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Descendants of Peter McLean

Generation No. 1

1. PETER1 MCLEAN was born 1773 in Leith, MLN, SCT, and died Jan 25, 1844 in Dundee, ANS, SCT (Source:Howff Cemetery Database, Reads "Peter McLean died on January 25, 1844, age 71. He was born at Leith. Hewas a Sawyer. He died of Old Age. His residence was Guillans Close, Hawkhill."). He married ANN MILLAR

May 14, 1790 in South Leith, MLN, SCT.

Notes for PETER MCLEAN:In 1841, Peter lived at Water Lane Woods Court, South Leith, Midlothian. He was a Sawyer.

Children of PETER MCLEAN and ANN MILLAR are:i. MARGARET2 MCLEAN, b. Jan 22, 1792, South Leith, MLN, SCT.

ii. PETER MCLEAN, b. Apr 04, 1795, Inverness, INV, SCT; d. Bef. 1808.iii. SAMUEL MCLEAN, b. Jul 30, 1798, Inverness, INV, SCT.iv. ALEXANDER MCLEAN, b. Apr 07, 1801, Inverness, INV, SCT.

2. v. ARCHIBALD MCLEAN, b. Oct 31, 1803, Inverness, INV, SCT.vi. ANNE MCLEAN, b. Aug 31, 1806, South Leith, MLN, SCT.

3. vii. PETER MCLEAN, b. Sep 24, 1808, South Leith, MLN, SCT; d. Apr 29, 1863, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

Generation No. 2

2. ARCHIBALD2 MCLEAN (PETER1) was born Oct 31, 1803 in Inverness, INV, SCT. He married ANN

MCDONALD.

Child of ARCHIBALD MCLEAN and ANN MCDONALD is:i. ALEXANDER3 MCLEAN, b. 1837, Dunskella, INV, SCT; m. ELIZABETH ALDRED TRUNDLE.

3. PETER2 MCLEAN (PETER1) was born Sep 24, 1808 in South Leith, MLN, SCT, and died Apr 29, 1863 inDundee, ANS, SCT (Source: Death Certificate, Reads "Peter McLean, Tobacco Pipe make, widower of AliceHamilton died on April 29, 1863 at 0:50 am. The Place of death was Temple Lane, Dundee. His age was 56years. He was the son of Peter McLean, Sawyer, deceased and Ann Miller, deceased. The cause of death wasAlbuminurice for many months as Certified by William Crockett, MD. The death was registered by DavidLawson, grandson." .). He married ALICE HAMILTON. She was born 1795 in Paisley, LKS, SCT, and died Jan29, 1854.

Notes for PETER MCLEAN:In 1841, Peter and ALice lived at West Port , Dundee, Angus with their children Peter and Samuel and Alice'sdaughters Ann and Elizabeth. Peter was a Tobacco Pipe Maker.

Children of PETER MCLEAN and ALICE HAMILTON are:4. i. PETER3 MCLEAN, b. 1830, Glasgow, LKS, SCT; d. Apr 18, 1906, Monifieth, ANS, SCT.5. ii. SAMUEL MCLEAN, b. 1832, Glasgow, LKS, SCT; d. 1878, Perth, PER, SCT.

Generation No. 3

4. PETER3 MCLEAN (PETER2, PETER1) was born 1830 in Glasgow, LKS, SCT, and died Apr 18, 1906 inMonifieth, ANS, SCT (Source: Death Certificate, Reads "Peter McLean, Wholesale tobacconist, married to 1.Christian Shank Kean and 2. Ann Anderson died on April 18, 1906 at 10h PM. The Place of death wasMonifieth. His age was 76 years. He was the son of Peter McLean (deceased), Pipe maker and Alice Hamilton(deceased). The cause of death was Dilatation of heart, Renal cirrhosis, Pleural effusion and ascites as Certifiedby Jas. Wenyon. The death was registered by M W McLean, Son, Present."). He married (1) CHRISTIAN KANE

