Road Trip 2012 Highlights

I recently returned from a 2 week road trip. It was my fiance, Jennifer's first REAL road trip, so I was super excited. We had SO many things planned. So many reviews set up, but, as with most road trips, changes occurred which actually turned out to be a good thing! 

The first week turned out as planned.....Alexandria-VA, Atlanta-GA, Destin-FL and Orlando-FL. We walked past historic houses, stayed at plush hotels, soaked up the sun, went swimming in the ocean, reviewed some fantastic restaurants, had fun at Islands of Adventure etc., etc., but the 2nd week, which brought a burst of (much needed) rain and a surprise visit from a "monthly friend" caused our plans to travel further south to Fort Lauderdale and Key West to change. We decided to save those destinations for (possibly) our honeymoon and head back north. We arranged stays in Florence-South Carolina, Annapolis-Maryland, Atlantic City-New Jersey and Lancaster-PA.

The weather was gorgeous! Sunny and warm (low 80's). We were hosted at the beautiful Westin Annapolis and enjoyed the quaint town. We were also hosted at the GORGEOUS Borgata Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City which truly made us feel like we were in Las Vegas! Wow. That place is simply amazing (I even won money!! - lol - always a good thing). We had Philly cheesesteaks and made a stop at Eastern State Penitentiary. We also decided to visit Amish country in Pennsylvania. We had so much fun driving through towns such as Bird-in-Hand, Intercourse and Blue Ball. No. Really....lol.

We blasted music. Ate at Waffle House. Played the "Cracker Barrel Game". Survived a 3 hour delay getting over the George Washington Bridge. We were teased by stormy looking clouds. We walked the Atlantic City boardwalk. Were the ultimate tourists at Hard Rock Cafes. Got special treatment at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville in Orlando. We went on rides at Islands of Adventure in the pouring rain. Sipped Butter Beer at Harry Potter Land (YUM!!!! Think creme soda with a creamy topping). We visited the tackiest place in America - South of the Border and had so much fun we almost peed ourselves! We adopted a doll that truly could be our child at JR's in North Carolina. We were given bottles of wine, chocolate covered strawberries, fruit, crackers, cheese and welcome notes in all the hotel we were hosted at. We enjoyed perfect weather in Destin as we relaxed on the beach, toes in the sand and cooled off in the turquoise/emerald water. We enjoyed yummy BBQ and sung along to Johnny Cash and Hank Williams. We witnessed a brush fire, thunderstorms, brilliant sunshine and a rainbow. We bought oranges, peaches, peanuts, watermelon and veggies which all rotted out by the time we got home...lol. 

Jen and I spent every second together for over 14 days and got along beautifully. We laughed and had SO much fun, words can't even do it justice. 

We were sad when the trip was over but know we will be on another adventure soon. 

With a trip to Ptown scheduled for this weekend and a trip to Wildwoods, NJ July 6-9 and upcoming trips to the Jersey Shore, Brooklyn-NY, Newport-RI, Providence-RI, Boston-MA, Niagara Falls-NY, Lake Placid-NY and Saratoga Springs-NY planned for the summer....I think we'll both get our travel fix! ;) 

What an amazing way to celebrate my 36th birthday....with my amazing, loving, beautiful, fiance and best friend. 

Here are some photos highlighting our trip!

-Des