Joyce & Jeff's 2002 Magical Mystery Tour
2002 Vacation Home Page
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This site documents the vacation Jeff and I took in June and July 2002. Eventually it will be part of our larger website in Geocities where we keep our diaries, journals, recipes to share, etc.
We flew into Chicago on Sunday June 23, traveled thru Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan befoe spending Canada Day weekend on Manitoulin Island in Lake Huron. From there we caught the ferry back to the Ontario mainland and saw Niagara Falls before reaching our primary destination, Toronto.
We were going to Toronto to attend the "Cloverleafs and Mapleleafs" square dance festival. Actually it is the annual convention of International Association of Gay Square Dance Clubs (henceforth referred to as the IAGSDC) but the phrase "convention" seems like it would be a bunch of people sitting around in meetings.
But "Convention" is typically 1100+ dancers from all over the world. New Zealand. Japan. Sweden. The Netherlands. The U.S. and Canada. Three days of full-time "wind in your hair" dancing with 6 dance halls going at the same time with top-notch nationally and internationally known callers. And trail-in dances and trail-out dances and group tours.
"Convention" is the wacky Honky Tonk Queen contest. Meant to be a "bad drag contest", it often brings a new dimension to "bad". Not to mention "untalented" and "uncouth". It's a hoot even at 1 am in the morning--and that's if it is on time.
"Convention" is getting up at some blindingly early hour the next day and going on the Fun Badge Tour, a combination mystery trip and square dance adventure.
"Convention" has a wonderful sense of community and fellowship.
"Convention" is expensive. The dance is expensive. The hotels are first-rate and are expensive. And it is worth every penny!
After recouping our energy after Convention, we went up to Kingston, where the St. Lawrence comes into Lake Ontario before heading back.
On our way back we visited Hamilton and London Ontario before coming back into the U.S. and making a detour to Dayton to see the US Airforce Museum.
Then back to Chicago and our flight back to Oakland CA on Saturday July 13.
Joyce
To contact us, send email to circle1861@aol.com
Trip Map
| 2002 Vacation Home Page | Joyce's Vacation Journal | Fun Badge Tour Photo Index | Links to Other Web Pages | Vacation Snapshots |