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Apr 21, 1851 in Dundee, ANS, SCT, daughter of JOHN KANE and CHRISTIAN SHAND. She was born 1827 inPrestontsome, Edinburgh, MLN, SCT, and died Jul 13, 1873 in Liff & Benvie, ANS, SCT (Source: DeathCertificate, Reads "Christian McLean, married to Peter McLean, Tobacco Pipe Manufacturer died on July 30,1873 at 5:00 am. The Place of death was Invergowrie, parish of Liff & Benvie. Her age was 46 years. She wasthe daughter of John Kane, Flax Dresser, deceased and Christian Kane, deceased. The cause of death was Cancerof the Stomach as Certified by William Crockett, MD, Dundee. The death was registered by Peter McLean,husband."). He married (2) ANNE ANDERSON Jun 15, 1875 in St. Mary, Dundee, ANS, SCT (Source: MarriageCertificate, Reads "On June 15, 1875 at Working Men's Houses, Dundee. Peter McLean, Tobacco Pipe Maker,Widower of Christian Kean; age 45. His usual residence was Hays Square, Dundee. His parents were PeterMcLean, Tobacco Pipe Maker, deceased and Alice Hamilton, previously Parlane, deceased . Annie Anderson,Tea Dealer, Spinster; age 25. Her usual residence was Blyth St., Dundee. Her parents were Peter Anderson,Tailor, deceased and Annie Kennedy, deceased. The witnesses were Peter Coutts and Elizabeth Milns. Theywere married by Peter Grant."), daughter of PETER ANDERSON and ANNE KENNEDY. She was born Sep 06, 1849in Dull, PER, SCT.

Notes for PETER MCLEAN:In 1851, Peter and Alice lived at Brown St , Dundee, Angus with their children Peter, Samuel and ELizabethParlane. Peter was a Tobacco Pipe Maker.

In 1861, Peter was visiting his brother Samuel at 69 Flesh Market Close , Perth Burgh, Perthshire. In 1861 Peterand Christian lived at 18 Temple Lane , Dundee, Angus with their children Peter, George, Samuel and Christian.Peter was a Pipe Manufacturer employing 8 men, 5 boys and 5 women.

In 1871, Peter and Christian lived at No 28 Tay Street , Dundee, Angus with their children Peter, George,Camuel, Christian and Margaret. Peter was a Pipe Manufacturer. George was a Shopkeeper.

In 1881, Peter and Anne lived at 7 Tay Square , St Peter, Angus with their children Christian, Margaret, Jamesand Thomas. Peter was a Tobacco Pipe Manufacturer.

In 1901, Peter and Anne lived at Monifieth Road Grange Terrace , Monifieth, Angus with their childrenChristina, James, Kate, Annie, Lily and Matthew. Peter was a Tobacconist. Christina was a Tobacconist'sAssistant. James was a Tobacconist's Traveller. Kate was an Arts Student.

Children of PETER MCLEAN and CHRISTIAN KANE are:i. PETER4 MCLEAN, b. Abt. 1851, Dundee, ANS, SCT; m. JESSIE STEELL PEARSON, Aug 03, 1876, Dundee,

ANS, SCT; b. Abt. 1851, Stirling, STI, SCT.

Notes for PETER MCLEAN:In 1891, Peter and Jessie lived at 26 Cumberland St, Belgrave, St George Hanover Square, London. Peter wasa Pipe Maker. Jessie was a Laundress.

Notes for JESSIE STEELL PEARSON:In 1881, Peter and Jessie lived at No. 4 Temple Lane , St Peter, Angus. Peter was a Tobacco PipeManufacturer.

