Hey Everyone,
Thanks again for caring about us and being apart of our journey.
Since the last time we wrote we have gone from Georgia to Pennsylvania.
Time is flying and we are half way done with our trip, 2 more months to go!!!
So here is our short and long update :) enjoy
The Short Version: starting early April
We stayed in Athens, Georgia with our friends we met in India last year.
Camped in the The Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Camped in Mammoth Cave National Park and toured the cave.
Couchsurfed in Lexington Kentucky, hanging with our friend at the race track.
Couchsurfed in Lewisburg, West Virginia. Went to a Chocolate Festival.
Stayed with relatives in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Learned about family history.
Drove through Shenandoah National Park.
Stayed a week with our friends in Sterling, Virginia. Did lots in DC
Went to Baltimore for a day with our friends.
Stayed a week with other friends near Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Went to Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Lancaster, Lititz and hung with the family :)
The Long Version: (by Caleb)
A lot has happened since we last wrote. wow. Let me try to hit the highlights...
We stayed with our friends, the Brownlee's in Athens Georgia.
On our way to Athens we drove
through Augusta, and for anyone that knows anything about golf, its an iconic place. Too bad there is no way to see the course, but we got to drive by it which was fun. It was a week before the Masters.
Staying with Bob, Sonam, daughter Elli and son Caleb was a lot of fun. They are the type of people that your heart warms to be around and the journey that they are on is such an awesome one. Living daily, loving daily. We had great food, good time watching the final four etc. They are pretty much the most hospitable people we know. I love the life that comes out of them and the natural relationship with Papa that they have. They are always very encouraging to us. It was especially neat to see them because God really did some major things in us in India and they were there to be a part of it all.
After Athens, we drove through a little German town out in the boonies. :) it was very unique. Of course we had to get a Bratwurst!
From there we continued on, through N. Carolina to Tennessee to go camping/hiking in the Great
Smoky Mountains. We had a nice 5 mile hike in to our campsite. Really fun hike next to the river. We met 4 people at our campsite hiking the Appalachian Trail. Had fun sitting around the campfire with them and might meet up with them as we continue on our trip...
We also did some hikes around old farmsteads in the Smokies which was pretty cool. Crazy how people lived back then.
We had a night in a really old hotel. It had so
much charm (even though it wasn't trying to). Most would say it was outdated, but I just loved it. It even had a fireplace and wood for the night, so of course I had to light it up :). It also served for a good room to be in to watch Louisville win the National Championship.
We drove through Tennessee and into Kentucky in route to Mammoth Cave National Park. The drive
that day was one of our nicest. So picturesque. There were lots of quilt patterns on old barns, farms, horses, countryside, Beautiful.
Mammoth Cave was really great! There is about 400 miles of cave and that is just what they have found so far. They predict about 800-1000 miles by the time they finish exploring. It will take them many years. So ya, its a MAMMOTH Cave! We were able to tour it for a couple hours and learned a lot about the history of the cave. It was discovered thousands of years ago by native americans. Then rediscovered by pioneer type folk. There were many slaves in there during the War of 1812 mining for saltpeter to use for gunpowder. So there was still a lot of their tools and stuff set up. Since its a cave deep down nothing rotts or decomposes, it naturally preserves everything.
The night before we toured the cave, we camped in the N.P. We had a very interesting experience with very disrespectful people that came camping by us in the middle of the night and stayed up late talking (sounded like they were in our tent). John and Shannon. Ask us about them some time, its kinda laughable now :)
After seeing the cave we drove on to Lexington Kentucky where we had a couchsurfing host lined up. Daniel was a really great guy that opened his home to us. He was very hospitable and we stayed an
extra day since we were having fun. He worked at the Keeneland Race Track videoing the horse races, so he invited us to come down and see him and watch some races. So we ended up spending two days at the track, among other things. I lost 3 bucks on the races!!!!!!!! NO!!!!!!! :( But not too bad if I say so myself. Hannah and I also had our own bets going. I won the first one, went double or nothing with her and then lost... wasn't my day. But that was a really fun cultural experience.
