Continuing......

After breakfast on Tuesday morning we headed for the AMISH AND MENNONITE HERITAGE CENTER/BEHALT.  This was a very interesting and informative center.  The first thing we did was take the tour which was given by an Amish man.  It was an oral tour telling us the history of how the Amish and Mennonite religions came to be.  An artist created a 360 degree mural.  It took him fourteen years to paint.  It was beautiful.  There was so much information that it would take years to see and understand everything.  Anyway, we learned a lot.  It took about a half hour for the tour.  One of the things we learned is that in the beginning the Catholics were involved in establishing the Amish religion.  In fact many Catholics became Amish.  After the tour we then watched a fifteen minute film which was also very interesting.  We walked around the museum which is part of the center.  They have several of the original bibles of the Amish which they brought to America.

On the way to the center when we passed the Court House in Berlin, they have on display (outside of course) an original watering trough that was used to water the horses.

I didn’t get any pictures of the Amish or their horses and buggies.  With all the traffic it is just impossible.  In the parking lots for the stores, restaurants, etc.  there are actual hitching posts for the Amish to hitch their horses.  It is really slow going on the roads because of the horses and buggies.  Also, the Amish ride bicycles of which you need to be aware.  All ages ride the bicycles.  And, there are a lot of hills the horses and bicyclists need to navigate.  I would have liked to take some pictures of the area, but there is no place to pull off the road and take pictures.  So, we just have our memories.

When we left the center we drove to Lehmann’s Hardware Store.  This place was fascinating.  It was huge and not like any hardware store I have ever been to.  We actually bought our Christmas cards there.  Looked at a lot of items, but didn’t buy anything else.  It was fun just walking through.

After leaving there we went to lunch at a small hamburger place across the street.

Next stop was Smuckers.  What a neat place.  We bought a lot of “stuff” there.  They even had a lot of cat and dog items there.  So, of course, we bought some of those items for us.  In fact, Jana bought a few things to give me for my birthday.  We left quite a bit of money there also.  Could of spent more, but I controlled myself 😊. 

Tuesday we had supper at Der Dutchman.  Another wonderful Amish meal.  Again, we ordered off the menu instead of the buffet.  Then it was back to the motel to freshen up so we could go to Mass.

Wednesday morning was breakfast at the motel.  Then we were off and shopping.  Our first stop was back to SOL’S.  We picked up a few items that we had a little trouble deciding if we really wanted to buy.  Of course, we bought them and a few other items.  Then we drove back to the Amish & Mennonite Heritage Center because I wanted to find out if they had a book explaining the mural.  When we arrived Mark, the gentleman that took us on our tour, was there.  We asked him a few questions and found out more information.  Our grandfather (our mother’s dad) used to tell us he was Pennsylvania Dutch.  I always thought that was a group like the Amish.  However, I found out that it is actually a language that was made up of combined German, Dutch, and few others.  I didn’t buy a book.  Jana also asked him a question that she wanted to ask after the tour but didn’t want to be rude.  The tour included three Amish couples.  Midway through the tour one of their cell phones rang.  We had turned ours off.  The man turned it off, and nothing was said.  Jana asked Mark about that because it was our understanding that Amish don’t carry cell phones.  Mark said he was surprised also, but because they were from Lancaster, PA, they are permitted to have cell phones under certain circumstances. 

We were going to have lunch at an Amish restaurant called Boyd & Wurthman’s, but the line went out the door and down the sidewalk.  We decided to skip that. Instead we decided to wait and eat later in the day, and just have the one meal.  We had snacks at the motel if we got hungry later.  We decided to stop at a fabric/quilt shop that I wanted to see.  The cheapest quilt there was $950 and the most expensive was over $4,000.  Needless to say, I didn’t buy a quilt or anything else.
 

Next we took a drive to the town of Charm to check out a place called Keim Lumber.  Wow, what a place.  Another one of those places that have everything.  I bought a couple of new bird feeders, and Jana bought me a couple new ones for my birthday. 

Driving back from Charm we found a covered bridge.  We stopped so I could take a couple of pictures.  It was also known as the Peace Bridge because this area is where the Amish and Indians would share a meal now and then.

At one point during our driving around in the morning we made a wrong turn.  That was okay because we went through a small town that was having an auction.  The number of Amish and horses and buggies was unbelievable.  It was worth the wrong turn.

Today we ate at CHALET IN THE VALLEY.  This is a German Restaurant, so it was a little different.  However, the meal was wonderful.  In fact, they give you hot pretzels.  We bought a couple to take back to the motel for a snack, and a couple to bring home. 

From there it was back to the motel to rest for the next day.  Thursday is Flea Market Day!