We decided on a few specific things to see and do, including an artisan shop, the Poconos Indian Museum, an arts and craft fair, the candy making shop, the Worlds' Greatest General Store, the largest candy shop ever, and Quiet Valley Farm. Okay, so they were wrong, but we still enjoyed what they had to offer. It was like an indoor flea market, with all things hardware and then some. They had those metal 3D stars in every size and color imaginable. There were lots of thing to browse through, but I must mention the ponds. They had every size pond form you could ever want, with vast varieties of water plants and fish for same. You could not find such a selection anywhere around here.We did some shopping, but did not recommend the place to anyone else!
Our next venture out was to one of the flea markets. They had them all over. This was not a formal setting, and the offerings were very mixed. Some very nice things and others similar to yard sale leftovers. I imagine people going from yard sale to yard sale and gathering all the "for free" items and hauling them back to their regular weekend table of offerings! In past trips we often stumbled on flea markets offering fine crafted items and store quality clothing and wares, but this was not to be in this area of Pennsylvania.
The artisan shop we decided to go to advertised a piece of Sedona in the Poconos. And for once the advertising got it right. We absolutely love Sedona, it is our second favorite place to visit right after Hawaii! So now, being reminded of the mountains, the red soil, the red rock formations, the beauty, energy and serenity of that area, I'm compelled to share a photo to give you a peak at the splendor we experience in that area of our great country.
So this artisan shop was a small cooperative of various artist with all different media. There was hand crafted jewelry, sculpture, carvings, paintings, computer enhanced artwork, clay, ceramics, a variety of so many different kinds of artwork that we browsed around for quite a while.
(Oh, I am so tired of all the computer problems with these postings - font will just not stay in the mode I want)
Mia found a beautiful beaded bracelet unlike any we have ever made or seen. She also fell in love with some of the sculpture. She purchase a vase sculpted from an old piece of fencing that was made from now-extinct Chestnut wood. Look at this beautiful piece! How wonderful to recycle an old fence post and create this beautiful work of art.
They sculpted the top to create the vase opening, while maintaining the integrity of the original post. They sanded out the top for the beautiful wood texture and included a glass insert to hold a beautiful flower specimen.Mia is very cautious with her spending, and pondered which vase to choose before settling on this beauty. Doesn't it look just beautiful nestled among the Alyssum in my garden?
So our next trip was to Quiet Valley Farm on our way out of the Poconos. It is a farm from the early 1800's developed by a German slave who came here alone and after initially living in a carved out hill, much like the "Little House on the Prairie" family, built it up to include the more modern conveniences of his day. The buildings encompassed about 80+ years of his life, with the changes and upgrades reflecting the progress of that time. It is run similar to Plimoth Plantation, with the workers in period dress, demonstrating the daily life and customs of those time periods.
When we arrived at the farm, nestled away in the dry woods of the Poconos, we parked down the road from the farm and had to walk up a hill to get to the farm. And this brings us to the connection to this story. I was in a mindset of being weighed down my allergies, and the disappointment of the resort, and the fatigue that comes with traveling, and getting ready to trudge up a hill(Oh, no, not a hill!) to get to the venue.
It was a very warm day, and we had parked the car in the bright sun, this being late morning, and the sun getting into its hottest position in the sky. I was dreading this outing as I was uncomfortably hot and not wanting to be on my feet too much. You know what I'm talking about, those of you who get swollen feet in this kind of weather. We had the option of walking up the road or crossing and going through the woods, where there was a well worn path from prior visitors to the farm.
Well, do you think I am crazy and going to stay in the hot sun, when I can get in the shade?? LOL The change in temperature was immediate, as soon as I got within the woods, and the change now reminds me of the difference in my own yard between the hot, sunny front yard with few large tress to provide shade and the always cooler back yard with all those beautiful large trees that sway in the wind, and create a cooler climate for our own little piece of heaven on earth in our secluded back yard. Relived by the cooler climate, I proceeded.
As it was an unsteady ground I was carefully watching the path in order to stay on my feet, when out of the side of my eye I caught a glimpse of something, moved ahead, and then saw something else. It kind of startled me and I became alert, in that moment of my surroundings. Camera in hand I realized that I had just passed by a photo op, a moment when I could document something and share it with all of you. I usually forget to even bring my camera along. But now that I have this venue I find myself taking more and more photos of things I want to share with you. And 99% of the photos are of nature and all its splendor, big and small.
And so I retraced my steps a bit, went back and got these photos. Had I not been watching my step I would have missed these wonders of nature. This mushroom, seemingly peppered with sesame seeds, caught my eye by the way the sun was reflecting off its top. Just the one lone mushroom shepherding the path to the farm. (I used to try to identify mushrooms, having a few handbooks on hand, but gave them away after too many unsuccessful attempts at mushroom identification!)
Then saw another little fellow, this one with an orange hue, totally different from the first, and again all alone in the big woods. This little one was peeking out from under a leaf, which I moved to get a better picture of it.
I only saw one more thing along that path on the short jaunt to the farm. And it was the most marvelous thing I was to see on the whole trip. This is Indian Pipe, Monotropa uniflora, a member of the Wintergreen Family. This is something I don't think I ever saw before. It is a small non-green, waxy plant that feeds on roots or on decaying material in the soil. The plant will turn black as the fruit ripens or when it is picked and dried.
When we finally arrived at the farm proper, it was a beautiful sight. I got so wrapped up in what I was experiencing that I only took a few photos. The farm house itself had started out a small room which had been carved out of the side of a hill. Then as he prospered the farmer built a house on top of that room and expanded from there. Suffice it to say there was so much to see and learn about, we were there for quite some time. This is the view down to the farmhouse from the entrance. The farm itself is a working farm, with volunteers continually working on one project or another. When we were there they were making a hearty chicken soup to be frozen and served at their Harvest Festival in October.
There were demonstrations of Colonial crafts for all to try. They had Quilt making, as can be seen by the quilt on this large quilting frame. This group was making all kinds of baskets, using material grown on the farm.
And the most important part of the farm tour for Mia was finding these chicks running around the farm!
And, of course, the obligatory tourist attraction for older kids - Go Karts!!! If I hadn't been the one driving, I would have tried my hand at a fun spin around the block! Just didn't want to take a chance of throwing out my back so far away from home.
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