Lansing Michigan – Part 3
After we were finished with the Riverwalk and downtown, we checked into the hotel and took a nap.
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Category: Hubby
My Valentine’s Days
Yes, I said days. I had an unexpected day off on Valentine’s Day so Hubby and I went out. Then I took the boys out on Friday which is a rare occurrence now that they are older.
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Lansing , Michigan – Part 2 – R.E. Oldsmobile Museum
After we were finished walking around the Capitol Building’s grounds, we went to the R.E. Oldsmobile Museum. The Oldsmobile automobile was started in Lansing which I thought was neat.
Did you know the band R.E.O. Speedwagon was named after the Oldsmobile company? I can’t remember the exact story of why they chose the name. However, that tidbit of information was interesting to me.
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Columbus Zoo – October 20, 2018 – Part 5
After we finished at the educational building, we went to North America and then the Heart of Africa. We were fortunate the Heart of Africa was open because they are only open in the fall, winter, and spring during better weather.
The brown bear was up and about pacing around his exhibit. Since he was on the move, I was unable to get a clear photo of him/her.
We saw very little of North America since we headed to the Heart of Africa and then onto the shuttle back to the front of the zoo.
The decorations between the Polar area of North America and Heart of Africa.
There were so many animals out in Heart of Africa. The lions, warthogs, cheetahs, and giraffes were all out and about which was cool.
Hubby offered to pay for me to feed the giraffes so I did that which was neat.
Here are some photos of the other animals in the Heart of Africa.
The beautiful foliage and one of the signs in the Heart of Africa.
After we got done with the Heart of Africa, we went to get the shuttle back to the front of the zoo. Instead of the typical shuttle, they had a hay ride. One of the men on the hay ride was loud and very talkative. We were entertained during out ride back to the front.
I hope you enjoyed the photos from when we visited the Columbus Zoo in October. The boys and I went back to the zoo on November 23rd to see the Wildlights. I have that on my list to share with you.
Have a magical day,
Traci
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Columbus Zoo – October 20, 2018 – Part 4
After we finished with the Islands and Australia, we went to the aquarium. Since it was Boo at the Zoo, they had skeleton divers which was neat to see. It was very crowded in the aquarium since everyone wanted to see the diver.
After we left the aquarium, we hopped over to manatee bay.
I love the reflection of me in the door of the aquarium. Sometimes you have to be creative to get photos of yourself. Hubby was playing Pokemon Go through out the zoo so that was what he was doing in the photo.
They are redoing the Sting Ray Bay area of the zoo. Next summer they should have sea lions in that area. So right now all of the sting rays are in quarantine in the back of the Manatee Coast exhibit. The ones they have on exhibit are typically located there. I love their smiling faces.
After we got done with the aquarium and manatees, we went back to the education center to look at the sloth. This time they had a scarlet parrot and armadillo. So cool.
We enjoyed seeing the sloth.
Join me next time for Africa and me feeding a giraffe.
Have a magical day,
Traci
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Columbus Zoo – October 20, 2018 – Part 3
Part 2
Sorry I’ve been missing. There is nothing like an elementary teacher tired in December. I’ve been exhausted.
Anyway after we left the Congo area, we went over to Australia and the Islands. The gibbons were active and outside when we got there. We especially enjoyed watching the baby gibbon. He would climb up so far and then fall down. He kept trying and trying to get the top. So cute!
Next up was going to see the komodo dragon. Hubby refused to smell the komodo dragon’s breath. If the boys were there, they would have done it.
The pelican is new to the Islands area of the zoo.
The Asian otters were in rare form. They were running around the exhibit and playing around which was awesome to see. We don’t usually get to see them be as active as they were.
More of the gibbons.
Most of the kangaroos were hiding in their behind the scenes area. One kept looking out to the exhibit area and then opted not to come out. It was in the 50’s so it could have been too cold for them.
Join me next time for the aquarium and manatee bay.
Have a magical day,
Traci
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Swiss Heritage Center – Berne, Indiana – Part 1
As I previously said, Berne, Indiana really did not have a lot to explore. If you wanted Amish furniture, you could certainly find it. The clock tower and the architecture is wonderful. It’s a small town so there is not much there.
There is one other interesting place. That is the Swiss Heritage Center. Berne was settled by Amish and Mennonites immigrants from Switzerland. They were being persecuted in their native country so they came to America. Eventually they moved and settled in Adams and Allen County.
We were pleasantly surprised when we got to the Heritage Center. They had a guide to take us around the grounds which was neat. The guide was a 73 year old lady named Char. She was a wonderful storyteller. It was almost as though she was there when the American flag was being created or when the Amish were being persecuted in Switzerland. Hubby kept wanting her to tell us more.
