Tag Archives: Amish country

Saying Yes

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I’ve been spending time with old phone photos lately, trying to delete duplicates and bad photos to clear up some space. It is a fun walk through memories but it also has been a good reminder of the times in my adventures that I have said yes and benefited from it. 

One of those reminders was a collection of pictures from a petting zoo/farm in Ohio’s Amish Country back in 2022. I was out driving country roads, looking for some slice of authentic Amish life, when I ran into traffic backed up from construction. Traffic had slowed to a creep when I noticed a sign for this business and, without knowing a single thing about the place, bailed from my meandering and turned into their driveway. 

I forked over some cash through my car window and joined a small horde of people who were there to look around an Amish farm and pet some exotic animals. I have no idea where folks think zebras, buffalo and giraffes fit in with the homemade bread and bonnets but that’s ok.

It was a fun time anyway and I truly enjoyed hopping on a horse drawn wagon full of strangers for a tour of the property and animals. 

Honestly, I can’t tell you much about that day. It was a beautiful October day. The basement of the home had shelves lined with canned vegetables that reminded me of my grandma’s kitchen. I spoke with a young Amish woman who was baking cookies and who was wistful about being stuck inside on a pretty day. Children hand fed some of the friendlier animals and one especially friendly buffalo attempted to steal my bag. 

It’s not something I would have seen in a brochure and said “that’s for me!” Yet, I had a nice time and only found my way there because I said yes. At the time, I really thought I was just saying no to sitting in traffic but, turns out I was learning a valuable lesson about the power of saying yes to opportunity. 

And this is just one example of all the wonderful experiences I’ve had just because I gave something a chance. It’s easier to do that on vacation but it’s important to do it sometimes in your daily life too.

After all, what do you have to lose?

Reflections

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My last multi-day adventure was to Ohio’s Amish Country in December. It was sort of a bust. In fact, I’m so far behind in storytelling I can’t remember if any of those stories even made it here.

I haven’t really allowed myself to dream about this year’s adventures but am hoping to get in a fun weekend soon.

There’s nothing more invigorating than setting out early in the morning to explore the road less traveled. Some of my best adventures have been a few days in a place where I have just walked around, taking pictures, talking to people and seeing what’s what.

It has been too long since I had one of these trips and man, am I excited to get one in.

Will you go somewhere this year or will you be a tourist in your own back yard? Either way can be lots of fun! Tell me all about it!

Let’s Talk About Tourist Traps

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How do you define a tourist trap? It seems lots of people have varying viewpoints and even double standards where this is concerned. 

I was dining with strangers at a bed and breakfast in Ohio’s Amish country last month when I began to ruminate on this topic. At my table, we had a lovely Asian woman who was entertaining a friend visiting from Thailand. The friend was here for six weeks and they were doing long weekends and day trips to see the sights around the midwest and southern US.

The other two people at my table were a nice older couple from Ohio who are retirees and who enjoy traveling. They said they visit Amish Country a few times every year. The three of us were sharing ideas for experiences near and far from the Cincinnati market. Since her homeland doesn’t see cold weather, I suggested ice skating in Cincinnati’s Fountain Square where hot chocolate and holiday music would make the experience especially festive. They were soon headed to see the amazing holiday decor at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC and were looking for some more Christmasy things to do. 

I recommended looking into Michigan and shared some about my experience in Frankenmuth. I enjoyed the German themes of this small town and shopping at Bronner’s Christmas Wonderland. I told them about the gorgeous nineteenth century church that took my breath away and about the holiday light display outside Bronner’s. 

The man rolled his eyes and said “yeah, but that’s kind of a tourist trap.”

I was taken aback and couldn’t think of a polite thing to say so I said the first impolite thing that came to mind. “I suppose it is but it’s no more a tourist trap than Amish country,” I said with a smile that may have resembled a barring of teeth. After all, the main things to do here are shop and eat and it feels more like a caricature than an authentic experience. 

Lots of people love Amish Country but it stresses me out and makes me wonder what the Amish residents think of all these crazy English people coming in droves to eat noodles and buy the foreign made craft items sold in gift shops. The entire place feels like a giant tourist trap to me and that’s ok. I feel the same way about other popular destinations like Gatlinburg, Myrtle Beach and anything with the word Disney in it. 

In fact, if a place is a tourist trap, that doesn’t mean it isn’t fun to visit if you like that kind of thing. I know people who only ever vacation in Gatlinburg but have never been to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. That’s the thing I like best about that area but they prefer the hillbilly shows, restaurants and shopping. You know, the things I don’t really want to do in abundance.  

Frankenmuth wasn’t created only to sell stuff. The town was founded by Germans in 1845. Their downtown strip is lined by shops and restaurants with fun designs and they do a nice job commercializing their heritage. The Christmas store is on the outskirts of town and attracts swarms of Christmas enthusiasts every day. It’s festive and fun. It’s kind of an oddity but visiting was a pleasant experience I would repeat if given the chance. 

Tourist trap? Maybe. Still worth a visit? You bet.

What places do you enjoy that might be classified as a tourist trap? After all, I may want to go.

Fresh On The Line

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The first electric clothes dryer was invented in the early Twentieth Century but they didn’t begin to gain popularity until the fifties.

When I was a kid, my Grandma Betts hung her summer laundry on a line in her back yard. I remember her pulling things off the line, folding things as she went and gathering clothespins in her apron. At that time, it was still reasonably common for country folks to hang out their laundry on fair weather days.

It’s a rare sight around here these days except at the Amish farms. This photo was for last year’s visit to The Farm At Walnut Creek in Ohio’s Amish Country.

Isn’t it beautiful sight?

Alley View

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Viewing a street from an adjacent alley is one of my favorite things to do. This alley runs behind the Hotel Millersburg in Millersburg, Ohio. This quaint town is the county seat of Holmes County in the heart of Amish Country.

I enjoyed this small town with its antique stores, tree lined streets and interesting old buildings. In the above picture you get a partial view of the Holmes County Courthouse, the crown jewel of the downtown.

It was built in 1880 and is grand. Here’s another view.

The clock tower is great

As much as I enjoy seeing the entire building, I like that alley view a lot. It’s just a glimpse but enough to make you want to see more. That’s the thing about adventuring – it gives you a peek of what’s out there and a reason to go explore!

Preserving Food And Memories

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This image comes from my whirlwind trip to Ohio’s Amish Country this fall. The Farm At Walnut Creek is a working farm where you can see people farming, cooking and handling animals. Inside the house, the basement kitchen was a bustling place during my visit.

My nose led me inside to purchase warm loaves of homemade bread but I lingered a while to observe their activity. I enjoyed listening to the ladies speak to one another in their Pennsylvania Dutch and watched as they toiled about their work.

But the thing I liked best here was this wall of homemade canned goods.

Both of my grandmothers canned vegetables, fruits and meats – most of it stuff they raised themselves. This activity was common for their generation but it’s increasingly rare to hear people talk about canning today.

I’m all for the old ways but, if I can’t freeze it, I am not going to mess with it.

Yet, I have fond memories of green beans, homemade pickles and fresh grape juice canned to enjoy another day.

The mere sight of all those rows of canned goodies was enough to take me back to the sweltering kitchens of my childhood. It was here that food was prepared and giant pots of boiling water were used to vacuum seal dozens of lids on jars for another day.

It’s both a survival tool and an act optimism that you will indeed survive the seasons long enough to enjoy all that good food. I would love to announce that canning will be my next new hobby. But, as long as I have freezer space and a supply of ziplock bags, this will not be the case.

Instead, I’ll just enjoy the picture and the memories of green beans on a cold winter day.