Being a tour operator for a quarter century has
been 'interesting'. Click on the link below and enjoy. Andy & Bev's Blog
News and Events
Thoughts and things about travel and the world(and our small group, slow pace, escorted tours)
Our Penticton Odyssey
Neither wind, snow, sleet nor hail (and we had it all) kept us from our presentation at Expedia Cruise Ship Centers in Penticton, B.C. the other night.
The weather may have been cold but the reception at the agency was very warm and welcoming.
We had a fun presentation in front of a very receptive group of invited guests.
It was a bit of a reunion for us meeting up with Pat Clements, one of the agents, and her Mom Norma Cooper both of whom have traveled with us in the past.
Fun trip home over Allison Pass in a white out, then back to rain, rain, rain and more rain.
A Tale of Two churches
One is the only complete medieval Viking Church in the UK. The other is a small quonset hut made by Italian Prisoners of War.
Both are in Orkney, Scotland.
St. Magnus Cathedral began in 1137 when the Vikings ruled the Islands and much of the West Highlands.
Inside it has memorials to the sailors of HMS Royal Oak which was torpedoed in Scapa Flow with the loss of 833 lives.
There is also a memorial to Dr. John Rae, the Orkney born Arctic explorer who discovered the fate of the Franklin expedition as well as discovering the North West Passage.
The Italian Chapel and the statue of St. George was built by Italian Prisoners of War in Orkney during WWII.
Made of two quonset huts, the chapel is still maintained and is still used for services. It is a moving testimony showing that things of the spirit will outlive Wars. The statue was formed from barbed wire and covered in concrete.
Incidentally, Scapa Flow, where the Royal Oak was torpedoed, is the same place where the German Fleet (see the last photo) sailed to surrender at the end of WWI and where they sank their own ships rather than turn them over to the British.
Following the sinking of the Royal Oak, the prisoners built the causeways and Churchill Barriers to prevent any further incursions into Scapa Flow. The last photo is of one of the barriers with a wreck just off the shore.
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Small group, personally escorted Land Cruise toursto Scotland, England, Croatia, Turkey and San Antonio
