Road Trip: Lobelville, TN

...and Linden and Parsons, TN and Cypress Inn, AL.

My husband has been under the weather for the past couple of months, so I was thrilled when he announced he was ready for a little road trip.  He had his taste buds set on molasses and the best molasses are made by the Amish.  I had just purchased a new camera and was itching to try it out, so we headed for Lobelville, TN and the little Amish settlement there on the morning of New Years Eve.  From Alabama, Lobelville is just past Linden so Linden was our first stop.  We were searching for coffee and found a little cafe open in The Commodore Hotel on their main street.

About a month ago, we saw a Groupon ad for The Commodore Hotel so we did know a little about it.  After the gentleman poured our coffee, we complimented him on how nice the hotel was looking.  He asked us if we would like tour and we happily agreed.  (Of course, I had left my camera in the truck!)  He showed us the bedrooms upstairs and explained some of the history of the old hotel. It has about eight bedrooms that have all been recently restored.  The Commodore would be a nice weekend retreat.

With coffee in hand, we set out for Lobelville and turned off on a side road with signs pointing toward molasses.  We saw all of the usual sights when you enter an Amish community:  horse drawn wagons, children in their blue shirts, dark trousers, suspenders, blue dresses and aprons.  The men with their long beards, and the women with their hair bonnets.  I would love to have taken some pictures of them, especially the horses and wagons, but did not have a chance without invading their privacy.  Maybe another time. I did take the following pictures of their farms and homesteads.  Notice the absence of electrical lines.  I love seeing smoke coming from their chimneys.

We found our molasses and also purchased some blackberry and raspberry jam.  (Just to let you know...  homemade buttermilk biscuits were made to try out our new purchases after we got home and it was all delicious!)

On the way back, we drove through Parsons, TN so we could drive across the new bridge over the Tennessee River to Clifton, TN. When our son was a baby, we used to attend church in Clifton, TN.  Right before we moved to Georgia this bridge was projected to be built.  So, the bridge was actually "new" to us, but is now about 15 years old!  The drive from Clifton to Parsons was made so much easier and the bridge affords a nice view.

We ended up on the Natchez Trace on our way home, so I asked my husband to drive past this old country store at Cypress Inn, AL.  This store is about 5 miles from our house and I had always wanted to photograph it.  The day was beautiful with blue skies and sunshine and I was pleased with the outcome.

When we arrived home, we needed to check a new lamb who was born right before we left on our road trip that morning.

As you can see, the new lamb and mom were doing just fine!

Judy :)