Off the Beaten Path

Fort Ancient Trading Post.

 

This was just a lucky accident this past Sunday as we drove through Oregonia, Ohio just to see what was out in this direction, that we came across this cute little place.  I always brake for a good antique store and the fact that right next door is the Bethel Burial grounds didn't hurt. Another interest which some people do not understand is that I have a passion for cemeteries. History, art and family come together thus I have been  "haunting"  graveyards since I was kid. Anyway nothing can prepare you for the inside of the Fort Ancient Trading Post. If you do not enjoy a good dig than perhaps this place is not for you. Walls, floor and rafters full of you name it; antiques, license plates, tools, glass bottles, Indian relics, rocks, fossils, shells, books, Civil War, kitchen tools, brick-a-brac, it just goes on and on. It's great fun and under two boxes and an old pot I found a box of horn coral fossils of which one came home with me for the reasonable price of $1.25.
The man in charge was very pleasant and knowledgeable and a great musician to boot!

From there we walked next door to the Bethel Burial Ground a local cemetery established in 
1813. We entered the gate and were met by a lovely resident kitty (had tags) who was warming herself in the sun on top of a fallen stone. Quite friendly she followed us in our exploration.




Kitty in charge.

 

As I mentioned before I have been exploring graveyards since I was a kid growing up in New England. I find the carving and symbols on the monuments interesting, the family history, the poetry and sayings upon the stones all a glimpse into a different time. Changing times, changing styles and changing beliefs down through the centuries. As our country grew more prosperous and successful so did the cemeteries. More ornate carvings, metal work fences and monuments would come into fashion. I will be posting soon about Woodlawn Cemetery here in Dayton soon. It is a lovely example of a garden cemetery. This cemetery does have a lot of broken stones and many unable to be read because of a thick black fungus. I have noticed this in other local cemeteries and it seems to effect certain types of stone.




Willow tree carving on a broken stone.

 

              The willow tree is a symbol of mourning and sadness when used upon a gravestone.
I find walking through a cemetery to not be a sad affair but rather an exercise in appreciating life and living. I like to think they, the inhabitants,  rather enjoy a visit occasionally too from the living.



Bethel Burial Ground.  Oregonia, Ohio.



If one continues down route 350 from here the road descends quite steeply and sharply into a narrow valley where once we were told was a town. A flood swept all away. The Little Miami River flows through it. At the top of the next hill is the Fort Ancient museum and burial mound area. It was too late in the day for us to partake of this historical site so another day will be for that exploration.




Kefi- Spirit of Joy

Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church.

The Dayton Greek Festival is a celebration of all things Greek. Music, dancing, culture, Faith, community and of course food and all are wonderful and enthusiastic parts of the whole.

I  was struck by the love and welcoming of the people of this community as well as their dedication.

 

The Festival has been going on for 55 years. It is a three day event from Sept.6-8. The church itself is quite lovely. We enjoyed the church tour which shared both the history of the Greek Orthodox church as well as its architectural highlights and art within.

 

Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church tour. Looking at the Dome area.

Beautiful relief, paintings, alter pieces, chandeliers and stained glass. The current church building was started back in 1945. The location is next to the Dayton Art Institute and across from the Masonic Temple on Belmonte Park North.

 

Dedication- the sheer quantity of food that this community prepares to serve during the festival is colossal. A local article in the Dayton City Paper reported that they use 1,600 pounds of tomatoes, 700 pounds of feta cheese and start cooking in June. They make over 15,000 spinach and cheese pies, Spanakopita and Tiropita (to die for); 10,000 domaldes-meat and rice stuffed grape leaves. They also make over 10,000 Baklava pastries. Add a multitude of other pastries, moussaka-  an eggplant and meat dish; Pastitsio- a meat and macaroni dish; gyro's, lamb shanks and hummus and Greek salad well you have nothing less than a huge feast and feat of cooking and everything we had was wonderful! You can tell when food is cooked with love. It doesn't get any better than this.

 

Out of this world pastries!

 

Baklava- filo dough layers filled with walnuts and cinnamon syrup; Kadaifi-a shredded wheat-like buttered pastry with walnuts and almonds and syrup; Rosettes- strudel pinwheels of nuts and syrup; I could go on and on but it's rather cruel and you get the picture! Everything is very reasonable too. We tend to get one of something and share so that we can try more items. We had to go back for more Tiropita (cheese pie in filo dough) though as they were delicious and for $2.00 each OMG!

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Browse the Boutique for Greek groceries, jewelry, and Spiritual items. Pick up some raffle tickets. Learn how to prepare Greek food at the cooking demonstrations. Dance and celebrate and look for your own Spirit of Joy.

Thank you to all the members, volunteers and cook's at Annunciation Church for a wonderful day and experience. Opa!

Get Ye Yonder to the Renaissance Faire

A Knight in Shining Armor.

