Cooperstown, New York and Pennsylvania

Oliver checking in from parts east...

Heading through New York,  the call of baseball was too tempting for Alan. Off to Cooperstown and The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.   The sporty folks spent a lovely day wandering through much legendary baseball trivia.  

Onward to Pennsylvania and history, history and more history!  

Valley Forge National Historical Park was the site of the 1777-78 winter encampment of the Continental Army and the turning point of the Revolutionary War. 

Next stop was the home of Hopewell Furnace...an early progressive employer who paid women and blacks the same as white men. It was an early example of a company town that made excellent products in the 1700's and was a rural iron plantation providing artillery for the revolutionary war. 

Driving through Pennsylvania Amish country was really fun...we drove through Intercourse, Bird in the Hand and all of Lancaster County. 

 

Then the Willy Wonka stop of all time!  Hershey Pennsylvania was really sweet and the factory tour and chocolate sales room was great.  

Next stop was the Harley Davidson factory in York, Pennsylvania.  Nice factory tour...

Then the Pennsylvania Cigar Box Guitar Festival...

Our final stop in Pennsylvania was Gettysburg.  History for sure!!  The turning point between the Union and the Confederation with devastating loses on both sides.  Touring the monuments was a good remembrance of the Civil War and what was sacrificed in keeping our country together with all people free. 

General Robert E Lee and troops. 

 The Pennsylvania Monument honoring the women in the war.  

The battlefields...

Heading south to Wasington DC and more exciting places!

Goodbye Vermont...Hello Massachusetts

Oliver here in Massachusetts reporting the latest escapades of Alan and Robin.  

Reluctantly they left their nest in Greensboro Vermont and we once again became road warriors.   The two week rest was wonderful.  As we pulled out of the long  driveway we all were sad to leave!

We loved the sunsets, the walks, the pond we visited to pick blueberries and the veggie stands.  

Love Vermont in August.  We headed south to Massachusetts.  Lots to do and see.  

First stop was the Lowell National Historic Park in Lowell,Massachusetts. This was really interesting town that basically started the whole industrial revolution in the states.  

It was a fascinating day of learning about how the cloth manufacturing plants were established and how women came off the farms for the first time to go to work.  And how the city came to be around the generation of power using water.  

Then on to Concord and the Minute Man Historic National Park. 

This was where the "shot heard around the world" took place and the beginning of the revolution.  We walked the FreedomTrail.  

Then onward to Plymouth Rock and the Mayflower.  

Our next stop was Cape Cod. Oh my!

Beautiful scenery and lots to see.  We went to the end of the cape to Provincetown and enjoyed the gaiety of the P town happenings. 

Moving on, our next stop was Sturbridge Village, another living museum during the 1800's.  

The highlight for Robin was the Norman Rockwell Museum. Unbelievable!

Our last stop in Massachusetts was the Shaker Village and now we're off to new adventures. 

Hello Vermont in August...so sweet it is

Oliver here in charming, rural, idyllic Vermont.

The duo finally have departed the Maritimes...a month and a half of unbelievable beauty and outstanding travel experiences.  They love Canada and thanks to Alan's love of history, they saw so many great places.  He has been an excellent tour guide!

On one of our last nights in PEI they were walking on a beach and ran into a couple digging clams.  They were so kind as to give them some and they promptly brought them back to me and steamed them up for dinner!

We went back across the bridge from Prince Edward Island and into New Brunswick and spent our last night in our favorite small but cosmopolitan town of Fredricton.  On the way we stopped at

Fort Beausejour.

Alan and Oliver at the Fort...

Our favorite park in Frederickton where all the happenings go on... such a lovely city on the St John River waterway with lots of walking trails and of course farmers markets!

After a quick drive through Maine and New Hampshire, we arrived in Vermont.  Robin's friend Megan kindly gave them access to her family home in Greensboro, Vermont...a really special home sitting high above a green valley with an amazing view.  The house is so special and I'm not sure they will ever move back into me (Oliver) again!  They've had the house to themselves and will probably stay for 10 days or so.  It has amazing energy, a super kitchen and so quiet and rural and secluded as to make for the perfect hideout for August in Vermont.  The quickly took me off my super steed Oscar the truck and parked me in the drive...I hope they don't forget I'm here.

We have had such a great time already since being in Greensboro.  We attended a wonderful live theater on the green performance of Cole Porter's musical "Kiss Me Kate"...so fun!

We also went to Newport to the Newport Jazz Festival...a really nice day of music at various venues.  Newport is on Lake Memphremagog (ha try saying that) which is about 1/3 in the USA and 2/3's in Canada on the far northern border of Vermont and Canada.  The festival was mostly on the wharf of their harbor.

Lots of walking, blueberry picking and farmers markets to fill the days...

One days blueberry stash and the amazing view out the window from the porch of the house in Vermont...

View from outside door...

We have been unbelievably spoiled and loving it.  Been traveling each day to different areas in Vermont and enjoying immensely!