Road Trip. Day 3. Three States and a Bag of Pork Chips.
Last night was better.
Hallie said she woke up at 6, but then decided to go back to sleep until 7:30. How considerate of her. The rest of the trip was spent teaching Hallie how to be considerate of other people.
We got up and went up to breakfast at JG Skyhigh again. This time Tzvi got baked eggs, Hallie got pancakes, Inbar got oatmeal, and I got the “jungle bowl” which was an acai bowl with peanut butter. All pretty good and no one died. After breakfast we packed up and said goodbye, or rather, see you again (hopefully soon). We took multiple bottles of water and fruit as we left. They also gave us a purple crystal for a safe journey because… why not.
Madeleine’s three visits to Philly - in utero, age 1, age 3
We could’ve gone straight to Hershey, but we decided to travel from eastern Pennsylvania to western Pennsylvania by driving through Delaware and Maryland. We started by making the 45 minute trip to Wilmington, Delaware, where we stopped at Wilma’s for some good old Duck Pin Bowling. I think the last time I did that was on a vacation to Maine with my family when I was a teenager. It actually worked out really well for the kids because the smaller balls and pins were much easier for them. We did that for about an hour and then sat down to lunch (the place has food and bowling). We started with cornbread, and then I got salad, Tzvi got a fried green tomato sandwich, Inbar got the kids grilled cheese, Madeleine got fish nuggets, and Hallie had salmon. After that, Tzvi wanted to get a coffee so he googled best coffee in Wilmington and we all walked three blocks to an office building to a place called IM Coffee. He said it was good, and we got to “see the city.” All in all it was a great place and a good stop in Delaware. We looked for Biden, but he was in Maui visiting the fires.
We drove about a half hour through Maryland and back into Pennsylvania to Nottingham, for our next stop – the Herrs potato chip factory! I think the last time I did this must have been 25 years ago. The tour was great but unfortunately they don’t allow photos. We saw them making pretzels, tortilla chips and potato chips. We learned that they oversalt the pretzels because the salt falls off during shipping (they gave us fresh bags of pretzels and they were probably the saltiest pretzels I’ve ever had- they made me thirsty). It was cool to walk through and see everything in production. At the end our tour guide went into the room where they make the potato chips and literally scooped a tray of potato chips right off the production line. They were still hot when we got them and they were delicious. I should mention that it seemed like everyone visiting the factory was a religious Jew – our tour group was three families (including ourselves), all Jews. We also passed several other tour groups of Jews. We’re everywhere! At the end of the tour we picked up a bunch of chips and snacks that you can only buy at the factory, including the pork sandwich flavored chips, which are not only OU (kosher), but OU dairy! A few weeks ago our Rabbi actually gave a speech in shul about the pork chips, so we were curious to try them. They were kind of meaty and weird.
After the tour we made the 1.5 hour journey to Hershey! I think the last time we went to Hershey was in 2010, just after Tzvi and I started dating. We went with my parents and brothers, and we spent much of the drive on one lane roads, which we all thought was odd until late into the drive Tzvi asked if the navigation was avoiding highways. Apparently, it was. After that everyone thought Tzvi was brilliant for being the only one to figure that out. Well, 15 years later and I think it’s time to burst the bubble – we too found ourselves driving most of the way on one lane roads where we saw Amish people riding on horse drawn carriages, as well as houses with confederate flags and Let’s Go Brandon flags, and I think it’s just possible that the “easy route” is the only way into central Pennsylvania.
Anyway, pulling into Hershey was pretty exciting. I love seeing the street lamps shaped like Hershey kisses, Chocolate Avenue and Cocoa Avenue, driving under and around roller coasters, and the chocolate factory up on the hill. We finally pulled up to the hotel, which is over 100 years old and is really pretty and grand. At check in they gave Tzvi a huge Cookies and Cream bar for his birthday, and then everyone got their own regular size Hershey bar. We went to our rooms to got settled. We have connecting rooms, which are actually pretty spacious. The hotel feels old, but it’s well maintained. We did, however, find a spider in each room upon arrival, but thankfully those were the last we saw of them. The kids room has a jacuzzi tub so Hallie had to get in the bath right away. We spent about an hour unpacking and then left for dinner.
Tonight we ate at Devon, a fish place in the Hershey Press building across from Hershey Park (I guess it’s considered “on property” because we were able to pay with our room key). We shared a delicious fried cauliflower and a Caesar salad. I had salmon and Tzvi had parmesan crusted sole. Hallie was complaining the whole meal because she said there was nothing to eat, because they didn’t have pizza and she didn’t want salmon again, but eventually she gave in and allowed us to order her the white fish, which she loved and ate almost all of. The kids were crazy again, but Tzvi took charge with them, which was great. There wasn’t anything exciting for dessert and we were gearing up for a day of chocolate tomorrow, so we just ordered the berries and cream, which was fine.
We went back to the hotel and explored a bit. The hotel is huge. There’s an indoor pool, an outdoor pool, formal gardens, a spa, four restaurants, a bar and two lobbies (why? I don’t know). It’s really a grand old hotel and a huge contrast from the super modern 60th floor Four Seasons that we spent the last two nights at.
Back in the room, we got the kids ready for bed, which is when we realized we couldn’t find Madeleine’s elephant (her stuffed animal, which she’s more than a little attached to). We looked over every inch of the room but couldn’t find it. Tzvi went down to the car and searched under every seat, but couldn’t find it. Then he came back up and rechecked the room. Then I went back to the car and checked again. Nothing. It was bad. I don’t think Madeleine has slept a single night without elephant since our last au pair, Robyn, gave it to her when she arrived in August of 2021. Madeleine was very upset and just kept saying she wanted elephant. After making a few phone calls, we reached someone in guest services and asked who we could speak to about a lost stuffed animal.
“Is it an elephant?” the man asked.
Thank God. He said we lost it when we unpacked the car at the entrance. Less than a minute later the man delivered it to our door and order was restored. Madeleine was so excited to have elephant back, and within about thirty seconds of getting it back she was sound asleep. Also, it was after 10.
Great day. I’m tired.