6. ii. GEORGE MCLEAN, b. Jun 03, 1856, Dundee, ANS, SCT; d. Dec 30, 1892, Montreal, QUE, CAN.7. iii. SAMUEL MCLEAN, b. Mar 05, 1858, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

iv. CHRISTIAN ALICE HAMILTON MCLEAN, b. Mar 10, 1860, Dundee, ANS, SCT (Source: Birth Certificate,Reads "Christian Alice Hamilton McLean was born on March 10, 1860 at 3:45 AM at Millens Rhynd,, PerthRoad, Dundee. The father was Peter McLean, Pipe Maker. The mother was Christian Kean. The birth wasregistered by Peter McLean, father.").

v. ANN MCLEAN, b. Jan 29, 1862, Dundee, ANS, SCT (Source: Birth Certificate, Reads "Anne McLean wasborn on January 26, 1862 at 9:40 AM at Artillery Place, South Tay Street, Dundee. The father was PeterMcLean, Pipe Maker. The mother was Christian Kean They were married on Apil 21, 1851 at Dundee. Thebirth was registered by Peter McLean, father."); d. Sep 07, 1862, Dundee, ANS, SCT (Source: DeathCertificate, Reads "Ann McLean, Single died on September 7 at 11:30 am. The Place of death was 183Scouringburn, Dundee. Her age was 7 months. She was the daughter of Peter McLean, Tobacco Pipe Makerand Christian Kean. The cause of death was Teething for 2 weeks. The death was registered by PeterMcLean.").

vi. MARGARET ANN MCLEAN, b. Jun 09, 1863, Dundee, ANS, SCT (Source: Birth Certificate, Reads"Margaret Ann McLean was born on June 9, 1863 at 11:30 AM at Artillery Place, South Tay Street, Dundee.

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The father was Peter McLean, Tobacco Pipe Maker. The mother was Christian Kean They were marroed onApril 21, 1851 at Dundee. The birth was registered by Peter McLean, father.").

Children of PETER MCLEAN and ANNE ANDERSON are:8. vii. JAMES STEWART4 MCLEAN, b. Abt. 1875, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

viii. THOMAS L. MCLEAN, b. Abt. 1877, Dundee, ANS, SCT.ix. KATE K. MCLEAN, b. 1881, Dundee, ANS, SCT.x. ANNIE K MCLEAN, b. 1882, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

xi. LILY MCLEAN, b. 1884, Dundee, ANS, SCT.xii. MATTHEW W MCLEAN, b. 1887, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

5. SAMUEL3 MCLEAN (PETER2, PETER1) was born 1832 in Glasgow, LKS, SCT, and died 1878 in Perth, PER,SCT. He married ANN MILLER MCLEAN 1852 in Perth, PER, SCT. She was born 1832 in Leith, MLN, SCT.

Notes for SAMUEL MCLEAN:In 1861, Samuel and Ann lived at 69 Flesh Market Close , Perth Burgh, Perthshire with their children Peter,Samuel and John. Samuel was a Pipe Manufacturer.

In 1871, Samuel and Ann lived at 8 Flesh Vennel , Perth Burgh, Perthshire with their children John and Ann.Samuel was a Tobacco Pike Manufacturer.

Children of SAMUEL MCLEAN and ANN MCLEAN are:9. i. PETER4 MCLEAN, b. Apr 24, 1853, Kinnoul, PER, SCT; d. May 11, 1916, Dundee, ANS, SCT.10. ii. SAMUEL MCLEAN, b. Feb 18, 1855, Perth, PER, SCT.11. iii. JOHN KERR MCLEAN, b. May 18, 1857, Perth, PER, SCT.

iv. JAMES STEWART MCLEAN, b. Jul 15, 1859, Perth, PER, SCT (Source: Birth Certificate, Reads "JamesStewart McLean was born on July 15, 1859 at 0:30 PM at 69 South Street, Perth. The father was SamuelMcLean, Pipe Manufacturer. The mother was Ann Miller McLean. The birth was registered by SamuelMcLean, father."); d. Jul 30, 1859, Perth, PER, SCT (Source: Death Certificate, Reads "James StewartMcLean died on July 30, 1859 at 5:30 pm. The Place of death was 69 South Street, Perth. His age was 15days. He was the son of Samuel McLean, Pipe Manufacturer and Ann Miller McLean. The cause of death wasWeakness from birth, not certified. The death was registered by Samuel McLean, Father.").

