Gettysburg

While we were staying in Pennsylvania, one of the places on our list to visit was Gettysburg.  I didn't know what to expect...it's a battlefield.  But it is such an important place in our history as a nation, that we knew we had to try and go.

(Gettysburg Address...in President Lincoln's own handwriting)

We started our day bright and early.  After stopping by the NPS visitor center to get some Jr. Ranger books for the kids, we set off to see the park.

It was early enough (and COLD!) that we were some of the few people out walking.  It gave us a chance to be in the stillness and quiet and focus on the enormity of the fields of battle that we were walking through.  The fields where 51,000 American men died during the Battle of Gettysburg...

There are so many monuments...it would take days to see them all...

We toured on our own, but there are other options.  Private guided tours, NPS tours, horseback tours, etc...  The VC also houses a museum and the Cyclorama among other things. 

It wasn't what I would call a "fun" destination (obviously), but it was a place that I am glad we visited.