Trip to Canada

The day after Christmas we jammed our family of five into a car and began our trip/vacation to Canada. Traveling with kids is a challenge. I was the only authorized driver for our rental vehicle (being that Rachel is not yet 25 years old) which made Rachel the navigator. She did an awesome job directing us to destinations, appeasing 3 cooped-up kids, controlling the music/audio-books, making meals on the go, etc.

We took our time for the drive up there and decided to see some sights along the way since it'll probably never be more convenient to see them. Our first stop was in Gettysburg. I had been there this past summer and loved it so much despite never caring much for the Civil War growing up. It had a profound effect on me.

This time it was snowy all over and much too cold to get out and explore. Also many of the touring roads were closed. After Gettysburg we visited Hershey, Pennsylvania and explored the amusement park there. It's all centered around the making of chocolate and there are roller coasters and everything else you would expect. We opted for the free tour of how they make chocolate which includes a free chocolate sample at the end. The lines were short and the kids loved it so we went 3 time in a row before we got back on the road.

 

Our next destination was Palmyra, NY. We stayed in the Palmyra Inn and only had a brief opportunity in the morning to go and see the Palmyra Temple and Joseph Smith's home. There was just too much snow to go tromping around the Sacred Grove. I feel like I can envision a little better the setting that some of these church history events happened in. Some day we'd like to go back in the spring.

Finally, it was time to go on to Canada for the real reason that we took our trip in the first place—to go to our friends' (Zak and Donna Price) wedding. Rachel was the Matron of Honor and I was a groomsman. It took a long time to get across the Canadian border and of course we came prepared with passports and birth certificates.

I was not expecting the sudden loss of my life line (mobile data connection) when we crossed the border. No more navigation, roaming phone calls and no more internet of any kind. That definitely threw us for a loop. But we managed to get there. The wedding was great. More on that as soon as we get some pictures to accompany it.

Sunday morning we set out to return home in 1 shot, as opposed to the 3 days we spent getting up there. We had gas stops, bathrooms breaks, a McDonalds dinner and play, and a quick stop at dusk at Niagra Falls.

Other than that it was just driving while  listening to Divergent. I feel like the book was a cross between Hunger Games and The Giver. It was alright. Below are the costs of such a trip. I include it because it was surprising to me even though it probably shouldn't have been.

Foreign Transaction Fees: $10
Roaming Charges: $15
Groceries: $56
Restaurants: $12
Fast Food: $37
Gas: $245
Rental Car: $265
Passport: $290
Hotels: $350
Total: $1,280