Wednesday 1 June 2016

USA Day 6 Amish country and Harrisburg

We left Washington in the pouring rain for another long drive today to Harrisburg (236 km). It took about 3 hours to reach Lancaster County where we had lunch in what was described as a classic Pennsylvanian Dutch restaurant. It was a buffet lunch with a vast choice of delicious freshly cooked local produce. From there we went for a ride in an Amish buggy ride and chatty to the driver who was very forthcoming about life in an Amish community. 

The Amish way of life is a simple one compared to many of us living life in the fast stream. They still live a life that would seem very familiar to previous generations. They believe worldliness can prevent them from being close to God and consequently they do not permit the use of tractors in the fields or televisions, radios or telephones in their homes. They do use some modern farm equipment but it is pulled by teams of horses or mules.






















This was John, the driver of our buggy. He had no objection to taking photographs and was only too happy to answer our questions.



This is their school house. Amish children attend Amish one room schoolhouses for 8 years, taught by young Amish woman who have just had 8 years of schooling. No child goes on to higher education. Amish worship services are held every other week in one of the member's homes.

I would liked to have spent longer talking to John about his life, his five children and twenty one grandchildren. He mentioned that one of his sons had left the Amish community to become a truck driver but he still lived close to his father.







Our next visit that day was at the other end of the scale -Hershey's  Chocolate World. Can't say it appealed to me at all



We finally  arrived at Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania. The rain had stopped and it was time to have a look round this small town.

We went for a walk along the Susquehanna river with its numerous bridges and then into the town.

This was the stone residence of John Harris Jn (1727-91),the founder of Harrisburg, which he erected at the end of the French and Indian war in 1776


I liked the painted hydrants around the town.




Strawberry Square is where you find some of the original 19th cent retail  businesses. In the 1980s the Old Downtown Harrisburg Historic Commercial District was restored.




How come Doris managed to sit on it so elegantly!
































Opposite the Capitol building is State Street with a wonderful range of buildings from different periods.



St Patrick Cathedral






We followed the road back down to the river and retraced our steps back to the hotel.






17 comments:

  1. of all the tourist destinations in the US...they took you to Harrisburg, PA?

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  2. Interesting trip you are having..... George and I are not into 'guided' trips/tours much because we still love to do our own thing (off of the beaten path at times). Although at times, I'm sure we would LOVE to have a driver taking us from place to place while we did our 'thing'.... I'm sure there will be a time when we may enjoy tours like the ones you have taken. Right now though, we'll just keep doing our own thing...

    Hugs,
    Betsy

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  3. The Amish life fascinates me. Minnesota and Wisconsin Amish must be of a stricter sect because taking photos is strictly not allowed. I, too, am wondering how you chose Pennsylvania to be a tourist in.

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  4. I've always wanted to visit Amish country. Looks like you had a great tour guide. You really are seeing a wide range of the US.

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  5. Amazing trip, your rightit would hav ebeen good to spend abit more time with the Amish, pity they did not have a hotel

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  6. wow amish is the community which i admire, Thanks for nice hotos

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  7. That was an interesting side trip or add-on .... we really did enjoy learning a little about the Amish culture when we were full-time RVers. And loved it much better than Hershey too. But I did think it was interesting when the whole area around Hershey smelled like a chocolate bar. (Even our RV Park where we spent the night. I suppose people get used to it.)

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  8. Love the story about the Amish. You are certainly getting a wonderful overview of the country. :-)

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  9. I love this post, from the Amish to the chocolate and then all that fabulous architecture. Thanks for sharing it all.

    Diana

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  10. The bridge is rather nice. It is to your credit that you look less comfortable with the fire hydrant. There are some very impressive buildings in Harrisburg but I do note the first comment on your post.

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  11. Interesting to be at the Amish people so close. Was Harrisburg not the city with the nuclear disaster once?

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  12. Looks like you are traveling again. I lived for a few years near Amish Country...north of there in the Lehigh Valley. I wish I could remember the name of the book I read once. A woman was so interested in their way of life that she convinced an Amish family to let her move in for awhile. She wrote a wonderful description of their day to day lives.

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  13. You seem to be having a great trip.

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  14. Great shots of the city. The carriages are very nice.

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  15. Amish life sounds pastoral but I prefer my modern lifestyle. I've driven through Pennsylvania but never got off the highway. Nice shots!

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  16. That was something different. Very interesting.

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  17. I found your this post while searching for some related information on blog search...Its a good post..keep posting and update the information. fashion

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