#79: Cliff Walk (Page 704, 2nd Ed pg 865)

December, 2008: My husband surprised me with a weekend in Newport, Rhode Island. I "lost" my birthday (June 17th) since I was in the hospital giving birth to our second child (seen here in the Bjorn), so Dave gave me a weekend away as a belated birthday gift on my half-birthday.
The Cliff Walk, along with seeing all the mansions decorated for the holidays, was one of the highlights of the weekend!

The Cliff Walk is a national historic trail that runs about 3 1/2 miles along a rocky, beautifully scenic coastline. Breaking waves are on one side of you and gorgeous, massive, European-style mansions are on the other side.

Verdict: Absolutely worth your time to see and experience. We loved Newport and we loved the Cliff Walk. And, as an added bonus.... it's free!

#78: Independence National Historical Park (Page 702, 2nd Ed pg 861)

Update: June 16, 2011. It has been 3 1/2 years since I last visited Philadelphia and about 3 1/2 decades since my parents had, so we decided to head to Phili for a day trip during their visit out here last week and there were a few things I learned. First of all, I would definitely visit Congress Hall. This was a building Dave and I saw from the outside during our 2007 visit, but never bothered to go inside for the tour. It's about a 20-30 minute free tour that doesn't require tickets. It was very interesting and I found it very cool to be sitting in the building where the original Congress and Senate for the United States met for the first 10 years of our country's existance.
Something else we only saw from the outside during our 2007 visit was the Betsy Ross Home. This time, we paid the $4 admission (for adults; only $3 for Seniors age 55 and over) and did the self-guided tour. Worth the $4, in my opinion, especially if Betsy Ross happens to be home making one of her flags!
And another thing we missed the first time around was the Philisophical Society, housed right next to Independence Hall. There is a requested $1 donation. At first, it seemed a little boring when I walked in, but then this document was pointed out to me. The document in and of itself is not important. It is just a letter describing an intended journey of a researcher, which never actually occurred. However, several prominent men signed this document along with the amount of money they pledged to help fund the trip. Four of those men were George Washington, Jon Adams, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison. It is the only document in the world that exists with the signatures of the first four Presidents of the United States. And the original document is in the Philisophical Society Building. Pretty cool.

Another Tip: In 2007, we just walked right into the Visitors Center, got our free ticket for Independence Hall and went on our way. I checked out a current Fodor's Guide from the library right before this trip. It haphazardly mentioned that the free Independence Hall tickets were available at the Visitors Center as well as by calling a toll free number or going online. They did not suggest getting the tickets in advance or make any mention of tickets "selling out." So, I didn't worry about it. Big mistake. We got to Phili by 11:30 and all the tickets had already been distributed for the day. The woman told me they were all distributed by 10:30 that day and that is fairly common. So....... my advice to you is this: Get your tickets in advance! They can be reserved up to a year in advance.

October 2007: Dave, Lacey and I traveled to Philadelphia and saw all the sights. Here I am with Lacey in the Bjorn in front of Independence Hall, the place where the Declaration of Independence was voted on and signed on July 4, 1776. This is also the place where the Articles of Confederation were adopted in 1778. You do need to get tickets to tour this building, but tickets are free of charge.
The Betsy Ross House

Benjaman Franklin's burial site

George Washington Monument

Verdict: If you're American, this is an absolute must. Just to be in the same places where all these great men, our founding fathers, lived, conversed and laid the foundation for this great nation is an amazing experience.

#77: Philly Food (Page 701, 2nd Ed pg 863)

October 2007: I had a conferance in Philadelphia, so I brought my husband and my 8-month old daughter along for the ride. And as long as we were there.... we decided to check out the food! Here we are with our cheesesteak.
Two of "Philly's best" mentioned in 1000 Places To See Before You Die are Pat's Steaks...

and "Pat's archival" located across the street, Geno's.

Verdict: I honestly don't see what all the fuss is about. Now, admittedly, "Philly Food" is much more than just the cheesesteak, so maybe that's something you feel you need to experience before you die. But I, for one, am not much of a "foodie" and the cheesesteak was fine, but not something I needed to do before I die!

#76: Crater Lake National Park (Page 696, 2nd Ed pg 856)

September, 2010: Here I am 7 1/2 months pregnant with Baby #3 and holding my Baby #1 :) I took my Lacey out to Medford, OR to visit my Grandma and Medford just happens to be about a 2 hour drive from Crater Lake. It was rather cold and drizzly on the day we were there, but the Lake was spectacular!

The lake is an amazing blue color. It is 5 miles wide and surrounded by cliffs that are almost 2000 feet high. Spectacular! It rests on the remnants of a volcano, Mount Mazama. Mount Mazama erupte and collapsed into itself ~7,700 years ago. Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the USA and the 7th deepest in the world.

Crater Lake became a national park on May 22, 1902. There are 3 restaurants (we ate at one attached to a gift shop). The cost is only $10/car and that is good for an entire week.

Verdict: I loved Crater Lake. If I ever get the chance to visit Crater Lake again (and I hope I do!), I would love to stay for a couple days, hike, etc. But I was with my 90 year old Grandma and 3-year old daughter, so our activities were somewhat limited. But it was absolutely spectacular and I highly recommend this. In fact, I dub it "one of the 7 wonders of the USA."

#75: Oregon Shakespeare Festival (Page 694, 2nd Ed pg 854)

As you can see, I had to swipe this picture from the internet because I can't find my own! I have all the pictures from this trip, except the ones from Ashland. Go figure! Anyway, my Grandmother lives in Medford, which is not too far from Ashland, so in June of 2009, my sister and I went to Ashland as it was on our way from San Francisco to Medford where we were going to visit our Grandma. The Oregon Shakespeare Festival is a Tony-Award winning Festival and has been running since 1935. We walked all around the town and especially enjoyed the gift shop, which has everything you could ever want that is Shakespeare-esque.

Verdict: I'm not a die-hard Shakespeare lover. If you're not like me, then you could skip this one (although, I must admit, the town is quite charming, so if you're driving through, like I was, then stop and have a meal or stay the night). But... if you are a Shakespeare lover, then this is not to be missed!