HEADING NORTH

We are on the road again...this time heading for New York City.
We should arrive in about three hours.

Our stay at The Steamboat Inn was a great one, and we ended our stay with one of the greatest updates for our parental folks that are checking in on this blog. The hotel staff(more than one) said that this was one of the best group of students they had ever had at the hotel. They said they couldn't recall a better group of kids...they noted all of the "yes sirs, thank yous, and overall maturity.". I am proud to be traveling with such a great group of people. I will update you when we get to NYC. Happy Saturday!!

JOSEPH @ The Sight and Sound Millenium Theater

Tonight we saw the wonderful Bible story of Joseph come to life right before our eyes.  It was a beautiful telling of the Old Testament story of forgiveness.  I was reminded of how closely Joseph's life parallels the life of Jesus tonight.  As the dreams came to life before us, the sheaves of wheat were bowing down to Joseph's; just like one day we will all be bowing before our Savior!  In end when he saves his family by providing life for them; I was reminded of how Jesus saved me by providing a sacrifice for me!  It was an absolutely great presentation of the Gospel and truly cam to life as camels, donkeys, singers, actors, and dancers filled the aisle throughout the show.  I will go so far as to say that our Broadway shows that we will see in NYC will have some great competition as far as entertainment goes.  However, there will  be no show on Broadway that will compete with the "Great Story" that we saw tonight.  Unfortunately, no photography was allowed in the theatre so i have no way of showing you what we were experiencing.  Here is a website about the show if you'd like to take a glance:
shows.sight-sound.com/StaticContent/joseph/Video.html  

AMISH Country

 

Today we had a chance to view a few of the sites of the amish country in Lancaster.  The following is an excerpt from www.800padutch.com which describes in some detail about the Amish:

These people trace their heritage back hundreds of years, and yet, despite all the time that has passed and the many changes that have taken place in society, they still live and work much as their forefathers did. Their families and their farms are their top priorities, second only to God.

The Amish are very devout in their faith. They believe in the literal interpretation and application of Scripture as the Word of God. They take seriously the Biblical commands to separate themselves from the things of the world. They believe worldliness can keep them from being close to God, and can introduce influences that could be destructive to their communities and to their way of life.

HERSHEY FACTORY

                                                                                                                                                                    

                                                               

  

We just finished our tour of the chocolate in Hershey, PA.
 Some interesting facts:

• Milton Hershey donated $60million to start a school for children from bad home situations.  The school is still functioning and provides a free education to over 1100 students each year.
• Milton Hershey also donated $50 million to Penn State University to start their medical facilities
• Over 250,000 gallons of milk are used each day at the chocolate factory
• Hershey produces 1million pounds of chocolate each day.
• 600,000 tons of chocolate are consumed world wide each year.
• Hershey's chocolate tastes GOOD!      

GOOD MORNING-off to Hershey, PA

Photo courtesy of P. Coates

Good morning!  We awoke to day to see the greats sites of the agricultural community of Lancaster.  I was amazed and must say that this was the first time I have ever looked out my window in the morning to see cows.   What I didn't realize as we arrived last night in the dark was that we were actually surrounded by a cattle farm.  I was informed by Paul Coates that these are Holstein cattle.  It is definitely a beautiful unique setting and will more than likely be a stark contrast to the city when we arrive in New York.  I'll have some updates for you later in the day after out time in Hershey.  So, if you're a chocolate lover, text your kid and tell them to get you something good!

Arrived in Lancaster, PA-Steamboat Inn

We have finally arrived at the Steamboat Inn in Lancaster, PA.  It is 12:30am and everyone is in their room for the evening.  This hotel is a cool little hotel that resembles being on a steam boat floating the river during a passage of Mark Twain's Huckleberry Finn.  It is right in the middle of Amish Country and even the smells as we pulled in were of pure country.  It's late and I'll right more tomorrow, and tell you of some of the great things we see and do as we venture to Hershey, as well as see Joseph at the Sight and Sound Millenium Theatre.  GOOD NIGHT.

HARRISONBURG, VA

Well, we had to stop for dinner, and the location was the beautiful Harrisonburg, VA located in the picturesque Shenandoah Valley.  This is the home of James Madison University for all of you Dukes fans. However, we didn't go for the fine dining, more of the speedy (get back on the road) dining.  We split up the group and enjoying the quality establishments: Chick-fil-A and Wendy's Old Fashioned Hamburgers.  I personally enjoyed the vanilla float, and I must say that the new Wendy's fries--better than expected.  We are on schedule to be in Lancaster sometime around 10:30pm.  I will update again when we arrive at our hotel destination.

ON THE ROAD

We are on the road head for Lancaster, PA.  We loaded up between 10am and 12pm; ate lunch in which we had some great little cupcakes that celebrated Krista Johnson's 18th birthday; and left around 12:45pm. We are traveling north and I will have an update for you after we make a stop.  So, IT IS OFFICIAL--we are on the road!!!  Join us as we pray for the Lord's safeguard in our trip.

DEPARTURE INFOMATION

On Thursday morning when you arrive:



STATUE OF LIBERTY



1. Be here between 7:45 and 8:00 am
2. Bring all things into the bandroom
3. Place items in appropriate labeled areas (eg.Insturments/Luggage/Carry-Ons/Snacks)
4. Go to class AND DO NOT BE LATE!!

At the conclusion of 4th period, immediately report to the choir room. Use exterior walkways because the elementary production will be getting underway at the same time. We will be eating lunch in the choir room (pizza), and we will load the buses as soon as everyone is done eating. We would like to leave by 12:45.

TOUR T-shirts

This is the design of our 2011 tour t-shirts. Notice some of the details. Can you find the Hershey's kiss? Do you see lady liberty? Notice our fine arts department scripture?

NEW YORK BLOG BEGINS

The blog is up and running for our 2011 Lancaster, PA and New York City TOUR!! This is the first of many posts, and I hope this will be a great way for you to follow us during our days away. There is some great news: WE WILL HAVE wi-fi on the buses this year so hopefully I will be able to keep you up to date even more than last year. Please share this site with others (friends, family, other parents) and they can follow us too.