Back on the bikes we rode north on SR 25 to Warsaw where we picked up SR 15 and took it to SR 6 east to SR 5 which we took North into Shipshewana. We had reservations at the Rue De Blatz motel. They are supposed to be an Amish type of business but like a lot of motels it was ran by an East Indian family who lived on site.
Our first order of business was to get some lunch, gotta eat right? We had a quick bite at the Wanna Cup Cafe and went across the road to Yoder's shopping center when were done. Yoder's is about as close to a mall that this little town has. There is a grocery store, hardware store and a dry goods store all under one roof. There is also stores on the edge of their parking lot, strip mall style and this is where we found the outlet store Rudee was looking for. They have lot's of good deals on shirts and advertise low prices on Quilts. We bought the one we have now there a few years ago and were looking for another one. Rudee and I both found one we liked fairly quickly and the price was not out of line at $120.00. Rudee pointed out a sign that said 50% off all Quilts and when we got to the register we confirmed the price was only going to be $60 !! Cool, we get a deal! Now I know these quilts are not the hand made ones sewn by some Amish Grandmother by candlelight but we liked the other one we bought here and are hopeful this one will be as nice.
We left the outlet shop and headed in to Yoder's dry goods and I picked up a new pair of tennis shoes. I like the "new balance" brand and they are sometimes hard to find. They have a good selection here and they even have staff to help you find the right sizes and try them on.
By now it was time to check in to our room. We unloaded the bikes and hung around the motel for a few minutes until Rudee made it clear that she wasn't done shopping yet. :-) We loaded up on the bikes and went to downtown Shipshewana and walked thru all the shops that line this quaint little town. One thing about walking around an Amish town. You had better watch where you step!! 
We all browsed thru the shops and Trish bought a few items. We decided to head to Middlebury Indiana for supper. This is the home of Das Dueschman Essenhaus. This is an Amish inspired restaurant where the meal is served family style. The meal consists of salad, bread, fried chicken, mashed potatoes, stuffing, noodles, and either corn or green beans and your choice of probably 25 different desserts. You can add either ham or baked steak (our choice) for an additional $1.00 per person. We ate way too much and had to waddle our way back to the bikes. Essenhaus also has a shopping area (imagine that!!) and Rudee and Trish went to check them out while Steve and I just relaxed in our after dinner haze.
When the girls came back we decided to take a carriage ride around the property. We paid our $5 each and "Marvin" our driver and "Ben" our 1 horsepower engine took us on a nice tour. Marvin explained this used to be a working Amish farm before it was taken over by the restaurant. The shops are in the old barn and out buildings. The farm house has been converted into a bed and breakfast type accommodations and a larger Inn has been been built. The grounds are immaculate and they even have a "garden quilt" made up of different kinds of flowers. Beautiful!
We made our way back the 7 miles to the motel and decided to just turn in early since we were all tired.
I don't know if it was because I went to bed early, or if it was just being in a strange bed but I was up early Sunday morning. I mean I was up real early, like 5am early. I tried to go back to sleep, I just couldn't. I finally gave up and got in the shower and was out the door by 6:30. I walked to the motel office and it was locked. There was a sign that said they had a continental breakfast at 7am so I walked back to our room and hung out for 1/2 hour before walking back at 7. Rats, the door is still locked and I really wanted some coffee!! It was back to the room and on the bike. I rode up the street to the gas station and bought a cup of coffee, ahhhhhhh I can be civil now. Steve and Trish were up and moving early as well so Rudee kicked it in gear and we headed out about 7:30. There still wasn't any movement in the office so I guess the breakfast was not a priority for them this morning.
We headed towards White Pigeon Michigan and found a local restaurant there for breakfast. We had planned to go to Bontragger's RV Surplus but when we passed by Rudee saw a sign that said they didn't open until noon on Sundays, rats.
We headed back south after breakfast. We had decided to try and pick up some cities that share their name with a country. Our Goldwing Chapter has a fun little contest going on where you go to one of these cities/towns and take a picture of your bike in front of sign showing the name. At the end of the year we will display our pictures and see who has traveled the most. We made a stop in Chili, Peru, Mexico and Norway all on our trip home.
While we were taking our photos in front of the Mexico post office another Goldwing pulled up. It was Mike and Penny Kadinger out for a Fathers Day ride so they joined us for lunch. We stopped back in at the "Siding" restaurant in Peru and had a quick light lunch. We sat in one of the rail cars this time and had a great time. Mike and Penny headed out towards their son's house for a visit and we continued south towards home. We rode into some rain at Lafayette but it didn't last too long and we just soldiered on. We made it back home around 3pm and were both pretty wore out. I threw a hamburger steak on the grille and Rudee thawed some shrimp out for dinner. We both called our fathers and wished them well today. I also got a call from Matthew (Amanda had given me a gift and card Friday). I hope all you Fathers out there had as great a day as I had, Happy Fathers Day.
We have a short week this week since we are taking Friday off to head out for a weeks vacation. Matthew is coming over Tuesday and spending the night so it will be a busy week. I'll keep you posted.
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