Day 6 - September 18
Our plans for the day were to go back to Gettysburg to do a ghost tour that evening that is offered on the weekends. So we started our day with breakfast at the hotel. Since there was a large tour group staying there they didn't offer all of the options as the previous day, but it was still good.
We then packed up the car, checked out and headed on our way back to Gettysburg. Our first stop in Gettysburg was going to be Boyd's Bears. The directions I got from the internet from the hotel to Boyd's bear took us through a weird, winding, scary scenic route through a state forest. It was still kind of cool and overcast and at one point during the drive through the forest it was super foggy and I couldn't see anything ahead of us. This really freaked me out. I was glad when the fog lifted and we got out of the state park.
Soon though we were arriving at Boyd's Bears! YAY! It should probably come as no surprise that Melinda and I both LOVE Boyd's bears. This time we came with plenty of money! Our main objective was to each get a Civil War bear since they are only sold at Boyd's Bear Country. Though shopping there is so overwhelming. There are so many bears that all want to come home with me. It was hard deciding which bears to buy. Surprisingly enough Melinda and I both pretty much stuck to what we had budgeted to spend. We were hungry by now and decided to get lunch at Boyd's Bears. The menu is pretty limited. Melinda opted for a hot dog that was supposed to come with chips and a pickle. I ordered a ham sandwich. The employees making the food weren't very competent. First they left the cheese off my sandwich. Then they didn't give Melinda her chips or pickle. And while we were eating they had left the button for the microphone on so that we could hear their conversations. The food was OK, but kind of pricey for what you get and the service was less than stellar. As we were leaving we stopped by the sidewalk sale that they were having and found a few more animals to take home with us. We took a few more photos before leaving.
Boyd's Bear Country
Confederate bears
Abraham Lincoln bears - Aren't they sooooo cute!
Me in front of the Halloween scene
We then went to check into the hotel. The lady working at the desk remembered that we had been there earlier in the week. We unpacked the suitcase we needed and then took a short rest. On the way to the hotel we had wanted to stop by the Ghosts of Gettysburg to purchase our ghost tour tickets, but the office was closed for lunch. So after resting for a bit we headed back out to see if the office was open. The sign said they weren't going to open back up until 2:00 PM and since we had about 10 minutes to wait we decided to go to the scrapbook store across the street. We had discovered Forevermore Scrapbooking on our previous trip and it is full of a lot of really neat items. Lots of Gettysburg and Washington DC travel items. We found a few things to purchase. By the time we were done the Ghosts of Gettysburg office was open and we could purchase our ghost tour tickets.
We had decided that since we had some time before our ghost tour that we would actually do the Gettysburg tour the proper way just once. It was actually a lot of fun. It actually went a lot quicker since we weren't stopping at all of the monuments. We did stop at a few places to get photos like Barlow's knoll which we had missed before. We stopped at Little Round Top because Melinda was determined to find a way the Michigan Sharpshooter monument. She found a path near the 16th Michigan and made her way to the Sharpshooter monument. I waited at the top of Little Round Top. There was one point where I was worried because I couldn't see her so I thought she might have fallen, but then I seen her head and felt better. She got did her best to get a photograph of it, but because of where it was positioned on the mountain it is very difficult. She then returned to me and I felt relieved. I was so worried that she would slip and fall. Though I did enjoy sitting on the boulders on Little Round Top looking at the battlefield below us. While Melinda was down taking photos of the Sharpshooter Monument I was able to get some photos of the 44th New York "Castle" monument without people in the photos! That NEVER happens! There is almost always tons of people and it is impossible to get a decent photograph. I was so excited! When Melinda got back up to the top she was really hot and tired so we sat in the car for a few minutes basking in the cool breeze from the air conditioning. After Little Round Top we headed to Devil's Den which was another area we had missed before. There was NO ONE here! This never happens! I was sooooo excited! And we found the place where the famed Sharpshooter photograph was taken. We were able to finish the entire tour in 3 hours, which is what the maps say the tour should take. So the tour can be done in 3 hours, but to do so you can't stop for too long at any one spot, which isn't very fun and you really don't get the same feeling you do when you take your time and get out to walk the land.
