Kaleb and I were invited to a wedding of one of his good friends from school, Brian, on Saturday, April 20 at Lime Spring Farm in Lancaster, PA. Since it also happened to be Kaleb's birthday a few days prior, we decided to extend the trip that he could celebrate with his family.
Wednesday morning, we flew Southwest Airlines to Baltimore with a transfer in Las Vegas. I usually make an effort to check in right at 24 hours before departure to ensure an early boarding pass assignment, so I was surprised to receive C-30 on the Las Vegas-Baltimore flight. How could the plane be that full? Most likely it was due to folks with earlier departures who were transferring onto the same plane. I was dreading the thought of having to gate check my carry-on bag due to the high numbered boarding pass. However, it all turned out fine...our plane was one of the new
Boeing 737-800's, what I consider a mini "Dreamliner". The aircraft was stretched to hold more passengers, the re-designed overhead bins were very spacious, and the cabin ceiling seemed higher and had "mood lighting" that could change from blue to pink. Despite boarding late, we were able to find seats together and overhead bin space. It was the first time I had ridden in this plane and I felt it was a pleasant experience; in fact, I think the cabin pressurization was more gradual, making my ears pop slowly.
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| cool blue "sky" lighting |
We arrived in Baltimore in the evening so the rental car shuttles were more frequent, avoiding that long wait that we had during our last trip into the area. Our car rental was from National, using a contract ID I found on
Flyertalk (pretty much tried all applicable codes) plus a coupon code off the National Car Rental website. Since Kaleb signed up for the Emerald Club and rented a midsize car, we could choose any vehicle in the Emerald Aisle so we got a Nissan Rogue crossover.
It took about two hours to get to Kaleb's mom Sue's home near the Susquehanna River in Pequea, where we stayed for most of the trip. It was a quiet, peaceful cottage with a beautiful view. I liked that spring season was obvious on the East Coast, with lots of flowering trees and plants.
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| view from the porch |
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| colorful flowering trees in the yard |
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Thursday was Kaleb's birthday and his dad invited a group of us (including Kaleb's sister Alicia, and his brother Jarrett and girlfriend Kate) to celebrate it over dinner at
Symposium in Lancaster. I forgot to take pictures, but I had the seared scallops entree which was very tasty.
On Friday morning, Sue, Kaleb and I headed out to the
Lancaster Central Market, proclaimed as the country's oldest continuously running farmer's market, since 1730. There were many stalls selling fruit, produce, meat and dairy, as well as Amish offerings. For lunch, Kaleb and I bought sandwiches from
S. Clyde Weaver while Sue got some ethnic foods. We bought a bunch of items to take home, including homemade sausages and Amish whoopie pies.
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| one of the aisles at the farmer's market |
We drove around the backroads and came across a covered bridge, one of many in
Lancaster County.
In the evening, Kaleb's friend Ashley set up a get-together with other friends from school at a bar called
Tobias S. Frogg in Lancaster. It was nice to meet people from Kaleb's past though they didn't have as many embarrassing stories about him as I'd hoped.
Brian and Emily's wedding was on Saturday afternoon at
Lime Spring Farm. It looked like the farm had been there for a while, but a lot of the guests remarked that they had never heard of it as a wedding venue. I looked it up online and the farm was built in 1720 and was working until 2004, when it was sold to a real estate development group. That was probably why no one had known of it until the farm was renovated recently to host weddings and events.
We checked into the
Heritage Hotel for the night, close to Lime Spring Farm. The hotel limo was reserved to shuttle guests back and forth from hotel to farm, which was nice so that no one needed to be a designated driver.
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| not triple sheeted?!?! (j/k) |
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| similar toiletries as in Yellowstone |
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It took less than five minutes to get from the hotel to the farm. Seats were set up outside for the wedding and a large tent with a couple of portable heaters for the reception.
The wedding ceremony was short and sweet. During cocktail hour, passed appetizers and an
antipasti buffet inside the farmhouse were served, plus an open bar. I was impressed by the appetizers' presentations. There were only two restrooms inside the farmhouse; a larger wedding would have probably required port-a-potty rentals.
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| love the little dropper of olive oil |
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| deconstructed taco salad |
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| mini pizza |
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| living placecard (bluebell) |
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Dinner was a buffet format, though the salad was delivered by wait staff. The food was tasty. There wasn't a traditional wedding cake, but a dessert buffet including cheesecake and cookies.
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| dinner menu |
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| wine glass favor |
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| plated salad |
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| dinner buffet |
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| sweetheart table |
After dinner, we headed back to the hotel where the after-party was happening at
Loxley's. Kaleb and I stayed up with some of his old college friends to catch up and drink a few with the new bride and groom. Brian and Emily - wishing you much happiness in the years to come!
Sunday morning, we had breakfast with Kaleb's friends Dan and Sara at
Lyndon City Line Diner, then returned to Sue's home, followed by a visit to
Shenks Ferry to look at wildflowers along with Sue's fiance Gerry and Kaleb's brother Jarrett and girlfriend Kate. On-site, there were also ruins of an old dynamite factory, which accidentally exploded over 100 years ago.
We left Monday morning for Baltimore and had an uneventful journey back home. Next blog entry? Las Vegas...yes, Vegas again. It was a last-minute trip for business but there was plenty of good eats. Stay tuned!
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