Initially we had planned on going to Tennessee and rent a cabin using John's frequent flyer miles to cover the cost but that idea fell through as it didn't seem very sure of a deal. We could have camped in our motorhome but when we go I want it to be as I envisioned being in the mountains and not all packed into a small space. I guess we'll have to save up for that one otherwise I need to lower my expectations.
Instead we decided to make a trip around visiting our friends in Michigan and I thought it would be fun to visit Amish Country in Indiana as I once did with my family. We stayed at a Jellystone campground for 4 nights as it had many swimming pools which was a requirement the boys had. Unfortunately, only one of the days was warm enough to swim. It did have an indoor pool, although we thought it smelled too bad to swim in.
I don't know about you but I like to keep busy on my vacation. Why travel somewhere if you aren't going to see what is there? We did spend the entire first day at the campground swimming and playing which was nice seeing as we were practically the only people there so it felt as if we had the place to ourselves.
The next day we met up with our friends in Shipshewana IN. We walked through the enormous flea market but didn't buy anything as most of it just isn't worth it. Our (or was it just me?) favorite part was Ben's Soft Pretzels made right in front of you. I could have eaten them all day they were so delectable. I wanted more but decided maybe I should work on finding the recipe and making them at home instead. I did ask a few questions of the Amish bakers.
We then headed into the town which was fun as we drove right alongside the horse and buggies which were aplenty. I kept the windows rolled down so I could hear the constant clip clop of the horses hooves imaging I was in a different time and place. The kids favorite part of the town was the toy stores which had so many quality and imaginative toys. My favorite part of town was the bulk foods store -- oh what good deals. I hadn't imagined I'd be stocking up on any food while on vacation but prices were too good to beat!
More on our vacation to come...
2 comments:
How neat! I'm originally from Ohio but have resided in Florida over the past 16 years. It's been so long since I've heard the hooves pulling an amish buggy. I miss that. I didn't realize Indiana had amish. What area is good for stocking up on groceries? I'll have to take notes and plan a trip up there. Looks like fun.
The Amish area is in Northern Indiana and Southern Michigan. It was Shipshewana and Middlebury IN that we visited. Then about 45 minutes north in Michigan there is another smaller community. I liked E & S sales (Shipshewana) as they had bulk foods. I mainly bought things I don't have around here like chocolate cookie wafers used to make ice cream sandwiches. Prices were good though.
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