_We began our day around 5:00 am with Ging awaking at 5:30. this is difficult for her but as usual she had us completely prepared with everything. so with our map quest in hand and GPS suction cupped to the dashboard, We were off and arrived early to our pick up point. Many were already there because senior citizens arrive early. Ging would again be the baby of the trip although Lauren our hostess was young and looked a lot like Nicole. (daughter)

This was our first time using Rill's bus service and they were excellent; on time, nice and ready for us. Many of the folks had been with them and been together before because it felt like a family reunion. At exactly 7;45 am, we went to the second stop in Taylorsville to pick up a couple. After that we stopped in Middletown and had breakfast at McDonalds.

We left McDonalds and 2 hours later we arrived at the Raystown Lake Resort & Lodge. There we found the "Proud Mary", a paddlewheel criuse vessel waiting for us. We had a very traditional style buffet lunch which was really dinner served at lunch time, very delicious!

After the buffet we went on the top deck of the vessel and enjoyed a beautiful view of the lake and the beginning colors of fall. The weather was beautiful and a real highlight of the trip. The passengers were very pleasant and we enjoyed good conversation as well.

We both enjoy the fall foliage so we wanted to see a little of it before we leave for the Philippines.

Our next stop was to the special Railroad museum in Altoona. We watched a very interesting film and learned that Altoona was once the steam engine rail road capital of the world!

We had a chance to go back in time as we explored the museum and discovered what life was like during the hey day of the steam locomotive.

We learned that one of the challenges of expanding the rail road to the west, were the mountains. the answer to some of this challenge was the creation of the "Horseshoe Curve". This special curving rail gave height the rail and allows the locomotive to navigate the mountain. This was very impressive to watch since there are four parallel rails and we watched several long trains going on the curve in opposite directions.

Finally, with a very full day, it was dinner time and so we headed back with a final food stop at Gateway to alleviate our hunger. This took a lot longer that we planned since another bus had arrived there right before us. However, we were rounded up by Lauren & Joe (our driver) promptly and got on our way on time.

On the way home Rose (who was our informal leader) sent around an envelope for tips. I presented the envelope to Lauren & Joe as thanks for the great job they did. I called us the "Silver Fox" traveling group and made Rose our President.

We then arrived safely at our pick up point, drove home and reflected on a great day! Thanks to Ging!


On Board The Proud Mary - (luncheon cruise)

We were on the upper deck, right after our lunch! This was one of the highlights on this part of our tour and it was starting to get pretty out there seeing the beginning colors of fall. It should be much prettier during the peak fall.

Our Funicular Ride Going Up To Horseshoe Curve Nat'l Historic Landmark

We were at the right timing to actually witness 2 trains running in the opposite directions at the curve.  If you are wondering why you are viewing passing trains upside down, that's NOT real! lol. It so happened that I recorded that from my phone in a horizontal position, and it doesn't support vertical rotation...{ugh!}
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Lackawanna & Scranton, PA

The Anthracite Heritage Museum is located uphill from the Coal Mine. We paid $12 for the museum entrance ($6 per head). The museum reflects a lot of gallery displays regarding anthracite mining and textile industries including those tools (many were real antique displays) used during their time, as well as photos of them reflecting the tough, harsh working conditions that they had been through.
The museum is really an ideal learning place for students and for those who love history. Very informative!

As usual, we don't get to go out from the museum without buying a fridge magnet, LOL!  I also bought a set of jewelry with stones made from coal which I thought would carry a sentimental value for me. - a piece of a necklace with a cross pendant and a set of earrings with the coal stones on them!

We then thought of visiting Steamtown National Historic Site not far away from the museum, but our GPS led us to the Mall @ Steamtown. Well, I love malls anyway, so we just decided to go in the mall and had our lunch at the food court :).

After our lunch, we noticed that the food court has a walkway outside where below it were some old trains, so we thought of following the walkway all the way to the end and surprisingly, at the end of it was a road going to the Steamtown National Historic Site, where few meters away were the site. We missed the last steam train ride for the day and was already 3:45pm. They close at 5pm, so we still had a little more than an hour to go and see what's inside.

It was a perfect timing to see a train going around its turntable, so we were able to get a short video clip on that! I didn't realize that I probably got too close to the scene so that the clip was too noisy! Sorry, just an amateur videographer here. I really need a lot to learn on this, lol!
We had seen some more galleries in there including trains that are converted into train museums. We didn't miss the theater as usual, but as we were getting both sleepy inside, we just decided to leave and go back to our hotel.
Our day ended up with a yummy dinner at T.G.I.F'riday's.
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It's a beautiful sunny day, but it was cold when we reached the place of Lackawanna. The trip going there was 30 minutes away from where our hotel was. We got to the place 5 minutes early. We thought their ticketing office opens at 9AM, but they are opening at 10AM.
Anyway, the lady let us in and she told us that the next tour schedule would be at 11:10AM because the first batch today was a group student tour. The ticket costs $10 per person...not bad for an educational experience :).
We had an hour wait so after getting our tickets we thought of going to the theater to watch about the history of coal mining in Lackawanna, but we got bored about the movie later, so we just decided to go out and went around the store shop quick, then got a quick snack at the canteen adjacent to the store.

