Spencer's spring break was the past couple of weeks so we decided to check out some of the local highlights. We gassed up our rarely working car (okay, that's a little bit of a exaggeration, but...) and headed west to the exotic city of....Newark, OH. Yeah, trip funds were a little tight this year. But honestly, we had a great time. It was right up our alley and just what we were hoping for.
Our first stop was the Newark Earthworks site. These are large mounds of earth built by an indigenous group referred to as the Hopewell culture between 100 BC and 500 AD. They look like...very nicely shaped hills. But the formations they make (creating perfect circles, parallel lines, octagons, etc.) stretch(ed) for miles and are remarkable in the way they correspond to the moon and the stars. They describe the mounds as "part cathedral, part cemetery, and part astronomical observatory." Not that we could see any of that, but they had it nicely displayed and explained in the museum. :)
We only visited the "Great Circle" because...most of the original structures are either destroyed or currently part of a golf course. You know how it is. But we're glad we went. You can see part of the "Great Circle" in the above picture with Spencer and Grace.
Descending from an earthwork.
Conquering an earthwork. Grace loved climbing up and down these and kept saying we needed to get to the "big red hill." Dora the Explorer, anyone?
We thought these might have been vultures. Gross.
I just liked this one. 
After a picnic lunch, we headed to yet another fantastic Newark landmark: the Longaberger building. AKA...the World's Largest Basket. Appropriately, the Longaberger company specializes in making hand-crafted baskets. Baskets like unto this one:
At the end of the day, we felt like this:
7 comments:
The close trips are some of the most relaxing, I think. :) And it looks like you had plenty of fun!!
I am really digging the basket building.
I like your little trip. How interesting about the earthworks. And that building really is something else. Always good to explore in our own "back yards" every once in a while.
How fun! I always wanted to go to Longaberger... Grace is as cute as always!
Grace has gotten so big! It's great to see you're doing well.
Sounds fun! That last picture kills me. So adorable!
That basket is pretty cool! We wish you could have come to visit us but it looks like you found some good things to do instead!
Post a Comment