Kim's Thoughts
Just a few thoughts I feel worthy of jotting down!
2017 Hershey and Gettysburg PA Adventure
Yep…..this past week I was off on another grand adventure! This time, I met some friends in Hershey, PA and we explored around Hershey and Gettysburg over a couple of days. I drove down from WNY and they drove up from central NC. And, it was amazing! We had such a good time and crammed a lot of wonderful sites into our time together!
I went down the day before we had planned to meet. I wasn’t looking forward to the long drive – getting up earlier than any human should have to and feeling rushed to get there so I didn’t waste most of our first day on the road. So, I left here about noon, took a leisurely drive, got a room at a nice little motel, and explored a little on my own the first half of the day while I waited for Ron and Lisa to join me at the condo we booked! Turned out to be a good plan!
On the way, I made a little side trip to drive through Hammondsport, NY on Keuka Lake! I love that little town!
I arrived at this motel after dark and wondered if I had made a mistake when I chose it…..it looked a little seedy in the dark! But, it was a nice, very clean and large room, friendly front desk staff, and looked much more pleasant in the day light! hahaha It was a good choice!
I had breakfast at a sweet little 1950’s style diner called the “Soda Jerk Diner” in nearby Hummelstown, PA
When looking for a dam that was listed as an attraction in Hummelstown, I stumbled on Indian Echo Caverns and decided to stop in there. I never found the dam, but this place was really cool!
And, they had goats!!! 🙂
And railroad tracks that I just knew would make a fabulous photo – and they did!
After I left the caverns, I went to Zoo America at Hershey Park. It is a really nice little zoo that only has animals that can be found in North America – so, no giraffes or elephants or monkeys, but lots of other great animals!
A Pink Roseate Spoonbill
I stood at this exhibit for quite a while watching the owls…..they were fascinating!
And, there was a roadrunner in that same exhibit, too……he was fun to watch, too!
It is always a thrill to see a bald eagle up close!
And, I caught this black bear taking a nap!
This bear happily agreed to pose for a photo with me! 😀
After the zoo, I just wandered around and had a light lunch. When Ron and Lisa arrived, we checked in at the condo and freshened up for dinner. We found a great restaurant and had a fantastic meal……and topped it off with chocolate martinis!!! WOW – they were sooooooo good!!! Potent!!!! But, sooooooo good!!! I had one with caramel, Ron had one with Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, and Lisa had one that was the Special Dark Chocolate…..we each tasted them all and came to the same conclusion – all were good, but Lisa’s was by far the best one!
The next morning, we started out at Gettysburg. We booked a private tour with a licensed park tour guide who drove Ron and Lisa’s car while taking us on a two hour tour through the park and all the monuments! WOW – he was AMAZING!!! So knowledgeable and made learning all about the battle a lot of fun!
Mr. Lincoln
Of course, I had to sit down for a chat and a photo……
Ron did, too…..
This is a mural in a residential area that represents a very important, but lesser known battle…..that I can’t for the life of me remember what our guide, Bob, said it was called!!! UGH!!!
I was amazed at how many monuments there were and how large the park was! So impressive! Every state, brigade, officer, and key individual has a monument there! We stopped at most of them and were able to get out for photos and a closer look at several. This one is the New York monument.
And, Ron beside the NC monument
And, me beside the rest of the NC monument
I love how this photo came out……it is one of the key farm houses that were there during the battle
Looking out over the battle field at Little Round Top
Our guide, Bob!
Lisa getting the scoop from Bob!
Bob had so many wonderful stories and information…..
Looking down from Little Round Top
140th NY Infantry – Rochester – Union Army – Battle of Gettysburg – his nose is shiny cause it is a tradition to rub it for luck….I did! 🙂
Several monuments included memorials to the dogs that accompanied the soldiers into battle
And, there were a lot of bullet and cannon ball holes in farm houses!
Home state advantage……this is the Pennsylvania monument – the largest in the park!
After we left Gettysburg, we went to the Hershey Story Museum
Our Groupon for the museum included chocolate tastings……we got six flights of chocolate made from cocoa beans from different places around the world! The shot glasses had hot chocolate in them and they were soooooooo good!!! Each one had a distinctly different taste and there was a method to the tastings – start with the most concentrated cocoa and go down……darkest to lightest! I so wanted more!!!
