Day 10 - Friday July 6

So we woke in Waltham (just outside of Boston) and decided that we were heading to Amish Country so we set our sites on Lancaster, PA.

We are like a pit crew at packing and unpacking the truck!

The closer we got to Lancaster, the more beautiful the area around us got. Miles of sprawling fields of deep green dotted with farm houses and barns. We also began spotting horse drawn buggies with Amish occupants. It's all so interesting to all of us.

During the drive I got a message from a friend who sent a picture. Hollie Barrios Tabor has been on a vacay with her family in Tennessee. On their drive home something on the road caught her eye. She was quick enough to snap a pic and send it my way.

"Maybe an idea for the future?" from Hollie

LOL!!! Love that you thought of us Hollie. Not sure where I stand on a motor home but we spoke about getting our portrait and web address printed on a cover for the back glass of the truck!!! LOL- thanks again Hollie!

The 'kids' have been so well-behaved on the trip thus far that we figured we would buy them something special to show them our appreciation. I joked days earlier about pressed pennies. As fate would have it, there was a machine at The Boston Tea Party ship for just that.

Pennies From Boston

Side note- during this drive a 'first' happened. This is the first time that we spoke about the night in the tent. Obviously, we have each gotten enough sleep and the sore feelings are now gone. Once we started reminiscing, we were all laughing so hard that we had tears in our eyes. It's the first time we didn't feel like poking Steven's eyes out- it is true- time heals all wounds!

We've discovered a location called The Amish Village while researching as we are driving. The idea here is that there are replicas of what a typical home, barn, schoolhouse, etc would look like for an Amish family today. You can also take a bus tour that takes you out into the country side and points out various points of interest. We decided to give this place a try.

The Amish Village

The animals in this made up village reflect what most Amish have on their farms. Having peacocks certainly peaked our interests. Was it just about their beauty? As it turns out, when peacocks see something out of the ordinary they make loud, 'barking' noises. Consider them watch-birds. I guess this guy had not seen many cajuns because he let out a loud noise shortly after this picture was taken- he qualifies as a watch-bird.

We decided on the bus tour and are so glad that we did. Our driver shared so much information with us and pointed out things in the area that we would not have picked up on our own. The countryside here is so incredibly beautiful; very rich farmland and quaint homes and barns.

One thing that has stuck with me and I keep pondering daily- it is against their religion to have pictures taken of them. Therefor, they do not have drivers licenses, etc. But I keep considering even the more simpler things. If you never have a photo taken then those after you will not know what you looked like. I grew up with only one grandparent but have visual images of the other three that I can reference and 'know' them. I can't imagine not having a photo of either of my girls as infants, of them sleeping, of my parents throughout my life, etc. Just something to consider.

The idea of a 'simpler' life does intrigue me. They work their farm and home and typically have another trade for business. We saw blacksmiths, furniture builders, bakers, etc. Business happens between Amish and English freely. (If you aren't Amish then you are considered English.) 

You can pick out Amish homes because they typically have a small garden in the front yard. These are impeccably groomed. They do not have electricity going into the home, nor a telephone line. They do have phone booths every so often for their use, they just do not believe in having a line running into their home. They do use propane, diesel, solar & wind power and gasoline in various ways.

Beautiful land throughout our afternoon. We stopped a road side stand run by an Amish family. Tons of fresh fruit and vegetables and baked goods along with jams and jellies. We bought raisin bread, fried pies, jelly and Steven bought a homemade oatmeal pie. The on-going story here is  I bake homemade oatmeal pies (think Little Debbie's) and Steven loves them. This was the test- how would I do against the Amish. Unfortunately, we didn't get a picture of it before it was consumed. His final report- it didn't hold a candle to mine! Not sure if that was biased (as we are his ride from this point forward....) but I'll take it! Once our tour of Amish country was done, we set our sites on York, PA. This was just a short drive out of Gettysburg which we would tour the following day. After arriving at our hotel, we hit a restaurant nearby to grab a bite to eat.

Double Roast Beef & Cheddar

It has been a long day but such an educational one! Tomorrow promises more of the same. Loving this trip!

It's that time of the blog for a poll!
Results from yesterday:

It's a tie! Iced tea and water!! I'm a fan of both. Did I mention that when I asked for unsweet tea in Nova Scotia the server looked at me like I had grits on my face? Definitely a cultural thing. Dean didn't think about it and at lunch in NS he asked for tea- sure enough he got a cup of piping hot tea with some milk to add in.... lol. Sooooo close but not quite.

For todays poll: