#6 & #7

Wow, it's been a while. A lot has happened in the last couple of months, and I will write about it all in time (or I won't. There's really no way to tell). But for now, we're going to start with this.

#'s 6 and 7 on my Boston Bucket List are, respectively, the Ben & Jerry's Factory and Sharon, Vermont. Luckily for me I have some like-minded friends. So, one Saturday Anne Marie, Allie, Curtis, Jake and I took a day trip up to Vermont to see Sharon, the Ben & Jerry's Factory, and the Cabot Cheese Factory. During the car rides we played some interesting games (the skittles game being high on my list), shared some hilarious stories (ask Curtis about his most awkward conversation with a girl), ate some good food, occasionally in interesting ways (see the video of Jake eating the chex mix out the window of the car while we were driving), learned some very random facts about each other (playing the question game) and generally had a an awesome time together. And that was just the car ride.

Sharon, Vermont is the birthplace of the Mormon prophet Joseph Smith. Truthfully I had no idea what to expect to see there - maybe a farm or an open grassy area. Not sure why I thought that, because the LDS church knows how to do things right. There was a beautiful visitor's center, an enormous monument, and a quite little bench to sit and ponder. It was really lovely. Also, the day we went there was a marathon going on and we ran into two of our friends who ran in it. What are the chances? Anyway, we went and had a tour of the visitor's center and watched a movie that we erroneously assumed would be about Joseph Smith but was actually about families. A good film, but not what I expected. Then we just wandered around the grounds, took some pictures and hit the road.

We then drove to Montepelier, Vermont, which happens to be the country's smallest capital. We ate at a place called the Prohibition Pig. We chose that one over the other, slightly-more-appealing diner down the street because we liked the name and felt like it was a more authentic experience. Still not sure we made the right choice on that one, but it was fun regardless of the fact that the boys were still hungry after they finished their meals.

Our next stop was the Ben & Jerry's Factory! I was quite pleased about this because I do love some good ice cream. I was surprised how packed it was - there were SO many people. Not what I was expecting, but I guess I can't assume that we have a monopoly on good ideas of how to successfully spend a Saturday. We bought some ice cream, meandered through the gift shop, and took the tour through the factory. The tour itself was a little bit of a let down since no ice cream was actually being made. Apparently they don't make ice cream on Saturday's. Who knew? So, note to self, if you want to tour the Ben & Jerry's Factory, do yourself a favor and don't go on a Saturday. However, on a happier note, Jerry was actually there, hanging out outside and taking picture with some of the groups. We opted out of that this time around. Maybe next time. Also, remind me to get pictures from Anne Marie, cause come to find out the only ones I have are of ice cream. Don't judge me.

Our final(ish) stop was the Cabot Cheese Factory in Vermont. Our timing was pretty perfect since the last tour started 20 minutes after we got there. The tour was cool but the real highlight was the table full of cheese when you walked in the door. You could sample all sorts of flavors of cheese including tomato and basil (one of my favorites), horseradish, bacon, jalapeno, and about a million others that are escaping me at the moment. Needless to say, we each went around the table a couple of times.

Our final, final stop was actually an accident. We were trying to find a town where Allie's ancestor has a statue of her (new addition to my bucket list: get a statue dedicated to me) but we inadvertently ended up in a city in New Hampshire that has the same name of the town we were looking for in Massachusetts. I wouldn't call it a total waste, though Anne Marie may not agree. All in all, a solid day trip to Vermont. All in a day's work.