We started almost on time around 8:45 (just 15 mins late) and made our first stop near Harpers ferry at a road side store selling home made brittles and freshly popped pop corn. We bought a huge bag of the sweet (with a hint of salty) pop corn. It was still warm from the kettle and all of us devoured it in 15 minutes. Sean had fun snacking on the pop corn and singing along the ‘Piya Bole’ song from Parineeta. He was thoroughly enjoying the drive. I thought he’d get really bored and jittery in the van for the long 3 hour ride but he clearly was having a great time. The drive was very scenic with apple orchards, vineyards and corn fields on both sides. Our tour of the farm was at 1:30pm and we got there at about 12:45pm with enough time to have lunch. Rhea was glad to get out of the car seat and stretch and we all had a quick lunch at the farm’s restaurant.
The tour was 1.5 hours and the farm is nestled in almost 4000 acres. There is a huge expanse of corn fields on either side of the roads as far as the eyes could see. We’re so used to just picking corn from the grocery store, it was a welcome sight to see it actually growing in the fields and ready to be harvested. There were 6 cars and we went as a convoy, the lead car had the lady from the farm who gave a running commentary over the local FM station. We got to see the cows ‘boarding house’ where they live and then the ‘vacation home’ where they spend the last month before their delivery, the nursery which housed all the calves, they also have a hospital for the ‘sick’ cows. We spent a lot of time at the carousal where the cows come to get milked 3 times a day. It was amazing to see how well they are trained to come in an orderly manner to get their job done. Sean had quite a few interesting questions like ‘Does the cow give ice cream?’. I had to explain that it gives milk and the ice cream is made from the milk. I think we will do more trips like this so the kids get to actually see and experience the simple facts of life which are so often and easily missed in the hustle and bustle of the ‘cocooned’ city life. We got back to the farm restaurant and were given a free sample of their ice cream which was such a welcome treat considering the sweltering heat. I wish Rhea could eat some too but she seemed happy and refreshed when I wiped her face with a wet wash towel.
A van full of chocoholics
Our next stop was at the Hershey’s Chocolate World – the one place our resident chief chocoholic Sean couldn’t wait to get to. The rest of us could barely hide our excitement either. Sean was a tad disappointed though when I told him they don’t sell ‘Starbursts’. That’s his favorite candy. As soon as we got in, we made a beeline for the chocolate factory tour and were promptly told that we couldn’t take our strollers in. So Aji and Achachan went and parked the strollers back in the stroller parking area. We got back in line and it took us about 10 mins to actually get into the lil moving cars that took us through a fun and wonderful tour of a simulated chocolate factory. At the end of it we were handed a free sample which we all gobbled up immediately. We then did our rounds through the big chocolate store where all the Hershey chocolates were displayed. It was a treat to the eyes and I felt like I gained a pound or 2 just seeing them all. We did some shopping and then ventured into the dining area. We couldn’t pass up the 'oh-so-fully-loaded' milk shakes and the ice creams. They were so yummy and so not figure friendly, but we decided we’ll worry about the bulge later. By the time we got out of there we were all on a chocolate and sugar high except for Rhea :)
We started our journey back and got home around 9pm. All of us tired but with huge grins on our faces – testimony to the memorable and fun filled day we enjoyed!
I have to add that Sean did not have any accidents this entire trip including a trip to the pool yesterday - We are all very impressed!!
Three well deserved cheers to our Seany boy,
HIP HIP HOORAY !!
HIP HIP HOORAY !!
HIP HIP HOORAY !!
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