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When the December issue of National Geographic Traveler appeared in my mailbox, I saw that two local destinations ranked among the most important historic places on Earth.
Cool!
As I read, I saw that both Lancaster County's Amish Country and the Hallowed Ground Corridor along Route 15 beginning in Gettysburg ranked fourth worst when it comes to sustainable tourism - how authentically they preserve their past, manage tourism and withstand development pressures.
Uh-oh.
Curious to learn what was going on, I decided a pair of day trips were
I wanted to find out if and how visitors could still get an authentic experience in these places that are endangered species of sorts.
IN LANCASTER
First stop for my day in Amish country - the Mennonite Information Center along Route 30. Director Jeff Landis pulled out a visitors guide and suggested where I might find more authentic experiences.
I left with this rule in mind: If you see a sign with the word "Amish" in it, it probably isn't.
Stomach growling, I made Bird-in-Hand Farmer's Market the next stop. A colleague raised in Lancaster County recommended it. (If I've learned nothing else from my travels, it's that you find the best places with recommendations from the locals.) She didn't steer me astray.
After circling the place to survey the offerings - bratwurst, homemade soup, deli sandwiches, mile upon mile of pies and sticky buns - I settled on a pork barbecue sandwich from Sue's Sandwich Shop. It was messy, but good.
My belly full, I stopped at a craft stand to talk with two Amish women.
Katie Lapp and her 18-year-old daughter Sadie say visitors to the market sometimes question whether they're real Amish people or dressed up.
"They ask if we have running water, if it's boring to be Amish," Katie said. "We tell them our family and our home - that's our life."
The Lapps only make some of what they sell at their country craft stand, and Katie said she sometimes feels badly about that.
"I tried at first, but I was up until 1 a.m. - it was ridiculous," she said. "It must be confusing for the tourists though."
If visitors want something made in Lancaster County, she'll point them across the aisle to Oberholtzer's Calico Corner, a Mennonite stand where Anna Mary Oberholtzer sells items made by her sister-in-law, other relatives and friends.
"They're mothers who are home with their children or retired women looking for something to do," she said.
The road to Riehl's Quilts & Crafts curved around fields and farmhouses. More than once, I passed a horse and buggy. Signs at the end of the country lanes advertised chair caning, custom furniture, homemade root beer, free kittens.
Now I felt like I was really getting off the beaten path. Nice.
I passed a private Amish school with kids playing a game of ball in the yard. A sign on the front of the school read "Please, No Tourists."
Bird-in-Hand Bake Shop was on the way, so I popped in to scope out
At Countryside Road Stand, I found Bob and Deb Reynolds of Rising Sun, Md., posing for a picture with their Amish buggy driver.
Wait a minute. I thought the Amish didn't allow photographs?
Menno, the driver, said he does it for the folks he hauls around. It's rude not to when you're in the tourist trade, he said.
The Reynolds couple has been to Lancaster County several times, but they usually don't go beyond the outlets. This time, with out-of-town friends in tow, they opted for an $85 buggy ride from the Plain & Fancy restaurant to sample homemade root beer.
Looping back to Route 30, I decided to end my day by stopping at The Amish Experience. Billboards and barns everywhere advertise the place, so I thought I'd check it out.
It's a guided tour through a former Amish farmhouse. Nearby, operators have re-created the Amish way of life for visitors with a barn and blacksmith shop and yard.
Employee Ginny Reese said it's pretty authentic, and an appealing option for visitors who don't want to drive the back roads for the real thing: "They can't find it or they don't know where to go and what they're looking for."
IN GETTYSBURG
Heading south on Route 15 from Mechanicsburg for a day in and around Gettysburg, I was surprised how few billboards I saw.
I thought billboard pollution was one of the problems along this Hallowed Ground Corridor? Route 30 through York County is 10 times worse than this.
The plan was to start at the spiffy new Visitor's Center, but a sign for visitor information off the York Street exit pulled me off the highway. The stretch leading into downtown Gettysburg was lined with chain stores, restaurants and hotels. Part of the historic Lincoln Highway, according to the signs.
At the downtown visitor's bureau, Tracy Cromeans practically gushed when she talked with tourists stopping in for a map and guidance.
She's a Texas girl who moved to Gettysburg six years ago for its history: "This is like the mecca for anyone who loves the Civil War," she said.
For the year and a half she has worked here, it has been her dream job - directing visitors to all that she loves in the area.
"It's a quaint place for those looking to escape the hustle and bustle of DC and Baltimore," she said. "It's just the cutest little town."
At The Gettysburg Hotel, I chatted with general manager Phillip Murray.
In the hotel business his whole life, he never fell in love with a property the way he has with this place. Since coming to town seven years ago, he has mired himself ever deeper in its history.
Pulling a frame off the lobby wall, he explained how he and his sister collected and organized the old postcards displayed within.
In his office, he showed me newspaper clippings and recounted the history of the building.
He and his staff are excited that more tourists coming to Gettysburg for its history are heading downtown to stay and shop. Andrea Proulx, the hotel's revenue manager, said, "If you're coming here for history, you want to stay where it feels like history."
Back in the lobby, Joanne Lewis had returned from a walking tour downtown.
Four years ago, the licensed battlefield guide added licensed town guide to her credentials.
"This is the other part of the story," she said. "A lot of people hit the battlefield and think they've seen it all. We tell the story of the citizens who lived here in town and what happened to them."
For years, historians have focused on the town's military history. But things are changing, and now they want to know the social history behind the battle tales.
Lewis tells them about the Shriver House, where they can learn about the life of civilians during the battle, and the Wills House, where Abraham Lincoln spent the night and finished writing his Gettysburg Address.
And she gives them the lowdown on the political scene in 1863: "If you think things are charged now, you should have seen it back then."
The tours are catching on - mostly by word of mouth. That first season, Lewis led 312 visitors around town. This year, that number is approaching 1,400.
771-2034; jvogelsong@ydr.com.
WHERE TO GO
Here are some suggestions of places to seek out if you're traveling in the area:
Lancaster County
Hallowed Ground Corridor
York County
HOW TO GET AN AUTHENTIC EXPERIENCE
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· BLOG: Jen Vogelsong's "Explorer's Backpack"
