Susan Getgood - Snapshot Chronicles Roadtrip

The road to Africa – Boston to JFK NY to Johannesburg

October 11, 2009 by Susan Getgood

Friday September 11 – Sunday September 13, 2009

Our long awaited trip to Africa started with a long wait for our flight from Boston to JFK airport in New York. We were supposed to leave Boston around 2pm, but didn’t leave until 6. For a 45 minute flight.

Luckily, our flight to South Africa didn’t leave until the following morning at 11:30am, so unlike many other travelers on our NY-bound flight, we weren’t panicked about a connection that evening. All we had to do was find the airport Holiday Inn and get a little supper.

For a scary moment at the bag claim at JFK, we thought my bag didn’t make it. The belt stopped, and so did my heart, just a little. About 5 minutes later, it started up again and voila, there was my bag.

The United/South African Airways codeshare flight from JFK to Johannesburg is non-stop to South Africa. Fifteen hours in the air. That’s a long time. A very long time. On the way back, it stops to refuel in Dakar, which amazingly enough is the half-way point. Makes you appreciate just how big the African continent is. That flight clocks in at more than 17 hours with the one-hour ground stop.

The food is okay. It was much better on the way over than on the way back, but if I were to do such a long haul again, I would bring some snacks. I would also purchase extra water at the airport. I always bring at least one bottle of water and sometimes a soda too. I’d bring more next time. The flight attendants do try to bring enough by, but it is nowhere near enough to keep you well hydrated.

We arrived at about 8am or so Sunday morning. Passport control and customs were smooth sailing and at the meeting area, we had no trouble spotting the representative from Journeys of Distinction. She gave us our itinerary and vouchers and guided us to the shuttle for the Southern Sun airport hotel.

A little tired, a little thirsty and more than a little excited, we were off on our African adventure.

Pennsylvania Weekend: Crystal Cave, Valley Forge

October 5, 2009 by Susan Getgood

Last weekend was the big dog show weekend in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, culminating in the all-terrier Montgomery County Kennel Club show on Sunday. I needed/wanted to go for a few dog and dog club related reasons, but did not relish the long 7+ hour drive (each way) by myself. So I convinced Douglas and David to come along with me. I’d go to my dog club banquet on Friday night and the dog show on Sunday, but we’d skip the Saturday show, and do some family sightseeing instead.

There is quite a lot to do in the Philadelphia area – art, science and natural history museums, the zoo, plus historical exhibits like the Liberty Bell and Valley Forge.

We decided to give Doug the choice. He picked Crystal Cave in Kutztown. Boys and rocks.

I’m a bit claustrophobic and generally the idea of being in a cave gives me the creeps. This wasn’t too bad. The tour guide did an excellent job moving us through the cave, and the cave rooms themselves were fairly large, with very tall ceilings, so I didn’t get that “pressed in” feeling. Doug absolutely loved it.

The cave formations themselves are eery. Some could easily be alien life forms from a sci-fi film.

After the caves, we decided to head back and do a quick visit to Valley Forge. We’d been a number of times in the past, but Douglas didn’t remember it. On the way we stopped for lunch at a Texas Roadhouse in Royersford.

This was our first ever visit to this chain, and we were pleasantly surprised by the hospitality — warm and gracious — and the food — excellent. As first-time guests, they gave us a free bottle of their steak sauce, and asked us to fill out a brief questionnaire about our experience. I wrote in the comments that we very much enjoyed the food and wished there was a restaurant near us in Massachusetts. One of the managers made a point to come out and let us know that there were a few, including one not far from us in Worcester.

Why so good? Everything is very fresh. Homemade rolls, lots of choices for side dishes and good steaks. Is it Morton’s or Ruth Chris? Of course not. But when you are on the road looking for a quick reasonably priced meal, it’s a nice alternative to the burger and tex-mex lite chains. I particularly appreciated the 6 ounce filet for $16.00. It’s the right amount of meat for me and the price was fair. It was also very tasty.

We got to Valley Forge too late for an organized trolley or walking tour (although we have done the trolley tour in the past, and it is excellent). Instead we bought the self-guided one-hour CD tour ($15.00) and proceeded to drive through the park and learn a little history on the way.

Douglas wasn’t too interested at first, but we confiscated the Nintendo, and eventually he got into it. Admission to the park and buildings is free; there is a fee for the trolley tour.

As with all national parks, there are also special programs worth checking out if you are slightly more planful about your visit than we were this time 🙂 The park buildings close at 5pm, but the grounds are open until dusk. The last ranger-tour of Washington’s Headquarters is at 4:30 pm.

The centerpiece — literally — of the park is the National Memorial Arch. This time, we saw two wedding parties doing their formal photos. My pictures of them on Flickr.

You’ll also see lots of deer at Valley Forge. In fact the deer population of the park is a bit of a problem; if you are interested, you can read more at the park website.

For visitors, though, it is nice to see these pretty animals up close and vertical as opposed to lying by the side of the road, a sad but familiar site along Pennsylvania highways.

On Sunday, I went to the dog show. David and Doug went to the nearby Morris Arboretum of the University of Pennsylvania. They had a great time pumpkin painting and exploring the garden railway.

Other things to do in the area: We’ve also enjoyed wandering around the community of Doylestown, although we did not get up that way on this trip, and Longwood Gardens. Little kids would enjoy Sesame Place, although the weather never cooperated for that when Douglas was younger and now at nine, he’s well past it. If you like to shop, the ginormous King of Prussia mall is nearby.

