Camping Trip to Shipshewana, Indiana and What's Coming UP

Beautiful flower-filled wagon at the Essen Haus shops in Middlebury, IN

Happy Monday Morning! What a delight to finally have some relief from the HOT weather. Talk about hot. We were in Shipshewana, Indiana last week camping in the campground next to the enormous flea market there. Yes, the campground is just an alley way away from this 900 booth monstrosity of a market. Makes it convenient to take a break from the crowd and shopping and enjoy all those delicious bakery goods at our camper with a cup of fresh-brewed coffee.

It was truly too hot to stay at the flea market which is open on Tuesdays and Wednesdays every week from May until mid October. We were there right at 8 a.m. and left at 10:30 a.m. on Tuesday...too hot to stay any longer. Also a shortened visit on Wednesday morning. We came back at 9:15 a.m. Evidently the vendors were too hot on Tuesday so most of them weren't even open on Wednesday.

I thought I would share a few of the photos from the summer trip. This area in Indiana is famous for its Amish influence from farms to food to hand-crafted items. We enjoy just driving through the country and seeing the Amish farmsteads, the folks and the precious children dressed in their Amish attire, and the old-fashioned ways of farming with horses and wagons and old machinery. 

If you are into quilting, you need to experience ALL the quilt shops in the area. Fantastic works of art for you to purchase as well as a variety of fabrics to make your own keepsake pieces.

 Yoder is an Amish name and there are a LOT of Yoder stores. We especially enjoy shopping at the hardware and clothing store located in the Yoder Department Store in downtown Shipshewana. (The Air Conditioning in the store was a big draw too!)

 I wish I could drive you through the rich farmland, but these pictures will have to suffice until you can go yourself.

I get a kick out of seeing the children.

This horse and buggy are passing a phone booth. Yes, the little white structure houses a telephone shared by the neighbors. The Amish church does not believe in being connected to the outside world (hence, no electricity from the power company) so phones are not allowed in homes. Residents told me the young people are now carrying cell phones.

Traveling through the area, we had to be careful of buggy traffic.
See the cute kids looking at us from the back of their vehicle?

Wheatfield put up in shocks.

It was interesting to watch the farmers rake their hay fields with the horse pulling the rake
and to see the shocks of wheat put up this way. 

We had a good time in Indiana. We visited with friends who live in the area and ate too many bakery goods, ice cream, cheese, and bread. If you want to escape into the past, go to Shipshewana!

We were grateful for our air-conditioned truck and camper as we traversed the roads between Michigan and Indiana. Can you imagine driving across the entire United States in 1909 in the hot summer time with no air, no radio, no fast food, and only 152 miles of paved road in the 3800 mile trip? Alice Ramsey was the first woman to do it. Read about her summer road trip on the Girls Succeed blog.

Join us on Thursday when Author Stuart West shares his passion for Bad Movies. That should be interesting!! Yee-haw!!