Ava's Adventures: Vacation 2016, Putting The "Tour" In "Tourist"

After surviving a red-eye flight from LA to Boston and a snafu with a rental car company which shall remain nameless we were pretty much running on empty. Our first stop was the Red Arrow Diner in Manchester, New Hampshire, a favorite of politicians and celebrities during presidential primary season. We had a stupendous breakfast, Ava got to sit in the same seat used by President Obama, and her breakfast was served on a souvenir frisbee.

Driving two plus hours north to Waterbury, Vermont (Vermont being our third state of the day and fourth in twelve hours), we visited the world famous Ben & Jerry's factory. The tour was enlightening and amusing, and included large samples served in the original lab used by Ben and Jerry.

Driving through the beautiful green hills (mountains?) of Vermont, we eventually came to Cabot cheese, where cheese is made 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We had to wear blue booties over our shoes as we toured the active plant operations, and had the chance to see almost the entirety of the cheese making process. The bad news is that we weren't allowed to take photos inside the factory, but the good news is that we found some new favorites - Ava particularly enjoyed the smoked bacon cheddar.

For a late lunch, we stopped at the Threepenny Taproom in Montpelier - the state capital where we also saw the quaint downtown area and the beautiful statehouse.

All this driving afforded Ava an opportunity for some much needed sleep.

Heading back to Manchester we were able to check into our hotel room, which overlooked the stadium for the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (the AA team for the Toronto Blue Jays).

We watched the game itself from inside the stadium with our friends Jen and Rob. Although the Fisher Cats lost, there were plenty of exciting plays and we were able to celebrate Star Wars night with the team mascot, Fungo.