v. ANN MCLEAN, b. Nov 18, 1862, Perth, PER, SCT (Source: Birth Certificate, Reads "Ann McLean was bornon November 18, 1862 at 1:00 Am at 69 South Street, Perth. The father was Samuel McLean, PipeManufacturer. The mother was Ann Miller McLean. They were married in 1852 at Perth. The birth wasregistered by Samuel McLean, father.").

Generation No. 4

6. GEORGE4 MCLEAN (PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Jun 03, 1856 in Dundee, ANS, SCT (Source: BirthCertificate, Reads "George McLean was born on June 03, 1856 at 0:40 AM at 1 Temple Lane, Dundee. Thefather was Peter McLean, Pipe Maker. The mother was Christian Kain. The birth was registered by PeterMcLean, father."), and died Dec 30, 1892 in Montreal, QUE, CAN (Source: Taylor Street Montreal ParishRegister, Reads "Burial G McLean - George McLean, died at his residence number thirty-nine Kent Street in theCity of Montreal, Province of Quebec, on the thirtieth day of December, One thousand eight hundred and ninety-two years of pneumonia, aged thirty-six years and was buried of the first day of January One thousand eighthundred and ninety-three years. Signed by Alexander Wilson; William Waterston; Thomas Bennett, Minister.").He married MAGGIE WHITELAW Dec 25, 1879 in Dundee, ANS, SCT, daughter of DAVID WHITELAW andISABELLA LAUDER. She was born Abt. 1857 in Canada, and died in Mattapan, MA, USA.

Notes for GEORGE MCLEAN:In 1881, George and Maggie lived at 52 West Port, Dundee with their daughter Bella.

Notes for MAGGIE WHITELAW:Robert and Maggie moved to the USA in 1927.

In 1930, Robert and Maggie lived at Oneonta, Otsego, New York. Robert was a Blacksmith.

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ObituarySHAND In Mattapan, Margaret Shand, wife of Robert Shand and mother of Mrs W.R. Forsyth, Mattapan, Mass.,Mrs William Morris, Port Arthur. Ontario, Mrs. William Smeaton, Montreal, Quebec, Mr. George McLean, FortWilliams, Ontario, Mr. Douglas McLean, Towanda, PA., and sister of Mrs. Jessie Munro, Montreal, Quebec.Services at St. Paul's Presbyterian Church, Mattapan, Mass, Wednesday, January 22, at 2 P.M. Montreal papersplease copy.

Children of GEORGE MCLEAN and MAGGIE WHITELAW are:12. i. BELLA CHRISS5 MCLEAN, b. Abt. 1880, Dundee, ANS, SCT.13. ii. CHRISTINE MCLEAN, b. Sep 1883, Quebec, CAN.14. iii. MAGGIE WHITELAW MCLEAN, b. Jan 20, 1885, Dundee, ANS, SCT; d. May 30, 1964, St Canut, QUE,

CAN.iv. WILLIAM LAUDER MCLEAN, b. Dec 19, 1886, Montreal, QUE, CAN (Source: Taylor Street Montreal Parish

Record, Reads "Baptism - William Lauder, son of George McLean , residing at fourteen Munro Lane in theCity and District of Montreal, Province of Quebec and Dominion of Canada, and Margaret Whitelaw his wife,born on the nineteenth day of December, One thousand eight hundred and eighty six years was baptized byme on the twelfth day of October, One thousand eight hundred and eighty seven years by me. SignedThomas Bennett, Minister, George McLean, Margaret Whitelaw, W J S McCormick" .); d. Jun 25, 1888,Montreal, QUE, CAN (Source: Taylor Street Montreal Parish Record, Reads "William Lauder, son of GeorgeMcLean, residing at number fourteen Munroe Lane in the City and District of Montreal, Province of Quebecand Dominion of Canada died in his father's house on the twenty-fifth day of June One thousand eighthundred and eighty-eight years and was buried on the twenty-fifth day of the same month of the same year.Signed Thomas Bennett, Minister, George McLean, William Lauder" .).

