Yesterday – Monday 25th September 2017:

It’s always sad when we come to the end of a great holiday and today is no different!

After having breakfast at the hotel we headed for the Gettysburg Museum of History and what a great place that is. As it was just a stop-off for us on the way to the airport we only had about three hours to enjoy it all. We shall definitely put it on our schedule for the future and spend a good two days exploring everything.

The next time we visit I think we will need to come much earlier in the year as today was 100℉.  and much too hot to be getting in and out of the car. It was our intention to do the auto tour but as time was against us we only did a small part of it.

While we were waiting for a film about Gettyburg to begin we checked out a few exhibits at the Museum, they have one million artefacts of the Civil War! We found this one quite moving.

Civil War musician’s wooden snare drum. The drum measures 13 1/2″ high x 16 5/8″ diameter overall, the front of the drum features a brown spread eagle with a red, white, and blue federal shield at the center and a red banner in the eagle’s beak that reads “REG. NY INFANTRY”. This drum was carried by Henry Mayo of Company F, 147th NY Infantry at Gettysburg and he was killed on July 1, 1863. The drum was returned to the Mayo family some three years after the Civil War when it was initially picked up on the 1st Day’s Field at Gettysburg. Thirty-year old Henry B. Mayo enlisted as a Private at Palermo, NY on August 23, 1862. On September 22 he was transferred into Co. F, 147th NY Infantry. He was killed at the Battle of Gettysburg on July 1, 1863. The 147th NY fought near the Railroad Cut on July 1 and fell back to Culps Hill on July 2 and 3.

We then watched the film, narrated by Morgan Freeman, setting out what happened at Gettysburg.

The Battle of Gettysburg, fought from July 1 to July 3, 1863, is considered the most important engagement of the American Civil War. After a great victory over Union forces at Chancellorsville, General Robert E. Lee marched his Army of Northern Virginia into Pennsylvania in late June 1863. On July 1, the advancing Confederates clashed with the Union’s Army of the Potomac, commanded by General George G. Meade, at the crossroads town of Gettysburg. The next day saw even heavier fighting, as the Confederates attacked the Federals on both left and right. On July 3, Lee ordered an attack by fewer than 15,000 troops on the enemy’s center at Cemetery Ridge. The assault, known as “Pickett’s Charge,” managed to pierce the Union lines but eventually failed, at the cost of thousands of rebel casualties, and Lee was forced to withdraw his battered army toward Virginia on July 4.

Between 46,000 and 51,000 soldiers from both armies were casualties in the three-day battle, the most costly in US history.

On November 19, President Lincoln used the dedication ceremony for the Gettysburg National Cemetery to honor the fallen Union soldiers and redefine the purpose of the war in his historic Gettysburg Address.

The Battle of Gettysburg painting also known as the Gettysburg Cyclorama, is a cyclorama painting, a type of 360° cylindrical painting, by the French artist Paul Philippoteaux depicting Pickett’s Charge, the climactic Confederate attack on the Union forces during the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863. Four versions were painted, two of which are among the last surviving cycloramas in the United States.

The intended effect is to immerse the viewer in the scene being depicted, often with the addition of foreground models and life-sized replicas to enhance the illusion. Among the sites documented in the painting are Cemetery Ridge, the Angle, and the “High-water mark of the Confederacy“. The completed original painting was 22 feet (6.7 m) high and 279 feet (85 m) in circumference. The version that hangs in Gettysburg, a recent (2005) restoration of the version created for Boston, is 42 feet (13 m) high and 377 feet (115 m) in circumference.

The Civil War lasted four years from 12th April 1861 until 2nd June 1865.

If you are a lover of history as I am, then if you are ever that way then make sure it’s on your list of places to visit. You will not be disappointed.

After our visit to Gettysburg we drove to Newark Airport, the trip was quick and easy. Made easier in fact by listening and singing along to The Walker Brothers! A lot better than our nightmare of a drive the day before!

Here are a few pics of that we saw along the way ……………….

I’m sure a lot of you remember the Boston Tea Party, a political protest by the Sons of Liberty in Boston, Massachusetts, on December 16, 1773 when tea was thrown into Boston Harbour and the saying of  “No Taxation Without Representation” was born.

Now it’s “Taxation Without Representation” which refers to the fact that the people of Washington DC have no representation in the United States Senate. In the United States House of Representatives, the District is represented by a delegate, who is not allowed to vote on the House floor but can vote on procedural matters and in congressional committees.

Then, it was off to Newark Airport. We actually arrived before check-in opened but when it did we were given priority called ‘TSA Pre✔️’ which is expedited screening through Passport Control and Security! We didn’t have to take anything off (shoes, belts etc I mean!) because we were highlighted as being part of the programme. News to us at the time but I’ve checked it out and it seems that it all ties in with certain airlines. Excellent for us as were through in a jiffy. My first thought was that it was all because we were British!! 😀 🇬🇧

Mind you, I was having a series of little mishaps at the time in that I dropped our Airline ticket and didn’t notice until someone pointed it out to me and then I dropped my boarding pass at Security but luckily Si was behind me and picked it up! 😔

Today – Tuesday 26th September 2017:

The flight was good and uneventful. We were told originally that the flight time would be 7 hours 5 minutes but once on board it was amended to 6 hours 5 minutes, I guess due to the tail winds. However, we were delayed 45 minutes so arrived back at Heathrow at the original time anyway. Then we couldn’t get on our designated stand as it was already occupied so we did a circuit of Heathrow until the stand was vacated, finally we get to Baggage Reclaim where our bags should have been first off, they came off almost last!!

Finally, we decided to go through the automatic gates at Immigration and my passport wouldn’t work, I was referred to a real person!! Si of course sailed right on through and was wagging his finger at me!

Luckily, our driver was waiting for us so once on the road we were back home in 30 minutes.

Here we are then! Back in good ‘ole blighty. 🇬🇧 We’ve arrived home in sunshine and it’s really quite warm.

Yet again, our ‘adventures’ in the USA have not disappointed. We’ve had a fabulous time, albeit a short one. We met up with good friends, Nat, Terry, Ty, Denise and Desiree. Chatted on Face Time with those we couldn’t get to see. Dot, you and JB are on the top of our list for next time. We are so sad that we didn’t get to see you on this trip. 😔  We met some lovely people on our travels.

We drove 2362 miles in ‘the beast’ a vehicle intended for eight people (at least we had plenty of space for the luggage!) and very comfortable it was too and saw lots of interesting things along the way. Margaret (sat nav) was on the whole okay although she did have trouble finding her satellites at times!

So, once again I say “many thanks” to those who travelled with us, read the blog and sometimes left comments. As I’ve said in the past, it’s always good to know that it’s not just us reading the Blog.

Before we go, I would just like to leave you with this rather wonderful song, ‘Four Winds’ sung by Neil Young together with some beautiful scenery.

So, until we all meet again, we would just like to say, as always, ………………..

arrivederci, adeus, hejdå, 再见, zoi geen, zai jian, tot ziens, au revoir, tschüss, shalom, ciao, じゃね, anyeonghi gasyeo, poka/Пока, adios, hejdå, tạm biệt, vΘleft, farvel, ya sas, tókša akhé

and see you all next time. Bye! 👋