Trip Journal 2016
Explorica Information
Trip ID: Nicholson-6607
Number of students: 81
2016 Scholarship Winners
Left to right:
- Michal Weinburg (3rd place)
- Hyewon Choi (2nd place)
- Kyle King (2nd place)
- Angyl Wright (1st place)
- Mr. Nicholson
- Aurora S. Garcia (1st place)
- Taylor Green (3rd place)
1st place: $1,550 scholarship
2nd place: $800 scholarship
3rd place: $400 scholarship
Day 1: Our Trip Begins (March 19, 2016)
We have arrived and are already exploring Boston. The first flight arrived, and we went to Faneuil Hall, known as The Cradle of Liberty. Once the second flight landed, we reunited and enjoyed a great dinner at Quincy Market and some quality shopping time. We were pretty tIred from our long journey, so we went to the hotel and got a good night's rest to be ready for tomorrow!
Tour Directors Mike Morgenthal and Jackie Heron
On the coach from the airport
Quincy Market
Day 2: Boston Sites (March 20, 2016)
We started our day with a great visit to Boston's historic North End, where we saw the Old North Church, Paul Revere's House, and had great pastries at an authentic Italian bakery, plus we sat in the Great Hall of Fanueil Hall, the Cradle of Liberty. Next up was a visit to Old Ironsides, the USS Constitution. We headed to Harvard and MIT for lunch and campus tours, then finished walking the Freedom Trail, which included the sites of the Boston Tea Party and the Boston Massacre. Dinner at the Hard Rock Cafe completed a great day!
Old North Church
Mike's Pastry
Faneuil Hall
Holocaust Memorial
USS Constitution
Harvard University
M.I.T.
The Alchemist (sculpture at M.I.T)
Boston Massacre Site
Hard Rock Cafe
Day 3: New York Sites (March 21, 2016)
This morning we left snowy Boston and drove to New York City. Our first stop was The Metropolitan Museum of Art. We walked through Central Park and then visited Grand Central Station, New York Public Library, Rockefeller Plaza, and St. Patrick's Cathedral. We had dinner at Schnippers before going to The Top of The Rock to see beautiful views of Manhattan. We drove to our hotel in New Jersey to get some rest before another busy day in New York City.
Snowball fight in Boston
Walking in Central Park
Alice in Wonderland Statue
Bethesda Terrace
Bethesda Fountain
Strawberry Fields Memorial
Dinner at Schnippers
Day 4: New York (March 22, 2016)
We began our day with a terrific visit to the Statue of Liberty and to Ellis Island, our national immigration museum. We took the ferry through scenic New York Harbor and arrived in Battery Park to start our tour of Lower Manhattan. We checked out the Charging Bull statue, Trinity Church, Wall Street, the New York Stock Exchange, Federal Hall, and the Federal Reserve. After lunch, we paid a stirring visit to the National 9-11 Memorial, including a stop at the brand-new Oculus at the Transportation Hub. We walked to Chinatown, checking out the Brooklyn Bridge, City Hall, and the Woolworth Tower along the way. We shopped our hearts out in Chinatown, and after dinner we enjoyed the lights and sites of Times Square. It was a really great NYC day!
Manhattan skyline
George Washington statue at the Federal Hall National Memorial
St. Paul's Chapel, completed in 1766
9-11 Memorial
World Trade Center Oculus
Dinner at Dallas BBQ
Times Square
Day 5: Philadelphia and Washington D.C. (March 23, 2016)
We began our day with a drive to Philadelphia to see the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, and the birthplace of our nation. We had a great lunch at Reading Terminal Market - Philly Cheesesteaks! - and then went to the Philadelphia Museum of Art to run up the Rocky steps. We then drove to our nation's capital, Washington D.C., where we saw the White House and 4 stunning memorials: World War II, Korean War, Lincoln, and Vietnam War. It was a really great day in 2 amazing cities!
Independence Hall
The Liberty Bell
Independence Square
Ice Cream at Reading Terminal Market
Ben Franklin's grave
Philadelphia Art Museum (Rocky steps)
Winners of trip scholarships
Dinner at Fuel Pizza
Day 6: Alexandria Virginia (March 24, 2016)
We drove to Alexandria Virginia this morning, to board the boat that took us up the Potomac River to Mount Vernon, the home of George Washington. We toured his mansion, the pioneer farm, slave quarters, blacksmith, and George Washington's tomb. We had dinner at King Street Blues in Alexandria. After dinner, we had free time to explore historic Alexandria. It was a great last night to our east coast trip.
Mount Vernon
Cherry blossoms
King Street Blues Restaurant
Day 7: Washington DC (March 25, 2016)
On our final day in Washington D.C., we visited the Library of Congress and the United States Capitol. We had lunch at National Place before checking in at Dulles Airport. Our tour guides Mike and Jackie send a big thank-you to our students and chaperones.
The United States Capitol
Bus selfie!
Relaxing at the hotel
Posing
Lincoln Memorial
The Washington Monument as seen from the World War II Memorial
