We left Ottumwa this morning and headed for the waiting home. As we drove along, we so much enjoyed the beautiful heartland of this marvelous Country. The pavement rolled by under us, smooth and seemingly unending, the sky blue and clear with a few puffy clouds and a strong breeze. It was such a relaxing drive and we were discussing the Book of Mormon. I noted a little sign that mentioned a Dutch settlement and we impulsively decided to pull off for a visit. We drove into Pella, Iowa. Believe it or not, it is the home of the Pella Window Company. Had we known, I should have taken my unused window to them so see if they would take it back! Further on we entered a delightful little town that we had never known existed. It was settled by Dutch immigrants and they have tried to keep some of the flavor and traditions of Holland.
They have built a working grain windmill, which still makes flour and is used by local baking stores. We were fortunate to find one and enjoyed some delicious pastries from their warm ovens. The structures have been designed to look like buildings in the Netherlands. They have built a replica village and even added one of the log homes originally built by the first settlers. They even constructed a small canal with a drawbridge.
The city is home to an opera house built about 1900 and now on the national historic register. The stained glass windows are marvelous.
Notice the shutters on the building to the left of the opera house. The streets are filled with small shops, antique stores and we did not see one big box store.
Mom was taken with the town and we found a place that sold authentic Delft products and bought a lovely pitcher to bring home. As you can see, Ronda really got into the spirit of the place, but found it hard to fill some of the immigrants shoes :)
In the town they have a Klockenspel, a building with bells and chimes which plays several times a day and they have windows open with moving figures. We happened to be there at just the right time and loved the beautiful music. In fact, one of the early inhabitants was Wyatt Earp and they portray him in one of the windows and the bells play "Home, Home on the Range". It was so fun.
We found this place to be a little-known treasure of a find for us. We have found similar places all over this country, hidden away and found almost by accident. They have been Swedish, German, Polish, Dutch and Danish. We have loved them. In fact, after leaving Pella and heading further west, we noted a sign for Elk Horn, NE, founded by Danes, with an authentic Danish Windmill.
We drove through Elk Horn and visited the windmill and the gift shop. We found some neat little objects and once again enjoyed this delightful town. It was named Elk Horn because when they arrived, they found many scattered antlers, shed and littering the prairie . It seems that initially they stopped in this location and then decided to move on. However, it was foggy the next day and when they stopped again for the night, having gone in a circle, they found themselves right back to where they started and so decided they had to stay in that place and it became Elk Horn.
This area is lush and fertile and a wonderful place to grow crops and families.
We drove on and elected to spend the night in York, NE. We have a place just off the freeway and when we asked were to eat, it was recommended that we drive a few miles away and try "Chances R". We did and I believe that we had perhaps one of the best meals of the whole trip, delicious. We have found these people to be very friendly, warm and welcoming and we felt we could have been having dinner with a bunch of Saints. It was great!
On our drive out there, I wanted to stop in Pella and see all the sights. It looked like a place I could live! I'm glad you guys got to stop and take it all in! :)
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