East Coast Trip 2006

Today we began with a drive out to Mount Vernon, the home of George Washington. On our way back into the city, President Bush drove past us in his motorcade. Afterward we walked around Capitol Hill, circling the Capitol building, going inside the Supreme Court building, and seeing the main halls of the Library of Congress, the world’s largest library, where we saw an original copy of the Gutenberg Bible. The highlight for many students was our next stop at the National Archives where we were able to see an original copy of the Magna Charta, the actual Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and many other important documents. Next was the National Cathedral, which is built in the form of a 14^th century gothic cathedral reminding us of what we learned in 7^th grade. After dinner and some fun & games at the ESPN Zone, the day concluded with visits to the Lincoln Memorial, Korean Memorial and WWII Memorial.

Wednesday, thankfully, was a warm and mostly sunny day. We spent the morning driving around the Amish Country, learning about Amish history and the Amish way of life. We stopped at an Amish farm and had a chance to see the animals and talk with some of the Amish people. We then drove through the beautiful Pennsylvania countryside to Gettysburg, site of probably the most famous battle in American history. Our guide took us through the 3 days of battle, taught us to march and fire a Napoleon cannon, and walked us around some key battle locations. After Gettysburg, we drove 2 hours down to Washington, DC. We began our 3 days here by visiting the Jefferson Memorial, from which we had a great view of the city, and the Iwo Jima Memorial, honoring the US Marines. It was a great day and tomorrow we’ll really get into our tour of the nation’s capital.

Unfortunately, because of some computer problems, there are no pictures of today's trip, but hopefully you'll be able to see them tomorrow. Today was a good day but we faced a steady rain as we walked around the city of Philadelphia. It cut some of our outdoor plans short, but we had a great time seeing the indoor exhibits. We went to the National Constitution Center and learned about the foundations of our government. We also saw the Liberty Bell and spent some time in Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence and Constitution were written. We drove to Valley Forge to see Washington's Winter Camp, but the heavy rain and mud cut that short. We finished the day with a drive to Lancaster where we enjoyed a huge, home cooked meal at the Plain & Fancy Farm. Tomorrow we'll learn about Amish life, go to Gettysburg Battlefield, and then finally we'll arrive in Washington, DC.

Monday we left Boston and headed south to Plymouth. We stopped at a huge statue honoring those who first came from Europe to settle the New World. Down by the water we saw the Mayflower II, exact replica of the original Mayflower, and Plymouth Rock, which was much smaller that most of us expected it to be! We spent most of the morning at Plimouth Plantation, a replica of the Pilgrim town as it was in 1627. Students learned about Pilgrim life by talking to "Pilgrims" and about the neighboring Wampanoag Indians from actual members of the tribe. We left at 11:30 at spent the next 7 long hours on the bus, passing through Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York and New Jersey, until we finally arrived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and had a late dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe. Tuesday will be a busy day touring Philly and Valley Forge, before heading to Amish Country.

Our trip began Saturday with a good flight from SFO to Boston and some dinner and shopping at Quincy Market.

Sunday was a day full of touring Boston and its surrounding areas. Our guide Herb took us first to the USS Constitution, aka "Old Ironsides", the oldest ship in the US Navy. We talked with the sailors and got a great view of the city from the deck of this 209 year of ship. We spent most of the day walking around the city, seeing things like the site of the Boston Massacre, Paul Revere's neighborhood, and Boston Common. We took a bus trip out of the city to Harvard and on to Lexington & Concord to see where the Revolutionary War began. The leaves on the trees are changing providing great scenery for the entire drive. We finished with a night "Ghost Tour" hearing some of the lesser known stories stories of the people of Boston. The students are having fun and are getting compliments from everyone, from the airline to restaurants to guides, on how great they are ("the best group we've ever had here" according to tonight's restaurant.

Tomorrow its off to Plymouth and the long drive to Philadelphia.