One of my favorite road trips to take with the family is to an Amish town in Iowa named Kalona. It takes us about an hour to get there and the trip never disappoints me. In fact, we have taken this road trip many times since we have moved here to Iowa.
Kalona is one of my favorite places to visit for a few different reasons but I would have to say the biggest draw for me is the high Amish population.
Everything I love about Kalona is because of the Amish people who live there. The scenery is so beautiful in my opinion because of the plain lifestyle that the Amish live.
The low crime rate is due to the Amish way of life, a lifestyle strong in religion, honesty, and hard work.
I also love to shop at the local Amish stores, the ones that are actually run by the Amish are full of great deals, the ones that aren’t run by the Amish are mostly full of overpriced items that make a buck off of the Amish lifestyle.
It’s still fun to check these stores out and maybe pick up some scrapple that they may tell you is made locally but is actually made in Ohio, as it says on the package.
There is also a really good Mexican restaurant in Kalona that my family loves to visit, we have made the trip just for the food several times. It is really hard to find the type of Mexican food we enjoy here in Iowa so when we find a place we like, we go there whenever we get a chance.
It was quite a shock to find it in an Amish town but that is another great thing about visiting Kalona, Iowa, you never know what you will see.
I could drive there just for the views and the possibility that I will get to interact with some local Amish folks or pet a farm animal or two.
I love the open country where there is at least one cornfield between each house and a horse and buggy on every street.
Windmills aplenty and a healthy amount of Amish people looking away from your camera.
It can be really easy to joke about their lifestyle but I really do have a lot of respect for their way of life. I wanted to learn more about so when we headed out to Kalona for the first time I asked so many questions that I had in my mind for what seemed like my entire life.
After visiting the area, I learned nothing about the Amish lifestyle that I hadn’t already known although I have read a lot of information about the Kalona, Iowa Amish online since heading out there. I may be able to get some more info about the Amish lifestyle if I actually approach a local but I haven’t had the nerve to do that just yet, I feel like it would be rude.
I guess if I had something to offer them in exchange for their time and information I may feel better about the interaction. One fun fact about Kalona, Iowa that you probably won’t hear from anywhere else is that those fellas like to race their horse and buggies. I know a guy who knows a guy who witnessed these races for himself, he says the local Amish all head to the racing grounds once a week for a day full of horse and buggy races.
Maybe I will challenge a local Amish guy to a race and once my car beats his horse I will get some answers.
That is another reason why I love to take road trips to Kalona, Iowa there is so much to learn and see, no matter how many times you have visited.
Have you ever visited an Amish town? I want to hear all about it!
