2018 Summer RV Trip – Days 3 & 4 – Shipshewana, IN

I was prepared for 90+ degree weather here but a cold front moved through and the highs were around 80F, which I much preferred.  Since this stop was primarily for my girls to hit the shopping trail, we began the day with them heading for a few places within walking distance.

It is obvious that all of the RV factories and large Amish community bring in lots of tourists, like us, and there are many places to drop your cash and so we went to one for lunch – the Blue Gate Restaurant and Bakery  In addition to the restaurant, there is a bakery, a theater, and buggy rides from this location.  The restaurant offers three dining options – buffet, family style, and order from the menu and we chose buffet.  As they are the primary place to eat in town, they are pretty busy most of the time but this day wasn’t too bad.

I primarily ate meat and a piece of coconut cream pie.  The ham, roast beef, and fried chicken were all pretty good, especially for a buffet, and the pie was very good.  This is my girls as we waddled out after eating.

We then made a stop at Yoder’s Meat & Cheese to pick up some ring bologna, summer sausage, and Amish butter.

Then, I took the girls back to the street behind the Blue Gate which contained many small shops and dropped them off to do their thing while I took our goodies back to the coach.

The second day in Shipshewana, I awoke to what sounded like the dreaded dripping water in the bedroom and sure enough the bottom of the bed spread was wet and the drip seemed to be coming from the ceiling fan which is approximately below a roof mounted A/C unit.  I called a mobile repair guy and he agreed to come out the first thing Wed. morning – our planned departure date.

After making those arrangements and turning off the A/C unit, we proceeded with our plan for the day that was centered around two stops just up the road beginning with the Menno-Hof, which is a history of the Anabaptist Movement leading to the Mennonite and Amish communities in northern IN.  

Erected like an old fashioned barn raising, the outside of the barn and the house was completed by a crew of 200 in just one week and is made to resemble a typical farm set up.

As I understand it, the early Christian Church mandated infant baptism and the Anabaptist broke away as they believed baptism should occur when an adult decides to be re-baptized.  After that, various factions emerged from slightly different beliefs leading to the Mennonites, Hutterites, and Amish and a variety of factions within them.  The tour went thru several rooms where there was a combination of video and static presentations.

I thought the museum was very good and I walked away with a must better understanding of the religion and I had most of my questions answered, so I won't have so many when we next visit the local Mennonite farmers market.  If ever in the area, I encourage you to pay a visit to the museum.

Then we went across the street to the Shipshewana Auction and Flea Market which is huge.  We stopped at a couple of veggie booths then I went on home with our goodies while the power shoppers headed into the bowels of the market in search of bargains. 

I was surprised and disappointed at the limited produce selection as it obviously didn’t represent the multitude of local farms.  Had it not been out in the sun, I might have wandered around a little but I'm sure I didn't miss much and the ladies didn't bring anything home so I'd call it a successful day.

Photos can be enlarged by clicking on them and the blue words are links.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by Almost Heaven South.

Larry

7/23-7/24/18 Event Dates