Daniel took me out one of the nights to a local brewery to meet some of his friends. I had a great time talking with some of them. Was able to encourage one guy in particular that has fallen away from the Christian religion. Well what do you know, Im not into religion either, but I am into what Papa is doing in peoples hearts, we had a great conversation. I was really glad to be there that night.
It was also hilarious to me that I was this Big Hit of the night with all the fellas. That's not usually me when I'm with people I don't know. I don't usually have many "stories" to tell people, I like to listen. But all of the sudden they started asking me about our trip, what we do for a living, our fifth wheel, and they were all so into it. haha, it cracked me up. I guess we are making a lot of memories out here and gaining lots of "stories" in our history to share. Even though it seems normal to me since I'm living it, I guess living in a fifth wheel, working 4 months out of the year, and road tripping around extremely cheaply is pretty crazy and most people probably don't know many others that do the same. It is a blessing to be in a situation like this.
Anyways, enough about that.
After being in Lexington a couple of days we drove to another couchsurfing hosts place in Lewisburg
West Virginia. We had a fun time with our host, Morgan. Well I did, Hannah had a bad headache and went right to bed when we got there. But I stayed up hanging with him and we had a fun time just watching the tube together and laughing at his dog being ridiculous. The next day he ran in a 10k and we met him at the end. It was part of a Chocolate Festival. So of course we spent half of the day doing all things Chocolate! That made Hannah really happy. :) We bought a pack of tickets and then walked around the small town finding all of the tasting rooms that were in the local business and then used our tickets to get whatever it was they were serving. So there were a lot of home made chocolate stuff. Ice-cream, cupcakes, candies, etc. etc. etc. it was really fun. We even watched a Chocolate pastry chef demonstration and got to eat a lot of chocolate at the end. He was french and a chocolate chef master champion just recently. YUM!
But chocolate can only last you for so long... ? ...
We then went over to Harrisonburg Virginia. We found out right before we were headed there that my
Grandpa's first cousins live there. So we got connected and stayed 3 nights with them. We had such a sweet time with them. They had memoirs from my great grandpa and some of his siblings. Those were fun to read. And we found out the the Showalters had a lot of history in that place. There were family farms, a family mill, and more that Ray and Violet showed us around to. It was really cool seeing all this family history and also hearing stories about different wars that were going on around them at different times and since pacifism is part of the mennonite belief, there was a lot of stories that tied into the issues that they had in regards to being drafted and fighting. It was also cool to learn more about my mennonite roots. Its cool to have a heritage that has values that are valuable to me still today.
From Harrisonburg we drove through the Shenandoah National Park. What amazing views there were,
breathtaking scenic vistas and lookouts. We even saw a bobcat cross the road and I was able to get out and watch it, but it didn't move much as it sat and watched me....
After lots of amazing scenery we arrived in Sterling, Virginia. Hannah has long time family friends, the
Prantle's that live there. We stayed with them for a full week. It was really great to have a home base and do some things from there, but it was even more great just to be with the family. We were able to do a lot with them. We went to Baltimore together, saw an Oriole's game. Even got a ball during batting practice! :) We watched movies together, played games together. Philip and I had a few good chess battles (I had to show him "Searching for Bobby Fischer" after that). We walked around DC together, we ate lots of food together, we were able to see Julians job site,
(which is what took them to DC in the first place), meet some of their friends and neighbors, and just overall get to know each other better. It was also a big time for their family because of jobs and maybe having to move or what needs to be done to stay, so it was an honor to be there for such a big time for them.
Some of the highlights of DC were that we got to tour the capitol building on a tour from our Oregon representatives office. This was the same tour that Hannah use to give when she worked for a representative years ago (our congressman's office was actually just down the hall from the office she worked in)!!! So that was REALLY
cool for me to be able to experience her world when she was there and REALLY cool for her to be able to share it with me. The Capitol was also
cool in itself. We got to see the new MLK memorial, Lincoln, Jeffereson, Monument (from afar, it was under construction due to an earthquake sometime last year), Smithsonians, Library of Congress, White House, Botanical gardens, ride the metro, etc. It was quite fun to hit a lot of it, but we definitely didn't see it all. There
were still a few things I really wanted to see but it just didn't work out, so instead of pressing it hard to make it work we figured, "hey, leave some for next time we come" :) hopefully someday there will be a next time.
