Girls Trip pt 3: Ocean City & Boonsboro

....continuation...

On Saturday, after we left Delaware, we headed to Ocean City and stopped at Ponzetti's restaurant. They have INSANELY good pizza and I was quite happy with this pick! 

Of course it was still raining after lunch and this was supposed to be our other beach day.  Thankfully, we were still able to do the Banana boat in the rain. It's basically water tubing, but on a banana boat! THIS WAS MY FAVORITE THING!!!

We had so much fun on the banana boat! Lots of laughs!!

Since it was raining we mostly had our eyes closed which made it even more challenging to stay on the banana. I fell off once, but got back on and continued for the full 20 minutes. I LOVE water tubing so I was very happy that this had similar vibes!  Definitely recommend!

In the evening we walked around Ocean City boardwalk which I think was a lot bigger and better than Rehoboth. They also had a lot of kiddie/carnival type rides so of course we had to do something!

The Tilt-A-Whirl!

 

This brought back memories from my childhood! 

We were spinning so fast- this was my first time doing one since I was a child and I didn't know if my motion sickness would have an impact... I DID feel a little sick afterwards, but it was still SO FUN! We ended up doing it twice. LOL 

Overall, I think Ocean City would be better in good weather, but we made the best of it and this became my favorite day of the trip (Yummy pizza + banana boat + tilt-a-whirl!)

Ocean City

SUNDAY:  We left Ocean City and made our way to Boonsboro, MD. Of course the non-beach day (the day we decided to go to the caverns) turned out to be a beautiful day weather wise. GO FIGURE!
Crystal Grottoes Caverns is a natural phenomenon that has more formations per square foot than any cave known to man. Our guide, Dakota, was wonderful! We had a great tour which was around 45 min in length.

Inside the caverns

Inside the caverns

And that's a wrap on our Maryland/Delaware trip! Overall, the drives to and from weren't terrible. (around 8 hours one way.)  The weather could have been better, but we still had fun and I definitely enjoyed their company!

Girls trip pt 2: Dela-where????

 ....continuation from last post... 

After lunch on Friday we drove a little over 2 and a half hours to Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Of course it was raining when we arrived so we asked the guy at the front desk what we could do. He said, "stay in bed and sleep."  (very helpful) 

Ignoring his advice we went to the boardwalk and grabbed some dinner. While at dinner we asked the waitress for recommendations on what to do and she told us to go to Maryland. (Also extremely helpful when we're trying to find things to do in DELAWARE) 

I decided to word the question a little differently the third time. I asked our Uber driver, "what's the best thing about Delaware?" (thinking he would tell us of a good attraction or thing to do)....  Instead he answered with a short and simple, "No taxes."  (Not exactly what we were looking for, but we did learn something new: Delaware does not impose a state or local sales tax!) 

All that to say...Delaware was a struggle.

When I began planning our trip to Maryland and Delaware, I didn't see a whole lot going on in Delaware. I'm not a big beach person, but Rehoboth Beach was highly rated and it seemed like the best option for our group. 

View of the beach in between rain showers.

A break in the rain and a glimpse at the boardwalk

Penny Lane Mall

Observations:  the boardwalk and Rehoboth Beach in general seemed very family friendly.  There was a place called Funland which had kiddie rides and games. There were also lots of shops and places to eat along the boardwalk... and of course, if you're a beach goer, there seemed to be plenty of beach/water activities. (Weather permitting!)  I think if my parents had taken me there when I was kid, I might have enjoyed it, but it is not a place I would go back to now. (This is just my opinion)

SATURDAY:  Before leaving Delaware we stopped at Seaside Country Store. The store had a food section (WITH REALLY GOOD FUDGE!!), Christmas section, nautical section, a bath section, and more. It was nice because it was on the way to our next destination: Ocean City, MD.  It was a good way to pass the time on (another) rainy day.


((TO BE CONTINUED))

I leave you with just one question:

..... Dela-where??????

Girls Trip part 1: Baltimore, MD

As most of you know, I am trying to visit all 50 states by age 40! As of last week, I was sitting at 33 states, but thanks to a few friends I am now sitting at 35! M&M&M&M (Michelle, Melissa, Meghan, and Michelle) journeyed to Maryland and Delaware for a long weekend away!

