A Little Bavaria + A Lot of Christmas
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| Willkommen (Welcome) to Frankenmuth |
St. Lorenz Churchgrove Park
Searching for a place to camp near Frankenmuth didn't give us many choices, but we eventually discovered a budget-friendly park owned and operated by St. Lorenz Lutheran Church. The caveat was that they didn't accept reservations--it's only a first-come, first-served campground.
Although traveling without a confirmed site was a little risky, we felt that arriving on a Tuesday for a brief two-night stay gave us a better chance to find an open spot. Once we arrived near the campground, we called the church office to see if they had an opening and were delighted to learn they had plenty of room for us.
St. Lorenz Campground is probably at the top of our list of favorites from the whole trip. As soon as we arrived, we were greeted by Gary, the friendly groundskeeper, who firmly shook our hands and made us feel right at home. He handed us a welcome packet and personally escorted us to our RV site.
After setting up, we ate supper and decided we would wait until the next day to venture into the city. We wanted to relax from the drive, take a stroll around the campground to familiarize ourselves with it, gather wood, and build a campfire.
A Quiet Place to Pray
During our stroll, we came upon the entrance to the prayer trail that was listed as an amenity in the campground's brochure. This half-mile trail is tucked into the woods and has a winding path lined with prayer markers. Since it wasn't dark yet, we made our way through it, stopping at every station to take in the artwork, ponder each scripture, and give thanks for a space that reflects Christ’s love so beautifully. By far, the best campground amenity we've experienced the whole trip!
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| A welcoming entrance to the prayer trail. |
A Few of the Prayer Markers
The trail begins with "THE LORD IS HERE," which is an acronym for each prayer station: Thankful, Hope, Enthusiasm, Love, Obedience, Repent, Doubt, Integrity, Spirit-filled, Health, Enemies, Revival, Eternity.
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| This is where we exited the trail. The campground was wonderfully shaded and welcoming, complete with an outdoor worship area for Monday evening services. We were so bummed to miss it by just a single day! We would have loved to join in, but at least we were able to enjoy the prayer trail. Fascinated With Frankenmuth Frankenmuth River Place Shops This beautiful Bavarian town was founded in 1845 by fifteen German immigrants from Franconia, Bavaria, who were led there by a Lutheran pastor. Now we know why St. Lorenz Lutheran Church has such a large church, school, and campground -- the church's history is deeply rooted in Frankenmuth.   Frankenmuth’s historic downtown is alive with color. Lush flowers line the streets and hang from the streetlamps, and traditional German-style architecture gives the town a quaint, Old World charm. Between all the colorful murals, historic markers, bronze statues in water fountains, inviting boutiques and shops, local eateries, and a beautiful wooden covered bridge, the entire atmosphere feels as though you’ve stepped right into the heart of Bavaria!          repairs during the day, but was open when we went back later in the day.  
 Just a short distance from Frankenmuth's Bavarian downtown area, where you can buy yourself a pair of lederhosen and other German souvenirs, you can drive to Bronner's CHRISTmas Wonderland and immerse yourself in a place that is filled with the spirit of Christmas inside and outside!  We learned about this year-round Christmas store, but we had no idea what it entailed. Thinking it might be just another heavily commercialized version of Christmas, we were pleasantly surprised by how much it honors and celebrates the true meaning of Christmas. This is why Bronner's chose to capitalize the "CHRIST" part of the word "Christmas" in their store's name...because that's what it's all about. 👏👏  The store is massive, featuring an expansive parking lot, multiple entrances, a small theater that shows a video about the store's history, and there's even a brochure map to help you navigate through its mall-like layout. And if you get a little hungry or thirsty during your shopping adventure, it also has a small food court.  Bronner's provides nearly every type of themed ornament you could ever imagine. Best of all, you can get your ornament personalized right on the spot -- some for free, and others for just a small fee! If you're a collector of Department 56 villages, Disney characters, Elf on the Shelf, painted horses, angel wings, snowmen, nutcrackers, Precious Moments ... well, you name it, and they probably have an ornament or figurine you can add to your collection, or you gift it to someone you know who does.   sports team items they have available, it's probably the one they sell the most of!  Michigan painted these oyster shells she brought from Louisiana. We could have brought her a whole lot more of them!    Lady Liberty showing off her patriotic Christmas spirit! Now that's a tree topper that's a real show stopper! These are only a few examples of what you will find at Bronner's. If we had photographed the whole store, you'd be scrolling for a long time to see them all! If you can't physically go to this store, they also have one online. Here are some displays that definitely deserve recognition ...    