ANNUAL TRIP NORTH

May, 2011

 

ANCESTRAL LANDS

 

We started our journey this year in Virginia in the Shenandoah Valley, staying at our favorite B&B and stopping by for a howdy at Melvin and Betty's on the left and Mark and Catherine's on the right.  As we sat and chatted in the living room, a pheasant landed in the yard.

 

CEMETERY

 

Tickie's death earlier this year made our trip to the cemetery a lot sadder than usual

 

TICKIE'S GRAVE

Mark's older brother, Tickie a.k.a. Paul Armentrout passed away March 1, 2011.  We half expected to see him walk into Mark and Catherine's parlor but had to drive over to the cemetery to visit with him instead.

 

BROTHERS

 

Philip Armentrout (October 26, 1747) - July 1, 1836 is Bob's great, great, great, great, great grandfather and Peter (September 1751 - January 9, 1824) was Philip's brother.

 

PICTURESQUE

 

One couldn't ask for a more peaceful place to spend eternity.  The Shenandoah Valley is one of the prettiest places on earth, with its fertile farmland, rolling hills and weathered sheds.

 

NEXT STOP, PA

 

We spent the bulk of our vacation in Shippensburg because that's where Mom and Dad and John and Darla live.  Some of the kids and all of the grandkids live nearby and were able to join us for a family gathering at Mom's place.  Jim and Kathryn and Bob and Deb drove in to join us. More: Shippensburg Visit - May 2011

 

DANGER BOYS 

 

During our stay, we visited Matt and Jenn at the Dickinson College farm and went bike riding with John. John is preparing to ride the rails on his bicycle, an activity we declined to try ourselves.  Matt prepares to light the burner of the AG1, his experimental anaerobic digester.  There was no explosion and we were able to use the burner to heat up greens for dinner.  More: Dickinson College Farm Tour

 

PA TO DC TO NYC

 

Bob drove us from Pennsylvania to Maryland.  We dropped our bags at Ned's and he drove us to Union Station to catch a train to New York.  We were really excited about leaving the car behind and experiencing travel by foot and public transit for a couple of days.

 

AMTRAK

 

Train travel on the east coast is extremely reliable unlike other parts of the country where the tracks are owned by the freight train companies.   The views from the train were largely unremarkable.  We were a little taken aback by the presence of police dogs and bag searches though.  Things sure aren't like they used to be before the Homeland Security Act was signed into law on November 25, 2011.  After that, it became de rigueur for Americans to concede their freedoms in the name of the War on Terrorism.  

 

LION KING

 

Our first objective after arrival in New York City was to hook up with Camille's cousin Frank.  Frank met in front of the Minskoff Theatre, not far from the Shubert Theatre where our grandfather Frank worked years ago.  We had gotten turned around but finally located our target and were nearly there when we came upon a raucous, photo flashing crowd clamoring around a limousine on the curb in front of the theatre.  We only had a second to wonder how we were going to make it to the front door when Frank stepped up, opened a side door and ushered us off the sweltering sidewalk into a dark and quiet corridor which led backstage.

 

ZEBRA LOVE

 

Camille was in a state of complete bliss after Frank offered to let her try on one of the zebra costumes.  It reminded her of the cardboard palomino horse she'd wore around City Island fifty years ago albeit a little heavier.  There is a wand attached to each hind leg so the zebra looks more realistic.  How fun is this!  What a beautiful zebra with his/her kind eye.  We hoped Spot wouldn't feel jealous.

 

TIMES SQUARE

 

On our way out, Frank took us to the concession area for a killer view of Times Square!

 

FRYING PAN

 

Upon Frank's recommendation, we walked down to the Hudson and joined the younger set at a trendy floating bar and watched the sun go down.

 

FOOTNOTE

Pretty much everywhere we went there were piles of garbage waiting for removal.  As well as an inordinate number of mattresses.  At first we thought there must just be lots of folks moving, being as how it was the end of the month.  By the second day of our stay we realized that garbage never sleeps and because the city is built on the vertical, every address belongs to dozens of apartments.  Therefore, in New York, every day is garbage day!

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