So after saying our goodbyes we headed north through Maryland to Pennsylvania. This is where we are currently writing from. We have been here a week with some of my long time family friends.
Nancy and her late husband Duane were missionaries in Belize with my parents and they have kept in touch all of these years. We took two separate trips to Pennsylvania when I was 6 and 13 years old and they came out to see us when I was 9. So we came to visit again! :) We weren't sure how long we would be here when we first came, but it turned out we stayed a full week. We leave tomorrow for New York.
Our first day we went to Philadelphia. That was a treat. We did all the historical things in 3 hours. We
got to see the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall (where they debated, signed the Declaration of Independence and also Constitution) pretty cool to have seen it. Also saw some of Ben Franklin stuff nearby. We went to a national Mint and saw how and where they make our coins.
Of course we had ourselves some Philly Cheesesteaks. MMM MMM good!
We also walked around a local market that was really cool! (oh and did the same in Baltimore, they are soo fun)
During one of our days here we got to see a long time friend of Hannah's, Heidi and her family. They
live about half hour from us here, so we got to see them over lunch, catch up on some life stuff, play with kids etc.
After that we went to Hershey Parks Chocolate
World! MMM more chocolate!
And from there we got to hang out at Beth's house (daughter of Nancy) in Harrisburg. Brian (Nancy's son) and his wife Katie came over and we went out to trivia night at a local pub. Those are gonna be fun memories :)
Then for the rest of the week we just did stuff really low key. We borrowed bikes and rode around Lititz, went to Lancaster and walked around art galleries and went to the market, ate lots of meals with the family, did yard work at Brian's house and was able to help him get some little projects done. Its amazing how many memories you can have from one week with people. It was such a pleasure to sit around and talk with them, reminiscing about our few weeks total we had spent with each other in the past and talk about what we could remember about each other, what we did, etc. I love when relationships like that get reconnected. Feel very blessed and grateful.
And that wraps it up for me... maybe Hannah will put in some thoughts.
I think he covered it :).
Ok, that is EVERYTHING... not really. Sorry if it was too long! but hey, it took me a whole lot longer putting it together than for you to read it :)
Like I usually say, thank you guys for caring about us. We care about you too and are looking forward to seeing you many of you again.
Thanks again for caring about us and being apart of our journey.
Since the last time we wrote we have gone from Georgia to Pennsylvania.
Time is flying and we are half way done with our trip, 2 more months to go!!!
So here is our short and long update :) enjoy
The Short Version: starting early April
We stayed in Athens, Georgia with our friends we met in India last year.
Camped in the The Great Smoky Mountains National Park
Camped in Mammoth Cave National Park and toured the cave.
Couchsurfed in Lexington Kentucky, hanging with our friend at the race track.
Couchsurfed in Lewisburg, West Virginia. Went to a Chocolate Festival.
Stayed with relatives in Harrisonburg, Virginia. Learned about family history.
Drove through Shenandoah National Park.
Stayed a week with our friends in Sterling, Virginia. Did lots in DC
Went to Baltimore for a day with our friends.
Stayed a week with other friends near Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Went to Philadelphia, Harrisburg, Lancaster, Lititz and hung with the family :)
The Long Version: (by Caleb)
We stayed with our friends, the Brownlee's in Athens Georgia.On our way to Athens we drove
through Augusta, and for anyone that knows anything about golf, its an iconic place. Too bad there is no way to see the course, but we got to drive by it which was fun. It was a week before the Masters.
Staying with Bob, Sonam, daughter Elli and son Caleb was a lot of fun. They are the type of people that your heart warms to be around and the journey that they are on is such an awesome one. Living daily, loving daily. We had great food, good time watching the final four etc. They are pretty much the most hospitable people we know. I love the life that comes out of them and the natural relationship with Papa that they have. They are always very encouraging to us. It was especially neat to see them because God really did some major things in us in India and they were there to be a part of it all.
