Penn's Woods

I had the fortune to spend my autumn break in Pennsylvania, home of Hershey, the Liberty Bell and Penn State football. I flew into Philadelphia and, after a fairly scenic car ride, ended up in West Chester County. It's called the suburbs, but it was closer to what I would call rural. Fields with horses and goats appeared on either side of the road. Lots of fall colors everywhere. It was very pretty.

For the most part we just napped and watched movies and ate.  On Saturday we went to this English pub called The Whip, which was kind of out in the middle of nowhere. We passed by the ranch where a lot of Kentucky Derby winners were bred. The pub looked traditional and had a whole menu of delicious pubby treats. We shared a Welsh rarebit, and then I had the fish and chips. It was even served with malt vinegar.

On Sunday, we headed into the big city for some ice cream and beer. First up was the Franklin Fountain, an old timey ice cream shoppe. I'd heard about the Mt Vesuvius and was eager to try it. Apparently, this place had been featured on the Travel Channel or Food Network or something.

After filling up on some quality dairy, we went to a Belgian bar that featured over 300 types of beer. The menu was enormous. I tried out the local Victory Golden Monkey, and then had two other ones whose names I can't remember. The bar also had real Belgian frites, but I think I must have been distracted by the beer because I didn't get any.

I left Pennsylvania feeling very bloated and with a goodie bag full of leftover pie, strudel, and some home made pumpkin squares. Overall I'd say it was a pretty grand weekend.