Road Trip Thursday Goes Global!

Pack your bags and don't forget your passport! Road Trip Thursday is leaving our 50 states behind and heading for foreign shores this summer.


If you're entering grades 1-5 in the fall, come join us as we explore the stories, culture, games and (yes, sometimes) food of these countries. You do not have to come all 8 weeks, but you do have to register for each week you'd like to come. Registration for Week 1 (Mexico) begins June 13.

Our travel itinerary for the 8-week program is:

Week 1: Mexico
Week 2: South Africa
Week 3: Australia
Week 4: Japan
Week 5: India
Week 6: Russia
Week 7: Egypt
Week 8: France

See you there!

Photo by tiffini via Creative Commons

From Texas to Kansas

The last time we passed through Texas, we stopped at the Dallas Aquarium and checked out the manatees. This time through, it was Cinco de Mayo, so we celebrated the Mexican-American holiday by eating tortillas drizzled with honey and playing Loteria, which is most easily described as Mexican bingo. (But I know you're interested in more information about the game, so don't say I never gave you nothin.)

Our next stop was Kansas, the Sunflower State. In honor of the state's nickname, we ate sunflower seeds, and because I have a soft spot for wackiness, we tried our hands at pancake racing.

That cannot be what it sounds like, you might say. And I'd say, oh, but it is.

From the International Pancake Day website:

Many people are familiar with Mardi gras celebrations on the day before Lent. But in Liberal, Kansas, the day before Lent means just one thing – it’s Pancake Day.

The friendly little competition between Liberal, Kansas, and Olney, England, with women running down the streets of each town flipping pancakes, has been going on more than 60 years now. It is still the only race of its kind on the planet.

(Granted, we used board books instead of pancakes, but hey. You use what you have.)

Join us next time, as we get our clogging on in the bluegrass state. Until then!

Road Trip Thursday - Vegas to Denver

During our past two road trips, we had a solid idea of where we wanted to end up - first Florida, and then California. On this trip, we're playing it much more loosely and are just sort of ambling from state to state.

(Side note: I'm seriously delighted by this, but I'm also a person who drifted in and out of the state of Indiana three times in one day about four years ago. By dinnertime, I didn't even know what time zone I was in anymore - and didn't really care, as long as it was, in fact, dinnertime.)

As a result, we've been drifting eastward/southerly from Oregon these past few weeks; first to Nevada, then to Colorado. We couldn't go to Nevada without going to Vegas, but since much of Vegas is restricted to our fearless travelers, we did what any underage Vegas tourists would do and visited both the Guinness World of Records Museum - now sadly closed - and M&M World.

(Side note #2: How could we visit a museum that is no longer open? Well, that's the magic of a pretend road-trip. In real life, one sits in a hot desert parking lot wiping tears from one's eyes because one did not do one's research. On a pretend road trip, one marvels at the world's largest corn dog.)

Our next stop was Denver, Colorado, where we visited the United States mint there and learned all about how money is made. Literally. We even got to design our own! Some denominations included an $800 bill, a $2,000 bill, and the ever-elusive million dollar bill. (Talk about not wanting that one to go through the wash!)

Next week we head even further south and into Texas.

But Angela, you say. Haven't we already been to Texas?

Not on Cinco de Mayo, we haven't. See you there.

Photo by Hakan Dahlstrom via Creative Commons

Road Trip Thursday - Aloha!

Back in the saddle again. Or, as the case may be, back in the rickety hatchback with no clock again. Our fearless travelers are back again - with some new hitchhikers - and ready to take on the 50 states.


When last we met, we had just pulled into California. Now, everyone knows what you'll find west of California - the Pacific Ocean. But did we let that stop us from heading west? Absolutely not! Especially not when Hawaii was beckoning...

So we put our little car on the proverbial ferry and went to Hawaii, where we made lei, listened to ukulele music (because, yes, I did happen to have a uke with me), driank pineapple juice and ate macadamia nuts. (Well, macadamia nut cookies.) We even had a hula dancer in the car with us, and she showed us some of her moves.