THURSDAY: We drove about 8 hours to Baltimore. My one friend is trying to hit all the ballparks so of course we had to catch a game at Camden Yards. (Baltimore Orioles vs the Chicago Cubs) If you know me, you know I don't care about baseball (or sports in general), but when you travel with friends you have to do stuff they like sometimes. :)  And honestly, with these girls, I could go anywhere with them and have fun so I wasn't going to complain about a game! I'm just thankful to have friends to travel with! 

Before the game!

During the game!

We stayed at SpringHill Suites by Marriott which was about a 10 minute walk to the ballpark.  We didn't have any issues with the hotel, but people in Baltimore do drive a little crazy. Baltimore itself is not on my list of places to go back to, but we never felt unsafe during our time there. 

FRIDAY: We got to sleep in a little bit since our next item on the itinerary didn't open until 10am: the Historic Ships in Baltimore!

USS Constellation the only civil-war-era ship still afloat! This ship was heavily involved in finding and capturing slave trade ships.

USS TORSK- This submarine sank the last two enemy ships of WWII and held a record (at the time) of over 10,000 dives!

Lightship Chesapeake- This ship functioned as a lighthouse

U.S. Coast Guard Cutter 37: This was the last remaining warship that saw action at the Battle of Pearl Harbor. 

I LOVE HISTORY -especially U.S. History! Touring old ships aren't really my thing, but this was definitely still cool... LIVING HISTORY! 

After touring the ships we stopped at Papermoon Diner for lunch. It's described as eclectic and funky, a "knickknack-laden diner." I think I first stumbled upon this diner when I was researching things to do in Baltimore. It's one of a kind for sure! 

Inside the diner!

Outside of the Papermoon Diner

The bathroom in Papermoon Diner-PEZ dispensers all over the walls and hotwheels covering the ceiling!

....TO BE CONTINUED....

Unwanted Souvenir and Final Thoughts

UNWANTED SOUVENIR: 

AND NOW... the continuation from my last post.... those itchy bug bites weren't bug bites at all! Mike and I both got SCABIES. (!!!) We are guessing it was from either an airplane seat, bedding, or towels. I had over 200 EXTREMELY ITCHY bumps. 14 just on my left hand alone... PHEW. 

We are grateful that we didn't break out until we got home and grateful that the other couple didn't get them, but MAN!! IT SUCKS!! (Present tense because I am still dealing with itchiness!)  We did 3 scabies treatments,  super cleaned our house, and did over 30 loads of laundry. It overshadowed the trip...by A LOT, which is unfortunate. We (errr I) had such an amazing time-especially in Egypt and Jordan! In a few days it will be almost a month since we've been home and I've spent more time thinking about these darn scabies than the coolness of our trip. 

My right leg got the worst of it! 

FINAL THOUGHTS....

THANKFULNESS:

I am so unbelievably thankful for the opportunity to have traveled to so many amazing places. This trip was no exception! We saw the PARTHENON,  the PYRAMIDS, and PETRA!!! 3 ICONIC P'S!!  

I actually STOOD ON THE PYRAMIDS - if that's not bragging rights for the rest of my life I don't know what is!! 

Many people were nervous about us going to Egypt and Jordan. (Myself included.) Let me just say I never once felt unsafe in either of the countries. We had a private guide with us the entirety of each visit (minus being at the hotel) and we felt very well taken care of.  I would HIGHLY recommend visiting Egypt and Jordan. We booked our trip through GoWay Travel and I have used them for 4 other trips. I was very happy with how our itinerary turned out -which was entirely custom made and tailored to what we wanted to do.  

UNPOPULAR OPINION:

 I'm glad we went to Greece, BUT I think it's slightly overrated. It's very crowded and, honestly, I didn't think Santorini was as pretty as the pictures often portray it. 

I always thought of Santorini as the iconic blue domes, but they are scattered and not as prevalent as one would think. I did, thankfully, already know this going in. I think if I hadn't had that heads up I would have been even more sorely disappointed. Again, unpopular opinion here, but I DON'T think Santorini is worth the hype. I'm glad we went, but I don't need to go back. Yes, I liked the white wash buildings and the occasional blue domes and even the maze of stairs was unique and fun... but most of the island is volcanic rock and not that pretty to look at.  

SHOUT OUT: 

ALSO a HUGE shoutout to my AMAZING husband who dislikes travel, but has now been to all 7 continents!  (6 new continents in almost 7 years of marriage!) Before we met, his online dating profile said he didn't want to date a traveler... now look at him go! LOL (okay, more like being dragged) I'm so thankful he comes along for the ride and that we have made some memorable, hilarious, and crazy memories! I LOVE YOU, MICHAEL DAVID!