Learning about Amish Community

Well, FINALLY got photos off both cameras. These are a couple that go with previous blogs. The little post office was outside Yucca Valley, CA where I took my driving lesson
, and the man next to me in front of it was Jerry, my instructor.

Here is a picture of me while actually driving the RV!



This was at Dubuque, along the Mississippi River.

This was When our youngest son, Brent, came to Las Vegas and we went to the South Point Casino for dinner

We arrived in Shipshewana, Indiana Monday afternoon, and drove past the "Factory" where our refrigerator cooling unit was made. It was a beautiful country home with a big shop! Many of the Amish Industries are done in their homes. We realized it wasn't a place we could "camp", so drove back same road towards the highway and found an RV park. It is situated right next to a HUGE flea market (like the one in AZ) and it is open only on Tuesday & Wed. We paid to stay 2 nights.
Next morning, Tuesday, we drove the RV for 8am appt. at JC Refrig. ("Factory"). He checked out the frig, took the frig back out of the wall, laid it on the floor again, and put the part in correctly. Then we went back to wait for it to cool. JR (owner) said they cool very slowly, especially when filled with warm food. He and Al have been on the phone a couple times each day (It is now Friday evening), discussing the temperature of the frig and the freezer compartment. It is much better, but JR would like it to be a few degrees cooler. It was 41 in the frig this morning, but now is nearly 44. Who knows how long we will be here! JR says he will put in a whole new cooling unit if necessary, but then...would we have to wait again for it to get cool?

Oh, yes, on Tuesday while they were working on the RV and I was watching the cats in the bedroom, my new phone died! So, I was without phone/internet for a couple days. As of last night (friday), I think I am all back in business.

Wed. we went to the flea market. They had an old fashioned machine making home-made ice-cream. We splurged and boy was it good. Took a few shots of the noisy machine. Actually, same price as the soft-serve stuff in the next aisle!There are over 1000 booths, and it covers over 60 acres! NO WONDER we didn't see it all in a couple hours! Perhaps we will still be here to see it again next week!!! OH, Al doesn't want to hear that!

Another unusual booth was the "Fun Spot" where you paid $1 each to enter, and it was supposed to be full of unusual fun things. It was, but not very big, and not very many, but these are a couple signs we thought were cute.

OH, and of course, their booth across the isle had the things for sale! thought of some of our friends when we saw these, but won't mention names. (The little houses are 2-story outhouses...sorry the signs probably won't read well here, but were cute)
There was also a huge auction on Wednesday, but we avoided it cuz we don't have room or money to buy anything here!!! It drew a slew of people all day, though!

The Amish Community is very interesting. The Amish do not have electricity in their homes unless it can be produced by them via generator, windmill, etc. Didn't see any solar panels, so not sure about that. They stay to themselves and do not want to be connected to the outside world by power lines, etc. No TV, microwaves, etc! Met a nice Amish woman at the laundromat who was doing her grown son's laundry. She has 10 children (all grown now), and does all her laundry with a wringer w"asher and hangs the clothes to dry. wow! We did 3 loads of laundry, and it was about $15 in coins! Thanks Jan and Vern & Laura for the use of your machines at your homes!!! The horse and buggy is a common sight here, also bicycles, as they do not drive autos. they can take public transportation or ride in a car if someone non-Amish is driving. The women still wear the simple gingham dresses and little caps, and the men wear very simple slacks, shirts and supenders, and all sport untrimmed beards. After taking these shots, I learned the Amish cannot agree to be photographed. In a model dining room in the exhibit, it says they have no photographs on the wall, as they do not have them. Can't imagine not being able to have pics of my parents, children when little, etc.

This man was giving buggy rides outside the theater, and we learned he is the refrig repair man's uncle.

The other buggies were parked outside a convenience store, as that is how people travel to do their shopping.

last night, we went to a Musical about the Amish way of life called, "The Confession". It was AWESOME!!! Great acting, and the vocals were very powerful!!! Enjoyed it immensely. Today, we toured the "Menno-Hof" Amish-Mennonite Visitors Center to learn more about their way of life and how it developed. Pretty amazing! The people are very dedicated to the simple way of life. JR has a sign in his shop, "Life's problems are not meant to break you, but instead to BEND you closer to God".

We toured the Entegra Coach Factory, which is a division of Jayco. Pretty impressively made with extra insulation (which ours does not have), and extra strong frame and supports. They stopped making any units smaller than 40' in length this year, so unless we find a used one some day or move to a home with bigger RV shop, will not be ours. Very nice, though. Elkhart, IN (close to Shipshewana) is the RV capital of the US, and they have other factories as well. So far, we have not ventured. We'll see how long we are playing with the frig! Al is ready to buy a new RV instead.

It is Sat. morning now, I edited last night's blog as I was able to add a couple more photos from Al's camera after talking to Verizon late last night. i HOPE I now know how to do it. PC was not recognizing the necessary driver. Today, we are waiting for JR to come try something else for the frig, and if it is not better by Monday, he will put in a whole new unit and start over! After he leaves, we hope to go to Elkhart, IN this afternoon to see the RV museum.

Have a great week-end.

Sylvia & AL