On Sunday, we drove over to Sandusky and caught the boat over to Put In Bay Island. I had never been there before and had always wanted to go, so I was really excited about going. They go all the time, so they know their way around and what not. Here's the view of Sandusky from the water.
The kids (and I) really enjoyed riding over on the boat. It was a perfectly sunny day with temps at right about 80. I again completely enjoyed wearing a tank top, shorts, and sandals. I just cant get over how great it feels to be able to go outside without putting on 30 pounds of clothes. It makes me realize that I need to live in a place where there are distinct seasons. I enjoy the winter, but I dont want it to be winter 7-8 months of the year.
As we rode past Cedar Point, I started to really get pumped for some roller coasters. I cant wait to go. We're planning to go on Sunday. Kevin and I are going to go first thing in the morning too ride the big coasters, then Edije's going to bring the kids over in the afternoon for awhile for lunch and some kiddie rides. Then Kevin and I will hit the big coasters again in the late afternoon/evening. OHHHH...Millennium Force, Maverick, Top Thrill Dragster, Power Tower, Mantis, Raptor, Mean Streak, Wicked Twister...HERE I COME!
We rented a golf cart and did a loop around the island when we got there just so I could see it all. Being on an island and all, we had to stop by a beach and pick up some sand for my collection. Here are the kids and I out by the beach. That's Canada across the way...we were only 4 miles from it!
Next, we stopped at Perry's monument, which is the big attraction on the island. Oliver Hazard(interesting middle name?) Perry is commemorated by this monument for his victory over the British as a part of the war of 1812.
We took the elevator that was built in 1936 to the top of the monument. The view from up top was stunning. Below is a pic of most of the village of Put-In-Bay, esp the downtown area. I learned many things while touring the monument, but one of the most interesting and important facts that I learned was that the U.S./Canadian border is the longest standing undefended border. Isnt good to love your neighbors? I think so. 
We could even see Davis Bessy from way up there (and from the boat too). This is the nuclear reactor/powerplant outside of Toledo, Ohio. We actually studied nuclear energy in my 8th grade physical science class last year and the kids got really into it. It made me miss them and wish they could see it too.
Next, we toured the Crystal Cave, which is the biggest geode on Earth according to the websites, but the girl who did our tour said that she thought this was for sure the biggest celestite geode, but that she thought there were some amethyst geodes in South America that were bigger. The was not like touring a regular cave, it was like, well, being inside a geode. A HUGE, MAMMOTH GEODE. Dont know what a geode is? Look it up! :) The crystals are made of strontium sulfate and the biggest one in the cave was huge at 18inX22in and weighing in at some 800 pounds. You can see it below, the biggest crystal in the cave/pic. Each crystal is the exact same shape, as are all crystals of most crystalline substances, and had 12 sides(8exposed and 4not). It was very interesting.
Here's the happy family...Kevin, Edije, Alyssa, and Nathan. Kevin, Edije, and I went to college at Bowling Green State University together....it's hard to believe...8years ago! We've been great friends ever since. They are such a wonderful family!
We also toured a winery on the island. They are a medium sized winery and the sample wine that I had was pretty good. They said they sell 90% of there wine on the premises and locally, so you wont likely see there label at the stores anyway.
Here are some of the fermenting tanks that we saw. I learned that the word dry, as in "a dry white wine" means very little to no sugar. If it's not designated dry, that means there is sugar added...alot of it too.
Alyssa tried her hand at the rock climbing wall and did awesome. She reached the top...TWICE. She's quite the little monkey!
We also panned for gems at the gem mining place and filled a little zip lock bag with gems of all different types. We're planning to look through them tomorrow and figure out what they all are. Then, Alyssa and I went into the butterfly house. It was really neat. We saw lots of exotic species of butterflies, mostly from Africa, S. America, and Australia. (Why do you think most of the continents start with A? The Americas, Asia, Africa, Australia, Antarctica? And then there's Europe, which starts with another vowel...hmmm? any thoughts?) The butterfly below was my favorite. I'm not sure what it was called. Our butterfly guide got rained on and ruined. :(
The lady there told us that it's good luck if a butterfly lands on you. I had one land on my purse. Alyssa took this pic.
And Alyssa was able to coax two on to her finger. It even pooped on her...gross! She loved every minute of it though.
Every where we went, there were golf carts. It's the way to get around if you dont live on the island. And not many people do...only 128 as of the 2000 census. We stopped for lunch just has a huge storm was rolling in and watched the storm from the safety of the pizza shop. After is had past, we went to the Chocolate museum for dessert. There chocolate wasnt that great, but the ice cream was! The museum was small, but interesting.
Here's our ride...number 71! What a fun day! Man, were we pooped when we got home. The kids even slept until almost 10 am this morning!
We had a really busy, but fun weekend! I'm really enjoying spending some quality time with friends!
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1 comment:
heyy wats up lisha wisha!!
=]
srry we couldnt go to the cook out...i was really mad & my momma...
but i hope to c u soon this summer...miss u ALOT!!
~Miranda~
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