My favorite was the one from Java with 33% cocoa and a subtle caramel flavor
Milton Hershey was quite a guy — very interesting story of his life and legacy!
Really nice museum — a must see when in Hershey! Sad, though, that they stopped allowing tours of the factory back in the mid-70s – I would have liked to do that!
The street lights along Chocolate Ave are shaped like Hershey Kisses…..every other one was unwrapped chocolate and wrapped silver!
After the museum, we went to Hershey’s Chocolate World because we were told that they had the best gift shop and chocolate shop……they were RIGHT!!! OMG….what a place!!! They also had rides and other attractions there, but we just went for the shopping! hehehe
That night, we had an amazing dinner at a little local dive…..we passed it several times and the sign “Best Food in Town” caught our eye…..they didn’t disappoint! The food was good, the staff was friendly (and so were the locals at the bar), and it was a fun evening!
The next morning, we had breakfast and left for home – me headed north to NY and Ron and Lisa headed south to NC! On the way out of town, I stopped by the factory to get a photo of the smoke towers!
I took my time driving home and stopped at this fantastic little diner in Bath, NY for lunch!
So……another adventure in the history books and my memories! Wonder where you’ll read about me going next???!!!
Photos of the Day – November 3rd and 4th
Here are my Photos of the Day for November 3-4, 2017:
NOVEMBER 3
# 307 Photo Prompt – Green:
“One Cool Dude”
#green
NOVEMBER 4
# 308 Photo Prompt – Yellow:
“It’s The Law……and common courtesy!”
#yellow
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November 2017s Photo Prompts:
Photos of the Day – November 1st and 2nd
Welcome, November……
Here are my Photos of the Day for November 1-2, 2017:
NOVEMBER 1
# 305 Photo Prompt – Blue:
“140th NY Infantry – Rochester – Union Army – Battle of Gettysburg”
#blue
BTW – the nose on this monument is so shiny because it is tradition to rub it for good luck! 🙂
# 305 Caught By My Lens:
One of the old farm houses that played a key role in the Battle of Gettysburg!
NOVEMBER 2
# 306 Photo Prompt – Red:
“Cute Restaurant Name”
#red
Great little family diner in downtown Bath, NY – stopped for lunch on my way back from the Hershey/Gettysburg, PA area – VERY GOOD LUNCH!
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November 2017s Photo Prompts:
Photos of the Day – October 30th and 31st
Happy Halloween!!! And, Goodbye, October!
Here are my Photos of the Day for October 30-31, 2017:
OCTOBER 30
# 303 Photo Prompt – Home Sweet Home:
“Small Town America”
#homesweethome
OCTOBER 31
# 304 Photo Prompt – Wild:
“Tell Me All About It, Sister!”
#wild
Pink Roseate Spoonbill
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November 2017s Photo Prompts:
Photos of the Day – October 27th, 28th, and 29th
Here are my Photos of the Day for October 27-29, 2017:
OCTOBER 27
# 300 Photo Prompt – Gate:
First…..look at that daily #!!! Guess that means there are only 65 days left in the year! WOW!
“We Don’t Use This One”
#gate
OCTOBER 28
# 301 Photo Prompt – Looking Down:
“Hello, Sunny!”
#lookingdown (at a sweet baby girl)
OCTOBER 29
# 302 Photo Prompt – On Top:
“New Spot For The Dresser……And, The TV”
#ontop
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Sneak Peek at November’s Photo Prompts:
October 2017s Photo Prompts:
Photos of the Day – Oct 24th, 25th, and 26th
Here are my photos of the day for Oct 24-26, 2017:
OCTOBER 24
# 297 Photo Prompt – One of a Kind:
“Bread Box”
#oneofakind
This was originally an old fashioned white metal bread box. An artist friend in NC painted it for me to go with the colors in my Sanford, NC home. When I moved back home, I of course brought it with me and it goes beautifully with the colors in my current kitchen, too! It is truly a one-of-a-kind work of art and I love it!!!
OCTOBER 25
# 298 Photo Prompt – In Flight:
“Albion From Above”
#inflight
Full Disclosure – I didn’t take this photo on the 15th! No good opportunities to meet the photo prompt “In flight” caught my eye!!! So, rather than just skip the day, I chose a photo I took back in August when I went flying with a friend in his private plane and capture this and other cool aerial photos around the area!