Good Morrow. If ye have never been to a Renaissance fair than I suggest that ye do so because it is quite the Merry time! Some friends, who are long time (like 30+ years) "Ren. Fair" attendees, took me to the opening weekend festivities in Harveysburg, Ohio this past weekend. There is mirth and merry at every turn and combined with good food, incredible artisans, talented entertainers and exciting and daring feats on the jousting field you just can't go wrong.

Marketplace.

The village has a large variety of artisans selling and demonstrating their crafts. Glassblowers, leather crafters, jewelry and crowns, ironwork, swords and weapons, helmets and shields, candles, soaps, and oils, woodcraft and brooms, furs and antlers, so many unique items. Of course you can find clothing from dresses to bodices, capes and hats. If you don't want to buy you can try on Renaissance clothing and have your picture taken. Food wise you can walk around munching on a roasted turkey leg or an ear of corn, enjoy a bread bowl full of hearty beef stew, or grab a steak on a stake! I enjoyed a large baked potato stuffed with all the fixings. There are games and rides, you can drench a wench or watch May Pole dancers or sing songs while enjoying a mead or ale. Why not do it all?

Maypole dancers.

 

 There are 12 stages with entertainment going on all day. We enjoyed the Kamikaze Fireflies- a high energy duo who did juggling, acrobatics and made us laugh with their jokes and antics they played on audience members. We also enjoyed the bawdy humor of the Washing Wenches and the wonderful songs and harmony of the Wenches A Wailing group.

By far the most daring and exciting was the jousting which we saw twice. The Knights of Valour led by Shane Adams World Champion and the host of Full Metal Jousting on History channel.

 

Preparing to Joust.

My favorite thing to do was to sit and watch the creative and sometimes elaborate costumes. Men in kilts to pantaloons; Robin Hood to Crusading Knights; swordsmen to executioners. Her Royal Highness Queen Elizabeth came in astride her horse to the Joust. Serving wenches to Highborn Ladies in flowing gowns, feathered hats and wreaths of flowers, Vikings with horns, and don't forget the swashbuckling Pirates!

The fair runs weekends until October 21st. So what are you waiting for...get Ye to the Faire!

 

A View of the Past- Carriage Hill Metropark

View of the Bank Barn Carriage Hill farm.

The park system in Dayton continues to amaze me. It's not just the diversity but the loving manner in which each park is cared for and maintained. Carriage Hill was our latest find and we spent a lovely afternoon exploring the farm. This is a historical, working farm with a view of how life was lived in the 1880's.

The visitors center is the best place to start and pick up a map of the farm. After being warmly and enthusiastically greeted we were directed to view the exhibits including pictures and antiques from the Daniel Arnold family that built the farm. The Arnold family came to Ohio from Virginia in 1830. The large brick house was completed in 1836. I couldn't help but imagine children running around, aroma's of food wafting from windows, and the sounds of chores being attended to. I'm a bit of a romantic. There are quite a few buildings; blacksmith shop, buggy shed, engine shed/wood house, ice house, smokehouse, the summer kitchen, outdoor bake oven, hen house, 3 large barns, 2 houses, and the original log house. There are vegetable and herb gardens, fields of sorghum right now and of course animals. Draft horses, goats, Merino sheep, Plymouth Rock chickens, mules, a sleepy porch cat and very friendly pigs.

Pigs...too hot to get up but they greeted us as we approached.


We ventured out on a trail that cut through the fields just before the buggy shed. Over a bridge and around the sorghum fields where a sign directs you first to the old equipment graveyard. Rusting hulks of abandoned farm equipment that look rather like sculpture now. Then another ways up the hill is the walled, family cemetery. Surrounded in limestone slabs the parents stones face the children, a sad reminder that children didn't always make it to adulthood back then. The Arnold's lost 5 of their 9 children. We kept walking and came to the Joseph Arnold home and barn which is situated next to a pond.

Back at the Bank barn there was corn and tobacco hanging to dry in the back. Underneath the barn you can walk through the animal stall areas and tack storage. There are shoots to help get the corn and feed from the top of the barn to the animals . low. The walls are so thick down here that you can see how on a hot summers day it was cool and in the winter it must be equally as warm and comfortable. The barn was built in 1878.

On this day there were two young volunteers working in the blacksmith shop and we were impressed by their dedication and skill to be working over a fire in heavy clothing on a very hot day. Special note all the volunteers were knowledgeable, friendly and welcoming. Make sure to visit the general store downstairs  in the visitors center. There is a penny candy counter that was quite popular. We couldn't resist to pick up some old favorites like malt balls and maple nut bites. There are all sorts of events and classes going on around the year so check out their web page for dates. And again all of this is free!

Down the road is Cedar Lake for fishing, five miles of hiking trails, a riding center and camping facilities.