Merry Christmas!
December 25, 2002
Merry Christmas!! I woke up today with ALOT of snow on the ground here in Michigan!! It wasn't there before, but its here now!! Now, that I have a camcorder, its filming time!!
Speaking of which, since the last time I wrote we've bought a camcorder, I've taken a few road trips out of Michigan. The first was to Indiana, to some counties right below the Michigan border. Its Amish country in that area, and we saw alot of horse and buggies! For anyone who isn't familiar with the Amish, they are a very religious, traditional people. Originally they were Dutch who settled in the Americas a few hundred years ago during European's massive immigration days. They are most well known as the 'Pennsylvania Dutch' since Pennsylvania is where most of them originally settled. They have since spread out to other areas including Indiana, and I've also seen some communities in Michigan as well. Incidently, years ago when I was traveling in Bolivia, I saw quite a few Amish families as well. To anyone who doesn't know about them, they make and wear all of their own clothes - usually blue, black, or white. Their clothes also have a very prarie look to them, and most of the women still wear the prarie-style bonnets of a few hundred years ago. The men always let their beards grow LONG!!, but they shave the mustache area. Most of the families do not adhere to anything of modern quality, particularly cars and electricities. Most are farmers, although some are also artisons, creating tables, quilts, candles, and you name it all by hand. These activities have sprouted quite a few tourist-oriented stores for handcrafted quality goods from the Amish. Their main trademark though is the horse carrying a black buggy with a red orange triangle (warning) sign. On our trip, we probably saw well over 300 horse and buggies in the part of Indiana we traveled. Its specifically known for being Amish country, so it seems it attracts others from the community, as well as tourists from all around. Anyhow, that was one trip.
The second trip was to Chicago. We didn't do much, just drove around in the downtown along Michigan Avenue and elsewhere in the proximity. I was quite surprised to see some beach-like areas among other things. Chicago is a very beautiful city! The only drawback was the weather, which wasn't that great being its December!! But the city itself wasn't too bad.
The rest of the time I've been visiting aunts and uncles and my grandparents. Basically Christmas stuff. Soon we'll take a Toronto and Ontario trip, and then the road Westward. Merry Christmas everyone!!
Next in Ontario, Canada:
December 30, 2002
You can email me at:
Wintermoon2@yahoo.com