08-14-2020 Pella, Iowa
The mornings have developed a rhythm. I’m the early riser (stop laughing!) and have time to do my yoga and morning stuff before Ginger and Bonnie are awake. There’s no rush, so we all have morning beverages and we put away our really big bed and restore it to it’s daytime, couch appearance. That’s an amazing process. It doesn’t exactly pull out and up like a normal hide-a-bed. Instead the front part pulls forward, then pops up. Then you push a button and the seat slides forward and the back slides down! It’s much harder to describe than it is to do!
We’re going back to Pella eventually; but we head out in a different direction to see some new sights. Our first stop is Lake Red Rock. It’s Iowa’s largest lake with 15,000 acres of water. It is the result of an Army Corps of Engineers dam that was built after the area had been severely flooded several times by the Des Moines River.
The lake is a monarch way station! (I know that's not a monarch!!)
By the time we get to Pella it is lunch time and we had planned to go to the Dutch Fix because they are serving authentic Dutch food. They are doing a good job of social distancing for the most part. The extensive menu is on the wall and Bonnie, who was married to a Dutchman and has been to the Netherlands twenty-five or thirty times, is thrilled with all her favorites! Ginger is equally happy to be able to have Pella Bologna, a favorite from her childhood! She and I both order the Field Sandwich with Pella Bologna and smoke Gouda on a buttered Jaarsma (yes this is the town’s favorite bakery) bun. We get it hot, although you can have it cold, too. I also order the Dried Beef Raisin Bun. It’s much cheaper and I think it will be small enough to sample. That was wrong. Way too much food! Bonnie lets us sample her goodies and they’re amazing, too, but both are deep-fat fried.
The animated figures appear in the windows below the clock.
There are similar windows on the other side and it is important to know
which side performs first!
We hurry through the last of our lunch so that we can catch the animated glockenspiel performance right next door. It reminds me a bit of the famous clock in Prague, though on a much smaller scale. Bonnie is on the hunt for yellow cloth napkins, so she and I head across the street while Ginger calls her friend Lisa to see if she can connect today. That’s going to work out for this afternoon, so we have a little time to walk through the square and to visit The Scholte House the home of the man who founded Pella, Dominic H. P. Schulte.
It would be wonderful fun in any circumstances, but it’s especially great because the person who answers the door, Wayne, is a college classmate of Ginger’s! He has been active in the restoration of this and several other houses in town! He isn’t a docent at the house, but was asked to stand in for someone. Lisa had texted him; but he hadn’t received it, so he was dumbfounded to see Ginger! She, of course, thought that he had been told she was coming, so she was surprised to learn that he hadn’t and that he recognized her immediately! There was another lady there and we thought she was Wayne’s wife. Turns out she was another tourist and I think we ran her off with our reunion! He shows us around the house and points out the parts that he restored. The entire family was artistic and there are paintings that both the wife and daughter created that could be in an art museum.
We walk through the gardens and head back to the car. Ginger drops us off at the library to take advantage of the Wifi!! Yay Wifi! And Ginger goes to visit Lisa and Schultzie, for about an hour. They have been friends since college.
The library’s Wifi is so fast! Since we have none at the state park, this is quite treat! I manage to post two days to the blog in that one hour. And there is a large enclosure with half a dozen finches singing and flying free.
Ginger returns right on time and before we leave she finds her Aunt Harriet’s collection of sea shells from the Yucatan. It is proudly displayed in the lobby.
We “need” to stop at both the meat market and the bakery before they close, so that’s next on our agenda. Ginger gets Pella bologna to bring home and special beef jerky that brings back memories. Bonnie finds cheese that she has had in the Netherlands. I find a cheese with morel mushrooms and leeks and I’m eager to sample it. Then it’s back to Jaarsma, ‘cause we may not ever be here again! More Dutch letters, please, and a goat’s leg for each of us! Ginger gets more goodies and finally treats herself to a Delft teapot to complete her Delft collection.
Bonnie has picked up a booklet describing the architectural wonders to be found in Pella. Wayne had a large part in the production of the booklet! It is designed as a walking tour, but we’re going to drive around. Ginger drives, Bonnie reads, and she and I both take photos. We see some of the original structures and excellent examples of classic Dutch architecture. Ginger has been in several of these houses and knows the people who lived there!
Time to head home. Dinner is BBQ chicken that Bonnie had cooked this morning! Who knew? She boiled the chicken in BBQ sauce and, as amazing as this will seem, it really delicious! Who ever heard of that? We still have that yummy tabbouleh and Ginger fries up the okra we bought at the farmer’s market in Nashville. And Bonnie slices a fabulous tomato from Iowa. After dinner we have more Jaarsma goodies. Bonnie has bought cookies she knows from the Netherlands that are filled with that marvelous almond paste.
So many goodies from the bakery!!
Our usual dinner seating, with lots of room on the table for everything! It's larger than the
usual RV table and can also be turned into a small bed.
With the dishes cleaned we head outside for a campfire! It’s just cool enough to enjoy the fire and there are even a couple of fireflies! The sky is filled with stars and the chairs are comfy and the conversation is easy and wide-ranging. Life is good and soon we’re all ready for bed.
Oh my gosh! I want to go to Pella. You make it look like a fascinating, welcoming, fun place to go. Food sounds delicious, especially the bakery items. I never thought I'd want to go to Iowa, but now it is on the bucket list. Thanks!
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