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The Great East Coast Winterventure 2018
Location
Washington DC
Cleveland, OH
Niagara Falls, NY
New York City
Philadelphia, PA
- Unlike our previous trips to the United States, which almost always took place in spring or summer, we decided to embrace winter instead. With a wardrobe full of jackets that barely see the light of day in Dubai, we figured it was finally time to put them to good use!
There was only one place worthy of starting the trip. Ever since my parents bought me a book called "The Pursuit of Flight" when I was about eight years old, I'd been fascinated by aviation and space exploration. My wife caught the aviation bug after watching Airwolf as a kid, and like me always dreamed of being an astronaut so visiting the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum felt like a pilgrimage for both of us. Standing beneath the Space Shuttle Discovery, the SR-71 Blackbird, Concorde and, of course, my childhood favorite, the F-14 Tomcat, genuinely felt like stepping into those very pages of my childhood.
The sporting pilgrimages continued in Canton, Ohio, at the Pro Football Hall of Fame where we immersed ourselves in almost a century of immortality. It was absolutely surreal to see the Lombardi trophy up close, as well as the bronze busts of the greatest who have ever played the game. We then ventured to nearby Cleveland. I'd spent years trying to line up one of our trips with LeBron James' schedule, and this time I finally succeeded. The Cavaliers may have lost that night, but simply being there to watch my favorite player and one of the greatest to ever to step onto a basketball court made the journey a truly epic experience that i'll never forget.
From there we headed north to Niagara Falls, another lifelong dream for both of us. People often ask why we'd visit in the middle of winter. My answer has always been, "Why not?" Snow-covered walkways, frozen mist, and barely another tourist in sight made one of the world's greatest natural wonders feel even more magical than we'd imagined!
Our final stops took us back to New York City and Philadelphia, two cities that couldn't have been more different, yet equally unforgettable. While not our first visit to the Big Apple, it felt wonderfully cinematic beneath grey winter skies, while Philadelphia surprised us with its rich history, beautiful architecture, and, of course, the chance to finally run up the Rocky Steps before standing in the shadow of Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell. We even managed to squeeze in another NBA game, watching the young Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons take on the Zach Lavine and Demar DeRozan led Chicago Bulls.
When I look back on this trip, I don't remember the freezing temperatures nearly as much as the dreams we fulfilled along the way. From aircraft I'd admired since childhood, to sporting icons, historic landmarks, and one of the world's greatest natural wonders, it became another reminder that the best journeys aren't measured by the miles travelled (which was a lot given we'd journeyed almost 3,000 miles once it was all said and done!), but by the memories we collected along the way...
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