Delaware, part 5: tourism

Ducks at Wilmington's Brandywine Park


Grandma Wong pushing C at the park near the historical district in New Castle


Grandpa Wong reading to C on our "at home" day

To be quite honest, it was a tad difficult to find tourist-y type things to do near the Grandparents Wong's home. Especially things that would hold C's interest. On the first day we were there, we tried to go to the Brandywine Zoo in Wilmington. Unfortunately, there was a traffic issue and we were stuck on a State Route, trying to get onto the interstate...for about 2 hours, when we only moved about 200 feet. We skipped the zoo that day, and instead went shopping (see previous post). The next day, we tried again and successfully reached the park and zoo. The zoo is small, but just the right size for a toddler, and tucked away in an absolutely beautiful park. The park was an amazing oasis of nature in the middle of the harsh city.

After two days out, we opted for staying home on the third day. C enjoyed herself, playing with Grandma and reading with Grandpa, and just scampering around in their spacious living room.

On the fourth day, we drove up to New Castle and walked among some of the oldest buildings still standing in America, and along a short bit of coast. After the trip in the car, C needed some time to run around, so we stopped at a small park in the area. We walked past the birthplace of William Penn, an old Presbyterian church and an old Episcopalian church (both c. 1690's). It was a concrete lesson in how architectural styles are particular to a given historical period and change over time. We also tried to tour the home of Delaware's Governor George Read, but C was a bit cranky and we would have had to wait for the tour to start. Instead, we headed out, and by a bit of providence, found the old courthouse museum open near our car. The courthouse was under renovation, so we didn't see much, but one of the docents provided us with a brief overview of Delaware's history and showed us a few items on display.

We left the following day, flying into Pittsburgh for a brief visit with some friends and some museum time. (More later!)