Transition and Amish

October 27

It rained throughout the day Friday so we took some time to catch up on details. Barb and Linda attended Linda’s grandson’s preschool Halloween party then visited a quilting demonstration in Chambersburg. Lou and I took the RV in to get serviced. This sounds uneventful but it turned out not to be so. On the way home from retrieving the RV, I was rear ended and considerable damage was done to the bumper and a rear cargo hold door. It is drivable and temporary repairs were done by using the cure-all duct tape. We will get it fixed when we are in the Atlanta area, I hope. The lady admitted fault to the police so I pray that the process of getting it fixed will go smoothly.

October 28

Lou and Linda drove us to Lancaster County for a day of exploring the Amish country. We drove through Bird in Hand, Intercourse, Paradise and Soudersburg. Amish carriages, although frequent, were greatly outnumbered by tourist cars and buses. We stopped at many “homecraft industry” shops. Barb and Linda surveyed the linens, quilts, and other handicrafts while Lou and I watched the tourists mingle with the locals. The farms were small by eastern Washington standards but the buildings, barns, sheds, and houses were huge. The houses and yards were well maintained. Efficiency and productivity appeared to be the norm. Extended families live on the farms and it appears that several homes, built in a tight cluster around the barns, were present on most farms. The main crops were corn, alfalfa, and canola and each farm and village home appeared to have extensive gardens. Dairy is a major industry. Amish farms, as they lay mixed in with other farms, could be identified through a variety of ways. The men, boys and young girls were easily identified doing their chores around the farm and buildings. Amish farms usually had no electric lines leading to the buildings. If there were lines, the lines only went to the barn or workshop. There were carriages and wagons instead of cars and trucks. Motorized balers and choppers were present but the hitches were modified so they could be pulled by horses. Sometimes there were tractors on the farms. The tractors, however, had steel wheels, something which remains unexplained to me. And the major indication of an Amish farm, yards of laundry hung to cables strung high into the air on this fair weather Saturday. Pictures show the Lancaster area, an Amish farm with steel wheeled tractor, an Amish farm yard with carriages and man using gas blower, and a family in transit. The picture I missed was a young Amish man driving his carriage down the road while he was talking on a cell phone. Somehow, I don't understand the evil of modernism vs. the tools that makes one prosper. Did God say if a convenience however unholy, makes one prosper, than it is acceptable? Did He also say that a convenience, if one makes one comfortable, is sin? I missed that in scripture. Remember, you can click on each picture to enlarge it.

Pictures from Gettysburg

I couldn't send pictures of Gettysburg due to a weak signal. The following are the field of battle, Barb, Lou, and Linda at the site of Pickett's charge, and me, reading the memorial at the high water mark where the Confederate charge was repulsed.

Gettysburg

October 25

I didn’t sleep much last night. It may have been in anticipation of today’s visit. Gettysburg was unexplainable - horrible, sad, tragic, and, like many battles and wars, a waste of human life, talent, and treasure. It was a failure of leadership, a failure to achieve consensus and a failure to embrace change. But yet, here we acknowledge and commemorate the young men who are called to arms to carry out our nation’s policies. Whether wearing blue or grey, they were carrying out their mission for America.

Our friend, Lou, drove us along the path that Lee took as he left Chambersburg. Lou was a thorough and detailed guide. We entered the battlefield and he drove us around the 18 miles of roads through the almost 20 square times of battlefield. As the days’ events were explained, one had difficulty soaking it all in. The pastures and village, home of the Lutheran Theological Seminary and some of it overlooking the Eisenhower farm, were almost idyllic in the fall setting. But the horrors of the battle are what define this town. In three days, there were 51 thousand casualties, far more than DDay or any other day. In one hour, there were 5 thousand casualties in the hand to hand battle of Pickett’s charge. The High Water Mark marks the point at which the Confederates were repulsed and Lee began his retreat. Sadly, the carnage would continue for two more years.

