THE SISTERS POPPED IN AT COLUMBUS AND EDINBURGH

Here we come, walkin'
Down the street.
We get the funniest looks from
Ev'ry one we meet.
Hey, hey, we're the monkeys
... And people say we monkey around.
But we're too busy having fun
To put anybody down....

I am finally getting around to starting our red hatter blog, as I had promised my "sisters" I would!  We just went on our May outing and had a wonderful time!  We have been travelling to places around Indiana for a few months now, so I will have to backtrack and tell you about the other places we've been!  We have not been dissappointed in any of the choices and we are seeing things in Indiana that we have never seen before!  There are treasures so close to home!

This past Sunday, we ventured up to Columbus, Indiana.....only 20 miles up the road...to eat at this awesome place called Zaharakos!  It is an ice cream parlor that was built back in 1900.  Very historical and an absolutely beautiful place to visit and have lunch! 

My husband grew up in Columbus and I remember when we met that he was excited to show me Zaharakos!  I didn't appreciate "history" as much then.....now I savor it!  There has been some remodelling done since then, but there are still the old fountains and organs, and they have added a museum!  It's a step back in time!

But first we needed lunch!  Then we'd check out the museum!

Check out our beautiful hats!  It's such fun to wear such creations and we have people talking with us and even taking pictures everywhere we go!  One lady in the parlor came running over to us, dragging her husband along and asked if they could take our picture.  Well, of couse!  We love the attention...lol!  Found out she was from New Hampshire and she knew what red hatters are....said she wants to find a group back home to join.  I told her to start her own group...that's what we did!

We were lucky to get seated right in front of this beauty!  And we were even luckier that at one point they played it.  Oh the beautiful sound that came out of it...we thoroughly enjoyed it!  If you ever visit, you must ask them to play it for you!

Here you can see more of it's beauty since we aren't all hiding it.

We had the sweetest waiter....Darren....who took good care of us and even graciously photographed us in our group pictures so we could all be in it.  We all thought he looked to be 17, but found out he's in his 20's and has even been in the navy!  Oh my, so youthful looking!  Of course 20's are still youthful...lol!  He was such a sweetheart!

While we were eating lunch, we saw a hot fudge brownie sundae walk by us to another table and we all thought we just had to have one of those!  But, in reality, after we were finished with our lunch, we were all too full.  lol!  I had their famous GOM sandwich...if you ever go, be sure to try it!  Anyway, we decided to go to our next destination and return later for our dessert.

Me just hanging around waiting for the others to pay so we can go check out the museum next.

Then Linda waited....

And then Sheila......

Next, the museum....same building...just a separate room...

And look at this old fashioned soda fountain me and Allene found!  Isn't it awesome?  Just beautiful!

And me, being the goofball that I am, just had to try it...lol!

And Sheila found this beauty!!!

Linda Lu was drawn to the candy bins!  Oh wow, do I remember the candy bins of yesteryears where you could get a pound, half pound, quarter pound, or even a quarter's worth.  Do you remember them?  It always smelled so good in GC Murphys!

Then I went down memory lane with Martha when I found these Tiddly Winks!  Martha doesn't remember them, but I sure do!  Maybe she's just too young (but yes, she's old enough to be in our red hatter group....don't let her youthful appearance fool you)!

Then Sheila found one of her favorite childhood toys....and mine too....JACKS!!!  Oh, we were champions with Jacks!  Such simple childhood memories made us smile!

And then we discovered the old soda fountain stools and had to strike up a pose!  Hey Allene...where are you???

We had such a great time at lunch, but it was time to move on to our next destination....just up the road in Edinburgh, Indiana...

Oh my, this place is awesome too!  It is set right downtown in the little town of Edinburgh and is full of...... popcorn!  But, not just any popcorn!  There are over 300 different flavors and all kinds of tins, including IU, Colts and other big name teams!  I told them they need a Breast Cancer Ribbon one...they agreed...lol!

I never saw so much popcorn in one place and I certainly never saw so many flavors.....banana split, dill pickle, hot wings, chocolate marshmallow....just to mention a few!

Have you ever seen such a BIG bag of popcorn?  Neither had we!

Then Mary, our "tour guide" showed us this HUGE bag and told of getting an order for 5 bags of this size filled with BLUE (Colts) popcorn during the Indianapolis Super Bowl!  Wowza!

This is where the "magic" takes place...just a tiny place, but I find these tiny places are so interesting!  Those big bags of popcorn are waiting to be flavored!

Mary was an awesome tour guide and showed us the poppers and the flavorings and explained how it all happens.  We plan to go back another day with our grandchildren...have a Red Hatter Child/Grandchild day and we will call them ahead and they will actually arrange to be popping and coating when we come back for that tour! 

We are getting a lesson in farming!  A local farmer donated this display so they could teach the children coming there where popcorn comes from....not Wal Mart...lol!

If you live closeby and are looking for a field trip for school, or even with your own children, this is a great place to take them!  You will not find a nicer bunch of people!

At the end of our tour, Mary...who could tell we were a fun loving bunch....couldn't resist!  I think she said something about having corn growing out our ears!  Sure gives new meaning to an "ear of corn" doesn't it?  LOL!

Now that we took up so much of their time (which they graciously gave us), we needed to shop a little  Oh, the choices....how can we CHOOSE what kind to get?

And what has Sheila found now?  Popcorn on the cob!!!

Yes, as Mary explained to us, you can literally pop it on the cob and eat it off of the cob!  Now how cool is that?

And then it was time to leave, but not before having Mary pose for a picture with us!  She was a sweetheart and you could certainly tell she loved her job!  She made our trip to popcorn land so much fun and even educational!

Then it was time to head back to Zaharakos for our dessert...but not before checking out this antique mall at Edinburgh.  Hey, how could we just pass by it?  It was only open for another half hour, but it gave us a chance to check it out!

Linda and Allene like to shop on the "buddy system".....

....but Sheila is a lone shopper! 

Then back to Zaharikos we headed....

And there it was....our delicious dessert we had been dreaming about for hours!

Gotta love the cherry on top!!!!!!!!!

And, once again, we had a sweetheart of a waiter, who graciously doubled as our photographer.  His name is Lewis.  He had an accent so of course we had to ask him what it was...Kentucky?  LOL!  He was from England and said he has been in the states for 3 years.  It's fun to meet and chat with people you meet along the way!

And with that, our day came to an end and we needed to head home.  We are just amazed at the great things we are finding right out "our back door".  I call this LIVING OUT LOUD!  After battling breast cancer last year, I am learning to enjoy the simple things in life and to LIVE!!!!  And yes, my camera goes EVERYWHERE!!!  They girls might act annoyed at times with my camera....but deep down I know they love the pictures!  They help tell of our travels!

Next up on the agenda for June......Nashville, Indiana and the Farmhouse Cafe!  Can't wait!!!!!  Love my times with my sistahs!  And when else do you get to dress up in beautiful hats and enjoy people staring at you?  LOL!

Until next time....Queen Cindy (yes, self appointed...lol)