LANCASTER AND CENTRAL PENNSYLVANIA

The rain had slightly subsided in Hershey, so we decided we would go to Lancaster, and a few other central PA cities today. So many of our friends had suggested that we go to Bird In Hand, or Intercourse, or whatever. It really didn't matter. Everything was beautiful and one afternoon doesn't serve any of them justice.... we've got to come back - something you can plan to do when you are fulltiming.

We visited a campground called Country Haven, down the road from Smucker's Gourd's - our friends Jackie and George Mueller suggested. The campground is a postcard and although it seems tucked away from civilization, you overlook an entire vista of Pennsylvania. On the way, we carefully maneuvered past one Amish wagon after another. They ask you not to take their pictures, and if they don't wave back at you, it's because all the tourists are waving at them all day long. You have to remember these are not actors dressed for your benefit. Their homes are not considered museums for you to wonder through. Compared to most, the Amish live a very simple life and concentrate on religion and family.

Also, it was evident Tuesday was laundry day, because everywhere you turned, every family's laundry was hung to dry on the porch, the yard, the field - everywhere. We stopped at a local Amish grocery to purchase bulk cheeses, sausages and dried goods - as well as locally grown asparagus - handmade sausages and thick cut country bacon. We went down backroads and saw quaint covered bridges - something our coach could not have maneuvered at all. We traveled approximately 130 miles in our car. After enjoying lunch at the Bird In Hand Family Restaurant, Bird In Hand, PA, dessert was not an option. We were full all the way back to Hershey, PA.