Easton, Pennsylvania

One unexpected thing about our trip was that shortly after its completion, two of the attractions we visited added other locations where we have been. There is now a Hershey World in Las Vegas and a Crayola Experience in the Mall of America.

It is most likely that the original locations will have more, because they will be starting with more space and the advantage of time (though Disneyworld did end up being bigger than Disneyland). Regardless, this seem like a good time to consider Easton on its own, and what else is here besides the Crayola Experience.

We have already covered that the town is not pedestrian-friendly at all. This is also true of Bloomington, Minnesota where the Mall of America is, but that is largely mitigated by the availability of shuttles.

I did not mention that the restaurant selection by our hotel was really limited and so we ordered in and it wasn't very good, but that was a thing that happened.

On the plus side, we know they have an exciting Canal Museum.

We know that the Easton McDonald's did not toast the English muffins for the Mcmuffins, but they did have a Dunkin Donuts.

Okay, fine, that's not really a novelty in that region, but of my pictures from Easton this doughnut celebrating the Philadelphia Eagles is the only photo I have that is not either of the Crayola Experience or the Soldiers and Sailors Monument.

A monument you say? Yes, in addition to Easton's location at the confluence of two rivers making it a transportation hub (hence the canals), it was also an important military center during the Revolutionary War. This is celebrated in different ways.

The center of town - Center Square - is dominated by this monument. For the Christmas season they convert it into a giant peace candle, thus handling the conflict between a war monument and a peaceful season. This is how it looks:

http://www.kaplanawning.com/tula5/uploads/2013/12/peace-candle-final-light.jpg

The municipal web site mentions historic tours that can be taken on foot, via horse-drawn carriage, or on the canals. That could be interesting and our stay was too short to take advantage of it.

At the bus station we even saw signs for a play commemorating historic events, but it looks like the tickets were $50 each and that seemed overpriced. Perhaps Easton is a prosperous place where everyone can afford that amount for local plays. That would be a plus for living there.

Easton had its ups and downs for our time there. I don't know that we would make it back there, but if we were at the Mall of the Americas again I am sure we would check out their version of the Crayola Experience, because it was a good time and it would be interesting to compare.

Still, it would  be nice on a city-wide level if they would look into walkability and toasting their muffins.

http://www.easton-pa.com/

Crayola Experience - And the rest

I have spent several weeks on the Crayola Experience because there was so much there. Even after dividing it into logical themes, there are still things I haven't mentioned.

There were classic ads, reminding you of the excitement of a new box of crayons.

There was a section on green about the environment, but...

there was also a bit about how many different shades of green there are, which is true of any color.

In the cafe there was a chart of the history of the different colors, which was pretty cool to see. 

Incidentally, the cafe had a show with some science, specifically as it pertained to light and color.

Just as a reminder, we were there just after Labor Day, so everyone had just gone back to school and work and it was too early for field trips. For most things that worked well, but the show would have been more fun with more kids. As it was, I had to volunteer for the first thing to give the one child in the place the courage to volunteer for the second thing. I was rewarded with Silly Putty.

There is also Big Blue, the world's biggest crayon. It is more impressive than the world's largest potato chip, which I have also seen.

The gift shop had a lot of cute souvenirs, but the best thing there was the ability to pick your own mix of crayons. It's almost too much pressure.

In conclusion, we really enjoyed the Crayola Experience.

Crayola Experience - For the kids

You mean it's not all for the kids? Kind of.

Obviously the various activities that I have listed can be enjoyed by visitors of many different ages. However, if you have young children with you, no matter how wonderful the creative and intellectual stimulation is, sometimes they also need to run and climb and burn off energy.

The Crayola Experience has some great options for that. It seemed like there was something on every floor that was not only good for play, but that worked with the overall themes. That meant not merely being colorful, but more.

Markers and crayons were built into the decor, as well as surfaces mimicking the melted wax.
 

There were places you could draw with colored chalk, and colored balls you could work in a maze.

And there were animals that you could scribble on, and it was all good.

  Plus, well, Lite-Brite is a trademarked term, so they didn't call it that, but they had a giant Lite-Brite.

One of the frustrating things about traveling with children is that sometimes what is there is too much for them to appreciate, or at least to spend the whole time on. At the Crayola Experience they take that into account, giving parents and children options.

Crayola Experience - The Canal Museum

I mentioned in a previous post that on the way to Easton there was a canal running along the bus route. Canals are an important part of the history of the area.

Once upon a time, The Canal Museum and the Crayola Experience shared a building, but as the lease ran out, Crayola wanted to expand and the Canal Museum moved to Hugh Moore Park, in some ways a site more pertinent to canal history.

http://www.tnonline.com/2012/apr/28/national-canal-museum-relocates-canal-site

https://canals.org/

When the move happened, part of the canal museum was left. This part was a route that allowed children to move boats along in water, learning about canal features. Crayola incorporated this into one of their exhibits.

First, change the barges to crayon boats.

Then you add a colorful mural, envisioning a place called Crayonopolis.

It should incorporate water and aquatic animals. Maybe you wouldn't normally encounter a whale or an octopus in a canal, but those are awesome pictures.

But all of the signage stays.

And all of the features, like locks, gates, tunnels, and sluices.

Completing the route, and learning is a splash!