Road Trips

Passover and FiftyNorth

Last spring, we took a three week road trip to the east coast. One stop was in Washington DC to visit neighbors that used to live next door to us in Northfield. We happen to be in DC during Passover, and they happen to be Jewish, so they invited us to stay in their home and to partake in the Passover meal with them, along with five other people from their synagogue. We were delighted, and excited, to sit down and experience this Seder meal with our Jewish friends.

The cherry blossoms were in bloom in Washington DC.

We were offered Kippahs (caps) to wear, and spent the next five hours at the dinner table with our friends and five wonderful folks we had never met. We ate large amounts of food – most with symbolism attached. We read through prayers and texts, and sang songs that go along with the story of Passover in the Torah (and Old Testament). We enjoyed sweet fellowship while participating in a completely different religious experience than our own. It was wonderful.

Two friends participating in the Passover meal.

So, when the newsletter for FiftyNorth (previously Northfield Retirement Center) came out with its November offerings, one class in particular caught my attention: Jewish Holidays: Backgrounds and Traditions. Stacy Beckwith, a Professor of Hebrew and Judaic Studies, and the Director of the Judaic Studies Program at Carleton College presented it. The class filled, with 25 people attending. The course was a general overview, and well done.

One of the slides from presentation… a picture of a Haggadah from the 14th century. Haggadah is the text book for the Seder meal.

This is the Haggadah we used at our friend’s house.

Another slide from her presentation showing a Seder plate for six symbolic foods.

Our hostess compiled a Seder plate – 6 symbolic foods which include shank bone of lamb, egg, vegetables, two types of bitter herbs and a sweet paste called haroset.

I have attended classes at FiftyNorth but was surprised when I drove into the parking lot for my class on a weekday afternoon, that the main parking lot was full. When I entered the FiftyNorth lobby it, too, was full of people, and there was a rather long line to check-in for all the different activities going on in the center.

FiftyNorth is a very vibrant place for Northfield seniors (seniors defined as age 50 and older, and North as in north – or in, higher than, age 50). It has a lot to offer including informational and fitness classes, a pool, workout equipment, rooms for bridge players or ping pong tournaments etc. In the lobby coffee is always available and tables are set up for puzzles, reading the newspaper, or just visiting. It is stimulating and invigorating place and a real gem for our small town, Northfield.

I was pleased to be in the bustling center this week, learning about Jewish traditions. I was among many others…there for so many different reasons. And that is a good thing.

A Table Creation

When my friend and I travel we often say it would be fun to look back on a map showing all the places we dart in and out of in one day. We criss-cross all over town, rarely following an organized route anymore since we have GPS. We have a list of the names and addresses of places we want to visit and plug the info into GPS. We also stop at places along the way that look intriguing.

We both agree, a map of our day would look somewhat like Billy’s trails portrayed in the comic Family Circus.

At the end of one day, on our recent trip to Oshkosh, we were headed back to our hotel when saw a garden shop so we stopped in for one last escapade. The nursery had slim pickings of annuals, and no perennials. So we decided to go into the gift shop next-door. As we looked around we noticed a few tables made from glass tops put over different items. We both thought a glass-top table might be something we could make (we’re always saying, “We can make that!” HA.) We had been looking at small tables on this trip, because I wanted one for our living room.

Back in Northfield I told my husband the idea and he thought it just might work. So we ordered a piece of glass cut to the size and shape we wanted. We found a mirrored, ceramic pot at Menards that happen to be the right size and height we wanted, and I cut a circle out of a place mat.

We turned the ceramic pot upside down, placed the cut-out place mat to secure the glass and to cover the bottom of the pot (which was now the top), and put the piece of cut glass on top of it all…and voilà…a wedge table to fit between our two recliners!

I have learned… you never know what ideas will generate when you step into new places.

Who built the ark? Noah, Noah

And then some 700 more carpenters, including a few Amish men, rebuilt a replica of the ark in 2017.

On our way back to Minnesota from the East Coast we decided we were close enough to detour a few miles south to northern Kentucky and check out the Ark Encounter.

We asked a stranger to take our picture by the door of the ark. The door is too large to capture in the photo.

A Christian Foundation had the vision to build a replica of Noah’s Ark (without taxpayers money) to show people in this day and age what the ark might have looked liked.

The structure itself is massive… 510 feet long, 85 feet wide, and 51 feet high, an impressive sight to see for sure. These measurements were carefully calculated from information they studied about cubits, a term of measurement used in the Bible.

They researched the Bible and other resources to get an accurate design. Inside the ark there are three levels, with several exhibits on each deck.