v. GEORGE MCLEAN, b. Nov 10, 1889, Montreal, QUE, CAN (Source: Taylor Street Montreal Parish Record,Reads "Baptism - George, son of George McLean and Margaret Whitelaw his wife, of the city and district ofMontreal, Province of Quebec and Dominion of Canada, born on the tenth day of November one thousandeight hundred and eighty nine years, was baptized on the twenty fourth day of May one thousand eighthundred and ninty one by me. Signed George McLean, Margaret Whitelaw, George Leer, Mary Jane Burns,Thomas Bennett, Minister" .).

15. vi. DOUGLAS GERALD MCLEAN, b. Oct 08, 1891, Montreal, QUE, CAN; d. Aug 1983, Towanda, PA, USA.

7. SAMUEL4 MCLEAN (PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Mar 05, 1858 in Dundee, ANS, SCT (Source: BirthCertificate, Reads "Samuel McLean was born on March 05, 1858 at 10:00 AM at 2 Temple Lane, Dundee. Thefather was Peter McLean, Pipe Maker. The mother was Christian Kean. The birth was registered by PeterMcLean, father."). He married ISABELLA LOW Jun 23, 1879 in Dundee, ANS, SCT. She was born Abt. 1862 inBirnam, PER, SCT.

Notes for SAMUEL MCLEAN:In 1901, Samuel and Isabella lived at 282/1 /33 /17, 26 Peddie St , Liff and Benvie, Angus with their childrenChristian, Margaret, Peter, Elizabeth, Samuel, Alexander, Thomas and James. Samuel was a Tobacco PipeMaker.

Children of SAMUEL MCLEAN and ISABELLA LOW are:16. i. CHRISTIAN ALICE HAMILTON5 MCLEAN, b. Abt. 1880, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

ii. MARGARET "MAGGIE" ANN MCLEAN, b. 1881, Dundee, ANS, SCT.iii. PETER MCLEAN, b. 1884, Dundee, ANS, SCT; m. AGNES MARY STIRLING, Aug 30, 1917.

Notes for PETER MCLEAN:Peter was an Ambulance Driver in France during World War 1.

iv. ELIZABETH "LIZZIE" MCLEAN, b. 1886, Dundee, ANS, SCT.v. SAMUEL MCLEAN, b. 1889, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

vi. ALEXANDER MCLEAN, b. 1892, Dundee, ANS, SCT.vii. THOMAS MCLEAN, b. 1897, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

viii. JAMES MCLEAN, b. 1900, Dundee, ANS, SCT; m. ELIZABETH R BRODIE, Dec 10, 1920, Dundee, ANS,SCT (Source: Marriage Certificate, Reads "On December 10, 1920, at 27 Windsor Street, Dundee, afterPublication according to the Forms of the United Free Church of Scotland. The man was James S McLean,Jute Factory Worker, Bachelor, age 20 of 129 Hawkshill, Dundee. He was the son of Samuel McLean,Tobacco Pipemaker and Isabella Low, Maiden Surname Low. The women was Elizabeth R Brodie, JuteWeaver, Spinster, age 17 of 5 Brinston Street, Dundee. She was the daughter of James Brodie, TravelServiceman and Elizabeth Brodie, Maiden Surname Stewart. The Witnesses were Robert McLean andJemimia Brodie. They were married by Thos Mack."); b. 1903, Scotland.

