We took a nice 2 hour boat trip down the Hudson river. The Hudson is a very large river and sports many mansions on it's shore, including FDR and Vanderbilt. The cruise was very enjoyable. The day was overcast with a little rain mixed in and then the sun would break through for a bit. Kingston is the largest city around where we're staying so we took a little time out for some needed shopping.
Today we toured FDR's museum & library and I forgot the camera (thus these shots from the website). It was quite an interesting day. FDR must have been a very special person. He was the only president to be elected to 4 terms and was president during some of the most trying times of the 20th century. His home (mansion) is on the same grounds as the museum/library. He built the library himself and was the 1st president to have one. We've now seen 6 of the 12 presidential librarys.
After the air show we had some time on our hands so we drove out to see this old mansion that sits on a hill overlooking the Hudson river. The house was built in 1833. It sure must have been something in it's day because it's beautiful today. You can tour the house but we were too late to catch the last tour.
Today we drove to Rhienbeck (30 miles) and went to an air show of early 1900's vintage bi-wing and tri-wing airplanes. It was really cool to see these old planes fly and listen to the hoky stories they told about the planes. They flew off of a grass runway and everything was very rustic. It was a fun day and the weather was perfect. Also included was a museum of these type of very old 
planes and we found that very interesting. 
We spent a couple of days with our good friends, the Brenners'. Pictured are Paul, son Scott (who just graduated 
from the Air Force Academy), Lani and Casper. We have been friends with the Brenners' for almost 30 years. Like us, Paul used to be in the video business in the 'good ol days'.
Lititz is very close to Lancaster. We spent a couple of days visiting with our friend (and ex employee), Michelle Byers, there and had a great time. We hadn't seen her for three years and it's always great to catch up.
While there, Janie and Michelle went to the local market, at which many of the local Amish display and sell their wares. Everything from fresh fruits and meats to flowers and handmade quilts. Janie thought it was wonderful and a great way to spend the day.
Gettysburg is great, if you're into history. There is much to see and learn as you view the battlefields and all of the monuments. It's best to take a tour and have it all explained to you. During the summer there are constant reenactment settlements like the one pictured. They dress up in uniforms and reenact various battles.
They have just built a brand new visitors center that is fantastic. It is the best that we've ever seen. They have an excellent movie about the Civil war and a spectacular museum on the war. You could easily spend the whole day in the museum and enjoy every minute. This is really a "must see"! 
Today we moved to Gettysburg to visit our friends, Gary and Sandy DeFoe. Gary is in car sales and Sandy is a real estate agent so it's no surprise things are on the slow side for them. They live on a beautiful property just outside of Gettysburg and we were able to park in their driveway for the night, which was great. We had a wonderful visit with them!
We didn't have tickets to the Holocaust museum so we were told to be there by 2pm to get in line for the 3pm opening. As you can see in the picture the line was very long. Luckily, we got talking to a man next to us in line and he had two extra tickets, which put us to the head of the line. We still waited for over an hour to get in.
The wait was well worth the time. The museum is very well done and extremely interesting. It tells the story of how Hitler came to power and the whole story of the war. Of course, all of the sad middle parts are also depicted. The museum is displayed on three floors. You start on the top floor and walk through the maze like displays until you exit at the bottom. 
We've been to Washington before and so we've seen most of the attractions that are there. Because we ended up with time on our hands, we did visit the Air & Space Museum and enjoyed it, as always. There are so many things to see there and they're all interesting. It seems to change every time we see it. 
Our goal for the day was to see the National Holocaust Museum, which we had missed on our last trip there. The problem was that this was the day of Officer John's funeral (the officer that got shot a week or so ago) and, as a result, the museum didn't open until 3pm, which gave us the extra time.
Today we visited the US Naval Academy at Annapolis. What a beautiful campus! The school has 3200 students per year and they all live in Bancroft Hall, which is the largest dormitory building in the world. While there have been many great people who have gradutated from the Naval 
Staubach in 1965. Of course, there have been a number of astronauts that have gone there also. It was great to see it! 
The Wright Brothers National Monument is a vast area that was the site of the first powered flight in 1903. The picture of the monument shows kids in the field flying their kites. There's a visitor's center with replicas of the Wright's first plane and some interesting talks. I found it especially interesting to realize that the first powered flight 
was in 1903 and when the 1st World War started in 1914 they had war planes. The Wright's taught the world to fly and the world sure learned fast. I learned many things today! 
This evening we went to a play called the Lost Colony. It's about the first English colony established here over 400 years ago. The colony was ordered by Queen Elizabeth I and brought here by Sir Walter Raleigh but later it totally disappeared without a trace and never found. The story is very well done and told from the English
side and also from the Indian side. It told the story from the time the settlers got here until they disappeared. It was all done in an open amphitheater and was very well done. A very nice evening.
We spent the day on Roanoke island today which is the largest of the islands. There are tons of things to do here. We started in the Roanoke Island Festival Park where they have a replica of the first colony and a replica of the ships they came over in along with costumed actors to explain the way it was back then. Later we went to
The Outer Banks of North Carolina are a few islands off the coast. The islands aren't very wide and have only one main road down the middle. The islands are extremely sandy (they even have sand dunes). This is an extremely popular vacation destination for those that enjoy the ocean.
We camped in a US Government campgound. It's the closest to camping we want to get. It was nice but we had no hookups (that's roughing it). Behind us you can see sand hills and just on the other side is the Atlantic. 
Cape Hatteras is at one of the points of the Outer Banks. It is a point where all of the weather from the ocean seems to come in. I remember when I was in the Navy and we would go by there it was always rough seas, even in nice weather. The Cape Hatteras lighthouse is also known as America's Lighthouse. It's the tallest brick becon 
in the nation at 208 ft. and it's light can be seen almost 20 miles to sea. It was constructed in 1870 but was moved to it's current location in 1999.
St. Augustine is a very quaint, old city on the Atlantic. It was founded in 1586, making it one of the oldest cities in the US. We've been here before so there wasn't much new for us. Just a drive around and enjoy.
We're probably the only couple you know that can make a 250 mile trip a two day journey. Actually, we got a very late start today and decided to stop in Haynes City for the night rather than get into St. Augustine so late. We've stayed in this park before and it's very nice and only $10 because of our membership in Resort Parks International.
We're on the road again and lovin it! In our opinion, this is the only way to travel. We love our home but we look forward to our summer travels every year.
