Lancaster County, PA

Nana was antsy and wanting to hit the road. We have a widowed friend that had never been to Lancaster County. Put the two together and you can see where I'm going (went) with this.

Wednesday we drove up to Intercourse and the ladies took the Pretzel Factory tour while I went to the Edged Weapons Museum.  The pretzel thing was free and the museum cost $3.  The museum is pretty dry and the fellow running it is not exactly a people person but the student of edged weapons will find it to be a pleasant diversion from the constant references to the Amish.

Then we AAA Buggy Rides and took the long ride. Our guide was an Amish lass by the name of Miriam (I'm partial to the name) and our fellow riders included a family from Ontario and a couple of other folks from VA and PA.  Rode over a covered bridge and otherwise spent a pleasant hour. 

Then we went to check in at our hotel, Amish View Inn. Best look sharp because you can drive right past it looking for a sign. Best to look for the Plain and Fancy Farm, a related business, as that sign dominates the location. The motel is very comfortable and the staff accomodating. Breakfast, a real breakfast, is included!

We were there to eat at one place only, though. Off we went to East Earl and the Shady Maple Smorgasbord for dinner. Ham, roast beef and PRIME RIB on the buffet. Oh, yeah, vegetables, fruit and deserts. Sorry, but I concentrated on prime rib, mashed taters and a roll. You can't go wrong though. EVERYTHING they cook is done right. Yes, we went back for breakfast!!!!

After a pleasant night in the very nice motel and breakfast at Shady Maple we decided to go to the Bird-in-Hand farmer's market but never made it there. As we took a different route from East Earl we re-happened upon The Lapps Coach Shop. That killed an hour and a half and when we left we went straight to the day's primary destination.

We really enjoy the productions at the Sight and Sound Theaters. We've been going for years and seen many of their productions. However, our widow friend who is a retired music teacher had never seen even one and was eager to attend at least one. We went to "In The Beginning". We had a grand time of it. However, their best show is "Noah". If you can, see it. It is currently in production at their new Branson theater.

Now time to leave for home we succumbed to hope over wisdom gained by experience and trusted to the GPS to choose the fastest way home. It didn't and took us on US 30 through farm country and to US 15 at Gettysburg. A little preturbed at that time we took MD 77/64 west to Hagerstown and US 40 to I-81. This unintended "detour" only added 1 hour to our drive home.