June 26

Today I left Mansfield for the next 4.5 months. My dad took me down near Philly so we could visit my grandparents and spend the night before taking me to the airport early early in the morning. As we were driving down route 15, I soaked in the beauty of the lush green hillsides covered in fields and forest known as Tioga County, Pennsylvania. It's amazing how when you actually take the time to look at the countryside you see how really beautiful it is, and realize how much you take it for granted. I decided to soak up the views, since those will be the last memories of Pennsylvania I have for the next four and a half months. While driving past, I knew I would look forward to my return home.

In the evening my grandparents took my dad and I out to eat at the Eagle Diner. The food was really good, as I had the salad bar and some spaghetti. I've had better spaghetti before, but the bean soup at the salad bar was especially good. The carrot cake I had for desert was really good too. After we went home, I spent some time visiting, and showed everyone the pictures from the day I proposed to Rachel and we went hiking at Rickett's Glen State Park. After staying up a bit later, I said "goodbye" to the grandparents before going to bed since I wouldn't see them again before leaving, as I was getting up at 3:30 AM to leave for the airport.