Then, on to our tour!...it lasted an hour, and it was a fun and an informative experience to descend 300 feet underground which was a half-mile walking tour.
Our expert guide did a wonderful job explaining the life of coal miners and the jobs they do inside the coal mine tunnels as early as the 18th century.
It was also cold down there with a constant temperature of 53 degrees Fahrenheit all year round!  It was a smart idea that I brought a jacket with me.
After the tour, we got a "souvenir", - a Miner's Certificate"! yay! Of course, this is not official, and is available at the exit area. LOL!
_I recorded a short video clip on our descending trip going down as we were entering the old Slope #190. Let's go down, down, down!!!
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_It was pouring hard when we left home! We left like 10:30am since it was a 2-hour drive going to Hershey. When we reached our hotel (Simmons Inn & Suites), it was dry but cloudy. Truly, the place was just close to most of the attractions, such as the Hershey Park, The Hershey Story Museum, Zoo America, and a half mile drive going to the Hershey Outlets!
Picture
The smileys on our hands served as our gate pass ;).
_We arrived like around past noon, checked ourselves in the hotel, then went to the Hershey Museum. The museum will be all about the history of the Hershey family, including Milton Hershey who made Hershey chocolates popular! Of course, obviously, he was the legend behind the tasty chocolate bars that are still a top favorite by many kids and adults alike!
You would be knowing a lot about the history of the Hersheys and how the popular Hershey chocolates became famous worldwide.
The whole museum is on the second floor, so after we were done with discovering all the facts, we went down and went to Cafe' Zooka, and had chocolate tasting. By the way, this is not for free, lol! You have to buy it with a certain price then you will be tasting 6 types of chocolates. Craig loves chocolates! He didn't want to miss the chocolate tasting and so we did! I didn't like most of them except for Java that had the least amount of cacao in it.
Anyway, that was fun for hubby. He can eat however the taste is as long as it's a chocolate, lol! Most of the chocolates are made of 75% cacao and are thick and bitter! That is how pure chocolates are made.

Chocolate Tasting @ Cafe' Zooka

_It was around 4pm and we decided to get a late lunch, early dinner at The Devon Grill Restaurant, just across the museum's parking lot. This seems to be an upscale restaurant, but the food is great! It's worth the money! ;).
We then proceeded to the Hershey Outlets and had some shopping since it was way too early for the day. I got some stuff as usual. We tried to search for hubby's dress shirt sizes, but we couldn't find his size :(.

We went back to our hotel at around 6pm. It was tiring after we got settled on bed, so we slept like a log, I guess! ;)

Photos at Hershey Story Museum & Hershey Outlets

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We didn't know they had such an entertainment like this while we were there for dinner. Although these young guys and gals seem to be running to and fro because they were full that night, they can still manage to sing and dance. Well, younger adults (and teens) are supposed to be expectantly bubbly and highly-energized, aren't they? Cool guys!
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_
Our ship docked at around 12 noon at Cozumel. We still had enough time to grab a quick lunch in the ship before deciding to go off. Since we are signed up for the Mayan Ruins & Beach Tour, we went off the ship at around 1pm and met our tour guide at Puerta Maya. We had a big group in this tour. Puerta Maya is a good place to shop or eat. Smaller kids can also enjoy the sea breeze and some mini parks constructed around the area.
We then were taken to a bus and we took off to San Gervasio. It was like a 30-minute drive going there.

Upon reaching the site, many were caught unprepared because there was not even an early warning telling the tourists to be aware of mosquitoes while inside the ruins. Perhaps it's because they want those businesses to gain more income by selling those insect repellants spray at the entrance area! It was a perfect idea that I brought with me some Off wet wipes insect repellants which we used! It saved us from shelling out our 10 bucks!
We saw some of our companions who hadn't put on any insect repellants on them who just became busy swatting and slapping mosquitoes instead of listening to the tour guide, LOL! But heck! One of the ladies in our group got so many bites on her back and feet...eeewwww!!!
Anyway, we spent an hour-15 minutes inside the ruins and another 15 minutes for shopping . By the way, there was a complimentary mineral water given to each one at the end of the tour right at main gate before you go out from the ruins.