After Athens, we drove through a little German town out in the boonies. :) it was very unique. Of course we had to get a Bratwurst!
From there we continued on, through N. Carolina to Tennessee to go camping/hiking in the Great Smoky Mountains. We had a nice 5 mile hike in to our campsite. Really fun hike next to the river. We met 4 people at our campsite hiking the Appalachian Trail. Had fun sitting around the campfire with them and might meet up with them as we continue on our trip...
We also did some hikes around old farmsteads in the Smokies which was pretty cool. Crazy how people lived back then.
We had a night in a really old hotel. It had so
much charm (even though it wasn't trying to). Most would say it was outdated, but I just loved it. It even had a fireplace and wood for the night, so of course I had to light it up :). It also served for a good room to be in to watch Louisville win the National Championship.
We drove through Tennessee and into Kentucky in route to Mammoth Cave National Park. The drive that day was one of our nicest. So picturesque. There were lots of quilt patterns on old barns, farms, horses, countryside, Beautiful.
Mammoth Cave was really great! There is about 400 miles of cave and that is just what they have found so far. They predict about 800-1000 miles by the time they finish exploring. It will take them many years. So ya, its a MAMMOTH Cave! We were able to tour it for a couple hours and learned a lot about the history of the cave. It was discovered thousands of years ago by native americans. Then rediscovered by pioneer type folk. There were many slaves in there during the War of 1812 mining for saltpeter to use for gunpowder. So there was still a lot of their tools and stuff set up. Since its a cave deep down nothing rotts or decomposes, it naturally preserves everything. The night before we toured the cave, we camped in the N.P. We had a very interesting experience with very disrespectful people that came camping by us in the middle of the night and stayed up late talking (sounded like they were in our tent). John and Shannon. Ask us about them some time, its kinda laughable now :)
After seeing the cave we drove on to Lexington Kentucky where we had a couchsurfing host lined up. Daniel was a really great guy that opened his home to us. He was very hospitable and we stayed an extra day since we were having fun. He worked at the Keeneland Race Track videoing the horse races, so he invited us to come down and see him and watch some races. So we ended up spending two days at the track, among other things. I lost 3 bucks on the races!!!!!!!! NO!!!!!!! :( But not too bad if I say so myself. Hannah and I also had our own bets going. I won the first one, went double or nothing with her and then lost... wasn't my day. But that was a really fun cultural experience.
Daniel took me out one of the nights to a local brewery to meet some of his friends. I had a great time talking with some of them. Was able to encourage one guy in particular that has fallen away from the Christian religion. Well what do you know, Im not into religion either, but I am into what Papa is doing in peoples hearts, we had a great conversation. I was really glad to be there that night.
It was also hilarious to me that I was this Big Hit of the night with all the fellas. That's not usually me when I'm with people I don't know. I don't usually have many "stories" to tell people, I like to listen. But all of the sudden they started asking me about our trip, what we do for a living, our fifth wheel, and they were all so into it. haha, it cracked me up. I guess we are making a lot of memories out here and gaining lots of "stories" in our history to share. Even though it seems normal to me since I'm living it, I guess living in a fifth wheel, working 4 months out of the year, and road tripping around extremely cheaply is pretty crazy and most people probably don't know many others that do the same. It is a blessing to be in a situation like this.
Anyways, enough about that.
After being in Lexington a couple of days we drove to another couchsurfing hosts place in Lewisburg
But chocolate can only last you for so long... ? ...
We then went over to Harrisonburg Virginia. We found out right before we were headed there that my
Grandpa's first cousins live there. So we got connected and stayed 3 nights with them. We had such a sweet time with them. They had memoirs from my great grandpa and some of his siblings. Those were fun to read. And we found out the the Showalters had a lot of history in that place. There were family farms, a family mill, and more that Ray and Violet showed us around to. It was really cool seeing all this family history and also hearing stories about different wars that were going on around them at different times and since pacifism is part of the mennonite belief, there was a lot of stories that tied into the issues that they had in regards to being drafted and fighting. It was also cool to learn more about my mennonite roots. Its cool to have a heritage that has values that are valuable to me still today.
