Sacajawea Tours: Tour to Sable Island and the Gully MPA June 25 to June 30th 2011

Hestercombe to Rosemoor, Hidcote to Stowe: British Gardening

Through the Centuries

This British garden tour will arrive at Heathrow London April 30^th just after Easter in 2011 and will be away two weeks, returning May 14^th.

Our guide will be Lorraine Beswick, a gardener in eastern Canada the past thirty years, noted for her talks and workshops.

Inspiration for gardening comes from many sources. The writings of the British gardener Beth Chatto, was one such for Lorraine, and led her to those of Chatto's contemporaries - Rosemary Verey, Penelope Hobhouse, Roy Genders, Christopher Lloyd, Graham Stuart Thomas...and further back in time to the writings of Vita Sackville-West, Eleanor Sinclair Rhodes, Gertrude Jekyll, E.A. Bowles, A.T. Johnson, William Robinson and Robert Fortune. The list could go on.

Suspecting that she is not alone in considering many of these to be 'close friends' and mentors, we now extend an invitation to join us as we visit some of their gardens, walk in person some of their paths and see their imaginings from some of their garden benches. Hestercombe House and Gardens in Taunton, The Bishop's Palace at Wells, East Lambrook Manor,Tintinhull and Rosemoor will be amongst our first stops; our second week will visit Hidcote, Barnsley House , the Oxford Botanical Gardens and Stowe .The list of gardens beckoning is long but the above fit within this year's theme honouring some of our favourite garden authors. Many of these are noted, not only for their contributions to contemporary garden design, but for their collections of primula, hellebores and azaleas, magnolias, early flowering shrubs and trees. With luck, we might just catch some of the last of rich collections of galanthus.

We will rent one or two vehicles, and in the first week a cottage in Somerset, and in the second week a cottage in the Oxford area. We will eat breakfasts in the cottages and have lunch in pubs or cafes. We will dine out or bring in “take out” at dinner. We will take walks and have cream teas in picturesque cafés. Gardens and flowers are not simply gardens and flowers, but also pots and vases, books and music, landscapes, nurseries and flower shops, which continue to inspire. Our days and itinerary will vary and allow for such diversions; for time private and shared.

The cost is $3700. Canadian. This includes: entrance fees, accommodation, breakfasts, domestic travel, but not lunches, dinners, international travel, airport taxes, tips and expenses of a personal nature including laundry, telephone and beverages. If you are intrigued or interested please contact us and we will be happy to respond. A deposit of $500 will hold you a place in this tour.

All the very best

Jennifer Modigliani and Lorraine Beswick

Sacajawea Tours tel: 902-532-0279

sacajawea@ns.sympatico.ca

jennifer_modigliani@hotmail.com

THIS LAST SUMMER'S SILK ROAD TOUR: BUKHARA, KHIVA, ASHGABAT

In May of 2008 I went to the Silk Road with a wonderful group of people. We met in Taipei and traveled on from there. Urumqi, Tashkent, Bukhara, Khiva, Turkmenabat, Mari, Ashgabat: mythic names, names that dredge up ancient stories and sad tales of infinite longing. This is the ancient centre of the world, as far away as it is possible in terms of place and time from North America. Beautiful Bukhara: mud brick splendid architectural preserve spanning more than a thousand years of history. Until a century ago it was watered by a network of 200 stone pools or wells, or “hauz,” where people gathered, gossiped, drank and washed. In the evening we sat next to one of these, shrouded by the leaves of local trees, and consumed our beers and local food. Khiva, perfectly preserved, redolent of slave caravans and ancient journeys, brilliant turquoise reflections in the burning sun. Entering Turkmenistan we climbed some dunes and took photos of a herd of camels going home for dinner. I got my best “facial” shot of this creature ever, munching some flowers. One can count his nose hairs! We saw so much. I have somewhere else described the restaurant in Tashkent and Leonard Cohen while we ate. I should mention the hours of border crossings, the desert winds and blowing sand, but this is enough. Kyrgyzstan with its nomadic traditions, its mountain landscapes, its piney woods, and its marvelous open people. We do not see women with covered heads here! We slept one night in a yurt: the men in one and the women in another. We consumed the last of my famous Crown Royal that night and there was a decidedly different feel to being in this beautiful country of tribal people. Here many of us bought gorgeous wool felted carpets and hangings.

I am including here some images taken on this special trip. If anyone is reading this who has not been to this area of the world, bear in mind that I am considering a return next year and please be in touch at the beginning of the planning process!

RISING SEA LEVELS WOULD DISPLACE A TENTH OF VIETNAM'S POPULATION

Rising sea levels will displace one tenth of Vietnam’s population. The coastal populations are generally more productive than other areas economically and so this will affect the GDP even more here: the World Bank thinks by about 1.3%. A one metre rise in sea level would flood more than 7% of the agricultural land and wreck more than 30% of its wetlands. Oxfam has released a document calling for at least $50bn a year to be channelled from international carbon trading schemes into adaptation efforts. With a global financial crisis this could be extremely helpful. In the next century the Bahamas, Egypt (facing the flooding of 13% of its agricultural land), Mauritania, Guyana and Jamaica will be among the biggest losers….wherever flooding overwhelms the food base.

“There is little evidence that the international community has seriously considered the implication of sea-level rise for population location and infrastructure planning in many developing countries”

Oxfam also reports that Vietnam is one of the few countries on track to meet most of its developmental goals by 2015. It has lowered its poverty rate from 58% to 18%, and produces the least greenhouse gases of any country in the world. This however, is all at risk. But some communities are already adapting to changing weather patterns. Rice farmers are harvesting earlier and growing rice varieties that have shorter cycles. But all necessary change is beyond even this country’s capacity. International adaptation financing will be needed.

(Please read our information on this page about our tour to Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia next fall.)

Sacajawea Tours

Tuesday, July 5, 2011

Tour to Sable Island and the Gully MPA June 25 to June 30th 2011

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Manolo Island

THIS LAST SUMMER'S SILK ROAD TOUR: BUKHARA, KHIVA, ASHGABAT

THIS LAST SUMMER'S SILK ROAD TOUR: BUKHARA, KHIVA, ASHGABAT (double click on photo for larger image)

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RISING SEA LEVELS WOULD DISPLACE A TENTH OF VIETNAM'S POPULATION

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