Amana and Cedar Rapids, IA; Rock Island, IL

On Monday, September 23 we left Sioux Falls and headed east and south to the Amana Colonies.    It    
was a long day on the road and we were glad to arrive at the Amana RV Campground at 4:45 that afternoon.    Tuesday we enjoyed the famous Amana pancakes at the Ronnenburg restaurant before setting out on a shopping spree!    We stopped at the Lehm book store, the Amana Woolen Mill, the meat shop, the furniture store and an antique store.....oh yes and the leather store and wine store :-)   We were dragging by the time we headed back to the RV park.  

Tuesday was granddaughter Tracie's birthday so hope she got our card!   We ate breakfast at the Amana bakery (I had a slice of apple streudle) and we were treated to a slice of sauerkraut bread.    It was really good, and I could see it on a Reuben sandwich.  After breakfast we drove to Cedar Rapids and toured the Czech/Slovak Museum.    We'd seen signs about it along the highway for years, but had never stopped.   What an impressive museum!    It was totally destroyed in a flood in Cedar Rapids in2008 but was not only restored, but an annex was added increasing it's size AND raised 12 feet in the air and moved onto a new parking deck underneath it.    It just reopened this spring.   The theater had a short movie on the repair and move and a 25 minute movie showing the Russian invasion in 1968.

Thursday we had a short drive to Rock Island, IL.   After set up and lunch we drove into Moline to pick up information on Galena, IL and then over to the John Deere Pavilion and Plaza.   It was a beautiful day, so enjoyed sitting outside for a few hours.

Friday we crossed the river and drove into Davenport, iA to visit the German American Heritage Center.   The building was erected in 1861 as a hotel for immigrants.   Now it's a museum outlining the history of Germany, the reasons Germans immigrated to the Quad Cities area, and their treatment during the First World War.   It also highlighted the contributions the Germans have made to the area.

Sunday we left Rock Island and drove to Galena, IL.