There is no statue of Lincoln here. The focus is on the soldiers. There are hundreds of monuments from states and locales honoring the regiments of brave young men that were sent to fight for principles. For the Confederacy, it was for state’s rights. For the Federalists it was to preserve the Union. But we all know the true reason for this battle and war. The foundation of the southern economy was slave labor. All 51 thousand causalities were incurred here because, somehow, it was felt by one side, that to own slaves was a God given right. Unfathomable.

A homecooked meal

October 24

We’ve been on the road 50 days and this is the first day that we had to break camp and hook up the Jeep in the rain. It was a Puyallup weather day as we drove in mist to rain most of the 150 miles. We arrived in Chambersburg, PA at 2 p.m. This is the town that Lee amassed his troops before he marched toward Gettysburg. This is the only town north of the Mason Dixon line that was burned by the Confederate troops. But that is not why we are here. Lou and Linda, good friends from Puyallup, now live here. Lou, a former Colonel in the Army, is a war history buff. He will lead us into Gettysburg. Linda will lead us into the Amish country. We look forward to four days with good friends. Barb and I celebrated a rare event tonight. We had another first for our 50 days on the road. Tonight, we ate a meal in a house.

Philadelphia

October 23

The train ride into Philly was quite different from those of Boston or New York. The villages in the suburbs appear tight knit and each appears to have their own train station. Thus there seemed to be a stop every five miles or so and the train speed never appeared to be above 30 MPH. It was a slow ride so we didn’t get in to downtown until around noon. But we saw the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, Congress Hall (site of our first Congress), Carpenters Hall (site of the first Continental Congress) and we ate lunch at the City Tavern, a restored pub that was the “unofficial meeting place”. After lunch we visited Christ’s Church, Betsy Ross’s home, Franklin’s grave, and his shop/commercial buildings.
The middle picture is the room where the Second Continental Congress was held. The last is Ben's auto epitaph.

By 4:30 my ankles were firing off growls of disrespect so we boarded the train for the trip home.

We did not give Philly its due. There was so much to see, but what we did see we felt we covered adequately. Things moved quickly as the historical area which, during the summer, directs and transports thousands, only had to deal with a few hundred of us. There were no lines or crowds.

Tomorrow, we leave here and head south and west to visit the Lerdas, our friends from Puyallup who now live in Chambersburg, PA. From there we hope to visit Gettysburg and, perhaps, Lancaster County (Amish).

Valley Forge

October 22, 2007

We found that many of the historical sites in Philadelphia were closed on Mondays so we changed our plans and drove to Valley Forge. We stayed off the major roads and drove the small local roads through the suburban countryside. Valley Forge is a large area traversed with walking and bike trails to the sites. It was almost 80 degrees as we boarded our bikes to begin the 6.5 mile trail to visit the encampment, the headquarters, and several other exhibits. We enjoyed the fresh air, the fall color, and the representation of history before our eyes. Another great day in a very special place. The first picture is the only original structure that has survived to this day. It was Washington's headquarters. The second picture is a reproduction of a box of "official messages" Official messages were bound with red tape to show their importance. Thus the origination of the phrase "red tape".

We did stop at the John J. Audubon home and museum on the way home. It was closed so we just walked the grounds. We were disappointed because we were anticipating seeing many of his original paintings (they call them elephant books?).

Crossing the Delaware

October 21

A big day. We left NY early this Sunday morning. Traffic was light and the biggest hurdles, the Throng Neck Bridge back on to NY mainland and the George Washington Bridge across the Hudson River, were both easy to transverse. We settled back after getting on the interstate to PA. We arrived at the Quakertown area around noon. The roads were narrow and the traffic was heavy. We made a couple of wrong turns but we, thankfully, did not run into any low bridges that we knew are in the area.

We made it to the campground early enough to settle in then headed out to Washington Crossing which was around 40 miles away. It is the spot that Washington ferried his troops across the Delaware River to surprise the Hessian troops in Trenton on Christmas night, 1776. The day was beautiful and we rode our bikes through the park.

We are very impressed with this area. Except for the few interstates, the roads are narrow and windy. Since it is the suburbs of Philadelphia, it is a crowded rural area. Again, like the Hamptons, huge houses are set on massive lots – an acre, usually more. Traffic on the narrow two lane roads was heavy but traffic moved smoothly.