Sidetrack Saturday: A day trip in the country

My new flower arrangement

Every month or so, I get a bad case of wanderlust. The only proper thing to do in this situation is an impromptu day trip, particularly if the weather is crisp and cool like today. Autumn days before the cold completely takes over are precious. I feel the need to savor the energetic air. It revitalizes me. Today we gave in and decided on a long drive, with only vague plans (those are the best kind of plans!). After a brief discussion, we left the house with our cameras, the location of my Nana’s childhood home, and the address of Volant Village.

Witch flying a bicycle

After an hour and a half drive, we had lunch at Donna's Diner in Sharon, Pennsylvania. They make a mean veggie burger, tasty fries, and were very helpful with working around my brother’s gluten free diet. We took a peak at my nana’s childhood home, and then drove along winding roads lined with farmland and falling leaves to reach Volant Village. After 15 minutes of sharing the road with horse-drawn carriages, we arrived.

Volant Village is a sweet little town. Quaint, charming, and perfectly decorated at every step. There are many specialty shops throughout this picturesque town, but a few were particularly memorable.

Volant Mills is a large historic building (est. 1812) in the center of the village. It is currently being renovated. The yards around this entire town were decorated for Halloween, but ‘Volant Mills’ had perfectly handcrafted wood furniture, and many fake witches in amusing positions. Witches were perched on rooftops, smacked into windows, stuck under buildings, and standing by large, creepy trees.  My camera hardly left my hand. Most notably, I was particularly amused by a witch suspended in the air, flying a bicycle in front of their meeting house.

Our new front door decoration

I was also glad we stopped by ‘A Little Bit Country.’ This shop was filled with great finds, but we limited ourselves to buying only two items. I couldn’t resist a unique ceramic pot with the outline of a raven on it. Once home, it was immediately filled with some items from our garden: English lavender, Japanese Spirea, and Hydrangeas. I don’t know anything about designing a proper flower arrangement, but it smells delightful and it fills me with happy. :)

Delightfully creepy

We also bought a decoration for our front door. The helpful woman in the shop informed us how to easily remove the current Autumn embellishment and install a new one (holly, flowers, etc.) to keep it current as the seasons change. I found that quite nifty. My brother was just pleased that he was offered a free piece of Halloween candy.

It was a relaxing day of exploring new places, enjoying great food, celebrating nature, and meeting friendly people. A perfect Autumn day. If you ever get a bit of wanderlust, I recommend a day trip into a small country town. Ensure that your plans remain vague, make sure you bring your camera for the natural beauty, and remember: small towns can pleasantly surprise you.

Caitlin