Someone left a milk bone for Sallie
20th Maine Monument
NY Castle Monument
140th NY Monument - Rub the nose for good luck!
Melinda down at the MI Sharpshooter monument
Devil's Den
Doesn't this rock formation look like a duck?
"The Home of a rebel sharpshooter"
The 42nd NY Regiment monument - This is one of the most unique monuments at Gettysburg
We went back to the hotel after our 3 hour tour to change and freshen up before the ghost tour. We couldn't pick a restaurant for dinner so we just ended up going back to Friendly's. Unlike the first time we ate there this trip, this experience was HORRIBLE! The restaurant was a lot busier. The waitress though was awful. We knew what we wanted so we really didn't have to look at the menus. I had ordered the Chicken quesadillas, which according to the description of the menu were "grilled seasoned chicken breast with melted Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses between two flour tortillas. Served with Spanish rice, diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce, sour cream, and salsa." Melinda ordered a grilled chicken wrap. It took forever to get our food. A couple at the table next to us who came after we did got their food first and the gentleman ordered the same thing I did. Our waitress was busy socializing with another table. When she finally brought out our food, my plate looked nothing like what I had ordered. To start with there were peppers and onions in the quesadilla. Instead of the rice there were fries. This was not what I ordered. When the waitress came by I mentioned that it wasn't right that it was supposed to come with rice. So she goes back to the kitchen to get me rice. When she finally brings it out its plain rice pilaf, not Spanish rice. By this point I was nearly in tears. This was not want I wanted. The manager came by at this point and I explained the problem. She took the plate and was going have the kitchen remake my food. By this point Melinda was finished with her dinner. It probably only took 10 minutes for the manager to bring out the correct dish. The waitress never apologized for the problems. We figured out later that she had brought me the chicken fajita quesadillas. There wasn't a lot of time left since we had to get to the Ghosts of Gettysburg headquarters for our ghost tour. I ate what I could then boxed up the rest for later. I was so disappointed and bummed by the entire experience. Melinda was so upset as well that she did not tip the waitress, which is something she never does, but it was just such a bad experience. And I never complain about my food, but it was just the fact that it was so wrong and the waitress' attitude that really upset me.
We tried to put all that behind us and tried to have a good attitude by the time we got to the ghosts of Gettysburg headquarters. When we got to the ghost tour headquarters there was a large group of young girls probably between 8-12 years old. Who brings children on a ghost tour? While we were waiting they were all screaming and yelling. We looked over at the other adults who were waiting for the tour and we all seemed to be thinking the same thing - this is not going to be fun! Though when the tour guide arrived the kids quieted down, which was good. The tour was lots of fun. There were lots of people on the streets and at times it was difficult to hear the tour guide. WE got some interesting photos. I'm not sure if the orbs in them are a result of dust or pollen in the air of if they are a spirit. The one is really bright and doesn't look like the other orbs. There must have been a high school football game going on because we could hear the announcers when we were by the Twin Sycamores building and then there was a lot of traffic.
Melinda by the sign for the ghost tour
Me by the sign for the ghost tour - Thinking back we probably shouldn't have worn dark colored tours to walk around in the dark! LOL
Our ghost tour guide
Photos from the ghost tour - I'm not really sure what the stange orbs are.
After the tour we decided to go back to Friendly's to get a Spooky Oreo friend-z, which we didn't have time for earlier. Melinda went in to get them while I waited in the car. These were AMAZING!!! So good. Not sure what exactly was in them, but I know there were large bits Oreo cookies, orange Oreo cookie filling, and I think maybe even some chocolate. They were really good!
And an interesting note here. When we got back home Melinda noticed that the charge for the Friend-z's went through, but the charge for the dinner never went through. To this date, four months later it has yet to go through. I'm not sure what happened.
We took our ice cream back to the hotel to eat while we watched "Psych." We went to bed after "Psych" since we had to get up early the next day for the LONG drive home over the swirly mountain of death!
I'm hoping to post the last installment in the next few days. So stay tuned for the conclusion! :)
Later,
Melissa