They’ve recreated what the cages might look like, a possible watering system for distributing water to all the animals, and there was even an explanation to a plausible way Noah could have discarded animal waste, and so much more.

An idea for providing for reptiles and amphibians.

Different size cages for different sized animals.

A possible technique to feed the animals.

A possible technique for distributing water to the animals.

A possible technique for air ventilation.

Life-like images of Noah and his family were placed throughout the ark.

Life-size image in the “kitchen” area of the ark.

A work area among the living quarters for Noah and family.

It was well thought out and very interesting.

We decided it was worth the detour to get a new perspective on an old, old story.

This is a partial wall in a room filled with children’s books telling Noah’s ark story.

Click here to link to the Ark Encounter website.

Sight & Sound Theatre

While in Pennsylvania, visiting my husband’s family, we often take in a show at the Sight & Sound Theatre in near-by Lancaster.

The founder of Sight & Sound Theatre, Glen Eshelman, grew up on a dairy farm and attended the same country church that my husband attended in his childhood. Glen started painting landscapes when he was a boy and then started taking photographs to paint and then photography became his passion.

This passion prompted Glen to start showing nature slides set to music, to church groups, and this is how Sight & Sound began back in 1964.

The Thursday night performance we attended was sold out. Wednesday night was our first choice when we ordered tickets before we left on our trip, but that performance was already sold out. The theater holds 2,000 seats.

Today the theaters (there are two: one in Lancaster PA, and one in Branson MO which opened in 2008) feature full-length Biblical story productions with professional actors and actresses, outstanding costumes, professional musicians, live animals, all performed with realistic time-period backdrops and props on a 300-foot panoramic stage. The performances are so elaborate they continually perform the same show for a year. It is difficult for me to describe the brilliance of these productions.

It was unbelievable how believable they made the water look on stage. The disciples were in an actual boat on stage…and the wind was blowing throughout the audience in their seats. Throughout the performance animals were on stage and in the aisles, and doves flew overhead.

This year we saw the production Jesus. I love this description from the brochure:

“What you are about to experience is not a history lesson on the most famous person ever to walk the earth. It is not even necessarily a story of Jesus’ life. It’s a story of Jesus’ love, which we believe, is life.”

The production was over-the-top wonderful.

Click on this link to learn more about this incredible theater experience.

A 3,000 Mile Road Trip

We traveled over 3,200 miles during our three-week road trip to the East Coast.

A fun photo taken in Ephrata, Pennsylvania.

I’m so thankful we have a comfortable car to drive and ride in, instead of a horse and buggy which we saw trotting all over Lancaster County when we visited my husband’s family in Amish country. Can you imagine?

Our trip took us to Colonial Williamsburg, Washington D.C., and Lancaster County Pennsylvania (with a stop in Indiana, Delaware and Kentucky.) There were many highlights: visiting friends and family and attending a family wedding in a restored barn, going to see Jesus at the Sight and Sound Theater, attending an Easter service in a welcoming church, participating in a Seder meal with our Jewish host and hostess, walking six miles from monument to monument in DC, touring the new Museum of the Bible in DC, seeing the cherry trees in bloom in DC, touring the Hagley Museum where gunpowder was made in Delaware, attending a glass instrument concert, walking throughout authentic Williamsburg, seeing Jamestown and Yorktown, hiking to find the wild ponies, enjoying spring flowers blooming, taking a detour on our way home to see the replica of Noah’s Ark in Kentucky.

Cherry trees in bloom in Washington D.C.

While waiting in the theater to see the awesome production of Jesus I thought to myself how blessed I am to be able to experience so many wonderful things. Our travels have been enriching times! I’ll be writing more details surrounding different events.

Easter at Trinity Lutheran Church in Rockville, Maryland. The pastor did his undergraduate studies at St. Olaf College, in our hometown.

We are grateful for our safe travels, and for the variety of experiences we enjoyed.

On the Road to Texas

Before we leave on a trip I usually ask around to see if anyone has suggestions for the area we are going to visit. That is how I got a strong recommendation for “the best BBQ in Texas”. It was only twenty miles off the freeway. It sounded like a great place, and twenty miles doesn’t seem too far…when you’re looking at a map. It’s different when you are actually driving it!

The first day of traveling we drove continuously south on 35W for twelve hours…stopping only for bathroom breaks and fuel…eating snacks and lunch in the car. We traveled with friends. We listened to an audio-book, and read a year’s worth of precepts over the 3,000 miles (round-trip), from a book recommended by a friend, 365 Days of Wonder, Mr. Browne’s Precepts: A Quote for Every Day of the Year About Courage, Friendship, Love and Kindness by R. J. Palacio. Both the audio-book and precepts helped pass the time and prompted discussion and laughter throughout the trip.

