Dolphins, Whales and Icebergs, Oh My!

For eons now, a trip to Alaska has been on my bucket list. And next year, I will get to check that one off! 

Gena Philibert-Ortega is running a genealogy cruise out of Seattle in August 2020 that is a one week trip up the Gulf of Alaska, returning through the Inside Passage. This will take in not just the probability of dolphins, whales and icebergs but also glacial lakes and fjords. Day excursions will help me learn more about the history and heritage of Alaska - the goldrush days and the Indigenous peoples. 

All this shared with fellow genealogy researchers where we will hear talks, share stories and offer advice on our brick walls. 

Ready to join us? 

https://www.oconnelltravel.com/rw/cruise/84648#city194

This week there is a sale. Your cabin can be reserved for just $100usd. Book a balcony cabin and you get a free drinks package. Then start counting the days!

LAST SPACE FOR EDINBURGH 2020

There is ONE space left for each of the Edinburgh tours in 2020. Through some shuffling, a space opened up in the May 2020 tour. And there is still one space left for the September 2020 tour.

Each Edinburgh tour is timed to precede one of the regional tours that are being offered in 2020. May is ahead of the Orkney Tour and Sept is ahead of the Scottish Borders Tour.

I have found in the past that people appreciate being able to research in two different places while only needing to fly once.

As always, the spaces will fill on a first come first serve basis.

To register: https://www.genealogytoursofscotland.ca/

Just TWO Spaces Left for September 2020 Edinburgh Research Tour

The very popular Edinburgh research tour is almost FULL with just TWO spaces left. This is the second Edinburgh Tour for 2020, and takes place Sept 13-19, 2020, just ahead of the Scottish Borders Tour.
 
The Edinburgh tour allows research at The ScotlandsPeople Centre, the National Archives, the National Library and the Scottish Genealogy Society. Each of these facilities have records for the whole of Scotland, making Edinburgh the ideal location for researching your Scottish ancestors.
 
As with all of the Genealogy Tours of Scotland, this tour will fill on a first come first serve basis and then will be closed, ending the opportunity for taking part. 

LAST CALL FOR ORKNEY RESEARCH

This is the last opportunity for the Orkney Research Tour May 24 - 31, 2020.  I have two spaces left for research (non researchers are welcome and do not take away from the research spaces available). However, the hotel is releasing the two remaining rooms TOMORROW so after that I can guarantee neither space nor price. The Orkney tour includes three full days of research at the Orkney Library, which houses both the Orkney Archives and the Orkney Family History Society. People are also welcome to head along to the Tankerness Museum in Kirkwall where there is a very large photo collection. In addition to research, there will be two full days of sightseeing. One day on the west side of the mainland where the neolithic sites are located (Skara Brae, the Ring of Brodgar Standing Stones, the Stones of Stenness and Maeshowe chambered cairn). And one day on the east side of the mainland which includes the Churchill Barriers and the Italian Chapel. As always these two remaining spaces will go on a first come, first serve basis. This tour is a once in a lifetime and will NOT be repeated in future years.  To register: https://www.genealogytoursofscotland.ca/orkney-2020.html

Ancestral Tourism Fosters Kinship

One of the lovely by-products of an ancestral tour is the kinship. In almost every single group I have led, two strangers leave as friends, and remain friends long after the tour ends. They share research stories, life stories and support each other in ways I never could have imagined. 

I, too, have been incredibly blessed by kinship. Tour participants return on future tours or return to Scotland on their own and contact me to share their experiences. They have become friends and I never could have imagined how enriched my life has become as a result. 

We are all kin in that we are part of the larger Scottish diaspora. We are kin because we share a hunger to uncover as much as we can about our Scottish ancestors and to embrace our Scottish heritage. And we are kin because we have shared time together in our ancestral homeland. Researching, sightseeing, learning and bonding. 

I truly do have the best job in the world. 

A Busy Week of Research

It is almost impossible to believe that today was our last day of research together. The weeks seems to have flown by. 

On Monday, the group was divided into two smaller groups for research at the Glasgow and West of Scotland Family History Society. Again, each tour participant was paired up with a volunteer to start digging into different strategies for discovering their family history in the West of Scotland area. 

Tuesday was our first full day at the Glasgow City Archives. We were given an overview of the records by Dr Irene O'Brien, senior archivist at the GCA. Then some of the participants went to the registrar to consult the ScotlandsPeople database and the rest of the group had the amazing opportunity to consult original records. What a fantastic experience that is! 

Wednesday saw a return to the Mitchell to once again consult original records at the archives, or to consult the ScotlandsPeople database. Some also went across the corridor to consult the special collections held at the Mitchell. 

On Wednesday evening, we enjoyed dinner together as a group. We walked down to the Buttery where we enjoyed a lovely meal and a nice, relaxed evening. It was a wonderful respite from a very busy week, and a chance for us to enjoy each other's company. 

Today we were back at the Mitchell with most using the ScotlandsPeople database until that department closed, then moving over to the archives. In the evening, we went to listen to a talk about the maps that are held at the Mitchell. We also learned about the changes to Glasgow over the last couple of hundred years as they are shown in the series of maps held by the library. Again, being able to consult original records was a wonderful experience. 

Tomorrow is our last breakfast together, then we are off on separate adventures. Some are heading to Europe or England, some are heading to meet up with family and others are staying to explore more of their ancestral homeland. I will be heading back home. I will be taking new information and new documents with me as well as a better understanding of the world my great grandfather grew up in. I will once again be sharing the news about the richness of the resources available for genealogy research in Scotland.
And while I will be taking back some wonderful memories, I will be forever blessed by the relationships that were developed during our time together as a research group. 

Govan Old Stones

I have been a supporter of the Govan Stones for a number of years now. Last night, there was an open house of sorts including a couple of talks, so we headed over to Govan from the Necropolis. The Govan Old Church is generally open for a couple of hours in the afternoon, so having the opportunity to show the stones to the tour participants was an added bonus.