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8. JAMES STEWART4 MCLEAN (PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Abt. 1875 in Dundee, ANS, SCT. He marriedELIZABETH YOUNG SOUTTER Aug 23, 1901 in Dundee, ANS, SCT (Source: Marriage Certificate, Reads "OnAugust 23, 1901, at Lambs Hotel, Dundee, after Banns according to the Forms of the Established Church ofScotland. The man was James S McLean, Commerical Traveller, Bachelor, age 25 of Grange Terrace, BroughtyFerry. He was the son of Peter McLean, Wholesale Tobaconist and Ann Mclean, Maiden Surname Anderson.The women was E.Y. M. Doutter, Draper's Assistant, Spinster, age 23 of Havercroft, Old Glamis Head, Dundee.She was the daughter of Samuel Soutter, Rope and Twine Spinner and Elizabeth Soutter, Maiden SurnameMitchell. The Witnesses were Alex Strachan and Gertrude Soutter. They were married by Alex Simpson."),daughter of SAMUEL SOUTTER and ELIZABETH MITCHELL. She was born 1878 in Scotland.

Child of JAMES MCLEAN and ELIZABETH SOUTTER is:17. i. JAMES SOUTTER5 MCLEAN, b. Sep 20, 1920, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

9. PETER4 MCLEAN (SAMUEL3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Apr 24, 1853 in Kinnoul, PER, SCT, and died May 11,1916 in Dundee, ANS, SCT (Source: Death Certificate, Reads "Peter McLean, Tobacco pipe maker, Married toMargaret Scott died on May 11, 1916 at 10:40 AM. The Place of death was Eastern Hospital, Dundee. His agewas 63 years. . He was the son of Samuel McLean (deceased), Tobacco pipe maker and Ann McLean. The causeof death was Senility as Certified by D M McGillivray."). He married MARGARET SCOTT. She was born 1857 inEngland.

Notes for PETER MCLEAN:In 1871, Peter lived at 12 Watt St , Dundee, Angus. He was a Tobacco Pipe Maker.

In 1881, Peter and Margaret and their children William and Margaret lived at 129 Hawkhill, Liff & Benvie. Peterwas a Commerical Traveller.

In 1891, Peter and Margaret lived at 129 Hawkhill , Liff and Benvie, Angus with their children William,Margaret, Isabella and Mildred. Peter was a Tobacco Pipe Maker. William was a Half Time Mill Worker.

In 1901, Margaret lived at 8 Tait's Lane 3 Speed's Terrace , Liff and Benvie, Angus with her children William,Isabella and Mildred. William was a Railway Ticket Taker. Isabella and Mildred were Jute Weavers. Peter was at54 Earlston Avenue , Glasgow Townhead, Lanark. He was a Pipe Maker.

Children of PETER MCLEAN and MARGARET SCOTT are:i. WILLIAM5 MCLEAN, b. 1878, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

ii. MARGARET H MCLEAN, b. 1880, Dundee, ANS, SCT.iii. ISABELLA S W MCLEAN, b. 1882, Dundee, ANS, SCT.iv. MILDRED MCLEAN, b. 1885, Perth, PER, SCT.

10. SAMUEL4 MCLEAN (SAMUEL3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Feb 18, 1855 in Perth, PER, SCT (Source: BirthCertificate, Reads "Samuel McLean was born on February 18, 1855 at 6:00 AM at 69 South Street, Perth. Thefather was Samuel McLean, Pipe Maker, age 23 born at Glasgow. The mother was Ann Miller McLean, age 20,born at Edinburgh. They were married in 1852 at Perth. This was her second child, 2 boys living. The birth wasregistered by Samuel McLean, father."). He married GRACE STEWART Apr 08, 1881 in Perth, PER, SCT,daughter of JOHN STEWART and CHRISTIAN LYONS. She was born 1858 in Perth, PER, SCT.

Notes for SAMUEL MCLEAN:In 1871, Samuel lived at 2 St Davids Lane , Dundee, Angus. He was a Pipe Maker.

In 1881, Samuel lived at 116 High St., Perth. He was a Pipe Maker.

