Reston, Virginia

One of the wonderful perks of living and traveling full time in an RV is being able to go just about anywhere to visit with our family and friends, who seem to be spread all over the country.  The weekend of Father's Day, June 2011, found us within striking distance of Reston, Virginia, where my youngest daughter, Mindy, and her family live.  Mindy, Milan, and Nikolai live on the 18th story of a high rise apartment building with outstanding views, and are just a short drive from Washington D.C. We arrived in Reston on Sunday afternoon, and packed much activity into our two day stay.  We managed to have a little party to celebrate Niko's 1st birthday, a dinner out to celebrate Father's Day Sunday night, and a Monday trip to DC on the Metro.  It was wonderful to be able to see Mindy and family before we started heading back west.

Atlantic City, New Jersey

I cannot even begin to calculate the number of hours I spent as a kid playing Monopoly, hanging out in what seemed to me to be fictional places, such as Marvin Gardens and Park Place, Baltic Avenue and Reading Railroad.  Living so far away on the West Coast, the thought that those colorful squares on the game board might represent real places could never have been more than a vague concept. So, it was quite a delight when we visited the Real Atlantic City in New Jersey, and drove up and down actual streets called Oriental, Baltic, and Ventnor Avenues, and of course, strolled up and down the actual Boardwalk. This internationally renowned resort city caters to gamblers, the tourist crowd, and beach-goers, replete with the boardwalk amusement park, and innumerable retail outlets hawking souvenirs.  Although we just spent one afternoon here, we had a good time walking up and down the beach and finally setting foot and eyes upon this infamous little corner of the East Coast.

Trenton, New Jersey

In June 2011 we spent two weeks in Clarksboro, New Jersey, which included a visit to the state capitol in Trenton. Set along the Delaware River, the capitol is the second oldest state house in continuous legislative use in the United States. The majority of state capitol buildings in the U.S. are built to resemble the United States Capitol building in Washington, D.C., but the New Jersey State House is unusual in this respect, and is shaped like a sideways "H". Normally when we tour a capitol, it is just the two of us, and we use the available brochures and exhibit descriptions to pick up as much as we can about that particular state, capitol, and history.  But per the rules, we were not allowed to tour here on our own, so we joined up with a group of local students and had our first formal guided tour of a state capitol.  We were pleasantly surprised about how much we gleaned by having a knowledgeable guide explain the significance of certain details we may otherwise have passed right by. Afterwards we had a chance to chat with the guide, a retired school teacher who now volunteers her time giving capitol tours. She was very interested in hearing what we thought of "her" capitol, and how it compared to the others we have visited so far.  Even though it wasn't our preference to have a guided tour, it turned out to be one of those serendipitous moments for everyone.

Citizen's Bank Park (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)

We were lucky enough to be in the Philadelphia area when the Phillies were playing at home, so on June 7, we attended a game between the Phillies and the Dodgers.  Unfortunately for the home team, Phillies lost this round with a final score of 6-2.  As with many ballparks, Citizens Bank Ball Park is situated in the downtown area, and here you have the Philadelphia city skyline as the dramatic backdrop. The bowl-style seating surrounds the recessed playing field, scooped out 23 feet below street level.  We always enjoy attending baseball games, and this was no different.  With great weather, plenty of ballpark food (read: peanuts and beer), and surrounded by people having a good time, how can you go wrong? 

Amish Country, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania may be home to the Battle of Gettysburg, the bloodiest battle in the deadliest war in American history, but it is also home to the approximately 51,000 peace loving Amish.  The Amish are well know for simple living, plain dress, and a reluctance to adopt many conveniences of modern technology. They are committed to a lifestyle of peace and nonviolence, do not carry arms, and do not participate in the military. Amish practices and traditions are based on deep religious beliefs which may seem quite antiquated to most people, yet they have been able to preserve this unique approach to the world even into modern times.  Since taking photographs of their faces is frowned upon, when we were visiting Lancaster County we did our best to respect their wishes while still trying to capture the spirit of the day at an Amish auction.

Gettysburg, Pennsylvania

As you may have picked up in reading this blog, I am not a fan of war (who really is?), and I don't much like visiting war memorials.  To me, it's a shame that all over the country you are practically tripping over one war memorial after the other, yet we have to go out of our way to find the much less common Peace Gardens or other tributes to the endorsement of non-violence.  As luck would have it (dumb luck), 2011 marked the 150 year anniversary of the beginning of the Civil War, and we happened to be touring in the areas where key battles and events of this war are commemorated, most especially the Battle of Gettysburg.

I simply cannot fathom how Americans fighting one another for four years, resulting in the deaths of 620,000 soldiers and an undetermined number of civilian casualties, could ever happen. Historians estimate the death toll at 10% of all Northern males 20–45 years old, and 30% of all Southern white males aged 18–40. The Civil War remains the deadliest war in American history, with the 3 day Battle of Gettysburg claiming between 46,000 - 51,000 lives.

But however much the topic of war distresses me, there was no way we couldn't visit Gettysburg while in Pennsylvania.  Miles and miles, acre upon acre on the edges of town are set aside in a permanent memorial to those who lost their lives in this bloody battle.  There is a museum and visitor's center as well, and countless war artifacts everywhere you turn.  To me it felt quite eerie to be walking upon the very spots where so many lost their lives.  Even as a part of me honors those lost lives, and I understand the innumerable memorials dedicated to so many young soldiers, I mostly just feel deep sorrow that it ever happened to begin with.