Where to stay: I like the Marriott Springhill Suites in Plymouth Meeting. Reasonably priced ($89 AAA-rate), all-suite hotel. Indoor pool. Free breakfast. Free in-room Internet. Near the Plymouth Meeting Mall, which offers many restaurant choices including Benihana, another good choice when traveling with kids. The mall also has an arcade which entertained Douglas (and Dave) on Friday night while I was at the dog club banquet and on Saturday night while I made a quick run to Macy’s.

Word to the wise: Traffic in the Montgomery County area, especially on the Turnpike and its feeder roads, is awful nearly all the time. Plan accordingly.

Links

Disney’s Christmas Carol Train Tour visits Boston

September 27, 2009 by Susan Getgood

I know you were expecting posts about the trip to Africa, and I promise those are coming, and well before Christmas. But not before this brief report on Disney’s Christmas Carol Train Tour, which visited Boston’s South Station this weekend.

We saw the train arriving in town on Wednesday afternoon on the way back from the airport, and Douglas immediately piped up from the back seat that he wanted to see it. Having been in Africa (or in transit to or from) since September 11th, I had no idea what it was, but before I crashed for my nap later that day, I checked it out.

The train is on a cross-country tour to promote Disney’s new animated version of the Christmas classic as well as the technology used to create the film, some of which I believe was provided by HP, the named technology provider for the tour itself.

Admission is free, which means LONG LINES. We waited 90 minutes Saturday afternoon, and spent less than an hour in the exhibit. Amazingly, Douglas didn’t seem to mind the long wait — even without his Nintendo. I attribute this to the fact that I had been away so long and he enjoyed having my undivided attention. If you decide to go, I strongly urge you to aim for the early hours before the lines build.

Douglas really enjoyed the exhibits, especially the face morphing which lets you see how your own face looks morphed into Scrooge, Tiny Tim, Belle or Marley’s Ghost. About three train cars are devoted to explanation of how the art and motion are developed and merged to create the highly realistic animations we’ll see on the screen. I might have spent more time with these, but it was very crowded in the narrow train cars, so I didn’t mind Doug pulling me along quickly.

After you exit the train, you can watch a 20-minute film that includes some scenes from the film. The film is in 3-D and props to the maker of the 3-D glasses which fit well over my own glasses making the experience that much more enjoyable.

The film stars Jim Carrey as Scrooge and opens on November 6th. Next stop for the Train Tour is Washington DC.

Countdown to Africa

September 7, 2009 by Susan Getgood

In less than a week, we will be boarding a plane for a 15 hour flight to Johannesburg, South Africa. I hope to be able to post at least every other day.

Here’s our itinerary:

Friday Sept 11: Boston to NY JFK. Staying overnight at airport Holiday Inn.

Saturday Sept. 12: NY to Johannesburg

Sunday Sept. 13: Arrive Johannesburg in am. Plan to visit Apartheid Museum in afternoon.

Monday Sept. 14: Depart for Livingstone, Zambia – Victoria Falls. We haven’t made any specific plans for the time in Livingstone as yet. We plan to get the lay of the land and take it easy for the nearly two days we’ll be there.

Wednesday Sept. 16: Depart for Johannesburg. This is basically a layover night at an airport hotel.

Thursday Sept. 17: Flight to Polokwane, South Africa, followed by a 2+ hour drive to the Pont Drift Border Post on the Botswana border, and then to Mashatu Main Camp.

Sunday Sept. 20: Flight to MalaMala Game Reserve in South Africa via light aircraft.

Tuesday Sept. 22: Depart for Johannesburg, and then in the evening, Johannesburg to NY

Wednesday Sept. 23: Arrive JFK NY in the morning. Once we’re through customs, we’ll catch a shuttle back to Boston.

Natural Stone Bridge and Caves,upstate New York

August 30, 2009 by Susan Getgood

Last week when we were up at the house in Vermont, we made the long trek over to the Lake George area in upstate New York to visit Natural Stone Bridge and Caves in Pottersville.

It rained the whole way there, sometimes so hard I could barely see the road, but miraculously, the skies cleared just as we reached the attraction, and it didn’t start raining again until we were getting in the car to drive home about ninety minutes later.

I didn’t know quite what to expect, other than that I wasn’t going into any caves. Douglas and David were quite excited about the possibility of gem mining advertised in the brochures.

In the end, it turned out that one did not need to go into any dark enclosed spaces. The nature walk through the area was lovely (pictures), although the paths were quite uneven. It’s not something I would recommend for people with any difficulty getting around. Douglas had a ball exploring all the paths; we could barely keep up with him.

The gem mining was a bit of a disappointment for my husband, but Douglas enjoyed it. Boys and rocks you know. It’s basically an old shipping container with sand and strategically placed rocks. The kids dig around with a plastic shovel and a frisbee, and are allowed to keep a certain number of specific stones for their $7.95 plus tax additional fee.

There is a gift shop, naturally. The highlight for Douglas was getting a geode that they split right there for you using a special machine that makes an even cut. He also acquired a piece of Adirondack garnet and some Fool’s Gold.

Admission: $12.98 adults, $8.00 ages 5-12, under 5 free. There is a $1.00 off Internet coupon. I think some of the tourist flyers must have coupons too, so if you are in the Lake George area, check those out before you go to perhaps save a little money. We also got a coupon for discounts at Ausable Chasm and High Falls Gorge, so presumably if you went to either of these other Adirondack attractions, you’d get a coupon for Natural Stone Bridge.

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