#298 Caught By My Lens:
“In Full Bloom”
A couple days ago, I posted a photo of this plant with the blossom just starting to bud out……and, now, here it is in full bloom! It is a gorgeous rich purple (looks a tad on the pink side here, but it is purple)!
OCTOBER 26
# 299 Photo Prompt – Sticky:
“Sticky Notes”
#sticky
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October 2017s Photo Prompts:
Photos of the Day – October 23rd
Here are my Photos of the Day for October 23, 2017:
# 296 Photo Prompt – Something Orange:
“God’s Majesty”
#somethingorange
# 296 Caught By My Lens:
My neighbor has the must stunning tree…..year after year it never fails to provide the best view from my back deck! Even this year, when the autumn colors are so disappointing, over all, this one put on its usual brilliant show! So, I can not just use one photo of it for the Photo of the Day……no, I needed to share more!
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October 2017s Photo Prompts:
Photos of the Day – October 21st and 22nd
Here are my Photos of the Day for October 21-22, 2017:
OCTOBER 21
# 294 Photo Prompt – Right Now:
“Bitternut Lane looks pretty bare…..”
#rightnow
I removed the flowers from the cemetery urns for the season!
OCTOBER 22
# 295 Photo Prompt – I Wrote This:
“My Very First Blog Post – 10 Years Ago!”
#iwrotethis
If you can’t read it in the photo and would like to, click here!
This is from back when my blog truly consisted of just my thoughts and adventures!
# 295 Caught By My Lens:
The first bud is popping up!!!
(center plant……friends who got one of these the same time I did have had blossoms for a while!)
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October 2017s Photo Prompts:
2017 LeClair, Iowa
More from my second full day in Iowa……after I left Dyersville and the Field of Dreams house, I headed south to LeClair, IA. I put LeClair in the plans because that is where the American Pickers from the TV show have their shop (they also have one in Tennessee). I love that show, so definitely wanted to see that! I heard they are rarely there, so I figured I wouldn’t see them……and didn’t…..but, that’s OK! It was still cool to see their stuff and their shop!
When I got to LeClair, I discovered it is the birthplace of Buffalo Bill Coty, so I just had to go to the museum that highlighted his life!
LeClair is a tiny little town on the Mississippi River with a railroad track that runs along the main drag through town – it looks like it is right out of the old west!
Here is Buffalo Bill pictured with his friends, Wild Bill Hickok (who I “met” last year), and Texas Jack
Here I am with Wild Bill in Deadwood, SD in Sept 2016! 🙂 But, I digress……
The museum also had many other artifacts of the time on display…..as well as historical items related to the Mississippi River
This steamer – Lone Star – was built in 1868
When you watch the show – American Pickers – and see the guys pull in to their shop, you get the idea that it is a big place with a large parking lot and that it is probably out in the country somewhere……nope – it is on a small corner lot right in the heart of downtown LeClair overlooking the Mississippi River!
So, that’s my trip to Iowa……hope you enjoyed the posts and photos! My third day there was a 1/2 day (I flew back home that afternoon) and photos from that day are in the post about Dubuque because I spent that morning exploring downtown Dubuque and the Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium. It was a GREAT trip and I really want to go back someday! I want to stay more in the center of the state and see the covered bridges in Madison County and anything else that I can find in that area…….also, I didn’t have time on my day in Dyersville and LeClair to catch the Hwy 80 Truck Stop – promoted as the largest truck stop in America and a real treat to see – but, it was getting late and it would have added another 2 hours to my day……I wanted to head back to Dubuque, get some dinner, and hit the sack! hahaha But, I wouldn’t mind putting it on my list for the next time I make it to Iowa!
Now…….to get Kentucky colored in sometime next year and then work on the other six western states!
