(ABC 6 NEWS) — If you’re looking for a quick road trip this summer, there’s a new place to stay in Harmony.
Michael Himlie wanted to create a new place to stay in his hometown of Harmony.
“Tourists will come for a day or two, they will do a few things in the area and they will leave, but if there are more accommodations, I hope people can stay for a whole weekend or even longer,” the owner of Petra’s Garden told Airbnb. , said Michael Himlie.
Himlie lived in the Middle East for a few years until COVID.
When he came back to Harmony, he wanted to buy a house, but also create an Airbnb.
The retired dentist in town gave him an idea.
“He and his wife said well what about the dentist’s office Do you want to buy that?” Himlie said.
Himlie thought about it and decided to buy the house in December and got to work.
“It took about 100 days to initially clean the place up, tear up the carpet, remove a few walls and build from there,” Himlie said.
When you look around the house, it’s inspired by Himlie’s time in the Middle East when he served as an unarmed international protection officer.
“I wanted to bring that to Harmony so people would stay here, so that’s where a lot of the colors come from, that’s where the name Petra’s Garden comes from is both one of the seven wonders of the world in Petra, Jordan, and a small village on the island of Lesvos, Greece,” Himlie said.
The house is separated into two parts. A larger side for larger groups and a smaller side for a smaller group.
“This is the main living space for most of the house. Here you see some pictures on the wall and you will see pictures throughout the house. These are pictures that I have taken throughout my trips,” Himlie said. .
From building the bed frames to using flooring that makes you feel like you’ve stepped into the Middle East, Himlie hopes this is just one way to give back to her community by providing a place to people can stay and enjoy Harmony.
The house is also handicapped accessible to allow all travelers to visit.
You can read more about the garden of Petra here.
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