DAY+1+(JULY+8)

===**Beware! Day 1 of our Field Study Institute will be grueling indeed. Although we will be sitting on our bottoms for many, many, many hours, it's an early wake-up call and a late arrival in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It will certainly "//__TAX"__// us all. Bring that must read history book (brush up on Minutemen and their World or American Scripture) or a thrilling novel, iPods/mp3s with headphones, or a comfortable pillow and earplugs!**===

See the photographs below for our 29-passenger "Chariot." There is ample storage for bags in the back, as well as in the overhead comparments for carry-on items (see photograph below). Also, since there are 15 of us, there will be room to put bags in seats. I do not see there being any problem with the numbers of bags that you may bring with you--just remember, it's not quite a week-long, so no need to pack the dogs, cats, and all. Due to the length of the bus rides, not to mention long days during the workshop, I would think about bringing snacks that you can have on the bus should you get a craving in between stops and that you can easily pack in a backpack to carry with you during the week!!! Lisa gave me the company card and I have bought some goodies for the trip. We will have on board some Little Debbie treats, Goldfish, Chips Ahoy cookies, Pretzels, and granola bars. It may sounds like a lot, but it's not that much if everyone gets a mad craving on Day 1. I would still bring some goodies with you for the trip to have on the bus and in the hotel. I will have water and some soda cans (Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, and Dt. Dr. Pepper) on the bus. Chariots is a wonderful company and our experience with them over the past decade on teacher workshops is great. Our main driver for the trip in Boston and NYC will be Jeff, who I met the other day for the first time and he seems like he will be good to work with. Due to the length of the trip, and rules for drivers, there will be a driver relay switch at a designated point along the route to Boston and for our return from New York City.

I think we can all agree that we will want to make the trips up and back as quickly as possible. Thus, we will stop for lunch and dinner at an Interstate exit that provides a good assortment of restaraunts. We would like to do a fast-food option, giving the group approx. 30 mins. to stretch, visit the potty, and breathe some fresh air before hitting the road again. Day 1, the relay switch will likely occur at Woodstock, Virginia, which is located along I-81 at Exit 283 (right before Port Royal, in the heart of the beautiful and majestic Shenandoah Valley).

Our Hotel of choice during this trip is the Best Western, which comes with 2 must-have perks--complimentary breakfast and free Internet!

In Massachusetts, we will be staying in Waltham, which is located on the western outskirts of Boston. For those of you interested in sharing the hotel's contact information with family, friends, and anyone else, it's the Best Western Waltham, Massachusetts: 380 Winter Street, Waltham, MA 02451 (781.890.7800). As you can imagine, with all the circumstances of a long drive, I have no way of determining with any certainty as to the time we will arrive at the hotel. For a link to the hotel, see: Best Western Hotel Waltham, MA