Folk Arts and Craft Capital of Kentucky

"What do you get when you mix Haight-Ashbury with Little House on the Prairie? The answer is Berea, Kentucky, a town that was counterculture before counterculture was cool. The city is home to Berea College, which was the only integrated and co-ed college in the South for nearly forty years. The politically progressive community is home to organic farmers & hundreds of working artists." via estately.com

Yep this town is pretty amazing. Berea College has a very rich history in traditional crafts and social equality, and remains very progressive in promoting renewable energy and local economies.

This inclusive Christian message of impartial love remains the Berea College motto via Berea.com

Ed and I have stopped here a few times before, but never got to stay longer than an hour or two, so it's been really great to stick around and explore for awhile. We're staying in a cute little RV park just outside the city limits, it's a quick bike ride into town. And everyone here is just so dang nice.

Our first night, we caught a contra dancing workshop - So. Much. Fun. We danced while a folk band, the Berea Castoffs got surprisingly psychedelic  What a way to be welcomed into town by dancing with the locals and students! They spin ya real fast.

Tuesday we stopped by the farmer's market where I bought the most awesome leather hair clip made by this charming, woodsy gal. We talked trees, bikes, and she shared a paw paw with us (a new favorite fruit btw). We picked up some food, got pointers on the perfect mushroom soup recipe (Hanyicska family Christmas special!) and then rode back home to make supper.

One of the barn quilts we saw on our Wednesday ride to the Pinnacles

Fulltime RV life has gone pretty smooth thus far. I really love living in such a small space because it's forcing me to be so deliberate and purposeful in all of my daily activities. My mind is less cluttered when superfluities are eliminated. I've been able to get all of my thoughts in one place, and finally open my shop Trail & Compass! Check it out! 

It's been a great, laid-back week, and I'm so full of stories to share, but it's hard to decide on what to cover here on the ol' blog-o-blog. I've been having fun posting on Instagram though, it's so much faster than blogging! Have a look at that if you want more pictures.

Tomorrow we're going to visit the studio artists again, spend some money, then roll on down the road toward the Great Smokey Mountains National Park, government shut down or not!