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Health & Fitness

Family Vacation Trip/Advenure

Vacation and adventures of a "see the family" trip.

Recently I took a week's vacation/adventure to visit relatives in Charlottesville, VA and Washington, D.C.

 In Charlottesville it was a gathering of the Whitehurst clan (10 of us) for my first cousin's twice removed high school graduation from Tandem Friends School. As a member of a class of 36 Matthew knew them his classmates, as well as they knew him. The ceremony was touching and held outdoors where parents and friends could see three mountain ranges in the distance (we were part of a fourth). We also had formal family pictures taken for posterity, visited an apple farm at the top of a mountain, and partied and celebrated a lot!

 

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In Washington D.C. I visited with Louise, my cousin once removed. As soon as I arrived I went out to lunch with the McGovern side of the family: second cousins Paul and his wife,Raniya and their daughter, Roxanne, and her son, Maceo Parker McGovern; and another of Louise's brothers, Matthew and his wife, Rose. No sooner had we eaten and caught up (how you can do that after 30 years is a wonder) than they had to leave for home either in D.C. or Jacksonville, Florida.

Louise and I had a delightful time getting reacquainted, shopping, and visiting with her friend Amy who came down for a conference being held in the Swedish Embassy.

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One thing I did notice during my travels was that every city and highway has some kind of excavation, repair, and repaving done. The maps and GPSs can not keep up with it all. Verona and Oakmont and Pittsburgh are actually fairly easy to negotiate after Washington D.C. in particular.

Cars also break down and that is how I found myself in the Swedish Embassy listening to Inez McCormick (the woman who brokered the peace in Ireland). Amy, who is from Connecticut, borrowed Louise's car to go to her conference. It lost all it's coolant in the middle of the city. Triple A was no help because Louise and her card were not with Amy and Amy did not have AAA; so I volunteered to rescue Amy. Being directed by Louise through my bluetooth, I found Amy on the corner of Wisconsin and McComb. We decided not to use the coolant I had brought with me, instead we went to the Embassy in my PT Cruiser so she could at least show her face at the meeting. In spite of not being dressed for the Embassy and meetings, I was convinced to go inside with Amy instead of waiting in my “Cruiser;” and that is how I ended up in the Swedish Embassy and hearing Inez McCormick and meeting other fascinating folks from around the world. Amy and I returned to Louise's car and made it home safely using my GPS.

My trip home was uneventful, but tiring. After getting in the house, I went to bed and slept a good while....such as it is with most vacations....no rest, but wonderful memories and times.

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