From Harrisonburg we drove through the Shenandoah National Park. What amazing views there were,
After lots of amazing scenery we arrived in Sterling, Virginia. Hannah has long time family friends, the Prantle's that live there. We stayed with them for a full week. It was really great to have a home base and do some things from there, but it was even more great just to be with the family. We were able to do a lot with them. We went to Baltimore together, saw an Oriole's game. Even got a ball during batting practice! :) We watched movies together, played games together. Philip and I had a few good chess battles (I had to show him "Searching for Bobby Fischer" after that). We walked around DC together, we ate lots of food together, we were able to see Julians job site,
Some of the highlights of DC were that we got to tour the capitol building on a tour from our Oregon representatives office. This was the same tour that Hannah use to give when she worked for a representative years ago (our congressman's office was actually just down the hall from the office she worked in)!!! So that was REALLY cool for me to be able to experience her world when she was there and REALLY cool for her to be able to share it with me. The Capitol was also
cool in itself. We got to see the new MLK memorial, Lincoln, Jeffereson, Monument (from afar, it was under construction due to an earthquake sometime last year), Smithsonians, Library of Congress, White House, Botanical gardens, ride the metro, etc. It was quite fun to hit a lot of it, but we definitely didn't see it all. There
were still a few things I really wanted to see but it just didn't work out, so instead of pressing it hard to make it work we figured, "hey, leave some for next time we come" :) hopefully someday there will be a next time.
So after saying our goodbyes we headed north through Maryland to Pennsylvania. This is where we are currently writing from. We have been here a week with some of my long time family friends.
Nancy and her late husband Duane were missionaries in Belize with my parents and they have kept in touch all of these years. We took two separate trips to Pennsylvania when I was 6 and 13 years old and they came out to see us when I was 9. So we came to visit again! :) We weren't sure how long we would be here when we first came, but it turned out we stayed a full week. We leave tomorrow for New York.
Our first day we went to Philadelphia. That was a treat. We did all the historical things in 3 hours. We 
got to see the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall (where they debated, signed the Declaration of Independence and also Constitution) pretty cool to have seen it. Also saw some of Ben Franklin stuff nearby. We went to a national Mint and saw how and where they make our coins. Of course we had ourselves some Philly Cheesesteaks. MMM MMM good!
We also walked around a local market that was really cool! (oh and did the same in Baltimore, they are soo fun)
During one of our days here we got to see a long time friend of Hannah's, Heidi and her family. They
live about half hour from us here, so we got to see them over lunch, catch up on some life stuff, play with kids etc.
After that we went to Hershey Parks Chocolate
World! MMM more chocolate!
And from there we got to hang out at Beth's house (daughter of Nancy) in Harrisburg. Brian (Nancy's son) and his wife Katie came over and we went out to trivia night at a local pub. Those are gonna be fun memories :) Then for the rest of the week we just did stuff really low key. We borrowed bikes and rode around Lititz, went to Lancaster and walked around art galleries and went to the market, ate lots of meals with the family, did yard work at Brian's house and was able to help him get some little projects done. Its amazing how many memories you can have from one week with people. It was such a pleasure to sit around and talk with them, reminiscing about our few weeks total we had spent with each other in the past and talk about what we could remember about each other, what we did, etc. I love when relationships like that get reconnected. Feel very blessed and grateful.
And that wraps it up for me... maybe Hannah will put in some thoughts.
I think he covered it :).
Hannah prepping for her speech :)
Hannah peering in to Julia Childs Kitchen. 
Ok, that is EVERYTHING... not really. Sorry if it was too long! but hey, it took me a whole lot longer putting it together than for you to read it :)
Like I usually say, thank you guys for caring about us. We care about you too and are looking forward to seeing you many of you again.
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