She had a golf cart for her to ride from place to place. There was a total of four guests plus herself trying to get on this golf cart more than once. Some of the buildings were a small distance. On a nice day, it would be a good stroll. Not on the chilly and then rainy day we visited.
The first building we visited was the One Room School Room. She talked about the reasons why girls were more educated than boys, the history of the American flag, and how many school buildings were in the county at one point.
Ringing the bell 
In Trouble 
After we left the schoolhouse, we went to the Lunginbill House. The Lunginbill House was the house of Peter and Barbara Luginbill. It was built in 1856 and moved to the Heritage Center in 1987.
While we were in house, we learned about the typical day of the family, how they built the original house, and how they made soap back in the day. Char also told stories about Barbara.
Join me next time for the cheese making shed and apple cider mill.
Have a magical day,
Traci
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Random Photos from Berne, Indiana
Before I begin with this blog post, I should tell you they’ve changed how we write blog posts. It’s going to be interesting writing this blog post today.
Hubby geocaches. One of his geocaches was located at their war memorial so we headed there first.
The Eternal Flame 
After we finished at the war memorial, we headed to the local coffee shop. We loved all of the different signs in the coffee shop.
We briefly walked around the town. I tried to get photos of the town but Hubby decided it was too cold and windy to enjoy the walk.
I especially loved the Dollar General and it’s Swiss exterior.
Their version of a five and dime store. 
When we were leaving town, we tried to find Amish cheese which we never found. 😦
We ended up on a road that was unpaved but very well taken care of.
Okay that wasn’t so bad. I got through this new way of blogging on WordPress.
Join me next time when we’ll either explore the Swiss Heritage Center or check out where we spent the night.
Have a magical day,
Traci
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Berne Clock Tower – Berne, Indiana
Forty-five minutes south of Fort Wayne is a little Amish town called Berne. The founders immigrated from Switzerland by way of Ohio. A lot of the architecture reminds me of what I think of when I’ve seen Swiss architecture. I felt as though I was in another world when I was walking through the town.
It’s also an Amish town. I had to remind Hubby to watch out for the Amish buggies. I didn’t want to be on the news because we hit a buggy.
The reason for our visit was the clock tower. The clock tower is designed after the Zytglogge in Bern, Switzerland. Every noon, 3, 6, and 9, there is a glockenspiel when the clock comes alive. There are 13 different symbolic representations during the 5ish minutes. I took a video but since it was raining I was far away so you really can’t see the individual characters. 😦
These were taken Friday at almost 7 p.m. You can see it was raining. Plus it was cold! Hubby wanted to come back for the 9 o’clock glockenspiel. I’m was like no way!
The next day we went to the Swiss Heritage Center. They allowed us to pause the tour until we saw the glockenspiel. Then we went back and continued the tour.
These are photos I took during the glockenspiel. I was underneath a shelter so they are not close up shots. You could certainly click on a photo and enlarge it if you want to see the actual characters.
Some of the views from the plaza. That is an Amish horse. The buggy is behind the bush.
I hope you enjoyed visiting the clock tower. I don’t know if next time if I’m going to share random photos of the town or the Swiss Heritage Center. Maybe I’ll share the Amish furniture in the hotel we stayed at. Who knows.
Have a magical day,
Traci
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Johnny Appleseed’s Grave Site – Fort Wayne, Indiana
When researching ideas of what to do in Fort Wayne, I discovered John Chapman; aka Johnny Appleseed had lived there. We decided to try to find the grave site.
Close to the grave site is the Johnny Appleseed Campgrounds. That is where we ended up at first. We weren’t far from the actual grave site.
It was still raining when we were at the grave site so I got some photos. Honestly, there is not much around there except if you go into the area where the campground is located. There is a river which would have been pretty to photograph if it was not raining.
There was two other graves located there. I also took photos of those graves.
After we got done at the grave, we went to get supper. We were going to drive to a pizza joint that was 20 minutes away. However while stopped in traffic at a light, I saw a Blaze Pizza restaurant. Hubby quickly turned into the parking lot.
Boy were we glad that we changed our minds about where we were going to eat. The food was delicious. We both were able to get our own customized pizzas. His was a meat lover pizza while mine was a veggie pizza.
They had an awesome deal where you got half of a pizza with either a salad or garlic knots. I got the deal with the salad while Hubby got the garlic knots. The half of a pizza was perfect since were traveling.
Afterwards we traveled to Amish country – Bern, Indiana. It is also a city based on the culture of the Swiss. Join me next time for more of our adventure. I can’t wait until you meet Char. She took us around the Swiss Heritage Center in Bern. Such a great storyteller which is a lost art.
Have a magical day,
Traci
