Day three kicked off with a visit to St. Anthony's Chapel in the Troy Hill section of Pittsburgh, not far from the birthplace of pop artist Andy Warhol. Few clues from the exterior of this brick church indicate the treasures contained within. Our docent, a pixie-like Irish nun named Sister Margaret, explained how Father Suitbert Mollinger amassed the world's second largest collection, after the Vatican, of sacred relics. Sister Margaret personally cataloged the collection over a three year period. Among these holy objects are pieces of the True Cross as well as objects belonging to St. John the Baptist, Saints Catherine, Barbara and Sebastian and Mary Magdalene (any Di Vinci Code believers?) among others.

We continued on this religious pilgrimage with our next visit, St. Nicholas Croatian Catholic Church in the city's Millvale suburb. This unpretentious house of worship may have been the sleeper of the entire tour. In the late 1800s thousands of Croatians immigrated to Pittsburgh to seek employment in the steel mills (the high tech companies of that time). Father Albert Zagar, the church pastor, commissioned a well-known European artist who had also moved to the Steel City to paint murals telling of the homeland, the Croats, traditional religious themes and social issues of the day. Between 1937 and 1941 Maxo Vanka covered the entire nave of this church with 22 incredible WPA style murals. Religious subjects include Mary, Queen of Croatians, the Crucifixion, Pieta and Evangelists. Social murals focus on subjects like war, poverty, injustice and abuses of the capitalist system. He also painted pastoral scenes from Croatia and women in traditional dress comforting a mother whose son had been killed in battle. These remarkable murals are a must see for anyone visiting Pittsburgh.

Then it was time to bid Pennsylvania adieu, cross West Virginia in seven minutes (actually it was only a five mile wide strip of the state) and pay a visit to the Buckeye State, Ohio. Many of us were curious as to exactly what a buckeye is. So we began asking Ohioans to explain this to us. This effort greatly resembled Jay Leno doing his "Jaywalking" on the Tonight Show. Some of the answers were rather humorous. However, we finally determined it is a spiny, highly poisonous nut produced by the buckeye tree.

A sumptuous lunch was served at the Pro's Table in New Philadelphia (so named because its founder, John Kinsley, had the city laid out in a grid pattern similar to Philadelphia, PA and named many of its streets the same as in that city). Then it was off to Dover for a visit to the Warther Carvings Museum. In about 1895 young Ernest "Mooney" Warther found a penknife and began whittling to pass the time while tending a herd of cows. By 1920 he was a master carver and began his life work producing 55 ebony, ivory and walnut train carvings. It is impossible to describe the meticulous detail of these railroad trains. You have to see it to believe this man's obsession with perfection. He is to train carving what Rembrandt is to oil painting. During the depths of the Great Depression the New York Central Railroad offered Mooney $50,000 plus $5,000 annually if he would let them keep just one of the models at Grand Central Terminal in New York City. He turned them down. In addition to the museum there are eight acres of gardens, a button house and a factory that produces hand crafted cutlery.

Over the years we've seen some Big Things on the roadsides, but after you have feasted your eyes on the Big Basket there is little reason to ask for any more. The Longaberger Company headquarters is a real Eyeopener. This seven story building is in the shape of a huge woven picnic basket complete with 70-ton, 331-foot long handles mounted on top. The ants attacking this picnic would be the size of those in the 1954 sci-fi flick, Them, staring James Whitmore and James Arness. Then it was off to Columbus for more treats.

Following an excellent dinner of Asian cuisine at Liu Pon Xi restaurant we proceeded to the Lindsay Gallery. Duff Lindsay, a nationally-known gallery owner and folk art collector, was kind enough to host an event for tour members featuring carvings, paintings and sculpture by regional artists who also were in attendance to talk about their work. The Lindsay's "Ohio Folk" exhibit featured work by Roy Butcher, Stanley Greer, Vivian Pitman, Janis Price, and Chad Sines. Copious amounts of champagne flowed, music by a local duo wafted through the gallery and many participants took this opportunity to add pieces to their own collection. On the walk back to the motel some participants were seen going into the famous White Castle hamburger joint to indulge their palates with a sack of those tiny delights better know as "belly bombs". Later the nightcap of choice was Alka-Seltzer.