You Can Memorialize Your Visit   crowds; there was no one around this area to take our picture together, so we took each other's photo. Consider this your early CHRISTmas greeting from us! But Wait, There's More! We were told that this was the world's largest Christmas store, but we were surprised to find that the whole outdoor area is decorated, too! Of course, we drove back to town that night to drive through the lighted displays, and we sang, "It's Christmas time, in Frankenmuth," to the tune of "It's Christmas time in the city!"         The Best Part of Bronner's... The Silent Night Memorial Chapel! Years ago, Mr. Bronner went to the original chapel in Austria while on a buying trip in Europe; the chapel was built on the site of the church where "Silent Night" was first sung in 1818. He was so inspired by the chapel that he wanted to build a replica of it and received permission to do so.    As you walk onto this separate part of the grounds, you can hear an instrumental version of "Silent Night" playing continuously from speakers placed around the outdoor displays, as well as when you go inside the chapel. Reading the history behind this globally beloved song and standing in the exact replica of the chapel in Austria was truly inspiring. This was the first place we went to when we arrived at Bronner's.  While the chapel is open to the public, the pews and altar area remain sectioned off. Visitors can explore the foyer, which is filled with historical memorabilia about the chapel and the famous song. It was such a sacred experience for us, one that we will never forget...especially when we sing it during our Christmas celebrations.    Our full day in Frankenmuth was unforgettable. We loved exploring the town by day and taking in all the glowing lights once night fell. But there's one last highlight from our stay that we have to share ... where we ate lunch! Frankenmuth has no shortage of famous, historic dining spots, which we read about in the city's brochure booklet that Gary put in our welcome packet; however, we were craving some classic Bar-B-Q. We ended up at Slo' Bones BBQ Smokehaus (they put a little German spelling on it) downtown, and it instantly earned the title of best restaurant meal of our entire trip! It was Wings Wednesday -- $1 wings, drumsticks, and pork sliders. Unsure of the portion sizes, we started by sharing a three-meat platter with two sides. Every single bite was fantastic, exactly what we'd hoped for, and the smoked baked beans were hands down the best we've ever had! Still tempted by the special, we followed up the platter with two $1.00 wings each. They turned out to be massive -- and just as delicious. We raved about the food so much that the cook came out to chat with us. It was clear how much pride she takes in her cooking, and it made an already incredible lunch even better!  and could barely eat these two! On our way to the car, we both said that we should've ordered just the wings and beans! Not only would we have saved money, but we also wouldn't have needed very many of them to get full! We planned on returning for supper and eating more $1 wings, but the deal ended before we were ready to go back. Good thing we checked before going!  As you've probably figured out already, we love Christmas -- way more than Olaf loves summer! Driving through this wonderful outdoor display during nighttime was the best way to end our stay in Michigan. If you ever have the opportunity to visit Frankenmuth, no matter what time of year ... do it! Goodbye, Michigan We finally left the Wolverine State on Thursday, August 27th, and drove to Plain City, OH, located just outside of Columbus. We did a little thrifting at a really nice thrift store that was fairly close to our RV park and found some good items to add to our eBay store. On Saturday, August 29th, we took a very scenic, mountainous drive to a COE (Corps of Engineers) campground, Littcarr, on Carr Creek Lake near Vicco, Kentucky. This campground reopened in April of this year after it was destroyed by the historic flash floods in eastern Kentucky in July of 2022. The campground is surrounded by the Appalachian Mountains, which made cell service almost impossible. We enjoyed a nice and quiet stay -- resting, catching up on laundry, making a campfire each night, playing Scrabble, and getting acclimated to the sweltering heat and humidity we hadn't had to deal with for the last month! Hello, Tennessee We are currently staying in Sevierville, Tennessee ... just down the road from where we spent our honeymoon forty-eight years ago ... Gatlinburg. Our next blog will update you on the adventures we've experienced while here, and as many times as we've been here, they are things we haven't seen or done before. Until next time ... blessings from our neck of the woods to yours! I John 4:7-8 Bonus Photos a tree stump in the prayer trail.  located at the end of the prayer trail.  at Bronner's.   We may see them in Louisiana this winter.  so glad that they restored it.  Littcarr   our way from Ohio to Kentucky .jpeg) were surrounded by the Cumberland Mountains, which are a part of the larger Appalachian Mountains. |
but we were happy to see something
from our neck of the woods!
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