NYC

Looks Like 12:30!!

We are looking at 12:30. The kids will be calling you. 

Arrival Home

Stopping for quick bite and thinking midnight. Will have kids call when we have a more accurate arrival.

Arrival Update

We are north of New Haven and one and a half hours behind schedule. TRAFFIC!

Will update regularly.

Today Show

MLK Memorial

Team Leader Luncheon

Bread Lines

US Holocaust Memorial and Museum

WW II Memorial

Shrek!

All Dressed Up and Ready to Go!

White House

DC

Korea

DC Memorials

A Few Notes from Today

Today was a very busy day for all of us. We started by visiting where the battle of Gettysburg took place. This was very interesting and very large, so there was a lot of walking to do. We saw monuments of just about every Maine infantry in the battle and some of the more famous spots of the battle. After Gettysburg, we made our way to Washington D.C. There we saw Arlington National Cemetery. This was a very interesting place too. It has ties to the civil war, but also shows all of the people who fought for our country, and their bravery. Then we saw the Iwo Jima memorial. This was much larger than I expected it to be, but it was fascinating. We then saw the memorial at the Pentagon remembering the people who died there on September 11^th. This was a very interesting day, and a very busy day. But it was a very good day for the trip.

-Bryant

Pentagon Memorial

Capitol

Mast of the USS Maine

Changing of the Guard atArlington

Red Bus

Blue Bus at the 20th Maine

Red Bus Infantry

Learning about the Cannons at Gettysburg

Marching to the Gettysburg War

More Day Three .. Philadelphia & Amish Country

Today was our third day of the Freedom Tour.  Just to get it out there, it was super fun. First we drove for a long time (I can’t say how long because I don’t know) to get to Philadelphia.  We hung out there for the morning. My group saw the liberty bell and went on a buggy ride. Philadelphia is really cool with all of the historic buildings where all of these really cool events from history took place. I especially liked riding through the streets because there was a mix of modern and old architecture that was the capital of the U.S. a long time ago. The liberty bell was neat too. I don’t really know what I was expecting of it. I hadn’t thought it was in a building, but it took a really long time and a long line to see it. After a downing of boxed lunch, we saw this special presentation about our nation. I liked the presentation because it didn’t just talk about one period of history, but all of the important moments that created our nation.

We then drove to Lancaster County. We visited an Amish community where we saw a house that represents what an Amish house is like. I thought that the tour of the house was amazing because they really don’t live all that much different from us. I think the Amish lifestyle is really simple but a good way of life. We ate supper at a restaurant that really exceeded my expectations. The food was awesome and I was full by the time desert came. I managed to gulp down some ice cream and cake. Today was really fun for me and I’m pretty sure that it was fun for everyone else too.

-Morgan

-Katelyn+Shannon

  Today was the third day on the freedom tour in Pennsylvania. First we went  to Philadelphia.  We explored the area where the constitution was signed on a buggy ride.  We were able to see historic buildings where George Washington and Abraham Lincoln had been. On the buggy ride the horses name was Ben Franklin named after Benjamin Franklin. We also went to see the Liberty Bell where it talked a lot about the Liberty Bell. After that we went to the United States Constitution Center and saw presentation about freedom rising.  Finally, we traveled to the Amish community where we were able to see the living style of the Amish people and saw a video about the history of Amish and  then we got to try an Amish dinner.

Good Morning ...

Sorry that our posts won't be available until later this morning as our hotel has tech issues. We will do our best to get all the photos and journal writing done on the bus to Gettysburg. A few posts:

Our first stop today was in Philadelphia where we toured around the city. My group went to the liberty bell first which was interesting because I learned things about it that I didn't know. After that we went on a buggy ride and learned a lot. I came to Philadelphia not knowing very much about it but I came back knowing a lot. One of the things that I learned is that it was the capital of our country a long time ago but now it's D.C. Also in Philadelphia we watched freedom rising which I found fascinating and it intrigued me from the very beginning. After visiting Philadelphia we went and visited the Amish farms, I thought I knew about the Amish but I really didn't, I learned so much. I learned that their food was amazing!!! My favorite was their fried chicken. I learned so much today and I'm sure I'll learn even more the rest of the week.
-Josie


Today was so fun I learned so much today about the Amish religion, it was so fascinating to learn about what they do and how they live it was so amazing. They live completely different from how we do they don't use electricity unless for some cases in which some family member needs a medical machine but other than that they have no electricity. I think that they have a nice life in which they live long life's, they don't pick fights with anyone. Other than that we did horse riding we went to the Jewish museum and had a lot of fun in general. - Nathaniel 

Amish Country Tour

Signers' Hall at the United States Constitution Center

US Constitution Center

Freedom ..

On the Streets of Philadelphia

Easter Bunnies .. Happy Easter

The Lower East Side

You can see it from a distance. The different colors and the flashing lights. Words on signs just out of bustling shops that you just can't make out from afar. These are the things that draw you closer. But as you approach you realize that those signs that you thought you couldn't see properly were actually written clear as day. Just not in English.

You turn your head from left to right, drinking in the those new place. You can smell the salty teriyaki sauce wafering from inside a restaurant. You can see the people who look slightly different from you, with their different colored skin and strange eyes. They are talking quick, almost too quick to actually tell that they are communicating. It's just all so confusing.

You stumble backwards, trying to escape the unknown. The music changes and the architecture becomes more intricate. You hear people talking around you and you are ever so slightly relieved that they are talking slower. Barely. The words are written in letters you have seen before but you still cannot understand. It seems you have stepped through yet another portal from one universe to the next.

These two places, so different and so strange appear just feet away from each other. Connecting two cultures that, if just the slightest occurrence in American history had been altered, would have never been connected this way. This is what I have learned is what makes New York City truly magical in a way I had never known before.

Mae

Today

            To start out the second day of our Freedom Tour adventure, the eighth graders of Mt. Ararat middle school, (and chaperones of course), took part in a full water tour of Elis Island. Even with limited timing on how long we could stay, our groups all got to tour the two exhibits available for viewing on the island itself, which was actually a lot cooler than I was expecting. It was really quite moving to read the stories of all sorts of immigrants and religious classes that have found freedom through the island, their welcome into America, ‘the home of the free’.

            Next, we took a stop at the Statue Of Liberty, which resulted in loads unforgettable views and amazing photographs from a lot of students. The water tours were really nice as well, and relaxing.

            After a long bus ride, we arrived at Apollo Theater, (which I’ll admit I hadn’t heard of), and got a fantastic tour of the facility. Students put on acts, and the tour guide was very likeable and fun to interact with.

            With a nice dinner in Chinatown and a fun, homey bus ride back to the hotel, day 2 of the Freedom Tour was a definite thumbs-up.

- Daphne

Ellis Island

Today we visited Liberty Island and Elis Island. After going through security checks (ug) we proceeded to the ferry that would take us to Elise Island. The trip took a very short time. It was amazing to see the buildings that had been there for hundreds of years. The structure was breath taking and then imagining the crowd of people immigrating to the US was even more amazing. The museum had audio recordings of peoples journal entries of about their experiences. There were sound effects as if we were there. It was as if we were part of one of the most important parts of our nations history. Then we went to Liberty Island. WOW. It was amazing to see the giant copper statue standing watching New York. What it represented was still visible. We took a loop around the Statue. Each new angle made me awestruck. The complicity of the Statue is impossible to explain. The ferry ride back took a while. I got to spend the ride back standing by the railing with friends, feeling the wind blowing against us. (picking up our windbreakers making them flap around) And that was just one part of our unbelievable day.