2017 Dyersville, Iowa
Continuing on with the photos from my recent Iowa Adventure…….on my second full day, I stayed a little closer to Dubuque – the farthest I traveled that day was a little over an hour. My first stop was about 20 minutes outside Dubuque and was the main purpose for my decision to target that area for my adventure – Dyersville, Iowa! Dyersville is where one of my all time favorite movies – The Field of Dreams – was filmed. The house and baseball field in the corn field remains as it was in the movie and family members of the owner of the house work the souvenir shop and run the house tours. Visitors are encouraged to bring balls and bats and go out on the field to play a little game or “have a catch” – in fact, there was a family doing just that while I was there. The house is open to guided tours, which are very well presented, extremely informative, and fun! At several points during the tour, Clarence – our tour guide – stopped and offered to take photos of us in various key places around the house. It was fantastic!
I got to Dyersville early because I wanted to tour the St. Francis Xavier Basilica and get some breakfast before going to the Field of Dreams house. Sooooo glad I did! I walked into the Basilica and instantly took in a deep breath and didn’t breathe again until I stepped back outside! I could have just sat there and enjoyed the beauty for a good long while, but they were preparing for a funeral, so I looked around, snapped some photos, and left. When I got to the diner for breakfast, my waitress – who learned I was visiting from NY through our conversation – suggested I go there. When I said I already did and how much I enjoyed it, she told me that they had an amazing priest who took several years to painstakingly restore it to the original decor. It was built in the late 1880s to accommodate a growing German and Irish Catholic congregation. But, sometime in the mid-1900s, the congregation at the time decided to put all the statues in the attic for safe keeping and painted everything white! The priest who felt that was a crime and wanted to restore it went to the company who made the original paint and found records of the colors and bought all the colors to be the exact colors used when it was built…..including the gold leaf! He also brought down all the statues from the attic and it is now fully restored based on photos and records from the time it was built! Incredible!
The restaurant I found to have breakfast was wonderful, too……just up the street from the Basilica (the last photo above was taken from my parking spot just down from the front door). If I remember right, it was called the Dyersville Family Diner. Dyersville is a pretty little town with very friendly people.
After breakfast, I headed over to the Field of Dreams House.
For those who are not familiar with the movie — I HIGHLY recommend you rent it, stream it, whatever you need to do to watch this amazing movie! It isn’t just about baseball……it is about father/son relationships and redemption for the choices we make in our lives. And, it is incredible! In a nutshell, Ray Kinsella owns a farm. He begins to hear voices telling him “If you build it, he will come”. He has no idea what they are talking about, but knows in his heart that it is important. Soon, he is given a vision of a baseball field with lights in the middle of his corn field. So, despite having the towns people and his own family thinking he’s gone nuts, he plows under a large portion of his corn field and builds this baseball field. Nothing happens for a while, but soon his daughter tells him to look out at the field cause there is a man there…..he looks and goes out to find out it is the ghost of Shoeless Joe Jackson – a disgraced player for the 1919 Chicago White Sox – a team Ray’s father, who he had a troubled relationship with, idolized. Shoeless Joe bats some balls with Ray and tells him there are others who would like to come play and soon there is enough of the great ball players of his time to have actual games. The story goes on from there……I won’t spoil it for you…..but, if you haven’t seen it, you really need to!!!
I wanted to get a selfie sitting on the bleachers from the movie, but they were way too wet to sit on…..so, this will have to do!
Had to get a photo of me on the porch swing!
Clarence – our tour guide – explaining that this stove is the only prop the movie folks left behind after the movie – because it was too heavy to carry back out! haha
Ray, Annie, and Karin Kinsella family photo (Kevin Costner, Amy Madigan, and Gaby Hoffmann)
The window “Ray” was looking out when he first saw the ghost of Shoeless Joe Jackson (Ray Liotta)
Standing on the staircase where “Ray” and “Annie” realized they both had the same dream about “Ray” sitting in Fenway Park eating a hotdog with author “Terrence Mann” (James Earl Jones)
The breaker where they turned the lights on the baseball field
It is now home to a family of birds
Kevin Costner carved this in the wood on the bleachers — it says “Ray Loves Annie”!
Most of the ghost players appeared out of the corn field between the light post and the flag pole
There are “Ghost Players” games throughout the summer that the public can come watch. Also, once a year, they host a game with various famous baseball players that draws a huge crowd. It is quite an amazing place!!! It was a real thrill to be there and see it all!
And……it made my day to ask one of the volunteers “Is this Heaven?” and have them respond “No, it’s Iowa!” 😀
It just goes to show……If you build it, they will come!!!
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