Two sisters shared a cabin last year, one from the US the other visiting from Israel. At check-in we talked about places to eat in Lincoln and they were leaning towards our recommendation to try the Gypsy Cafe. Later that week they shared their experience at the cafe. While their meal was noteworthy, more remarkable was that the restaurant tables looked unmistakably familiar. They inquired and learned the chef had ordered them from a shop called Kakadu located in Elah Valley, in the hometown of the sister from Israel.
In fact, the international influence in the town of Lincoln is far more prevalent than we had anticipated as new Innkeepers. The vast majority (85 percent) of our arriving guests hail from the US, where visitors from all states in New England are well represented. The remaining 15 percent of visitors came from more than 24 countries in 2018 and in 2019 guests from Germany out numbered visiting guests from neighboring Canada. In both years, Israel was in the top three countries for international guests staying at Mt. Liberty Lodging.
Since our first year in business we have continued the previous owner's practice of hiring international students for summer help through the J1 Visa cultural and educational exchange program. Many area business owners do the same. For us, this has proven to be a rewarding experience. We've had small groups in our kitchen preparing their favorite foods from home to share with dinner conversation and afterwards enjoy a few games of Mahjong. They are charming young people to be around and their interest in learning about another culture and work ethic have stood out. Our first student named Yanzi has graduated college as a teacher and has searched for over a year to secure employment in the US as an Au Pair. As it turns out, she will work for a Sarasota family nearby Cape Coral where we vacation in Florida. Chances are good we will see her in February when she starts her new job and we migrate north to complete our motel room renovations.
We have made arrangements to employ two college students this summer; Jihui (pronounced - gee eye way) from China and Ting Ya (aka Enya) from Taiwan. We're looking forward to another positive cultural exchange. Part of their experience includes opportunities to interact with guests and practice their English skills. If you have a chance to say hello and chat for a bit, they would appreciate the time taken. We've also been invited to visit Israel by several guests and understand that March would be a good time of the year. Maybe in 2021? In the meantime, we're excited about the possibility of traveling to Huangshan China in November 2020.