Finding Our Roots

If you're at a loss to come up with new and unique travel ideas, amazingdna.com may have a solution. Once you've established your dna (through their handy but not cheap service) they'll assist you in planning a trip to visit the home of your ancestors. In their words: "You (ll) feel a satisfaction and completeness when you participate in the local life, eat their food and see the sights and hear the sounds of what is part of you. You communicate with people who are part of your distant family. You experience the traditions of your ancestors."

In the same vein, visiting ellisisland.org is a fascinating adventure in itself. The site allows you to search for your ancestors by name to see if and when they arrived at Ellis Island. If so, you'll be able to view any recorded information including the date and age at arrival. Upon free registration, you can view details like the passenger's record, the manifest and the ship's name and image. A scanned document reveals the passenger's signature and other information. I found out that my ancestor arrived at age 23 in 1913 from Finland and was 5'11", fair complected with blonde hair and gray eyes and in good health. Oh wait. That's 5 feet eleven and a half inches. Hmm. Attention to detail. I do have that in my dna.

Framed copies of the historic documents are available for purchase. Also at the site, you can take the citizenship test required of immigrants to see how well you hold up against your ancestors.