The beach tour is also included with the tour package, so we left off the Mayan Ruins and boarded the same bus and went to Playa Azul, one of those white sand beaches of Cozumel.
The tour says there is a free lunch included, but there was NO free lunch! I and hubby were getting hungry, so we ordered some Mexican tacos and grilled chicken tacos! I mean, we didn't mind paying for it. The only free one was a soda, one for each! It was great! I love the food! We were given 20 minutes to do what we want, swim on the beach or pool, or just sit back and relax under the shades, or do whatever things we wanna do at the seaside. We opted to have a swim in the pool. I forgot what the hotel's name was but that was where the pool was. We only had 20 minutes before our time's up, so we enjoyed the coolness of the water just to beat the heat before hitting back to the bus going back to the ship.
It was a bit disgusting that we weren't able to take any single photo on this beach...it was pretty. But the fact that our time was so limited, we even hadn't enough time to enjoy the water!
A short dance from Craig is all that we got through a video clip while we were about to board the bus. Here below is the clip showing his new dance steps! :)

It was still fun, although time is too short for the enjoyment. We went to Puerta Maya, shopped some few stuff then went back to board the ship at around 6pm. hhhmmmm, just in time for dinner again, lol! What a nice life! While we are on that ship, we always eat every couple hours :). That was the end of our day in Mexico.
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Our Hemingway House tour started at 9:30am today where our tour guide "Jeff" met us at the pier. We already had our tickets given earlier by Carnival the day before the tour, so it wasn't a problem getting them. It is also worth recommending to pay the tour earlier online for convenience. That way, you don't need to spend your time going to the Excursion Tour Desk in the ship and wait in line.
By the way, Carnival Destiny is a big ship and for 3 days, I still keep getting lost! LOL! There are the elevators to help you get to your deck but I still couldn't figure out which elevators would take me to the nearest block going to my cabin. I would still end up walking 3-4 blocks (which is like 2 miles to me) since our cabin is located almost on the end of the block {sigh!}.

Anyway, back to the tour...we have to walk 1.5 miles until we reach the Hemingway House! Going back is another 1.5 miles...so that's 3 miles!!
Tough one for the walking, am not used to long walks, but I guess I can survive with some small stops in between.
We didn't have any water with us so we just drop by at a convenience store we happened to be passing through during the tour and bought a bottled water quick. We both were thirsty. Imagine, it was too hot this day! And hubby started to sweat like crazy!...non-stop! Whew!

During the tour, we passed the Little White House, and some other attractions where our tour guide told some basic information about them. I started to get bored and impatient and keep asking in my mind how long more before we can reach the house, lol!

At last, upon reaching Hemingway, we were toured around by another tour guide and at last, I can see the cats! :)) Ernest Hemingway was fond of cats and there are 45 cats in the house. I only saw a few of them, but the interesting part is that most of them are 6-toed cats! I took one shot of one of the cats with a 6-toe...then, I saw princess , and Harry, the alpha male cat. There is also Charlie Chaplin who happened to be sleeping! Mind you he looks like Chaplin with that black mustache on top of his nose, lol! Those are the ones I can only remember. There are a lot of them there!
We also went to a pub/club that has some intriguing and interesting decorations on its ceilings! Bras and panties!!!! LOL! I haven't been listening to what Jeff was telling about this pub because I am starting to get tired and thirsty! My hubby seemed to notice it.
Our tour ended up at the pub, then we got our soda drinks with looooots of ice!!!
Key West is really beautiful. There are lots of places to go to. If you like to shop, there are some boutiques. The neighborhood is somewhat like my country the Philippines in one aspect...you can see a lot of strayed chickens and roosters crowing at the middle of a hot day, lol! Actually, you don't need a guided tour to go around the place. You can go at your own pace, but if you are on a cruise, avoid getting lost, and be sure to get boarded on the ship before it departs because the ship won't wait for you.

Our day at Key West ended up with a vanilla ice cream before we went back to the ship! Still, it was a hot, sunny but fun day!

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So, after reaching Port of Miami, we got off the Cabana Coaches bus and from there, we were greeted by porters. Of course, every personal service you get, there is always corresponding "tips" that should be set aside, because these people rely much on tips. That is one important aspect to think about when you go on a cruise ;). I am sure cruisers are being highly informed about the "tips" stuff. So, it is always a good thing to set aside tips for any extra services you might be needing, even if you would rather want to do and carry your own luggages. I mean guys, it's always worth fulfilling to become a little bit generous for people who are always willing to do personal assistance sometimes, right? :)
Anyway, we then gave our 2 luggages to the porter and inform him our cabin number and gave him a tip as well.
We then went to the security lines for the boarding. We presented our boarding pass then went through all the way to the cruise line security check-in inside.

