What I learned from visiting Amish country in Pennsylvania 

My family went to Pennsylvania and got a horse and carriage tour of the Amish country. Our tour guide, a very nice man named David, had two beautiful horses and a strong, sleek carriage.

We started off by going down a pretty path through the seemingly endless fields of corn, wheat and many other vegetables, then we arrived at a town. The town had shops filled with farming supplies and many other useful things. There was even a bakery that gave us cookies and lemonade.

 We then went onto another trail that took us to a farm. Outside the farm, there were pens filled with goats and cattle. Upon entering the farm, we were hit with the smell of manure and saw many cows in wooden stalls. In the next room there was a big pig in a fenced-off section. The rest of the area was used for storing hay and other farming supplies. Next was the kitchen. Most things there were made of wood and looked very different from what our kitchens look like. Finally, we arrived at the last room, which was used to hold a lever-powered milk filtering machine. This was used to filter the milk from goats and cows on the farm, so humans could drink it.

Then we went back out, and David drove us back to the tour center. We asked him if he wanted a ride back to his house in our car, he said yes, and we drove him home. He thanked us and just as we were about to go, he asked if we wanted to see his house and farm. We gladly accepted, and he led us around back to where he had many crops and animals. To the left of his house was a large stable with horses, cows and goats. Behind his house was a big farming section with all kinds of crops. We came back to the front and he let us inside his house. He had a living room with couches and a woodwork station.

On my tour I had a lot of fun and learned a lot, like how the Amish people choose not to use technology including computers, gas-powered machines, motors, phones, pictures, cars, TVs and radio. In some ways, this makes their lives harder, but it also allows them to spend more time with the people they love.

I would recommend this to any kid who wants to get out and see lots of cool things in nature and how different cultures live.

Info: discoverlancaster.com

George Marino's sixth-grade class, Eastport Elementary School