From: kathy@oracorp.com (Kathy Knight)
Subject: Philadelphia report...
Organization: ORA Corporation, Ithaca, New York
Distribution: usa
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1992 18:50:40 GMT



Here is a condensed itinerary of our trip.  If anyone would like
more in-depth information, please contact me at kathy@oracorp.com.


First of all, I would like to say that the trip involved 12 teenage
girls ranging in ages from 13 to 18.  The adult planners gathered
as much information as possible, put it before the girls and let
them decide on a major percentage of the activities.


Saturday night - The girls arrived at 7:00pm to spend the night at one
of our camp lodges for an overnight/get-to-know-you party.


Sunday - We had breakfast at the lodge and headed out in 2 rental vans
for Philadelphia.  Lunch consisted of subs that we had made that
morning, and it was eaten in an area of Pennsylvania where we could
enjoy the scenery. We arrived at the Philadelphia Naval Base in the
afternoon.  Dinner at the base galley and swimming in the pool across
the road from our quarters was the order of the day.

Monday - Breakfast on the base, then a tour of the US mint.  It was
interesting to see how the coins were made.  Some of the girls even
got to stamp their own medal of the Mint's 200 birthday (got one
myself!).  We then went on a tour of the University of Pennsylvania.
The campus book store and lunch at the University were highlights.
The group then split up; half going back to the base to swim, the
other half enjoyed a few hours at the Zoo.  Monday night's dinner was
once more on the base, with swimming and bowling the night's
activities. We also went on a tour of the base. Dessert at MacDonalds
- yes, there's one on base - topped off the evening.

Tuesday - Breakfast on the base.  The major portion of the day was
spent at the New Jersey shore.  That evening, everyone dressed in
their very best and we went for a delightful meal at TGI-Fridays.

Wednesday - Breakfast on the base. The morning was spent touring
Independence Hall in Philly.  We went back to the base for lunch
because we had to be at the base's Outdoor Store so that the girls
could pick up their `Team Philadelphia' t-shirts (we had purchased
one for each of the group).  We went back into Philadelphia for the
afternoon where we toured the Philadelphia Art Museum (the
girls had fun running up the steps like `Rocky' - the adults
opted to walk.).  Later that evening, we went back to the base to
change and headed for the `Fun House' for dinner.  THIS WAS WONDERFUL!
It's hard to describe this place in a few words, but I'll be happy
to do so to anyone interested.  Needless to say, however, the 
highlight of the evening was the Kerokee (SP?).  The girls had
so much fun, getting up and entertaining everyone!  It's a good thing
that they close down early, or we would never have gotten them out!

Thursday - After breakfast on the base, we packed and headed for
Valley Forge/King of Prussia.  We spent the day and evening at the
mall (teenagers *do* love to shop in malls) and spent the night
at a local hotel.  

Friday - We headed for home through Lancaster and the surrounding
Amish communities.  They enjoyed themselves, stopping off at a
local factory to see how pretzels were made (they even got to 
make one themselves).


We had a a couple of disappointments, but for the most part, the trip
went extremely well.  One of the biggest let downs was our inability
to tour the aircraft carrier that was in port.  They were trying to
get back out again and would not allow visitors.  And, of course, it
was the only ship that was in port at the time!  Also, you can't
tour any of the buildings in Independence Mall on our own - you have to
go in groups.  Since we hadn't allowed for this, we didn't get to
go inside a lot of the buildings which was a shame.  We were on a
schedule and couldn't wait in line for a lot of the tours.  Still, it
was very enjoyable.


By the way...there were 16 of us in the group.  The most we paid
for any meal while on the base was $14.45 - total for the entire
group!!  The accommodations were very nice and the best part of
it all was that it was FREE!!


Kathy Knight
Fellow Scout
Xref: sparky rec.scouting:2794 alt.atheism:16487