DAY FOUR-- The Long Driving Day and Gettysburg

We normally  quite enjoy long road trips as a family, but because we were so exhausted after our packed day of walking in Boston that it was a genuine treat to have a long driving day.  

George and his morning cup of joe-- aka hot chocolate.  The children drank A LOT of hot chocolate at the hotel breakfasts.

The first stop of the day was Scranton, PA.  Historically speaking, (and according to AI) Scranton has a rich history in coal mining and is known as the Electric City because of its pioneering role in electric streetcars.

Yeah, yeah, yeah...

In our house, Scranton, PA is synonymous with The Office.  Not everyone, but most everyone is an avid Office fan-- having watched the series many multiple times.  In fact, they speak Office-- a language in which one can only quote from the show.  If you are not familiar with it, you'd likely have no idea what's going one.  Sometimes I'll think somebody said something very original and clever, only to find out they were only quoting The Office.  

Iconic.  It was a delightful little detour

However, it did feel somewhat treacherous to be there without Ben and Bethany-- who are the biggest fans of all.

A visit to The Office gift shop gave us all some good laughs.

After our silly time in Scranton, we made our way to Gettysburg, PA.  The Battle of Gettysburg was a horrific three day battle that signaled the turning point in favor of the North during the Civil War.  We spent much of our school focus last year on US history in preparation for this trip.  But the best thing we did to get ready for our trip to Gettysburg happened about a week before we went.

We have a remarkable neighbor, Dan Chase.  His wife is a dear friend of mine and we serve in YW together.  They have three children who line up with our three youngest children and they have been great friends pretty much since the day they were born. And he happens to have a side gig working for the Gettysburg Leadership Program and he travels to Gettysburg 7 or 8 times a year to teach at conferences about Gettysburg and the lessons to be learned there.  

So you know I totally begged him to please come give a mini presentation to our family before we left.  He is one of the best public speakers I know and the evening he came was all I hoped it would be.  He told stories and it was interesting and inspiring.

And in a very cool "coincidence" (if you believe in such things, which I don't really), he flew to Gettysburg the day after our gathering.  Heading home, he met Clark in the Dulles Airport as Clark was coming home from a work conference in Washington DC.  They flew home together on the same flight.  Dan Chase also served in the same mission as Clark a few years before-- Dallas, TX

They have built a very large, nice Visitor's Center that was not there the last time Abe and I were there.

This was pretty cool to see-- the guns used during that time.

And of course, I had to get a picture with the band instruments.

This monument is built near the place where Lincoln gave his famous "Gettysburg Address"

Cannon and Betsy Cannon with a cannon.

We headed back to the car to go drive around the battle field.  And I'm sorry to say that this was one of those moments on the trip when the mood of the children was not well-aligned with the respect owed to the location.It happens sometimes.  

Hiking to the top of Little Round Top

General Gouverneur Warren's Statue and Abe on Little Round Top

It was so beautiful that it's hard to believe the horrors that happened on this very ground.

We ended our time in Gettysburg with a visit to Mr. G's for ice cream-- as per Dan Chase's recommendation.  

George mastering the ring toss.