Holiday Inn Cincinnati-I275e-Eastgate, Oh

... get my hands on. I think that when this trip is over, we'll have to plan another to Northern Ireland. I have found a lot of places I would love to see...but many of them are up North. My list includes: Carrowkeel Cemetary above Lough Arrow. They have one special burial chamber that is lit by the sun on the day of the summer solstice - June 21 - as opposed to the winter solstice. I would love to see the Giant's Causeway. It is bizare with ...

... It will be a rude awakening, for sure!

Tomorrow, we'll drive about 4 hours to Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, home of Dolly Parton, Dollywood, the Dixie Stampede, and the gateway to Great Smoky Mountain National Park. We'll stay there two days, so we have a chance to do some leaf-peeping!

Oh - for those of you who enjoy the statistics: We have traveled 3,440 miles in the ...

FLYING DAY!!!!!

Woke up, threw the last things into the suitcases, then put everything into the car to head to the airport. Dad dropped me off and then it was time for the first flight to Cincinnati.


Flight #1 Orlando-Cincinnati

The flight was a little bumpy, and I was more than a little tired. Ironically, the Sky magazine (I was flying Delta) had an article on 5 ways to see Boston for 5 different kinds of travelers--like families, first-timers ...

... numbers of stars on their aprons. "What do the stars mean?" I asked, gesturing towards her apron.

"Oh, that is what level we are." And then looking down at the two stars, "Oh, this must be an old apron. I'm a level three server now." The last sentence said with a touch of pride. We then moved to ordering. I was torn between a breakfast special that included sausage and the catfish lunch.

"What do you recommend?" I asked Sabra.

"The ...

Today, we booked reservations for Blarney at the Blarney Woolen Mills Hotel for our first night of our stay! I'm SO excited! When our confirmation came in today, it was like, "This is real!" Have been penciled in for our main place to stay, http://www.holiday-rentals.co.uk/Irelan d/holiday-golf-holidays-cottage-County- Kerry/p18271.htm, but haven't gotten info about the deposit yet, which he said he would send.

Cherie and Kevin have been working their tail ...

Well we have had an uneventful first leg of the trip to the Cincinnati airport. I was a little shocked to learn that the forgotten lighter I carried in my pocket is no longer considered a prohibited item, kinda unsettling actually. So we are at t-1hr and counting until our flight to jfk and our 3 hr layover there. I was really thinking wifi was goig to be free in an airport but I was mistaken, so thank u ...

... until 1917 when it was assaulted and captured by Arab forces of Sharif Hussein bin Ali, with guidance and encouragement by T.E. Lawrence (as shown in the famous film, which scenes were not shot at this fort since it was too unimpressive!). This was a great victory for Lawrence, and the beginning of Arab nationalism. There is a huge flag flying near the fort. At first glance it looks like the Jordanian flag but, since it is missing the white star, it is in reality the ...

... cab. A little cramped, but we slept sound until the first light at 6:30am. We are in Newport, Kentucky.
We left Carolyn's around 10:30am after breakfast, showers and conversation. WE made Cleo's bottles for the day and left with a fresh fruit salad and some ham for lunch. Thanks Carolyn! Madeline talked to Cleo and kissed her head. Cleo is now asleep and we are rolling along after only one wrong ...

Lauren, Todd, Jenn, and I went up to Ohio, flying in and out of Cleveland and renting a car/staying in budget motels to visit two theme parks - PKI near Cincinnati and the legendary Cedar Point. We first went to Paramount's King's Island, mainly to ride Beast and Son of Beast, ranked two of the best wooden coasters in the world. They were amazing, and the rest of the park was nice, but not too different from other Paramount Parks, such as King's Dominion and Carowinds.

... dust and cobwebs off our seats they are so high and rarely in use. To put it bluntly, this place is a dump and they are right to be building a new ball park next door. But the crowd is good, and the Indians beat the Reds 5 to 1, a great part of the ball park is that you can see all the river barges being pushed down the river as the game goes on. After the game it is to Kentucky and then to Ohio to get back to the hotel. Stadium Count 8