There are 3 security check-ins you have to go through! First is the checking in through the security x-rays, like the one they have in the airports. Second, will be the cruise security check in like that in the hotels where they will give you your cabin room keys or they call it your Sail & Sign Card. Your key is also used to pay any extra charges you may have such as drinks, photos, shore excursions, laundry services..etc. It means you don't need to carry cash while you are in the ship. It is your "boarding pass" and "credit card" in-one! So, hold that key tight! It's your lifeline..lol. In this area would be a little bit detailed where you have to present every document you have. It was a good thing to note that they have these booth machines where you can scan your passports for identification and prepay everything through your credit card and doing all the confirmation stuff. It's just like you have to guarantee that everything are fully paid before you go aboard the ship!
Around 3:30pm, a bell sound will be heard and instructions will be announced that all passengers must proceed to their assigned muster stations. In every cabin, there is an assigned muster station which is also printed on your Sail & Sign Card (room key).
This is where you will be briefed about safety procedures, like how you operate a life jacket, etc...
Gosh! we were all packed like sardines in that area! It was like taking forever to get all the passengers in the muster station and it was so hot out there. Perhaps, it was like 45 minutes to get all the passengers complete the station, for a 20-minute briefing! Whew! Now, that was not the part you would want to enjoy! But policy is a policy! You need to comply, or you would be thrown out of the sea...lolz..just kidding!Well, that was challenging, but the rest are all fun.

We did a short tour going up the Lido deck where every sort of fun is being done. I guess this was what they called "Party Till Sunset". A little bit of a crowd, because there are some minor shows and the pool is just on the same deck. So, there were audience and participants in the shows and there are swimmers and sun tanning sessions beside the pool. There is also a food corner in one area where you can sit down and eat...that is if you can bear the heat during the day. {Vs}Expect the noise! That's party fun!

After eating dinner, we went to watch the "Welcome Aboard Show" presented by the cruise director himself at the Palladium Lounge. He is called "Noonan" :).The show was spectacular with live music provided by The Destiny Showband and The Destiny Dancers. Singers are very good as well. The show is strictly for your eyes only...no cameras, videos or audios allowed. Watch out, there will be an "extra eye" looking for you once you click that camera, and you will be reprimanded. Hhhmmmm!! I think I got some clips in some other shows..(hush!)
The next day will be our first shore excursion...Key West! So, we went to bed around 10pm!
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We started our day rather early today for our flight going to Fort lauderdale (Florida) from Baltimore Washington International Airport (BWI). A 6-hour flight, that is to include our lay over and connecting flight is no joke!
Anyway, we survived the long flight! Yehey! I also consider our connecting flight "an angel" because we were treated so well with the food and drinks and got a good comfy seats too ;). That's what should a first class seat for, lol!

A Carnival employee picked us up at the airport and took us to board a bus (Cabana Coaches) going to Port of Miami where the ship is. It was a 40-minute drive going there and thank God, traffic wasn't bad. It can usually take a drive at least an hour or more if the traffic is really bad.

We arrived at the port around 2-ish pm, and settled our luggages with the porter to be delivered right to our cabin in the ship, then proceeded to the security area and managed our paper works and all! It was done in a breeze, so far! Thank God for early preps and complete documents ;).

I still feel groggy due to lack of sleep. You know, I am not a morning person, and I need to get my usual dose before I get a headache. So, after settling in to our cabin, we thought of getting a snooze before we start to eat, hahaha!
By the way, we have an awesome view of the ocean in our cabin with an outside deck too! I and hubby love it! ;)
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Didn't I say Longwood Gardens is our favorite place to hang out these days? ;). I mean when it comes to garden and every time we feel we need to smell a breath of fresh air, this is our favorite place to get in touch with nature :). We didn't had any plans of what is for the weekend for the July 4th celebration, but yesterday, it was a spur of the moment when the hubby called and suggested to go back visit the gardens for the ?th time, and it was just perfect that today, the Philadelphia Orchestra was playing in the gardens.

After checking in at MendenHall, which is just 5 minutes away from the gardens, we proceeded to the gardens and arrived there around 4pm and had a late lunch at the Terrace Restaurant.
The concert started at at 7pm, at Longwood Meadow and since the reserved seats were all sold out, we got the lawn seating ticket. As always, we got our portable chairs and grabbed some snacks and drinks because hubby was sweating non stop! LOL!
The concert was done at around 8:05pm, and we proceeded at the main fountain area for the fountain show at 9:15pm. We had watched the fountains so many times, and it is spectacular as always.

We went back to our hotel around past 10pm, and hubby was dead tired and flat on bed right away! Poor hubby!
But the best thing is we had fun time together celebrating our early July 4th!
Advance Happy Birthday, America!
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