Day 2 part 1: Burr Oak, Iowa

Written by Isaac:

We left this morning at 5:00 for Burr Oak, Iowa, a 7 hour drive! :) For the last 5 hours during the drive, mom would set the timer for an hour an then we'd do something. The first something was Jennifer got to pick a package which had sunglasses for her and Lillian. The second something was we got to listen to a new Hank the Cowdog story which lasted a couple hours but it was exciting! :) The last something was a package that had suckers in it. We stopped to get gas and at McDonalds for lunch.

When we got to Burr Oak, we first played in the park close to the hotel where the Ingalls' lived. We also took a picture in the small covered wagon. After that we took the tour of the hotel. First they showed us a video of the Ingalls' life. While they were in Burr Oak, they lived in the hotel first and helped run it but the owner payed them unfairly so they moved to a grocery store. However the saloon between the grocery store and the hotel burned down. Pa felt it was not safe to live there so he rented the Bisby house and the family stayed there, that is where Grace was born. Unfortunately debt forced them to go back to Minnesota. He showed us the hotel which is the original hotel, not a replica. On the ground floor was a parlor, the owner's bedroom, the office, and Mr Bisby's bedroom. Upstairs were bedrooms for guests and people slept across the beds instead of lengthwise so there could be 3 people in one bed! (You paid 25 cents for a spot in bed and 25 cents for a meal) In the basement was the kitchen, dining room and the Ingalls' bedroom, their only personal space.

It was quite interesting!