Greater Reading Visitors Guide 2008-2009

Take a Ride and take a tour Covered Bridge Tour Berks County’s grand old covered bridges are a whole new definition of “drivethrough,” so ease off your accelerator and power up your appetite for exploration. Rattle the boards through enchanted shadows, swirling with stories of stolen kisses and generations of departed souls. Take a joyride through a simpler time, when the milkman and paperboy crossed routes in rush-hour traffic. Dare to unplug for the day—or the weekend—and tune in to the tempo of a horse’s gait, the songbird’s whistle, the rhythm of the creek under your own footsteps. In every creak of the floorboards is the heritage of more than one hundred years of yesterdays. Soldiers and spirits. Travelers and tourists. Drivers and dreamers. They’ve all been there. What are you waiting for? Hex Barn Art Tour Tucked deep in the heart of Pennsylvania’s farm country, you’ll discover hex signs, a uniquely American art form and the best-known symbol of the Pennsylvania Dutch. These simple symbols trace their lineage to the area’s German ancestors. Along with their barns, the Pennsylvania Germans similarly adorned needlework, quilts, tombstones, and more with this “fancy” folk art, which can be found in many shops and scenes along the way. Though Berks County claims bragging rights to the origin of this distinctive art form, its roots are actually as deep as the artistry and symbolism of medieval Europe. Inaccurately dubbed superstitious “hexafoos,” the misnomer took hold and eventually became “hex signs.” Make a day of it! Why settle for a three-hour tour when you can make a day of it or a weekend or even longer? Make the Covered Bridge or Hex Barn Art Tour the centerpiece of a longer visit, then switch on cruise control and set your sights on the sites of Greater Reading promising an adventure for mind, body—and spirits. For more information on these and other tours call or visit the Greater Reading Visitors Center at: GoggleWorks Center for the Arts, 201 Washington Street, Reading PA 19601 610.375.4085 | 800.443.6610 | www.readingberkspa.com 14 get out there! G r ea t e r R e a di ng C o nve nti o n & V i s i to rs Bu reau | 2 0 0 9 Of f icial Vis it ors Gu id e http://www.readingberkspa.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Greater Reading Visitors Guide 2008-2009

Greater Reading Visitors Guide 2008-2009 Contents Shopping Heritage Girlfriends Getaway Get Out There Good Eats Relax At Your Service

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