, the theater showed
"A New Birth of Freedom"
that set the stage for
the rest of the monument--
Here they told what was happening in the
nation that led to the onset of the war.

After the 25 minute movie--
we were led into another room--
there we were introduced to the
cyclorama!!
here's a great site to check it out
http://www.gettysburgfoundation.org/cyclorama.htm
It is a three-dimensional painting in the round

the straw in the foreground is real
and then it blends in with the painting...

and in this photo.....

the fence, rock, sand and well in the foreground
are real--then they led into the painting...

As the narrative tells the story of the battles--
they highlight the area and have sound effects of the fighting.
It was very well done and worth the time.

Then it was time for the rest of the tour--
You get into your car and either have a guide with you
or a cd audio--
that leads you to 16 sites
around the 21 miles of the monument.
The route traces the 3-day battle in
chronological order.
So great--

Here we are at the authentic cannons--
it was a beautiful day in the morning--
wind didn't pick up until afternoon.

It was very surreal--
very serene--
yet, this is where the bloodiest battles took
place on Americans soil--

There were a few observation towers--
we decided to climb this one--
only to realize that the wind
was now hurricane strength
ok, a slight exaggeration--but only "slight"

we were holding on to keep from blowing away!

Our coats are on now--

This was a site of a major conflict--
plus, we just look really cute in this photo--
thanks, Mick!

If you can read this sign it talks about
how they used the rocks for protection...

and here are the rocks....

all around the site are monuments
built by different state
to honor their soldiers--
You can see how windy it is if you can see
Joni in the background!!

Here's the Pennsylvania monument

this is "Pickett's Charge"
site of the last battle

And here is the Gettysburg Cemetery
where President Lincoln
gave his famous Gettysburg Address
only 4 months after the battle.

We got back to New Jersey--so tired, but what a GREAT day--
Ron was getting sick, but not telling us--
Mick had work in the morning and
Joni was having additional guests
coming in a few days-
but they were such great "hosts"
and were soooo much fun--
again I am so sad that I didn't take
photos of their home--
but if you want to see their pumpkin patch,
vultures on their roof,
bears in their neighborhood--
check out their blog site:
http://thefivewards.blogspot.com/
and THANK YOU--THANK YOU--THANK YOU--
but we will see them again in part 3 of our trip

Ron and I left the next morning with
instructions from Mick and Joni on
more historical sites to see-
we found Morristown...
and George Washington's Headquarters--
everyone knows about Valley Forge
but the winter spent here was just as terrible

Here's the house he used as his headquarters--
which he shared with the owner,
a widow and her children--
very interesting

Then we had to return the rental car at
the Newark airport
We turned it in at the Budget lot--
caught the airport monorail

to the train station--
so slick..

Then we took the train from Newark, New Jersey
and 20minutes and three stops later....

Arrived at Penn Station . . ..

Hello, New York!!!

stay tune for
part three..