Saturday, October 22, 2011

Amish Bus Trip

Yesterday Debbie and I joined Linda's guild members for a trip to Berlin, Ohio on a tour bus. I got up at 4:30am and met the bus at the South Charleston Recreation Center by 5:30. We drove to Teays Valley and picked up another bunch of women and suddenly we were 37 quilters going to quilt shops! Even the bus driver was a woman!
We watched the daylight come up thru the windows of the bus on I-77. Our first stop was at Miller's bakery in Charm. I loved the cinnamon smell in there! But I controlled myself and didn't buy anything. It was raining and pretty chilly. After that we visited Miller's Dry Goods. A wonderful quilt shop! Although I was very tempted I controlled myself once more.
The bus drove back to Berlin and parked in a church lot right on the main street. Debbie and I were starved so we went straight to a crowded little restaurant. After a delightful lunch of beef and noodles with green beans and homemade rolls we hit the shops on the main street. I bought some candies in the bulk foods section of Sol's and some fudge at Coblentz. Debbie got a pumpkin latte and it was time to head back to the bus.
Granny Fanny's Quilt Shop was next. It is in a little village of shops that includes a crafts mall, a pet shop, and more. The shop I liked best is called Tis The Season and is a year-round Christmas store. I have been there before and I really enjoyed it. The hard part was walking back up the hill to the bus afterwards. I am so out of shape! I had to stop a couple of times so my muscles would keep working.
When we left there we stopped at Dutch Valley for dinner. A $12.98 buffet! I knew I couldn't eat enough to justify that so I ordered a turkey sandwich and fries. My dinner was only $7.50. I know that several of the ladies were disappointed with the food, including Debbie. Mine was ok. They had a bakery in the restaurant but I controlled myself there also.
Then it was time to start home. We stopped at a rest stop just inside the West Virginia line, and soon we were back in South Charleston, where we had left our cars. I got home a 10pm, tired but happy.
All in all, I brought most of my money back home with me. I only bought food and candy. I really didn't see any fabric or patterns that I couldn't live without. I still enjoyed my day with Debbie and the ladies from the quilt guild. This morning I was still tired when I got up but I was scheduled to work today. I took a couple of Tylenols and soldiered on. Besides feeling very tired I have sore muscles (the back of my legs!) and I really didn't want to get out of bed this morning. Work wasn't hard and I was able to sit around a lot. The only thing I was disappointed about was no stop at one of the cheese places, especially when we drove right past one. I was looking forward to getting some chocolate cheese.
I want to make another trip to Berlin (maybe next spring) and enjoy all the places we didn't go yesterday. I'm sure it would take several days to do everything I want to do there, like visit Behalt, Heini's cheese, Warther's, Wendell August, and other places I have been before and really enjoyed.