But eventually we did have to move on, crossing back over to the mainland to our next destination: Oregon. Stay tuned for those adventures and more on the next Road Trip Thursday!

Photo by Monster Pete via Creative Commons

Road Trip Thursday - Somewhere in the Rockies...

It's not that I haven't wanted to tell you about all the wonderful things we've seen (manatees at the Dallas Aquarium), done (sidewalk chalk drawings in Green River, Wyoming) and eaten (tortilla s'mores). It's just that, well, there are times during a road trip when all you want to do is put your foot out the window and just listen to the radio.

(There are also times when you can't believe how in need of a bath you are. Those of you who played mud tag in Wyoming today know exactly what I mean.)

However, as our trip winds down and we inch ever closer to the Pacific Ocean, I should fill you in on our remaining plans, which include both the Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona and the very center of the film industry - Hollywood, California.

Will we see you there?

Photo by Chovee, via Creative Commons

Road Trip Thursday - Arkansas

Well, I feel pretty confident in saying that we explored as much of Arkansas as humanly possible in 30 minutes. While sipping some milk (the state beverage since 1985), we listened to Johnny Cash (born in Kingsland, AR) as we talked about the history and symbols of the state.

Next we talked about famous people from Arkansas, including former President Bill Clinton, writer Maya Angelou (born in MO, raised in AR), NBA star Scottie Pippen, and of course, the aforementioned Man in Black.

Finally, my fellow travelers humored me by joining hands and doing a bit of the state folk dance of Arkansas - the square dance. (I suspect I owe them big-time for this.)

After choosing Texas as our next state, we researched a little to find out what kinds of things we could see and do there. We made a long list and collectively decided to visit the Dallas Cowboys, the Dallas Aquarium, and the Poteet Strawberry Festival.

(And yes, we're cheating just a tiny bit here. From Little Rock to Dallas is 318 miles, and from Dallas to Poteet is another 309, and that's definitely over our 500 mile daily limit. But I'm willing to drive an extra 127 miles if there are chocolate-covered strawberries at the end of them.)

See you there!

Photo by Chedid (Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License), via Wikipedia

Road Trip Thursday - Alabama, Arkansas...

I bet you thought I forgot about you all, right? No chance. I know you're there, sitting on the edge of your proverbial seat, just waiting to hear about the travels of my next carload of fearless road-trippers.

This latest bunch joined up with me in Florida, where we explored the Everglades, learned the difference between alligators and crocodiles, tasted some fine key lime pie, and chose our next destination - Alabama.

Which is where we were today.

We started off with fried chicken and peach-flavored iced tea, since the state tree fruit of Alabama is the peach. (Chicken is just chicken, but it's pretty tasty when you fry it, and they've been known to do that in many parts of the American South.) While we were eating, we listened to the Blind Boys of Alabama, a gospel music group that has been around for over 60 years!

Then we learned about a very famous Alabamian - Rosa Parks - a black woman who was arrested in 1955 for refusing to give up her seat to a white passenger on the racially segregated bus. This sparked the Montgomery Bus Boycott, an important part of the modern civil rights movement in America.

Finally, we got out of the car and went on a scavenger hunt for Alabama state symbols in the library, including the state rock (marble), the state bird (yellowhammer) and the state nut (pecan), among others.

Join us next week as we head for Arkansas, birthplace of Johnny Cash, Bill Clinton, and Scottie Pippen!

(Just to name a wildly different few.)

Photo by Muffet, via Creative Commons.

Road Trip Thursday - Day 9

All good things must come to an end, and yesterday we found ourselves enjoying (read: ravenously devouring) citrus fruit and shouting out Sunshine State facts and answers to trivia questions about Walt Disney World.

That's how we (briefly) visited Florida - which is where we'll start our journey when we meet again in January.

That's right! Road Trip Thursday will be back after the new year, so if you're in 1st-5th grade and have a hankering to experience the history and culture of America from the comfort of your own library, be sure to sign up at the children's desk of Tredyffrin Public Library starting Monday, December 12/27.

Until then, enjoy your holidays and drive safely.

Photo by FreeWine, via Creative Commons