I spent today at a special place. Two friends and I hopped into my car, and we drove out to Amish country.
We would have gotten there much faster, but traffic this past week has been unusually dense. On Wednesday I had a doctor appointment near my home, but I was coming home from work out of state and ran into three consecutive traffic jams. Still I managed to get to the appointment early, thank goodness (what can I say, except I’m a boomer and used to being prompt).
Upon the suggestion of my passengers for today’s trip, we took a different bridge to get to our destination, and it turned out that the road was being detoured, so we ended up in a 45-minute crawl before we were routed to the way we would have taken in the first place. We all shook it off, me because I couldn’t have known, and them because they would never have guessed that it would be like that on a weekend. None of us had been on that particular excursion recently. Out of four bridges available to get from one state to the other, two of them had given us issues in the course of one week.
What I did learn was that, when I decided to detour to get to my appointment earlier in the week, I had found that the bridge I chose to use had routed some car traffic to the westbound span of the bridge in one lane. I had considered taking that lane but at the last minute decided to stay on the eastbound side with the trucks and other drivers desperate to get home. It was fortunate I made that choice, because my passengers informed me that the single lane going east in the westbound lanes could not choose what exit they wanted, so I would have been rerouted to another highway I didn’t want to be on. Karma was with me that evening, even if today, while we crawled along with semis and bikers expecting smooth driving, it didn’t seem like anything would go right.
So right, back to the trip today. We agreed that on the return we would take the bridge I normally used, and we did indeed get home at a reasonable hour. But I’m digressing again.
We were headed to the Shady Maple Smorgasbord, a huge food emporium in East Eddy, PA. We still managed to arrive just after lunch and before the lines began to overflow out the door into the parking lot. Our wait in line was less than ten minutes. A pleasant lady found us a booth to sit in, we were given individually wrapped silverware and a ton of napkins, and we took turns perusing an immense lineup of foods to fill the soul.
I started with seafood, because I had not had my usual Friday fare. I stopped at one of the hot tables where salmon was plated fresh off the flattop for me. There were also burger, pizza and carving stations, and then the row of constantly filled tubs overflowing with anything you can imagine in terms of comfort food. I added shrimp and cod to my plate of salmon, then a helping of mixed vegetables, doubled up on the broccoli, and some fried mushrooms completed the platter.
When next I went up for round two, I got some carbs and more veggies. Baked potatoes had just been put out by a server, and one found its way to my plate, followed by a slice of sweet potato and some peas. There was some disappointment that brussels sprouts were not on the menu this time, but the salad bar and vegetables were still in abundance, and there was no problem finding substitutions. My companions were kind enough to grab some butter, because I had not gotten any the last time I had baked potato. Timing and availability sometimes figure into what you can grab at any moment. Popular items disappear in seconds.
By the time I got to dessert, I needed to make two trips. One in our party of three wanted sugar free dessert, so one of us got her some pudding, and I brought over a slice of berry pie while serving myself a helping of a mousse-like dessert with chocolate and peanut topping, and I added a slice of chocolate silk pie and a glass of old fashioned root beer which managed to form an impressive head from the self-serve dispenser.
We consumed, between us, a total of six plates of food and six dishes of dessert, along with beverages. Every trip we took a fresh plate, and our finished plates were dutifully cleared away by the attendants patrolling the floor every second. The place is pristine and efficient, and everybody is polite and orderly as we select our food and move through the crowds deciding between the undecidable among the myriad choices at hand. The great thing about smorgasbord is that you can sample for as long as your stomach doesn’t call it quits.
My old tummy just isn’t up to the type of all-you-can-eat antics of my youth, but I still put some serious food away, and I feel I ate healthy up to dessert. I didn’t do red meat or go crazy on old favorites, but still enjoyed some variety on my plate.
Oh, and did I mention that Shady Maple has a huge gift shop the size of a WalMart?
After linner (that period of food consumption between lunch and dinner), we hit the shop. There is an immense selection of merchandise, including specialty items, home goods, local products, toys and educational selections, and souvenirs.
Being collectors, we each had an agenda to follow. We also knew instinctively where our main aisles were and a plan of attack. By the time we left for home, we had parcels galore and higher credit card bills, but there had been a special discount, and we each found something we had been looking for and paid less for it.
The drive home was more relaxed, no big traffic delays, and we enjoyed each other’s company all day. We intend to keep this a regular event to anticipate and will probably do another venture next spring. And of course, we stay in touch in-between times and keep up with what’s going on in our lives.
Also, we’ll make a note to check traffic a bit more closely from now on.
