We arrived in Strasburg, Pennsylvania on Thursday. Strasburg is the heart of Almish country and we decided to experience what we could here and head over to Hershey before going on to Philadelphia. Friday we started out early and drove around the countryside.
I must say that this is some of the most beautiful country we have ever seen. Everything is bright green with rolling hills and tons of flowers in every yard.
When driving, you have to be very careful so that you don't run into one of the Almish who are driving their horse-drawn wagons down the road. It is acceptable to pass them but they want you to give them as much room as possible so you don't scrare the horses. 
We drove thru small towns with names such as Paradise, Smoketown, Bird in Hand, and Blue Ball and stopped to shop at some of the Farmer's Markets. Of course, they had delicious bakery items and fresh fruits and vegetables. Later, we took a tour of an Almish home and farm which was very interesting. 
They do not believe that anyone needs an education beyond the 8th grade, the women are not allowed to use buttons or snaps on their dresses so they use straight pins, and once a man is married, he will grow a beard, but not a mustache as they consider men with mustaches as evil. 
They live a much simpler life, without electricity or much of the farm equipment we are used to. 
I must say that this is some of the most beautiful country we have ever seen. Everything is bright green with rolling hills and tons of flowers in every yard. When driving, you have to be very careful so that you don't run into one of the Almish who are driving their horse-drawn wagons down the road. It is acceptable to pass them but they want you to give them as much room as possible so you don't scrare the horses. We drove thru small towns with names such as Paradise, Smoketown, Bird in Hand, and Blue Ball and stopped to shop at some of the Farmer's Markets. Of course, they had delicious bakery items and fresh fruits and vegetables. Later, we took a tour of an Almish home and farm which was very interesting. They do not believe that anyone needs an education beyond the 8th grade, the women are not allowed to use buttons or snaps on their dresses so they use straight pins, and once a man is married, he will grow a beard, but not a mustache as they consider men with mustaches as evil. They live a much simpler life, without electricity or much of the farm equipment we are used to. We thoroughly enjoyed riding around, especially on Sunday when we would see many buggies, loaded with the Almish families, and sometimes boys on bicycles or skating down the roads following the buggies as they come from church. An Almish lady came thru the campground on Saturday evenings and we couldn't help ourselves - the raspberry pie and sticky buns were great!!!!
The last day we were here, we drove over to Hershey, Pennsylvania to visit the Hershey Chocolate factory. 
It was quite a display. The first thing we noticed when we drove into the town of Hershey is that it smells like chocolate! The second thing is that the main street leading to the chocolate factory has lamp posts that resemble Hershey kisses, both wrapped and unwrapped. 
There's lots of things to do there including a tour, a museum, a garden, and an amusement park. We did the tour and museum and learned a great deal about Milton Hershey who created Hershey Chocolates and founded the town of Hershey so his employees would have a place to live.
It was quite a display. The first thing we noticed when we drove into the town of Hershey is that it smells like chocolate! The second thing is that the main street leading to the chocolate factory has lamp posts that resemble Hershey kisses, both wrapped and unwrapped. There's lots of things to do there including a tour, a museum, a garden, and an amusement park. We did the tour and museum and learned a great deal about Milton Hershey who created Hershey Chocolates and founded the town of Hershey so his employees would have a place to live.Hershey had failed many times before in trying candymaking. He had established his first candymaking business in Philadelphia at the age of 18. After six years, it failed. He then learned to make caramels with fresh milk which improved the taste as well as kept them fresh longer in 1882, and became successful. In 1900, he sold the caramel business and started making chocolates when he created a new formula for milk chocolate at an affordable price. From there his line expanded to breakfast cocoa and sweet chocolates. In 1909, he founded a school for orphan boys where they could live and learn a trade. In 1918, unbeknownst to anyone, he placed his chocolate company stock in a trust for this school. The endowment was for $60,000,000 and did not become public until 1923.
In 1907, the famous chocolate kisses were introduced and have been made ever since with the exception of the war when they could not get the foil needed to wrap them in. During the wars, Hershey had created a "D-ration" bar for the troops and a heat resistant "desert bar" for the troops during Operation Desert Storm. Did you know that Hershey made a chewing gum from 1919 - 1924? No, it wasn't chocolate flavored - it was mint!
Mr. Hershey had a very close call in 1912 when he had booked passage on the Titanic. Fortunately, he ended up having to leave earlier for a meeting in New York and ended up taking the German steamship Amerika, which was actually the ship that placed the call to the captain of the Titanic to warn him of the icebergs. Mr. Hershey was already in New York at the time the Titanic went down.
Strasburg was a delightful stop on our way to Philadelphia and we are very glad that we got to experience the sites of this area. We couldn't leave without having one of the famous smorgasbord meals. We stopped for lunch and have to say that if you leave hungry, it is definitely your own fault. We had appetizers of shrimp, smothered meatballs, homemade pickles, soup, salad, main entrees of chicken, sirloin, ham, stewed tomatoes, squash, macaroni and cheese, and several other choices. The desserts were just as delicious and we had our choices of baked apples, fruit, several different types of cheese cakes, applesauce cake with caramel sauce, and several different types of pies. Like I said, you couldn't go home hungry unless you really tried!
We're heading to Philadelphia where we will stay for four or five days. We've got lots of interesting things to see there too, so stop by the site again and visit and see what we have been up to. We enjoy being able to share all this with you and hope you are enjoying it too. Take care and be kind to one another.
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