The morning of the second day we got back in the car for another long day of driving. This was the segment where we would exit the freeway and drive to the BBQ place. My co-travelers were interested, yet a little skeptical, but we decided to take a detour and try it. The GPS took us on different turns and it seemed we were on a back road in Texas.

As we kept driving down this country road I think we were all envisioning a “hole in the wall” joint along the side of the road. I kept shrinking in the back seat, thinking to myself, I’ll never hear the end of this! The twenty miles seemed to take a very long time.

Then, voilà! There was it was in the middle of nowhere in particular – The Salt Lick BBQ restaurant we were looking for. It had a huge parking lot for all the customers who come to this unique BBQ restaurant in Driftwood, Texas.

We were all pleasantly surprised. It looked very promising and our friends recognized it from a food network episode. I was breathing a sigh of relief! It was unique, rustic, large, and what one would imagine a grand, country, Texan, BBQ place to be, and best of all – it was delicious! It was the best BBQ we’ve ever had.

The Salt Lick seats about 1,000 people, the waitress shared with us. They usually turn over 3,000 people on weekend nights. It’s not uncommon to have a 2-3 hour wait, she said. We arrived at a good time…it was a Friday afternoon about 3:30 p.m. so we didn’t have to wait, although there were plenty of customers already seated.

Picnic style tables and benches/chairs in dining room of the Salt Lick. O ya, there are trees growing in the dining room.

On your way to the seating area you walk by an open fire pit where they cook the BBQ. Between the four of us we had the pork ribs, pulled pork sandwich and brisket. All were amazing. And to top it off, we ordered a blueberry cobbler for dessert, which was also the best we ever had!

After our fun, tasty, and satisfying meal, we continued driving for another couple hours putting 500 miles on the car that day.

By lunchtime on the third day we finally made it to the southern border of Texas, our destination. Our friends dropped us off in Mission, Texas and they continued on to Alamo, Texas about 15 miles down the road.

Art and Nature

On our way to Big Woods State Park (Nerstrand) Saturday night we stopped at Frederick Somers Studio and Gallery along the way. It was part of the 2016 South Central Minnesota Studio Art Tour.

The artist, Fred Somers, along with his wife, warmly welcomed us. We were mesmerized while looking at his beautiful painted landscapes with brilliant color and lighting. He also paints portraits. There was a portrait of his grandson in the studio and the way he painted the light in the blond hair was stunning. How does he do that? He definitely has a special gift from God.

We arrived at the studio a half hour before closing and we were the only ones in the studio when he started sharing his faith journey with us. It is an amazing story and was a privilege to hear it from him. It was a precious time together and when we were leaving he shook our hands, not so much as to say thanks for stopping, but, as he said, he wanted touch each fellow believer before we left. We left there in awe of this artist, his story and his paintings.

The rest of the evening…a short hike, and great bonfire under the full Harvest Moon at Nerstrand (without jackets because of the mild temperatures for mid-October)… made for a lovely evening. One we soon won’t forget.

Click here for a link to his website.

We are getting into our packed Subaru early Sunday morning and heading to Indiana. That will be our first stop on a two week, 3,000 mile road trip to Quebec, Canada. I love road trips. Or at least I used to. We went on many long road trips when our boys were young, to national parks to camp and hike. We have many wonderful memories of those vacations. It’s been awhile since I’ve been on a road trip however and times have changed…we didn’t have GPS systems, cell phones or even email, and certainly not Facebook and we didn’t listen to books on tape (nor were there movie screens built into our van!) Now we have all of these, and more, available to us and it will be interesting to see how it changes our road trips. Of course we won’t have the boys with us. HA!

I anticipate my favorite part, the early mornings; getting coffee to go and driving along the empty roads in the early morning light as dawn breaks. We will have a picnic lunch at some wayside rest along the way and stop driving for the day in late afternoon. We will stay with friends and family on our way to Quebec and on the way home we loaded our tent underneath the luggage and hope to find some nice campgrounds.

I love to travel by road, air or train. Anticipation is a big part of traveling. It’s so fun to think about the destination and possibilities, and then actually see new places, meet new people and learn about other cultures.

Normally I try to leave technology behind on vacations, which is getting harder to do, but I may post a few times while we are traveling since we do have the technology.

Until next time a few travel quotes:

“Traveling – it leaves you speechless then turns you into a storyteller.” Unknown

“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” Henry Miller

“Wherever you go becomes a part of you somehow.” Anita Desai

“When was the last time you did something for the first time?” Unknown