Tuesday, May 12, 2015

When you are this close to the birthplace of "Baby Swiss" a visit is a must.  While at the Guggisberg Deutsch Kase Haus Cheese Factory we learned Alfred Guggisberg, master cheesemaker, developed Baby Swiss in the 60s to "appeal to the less-developed American palate."  We sampled over two dozen cheeses and they were all very tasty.  The surprise was the very reasonable price, prompting us to take home enough cheese to last a good while.

The factory tour aspect of Guggisberg's is really just a window allowing a peek into the operations behind the store.

We could have taken a little bit of everything home, so leaving with only four different cheeses, sesame sticks and some pepper bacon showed great restraint on our part.

Just a few miles down the road, Shipshewana offered lots of shopping and dining options. 

The Davis Mercantile building was just recently built.  Inside there were a lot of pictures of the cool post and beam construction.  I did not understand the inclusion of the large tree at the center of the main stairwell.  It was delivered from Kinbasket Lake, British Columbia (just 100 miles from Lake Louise) and weighed over 18,000 pounds.  The "large log" with a diameter of 44 inches was more than 370 years old. It did not support anything and was apparently intended as a conversation piece.  I certainly heard a lot of people talking about it - mostly asking "why?". 

  

The Shipshewana 1906 Dentzel carousel on the third floor of the Davis Mercantile was carved by Al Bontrager.  There was no one wanting to ride, so we never actually got to see the carousel in motion.

Outside there were plenty of places for one to hitch up the old horse and buggy while shopping.

The building below had a lot of street appeal which required some closer inspection.

The store owner caught us checking out the architectural details and filled us in on some of her struggles in getting the place built.

Joani had the privilege of hearing the story behind Mary Master's shop. She is very proud of what she has built (rightfully so) but fears she will not be able to keep it much longer.  In an effort to buy up properties, the town is raising taxes to the breaking point.  $12,000 a year is quite a burden to a tiny shop.

Joani consented to model her new scarf - clearly, Sam approved of her choice.