Located in southeastern Pennsylvania roughly 30 miles from Lancaster, Hershey’s roots are in the eponymously-named enterprise, Hershey Chocolate. The "other" Hershey enterprise started out with a carousel and dance hall for employees of the chocolate line. Today it is a huge amusement park, an entertainment venue for "A" list acts, hotels and even a zoo, ZooAmerica, which is celebrating its 100th birthday.

Hershey Park has over 60 different rides. There are 11 roller coasters and 14 water rides. One portion of the park is given over to a water park called the Boardwalk open during the summer. But if you go to Hershey without a yen for thrills and spills, you should start the fun with a visit to Chocolate World. Hang on for a wacky ride alongside the cocoa bean from tree to Krackel bar. Put a label featuring your friendly mug on the candy bar of your choice. Chocolate World is free.

The inspiring stop is "The Hershey Story". Milton Hershey went bankrupt before he perfected the tastes and processes for making chocolate. He made a huge fortune and gave it away to found the Hershey School to support unfortunate children because he and his wife Catherine could never have children of their own.

Zoo America is an 11-acre park that is home to over 200 animals of all sizes native to North America. One feature that should not be missed is the 2-hour "after hours" tour. Visitors see feeding times, medical visits, and learn a lot about the animals they meet on the tour. Call 717-534-3862 for reservations. ZooAmerica is free.

A place to stay is The Hershey Lodge. As a child, the author really enjoyed the Lodge with its 9-hole golf course and large outside pool as a child. The Lodge is also close to the lovely Hershey Gardens.

Make It A Vacation Though there is plenty to see in Hershey, two other strongholds of fun and merriment are Adventure Sports--with Go-Karts, Mini Golf, and water rides--at 717-533-7479 and The Museum of World-Class Automotive Experience at 717-566-7100. Try the Devon Grill just downtown for a special seafood repast at 717-508-5460 or Café Zooka at Chocolate World.