The Chronicles of a Firecracker: Times Remembered, Moments Shared: The Sweetest Place on Earth!

Ah, the sweet smell of chocolate! That's what you smell when walking down the streets of Hershey, Pennsylvania. I shouldn't say all of the streets, but the streets within close proximity to the chocolate factory. And let me tell you, my friends, it sure beats the smell of trash and urine that I've experienced in New York City, or the pollution and diesel of Chicago. It was said today that this is the only city in which you can gain ten pounds just by breathing. I'm not sure about that, but if I stayed in this city much longer I would gain ten pounds just by consuming all the chocolate that the businesses dole out. I'm really starting to understand why my dad was so enthusiastic about visiting this city!

The morning started out as usual...me not sleeping a wink and getting up hours before my flight was scheduled to depart. The cab was actually fifteen minutes early so my mom and I had even more time to sit and be anxious at the airport. I have to say, Mama Bear was a real airplane rockstar today. She's 65 years old and had never been on an airplane prior to today. In fact, this is her first real trip. I, on the other hand, made friends real fast with my air sick bag. My sister was just commenting yesterday on how a paper bag being used to hold a liquid is not a very bright idea, but I have to admit, it did the job. Gross, I know. I've flown a handful of times and this was the first time I've ever had any trouble; I hope this does not become a regular occurrence!

My mom and I arrived at the Philadelphia airport around 11:30 a.m. and were in Hershey before 2 p.m. We stopped and got a bite at the Hershey Grill...very cute place, good food, but the staff was definitely not Minnesota nice. In fact, nobody here seems to be Minnesota nice! I never really understood the Minnesota nice thing, as I have lived in the state all of my life and I've encountered many people who are the antithesis of nice. The more I travel, however, the more I begin to think that perhaps it's a real thing.

Pennsylvania is a lot like Minnesota, very green and fairly rural. Along the highway we really saw nothing but trees, but the 14-mile stretch prior to arriving to Hershey was all farm land. The farms here are all pretty large and very kempt. This little strip reminded me a lot of back home, but with far nicer homes and better upkeep. The homes here are all so beautiful, mainly made of brick or limestone. They've really got character and it's a rarity to see a house with siding. After driving along 14 miles of silos and cattle, out of nowhere comes Hershey, with it's "Chocolate Avenues" and Hershey Kisses street lights. My mom and I were both surprised by Hershey. I'm not really sure what we expected, but this isn't really it. It's a town of about 20,000 people and while it's quite charming, there's not really a whole lot to do here.

After lunch we headed over to the Chocolate Museum. We toured the first floor of the museum, but were pretty disappointed. We thought the museum would center more on the history of chocolate and Hershey's creator, but it mostly talked about the year 1968. 1968 was important to the Hershey Company because that's when Hershey, the city (industrialism), really started to boom. At the time of the Vietnam War, Milton S. Hershey was determined to help out his neighbors so that not one job would be lost during the economic downturn and he succeeded. Hershey built the theme park, community center, etc. so that jobs could be created and people could stay afloat.

Hershey was quite a remarkable man, and sadly, I don't think most people know of his story. His father wanted him to be a silver miner, but Hershey had other ideas. He worked as an apprentice at a chocolate factory and tried starting his own business four times before succeeding, two of which he went bankrupt. The fifth time around he was drawn back to Lancaster County, where he borrowed money from his aunt, who took out a second mortgage on her home so that Hershey could get a loan to give it another shot. Just days before foreclosure was supposed to have taken place, he went to his banker asking for a few more days before the taking of his aunt's house and made one other request...another loan. Nobody in their right mind would give a man under these circumstances a loan, but Hershey got what he requested. He had created caramels that an Englishman had fallen in love with and wanted to buy in bulk. However, Hershey didn't have the machines available for that mass production. Hershey's banker toured his factory set-up and was convinced he would be a success and gave him the loan. A few years later, Hershey was a millionaire and his banker was working for him.

Hershey later met his wife, Kitty, whom he dearly loved, but the couple soon learned that they would never be able to be conceive. Kitty had some type of neurological disorder, probably equivalent to present day's Multiple Sclerosis, but the couple badly wanted children. Since they couldn't have children of their own, they took in four boys who had lost their parents, and gave them an education. They founded the Milton S. Hershey School, developed initially for boys who had lost their parents, but the school now serves boys and girls who are socially disadvantaged. The school currently houses, clothes, feeds, provides medical care, etc. for 1,800 students. All funding is provided solely by the Hershey Company. The children have live-in house parents and attend the school from the age of four to high school seniors. Each child can earn a college scholarship, up to $88,000, based on merit. Hershey had $16 million in stock in the early 1900's, and after Kitty's sudden death, he decided that life was unpredictable and immediately set up his stock so that the children at his school would be the heirs to his fortune, which has since turned into over $8 billion, 77% of which has been turned over to the estate to benefit the school. Hershey donated all but two rooms of his home (where he would live) to the local golf course for use as its clubhouse. The man was quite selfless, yet I'd never heard of his good deeds prior to researching things to do while on this trip.

So...getting back to 1968...I understand the importance of the year, but the majority of the museum centered on history around the United States that had nothing to do with Hershey.

From the museum Mama Bear and I ventured to Chocolate World, where we took a trolley tour of the city. It was very informative (all of the aforementioned facts can be credited to this tour) and actually quite fun...it didn't hurt that the tour guide kept pumping us full of chocolate. Little trivia tidbit for you...Hershey held the patent for "Hugs" since 1909, but the candy didn't come into existence until 1993. I also learned that the two-block stretch of the chocolate factory consists of 2.2 million square feet, making it the largest chocolate factory in the world.

The town of Hershey is extremely "cute"! I could see myself living in a place like this; it seems like it would be a great place to raise a family, it's extremely clean, green, and well-kept, and it has a happy, positive atmosphere. Clearly, my father was a genius!

More to come tomorrow, but until then, here are a few pictures from today's adventures!