Tour Guide Teamster: My Friend Susanna’s Unusual Side Job

The wagon, loaded with Tennessee tourists, rolls forward, pulled by a pair of horses named Champ and Nicholas, guided by a tour guide teamster named Susanna, who lectures us on the Amish life as we take a buggy ride through Lancaster County farmland, in the heart of Pennsylvania Dutch Country.

Tourist buggies, which are the size of covered wagons, are a common sight in the tourist areas of Lancaster County. I’ve seen them for years, and today, I’m taking a ride on one of these buggies for the first time.

It’s a bright October Saturday, and AAA Buggy Rides is doing good business in the parking lot of Kitchen Kettle Village when I arrive in the morning to go along with one of my friend’s tours. I’m going to interview Susanna about her unusual side job for my blog, but first, I’m going to take a ride on one of her buggy tours.

When I get to the ticket booth, I’m surprised to see my brother’s friend, Eli, selling tickets and arranging sticky notes on a notepad to keep track of the teams. Eli’s been a school teacher, computer programmer, EMT, and now, apparently, a ticket booth attendant for buggy rides.

“I’d like to go with Susanna’s next ride, please.” AAA Buggy Rides offers three different options of rides, so it’ll be a toss-up if I get to go on the Country Buggy Ride, Covered Bridge Ride, or the Amish Dairy Farm Tour. There’s multiple teams and wagons on the road during a busy day like this.

Eli consults the sticky notes. “Let’s see, she’ll be coming in at eleven o’clock, and that’ll be the 35-minute ride.” So I’ll be going on the Country Buggy Ride, the shortest tour.

I pay my fee and take the tour sticker Eli gives me, and then I sit on a bench and watch the tourists get in line for more buggy rides. I consider the irony: Susanna, Eli, and I all grew up horse-and-buggy Mennonite, left that lifestyle behind years ago, and yet, here we are, at AAA Buggy Rides.

Soon Susanna arrives at Kitchen Kettle Village, driving a large, lumbering tourist wagon up to the hitching rail. She gives the horses some water, then it’s time for the passengers to get on the wagon.

Since I know the driver, I get to sit up front. The back of the wagon, which has padded benches, is filled with a group of senior citizens from Tennessee.

I know from Susanna’s stories that she’s had passengers from all over the world. These folks, with their charming Southern accents, don’t seem fazed by a ride in a horse-drawn wagon, and as we clip-chop out of the parking lot, Susanna breaks into their chatter with a, “Good morning! My name’s Susanna, and these two fellows are Champ and Nicholas!” She gestures to the horses, and the tour begins.

As we roll along the road, Susanna points out Amish houses and describes their lifestyle and culture. She explains, “To figure out if it’s an Amish house, look for three things: green shades in the windows, a clothesline, and a big garden.”

It’s been many years since I’ve taken a buggy ride, but the sights and the speed feel natural to me. The only thing I find unnerving is how close we get to the telephone poles. I’m impressed by Susanna’s ability to hold reins and a buggy whip in her hands, guide a pair of horses along a busy road, and continue talking the entire time.

Soon we turn onto a quieter country road, and Susanna talks about the local farms. “This is some of the best farmland in the world. It’s been farmed for centuries. Some years, farmers can get four or five cuttings of hay a year off a field.”

When we pass hay bales wrapped in white plastic, Susanna tells a joke. “That’s marshmallows for the cows! Actually, it’s more like marshmallows for horses, they like it, but it’s not good for them.”

Susanna encourages the riders to ask questions, and they do, “Do Amish grow sugar cane? Do they have cell phones?”

They also ask Susanna about herself, and they ask me questions, too. (Susanna has introduced me as her friend.) “Did you go to college?” “Are you married?” “How old are you?” “Do you ever wear pants?”

We pass a one-room schoolhouse, and Susanna explains how all eight grades are taught by one teacher. I notice there’s a poster on the front of the schoolhouse door that reads, “The bravest thing you can be is yourself.”

On one back road, Susanna points out, “Notice how this road doesn’t have electric poles. Everyone who lives on this road is Amish.”

We stop at an Amish farm, and several Amish children come out to sell homemade baked goods to the tourists. I decide to have the full tourist experience to buy a chocolate whoopie pie.

Sadly, I don’t take too many pictures during our tour, not because I’m afraid of offending the Amish, but because my camera gives me an error message soon after starting off. (I did manage to get the video clip that’s at the bottom of this post, though, before the camera started acting up.)

Pretty soon, we’re rolling back along the busy road and turning into the parking lot of Kitchen Kettle Village. Susanna pulls up to the hitching rail, ties up the horse, and places a block behind the wheel so we can all get off.

A few days later, I meet Susanna for coffee and ask some follow-up questions about her job.

Question: How long have you been doing this?

Answer: For about two and a half years. It’s a very seasonal job, mostly in the summer, often on Saturdays.

Question: What made you decide to do this for a side job?

Answer: I needed a summer job. A friend of mine worked as a tour guide, and he encouraged me to try this.

I also thought this job could help me gain a bigger worldview, and understand where I am, and where I’m going, and how other people [from outside the Mennonite community] think. I’m part of the Charity Church, which is very focused on missions, and I wanted to practice sharing the Gospel.

Question: Did you get any special training?

Answer: I grew up with horse and buggy, but I had to learn to drive two horses instead of one. I had about one day of training. I also went along with the other drivers on tours sometimes.

Question: What’s the most unusual questions you’ll ever had about the Amish?

Answer: You mean the Amish buy ketchup? If the Amish are not allowed to fly, can they ride hot air balloons? If the Amish try to not be like the world in external things, would they drive cars, have electric and internet, if everyone else decided to not have those things?

Question: What have you learned from this job?

Answer: I’ve expanded my worldview and learned how to talk about the Gospel without being defensive. I’ve learned how important it is to communicate openness. I’ve learned how to have custom-built relationships and communication.

Question: Tell me about one of your favorite experiences.

Answer: I’ve been very blessed by other Christians. There’s one family from Maryland I still keep in contact with.

Question: What do you like least about the job?

Answer: Throwing the icky harnesses on the horses!

Question: What do you like the best about the job?

I like the discount for Kitchen Kettle Village! But I also like it when I can explain to someone something about the Amish, and I can tell they get it. I like it when a customer asks if they can pray for me. The best of part of the job is getting to share the Gospel!

Below is the video I took on the tour, just before my camera started acting up. I don’t do many videos, so it’s nothing fancy, but I hope you enjoy watching it! I had fun learning about Susanna’s job, and I hope you did too! Thanks, Susanna, for letting me interview you.