In 1901. Samuel and Grace lived at 239 High St., Perth, Perthshire with their children Christina, Samuel, Annie,Robert, Janet, Jeanie, Peter and George. Samuel was a Pipe Maker. Christina was a Twine Bailer. Samuel was anApprentice Carpet Weaver. Annie was a Twine Bailer. Robert was a Carpet Creeler.

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Children of SAMUEL MCLEAN and GRACE STEWART are:i. CHRISTINA5 MCLEAN, b. 1881, Perth, PER, SCT.

ii. SAMUEL MCLEAN, b. 1883, Perth, PER, SCT; m. HELEN ROBERTSON HARRIS, Dec 13, 1907, Perth, PER,SCT; b. 1884, Scotland.

iii. ANNIE MCLEAN, b. 1884, Perth, PER, SCT.iv. ROBERT MCLEAN, b. 1886, Perth, PER, SCT.v. JANET MCLEAN, b. 1888, Perth, PER, SCT.

vi. MAGGIE MCLEAN, b. 1890, Perth, PER, SCT.vii. JEANIE MCLEAN, b. 1892, Perth, PER, SCT.

viii. PETER MCLEAN, b. 1895, Perth, PER, SCT.ix. GEORGE MCLEAN, b. 1897, Perth, PER, SCT.

11. JOHN KERR4 MCLEAN (SAMUEL3, PETER2, PETER1) was born May 18, 1857 in Perth, PER, SCT (Source:Birth Certificate, Reads "John Kerr McLean was born on May 18, 1857 at 7:30 PM at 69 South Street, Perth.The father was Samuel McLean, Tobacco Pipe Maker. The mother was Ann Miller McLean. The birth wasregistered by Samuel McLean."). He married MARGARET M HAY 1882 in Perth, PER, SCT. She was born 1858in Perth, PER, SCT.

Notes for JOHN KERR MCLEAN:In 1881, John lived at 6 Thimble Row, Perth with his mother Ann. John was a Tobacco Pipe Maker.

In 1891, John and Margaret lived at 93 King Street , Dundee, Angus withy their daughter Margarette. John wasan Insurance Agent.

In 1901, John and Margaret lived at 93 King St , Dundee, Angus with their children John and Margarette. Johnwas a Tobacco Pipe Manufacturer.

Children of JOHN MCLEAN and MARGARET HAY are:i. MARGARETTE5 MCLEAN, b. 1890, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

ii. JOHN MCLEAN, b. 1892, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

Generation No. 5

12. BELLA CHRISS5 MCLEAN (GEORGE4, PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Abt. 1880 in Dundee, ANS, SCT.She married WALLACE R. FORSYTH. He was born 1880 in Scotland.

Notes for BELLA CHRISS MCLEAN:In 1910, Bella and Wallace lived at Springfield, Sullivan, New Hampshire with their children Wallace andIsabella. Wallace was a House Painter.

In 1920, Bella and Wallace lived at Boston, Suffolk with their children Wallace, Isabella, Euphemia andMargaret.

In 1930, Bella and Wallace lived at Boston, Suffolk with their children Wallace, Isabella, Euphemia andMargaret. Wallace was a Building Painter.

Children of BELLA MCLEAN and WALLACE FORSYTH are:i. WALLACE W6 FORSYTH, b. Dec 28, 1905, Becket, MA, USA; d. Sep 25, 1982, Arlington, Middlesex, MA,

USA.ii. ISABELLA M FORSYTH, b. Dec 07, 1907, Massachusetts, USA; d. Dec 28, 1991, Manatee, FL, USA.

iii. EUPHEMIA C FORSYTH, b. 1910, New Hampshire, USA.iv. MARGARET "TINY" FORSYTH, b. 1914, Massachusetts, USA.

13. CHRISTINE5 MCLEAN (GEORGE4, PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Sep 1883 in Quebec, CAN. Shemarried WILLIAM MORRIS Dec 15, 1905 in Winnipeg, MAN, CAN. He was born Mar 1875 in Scotland.

Notes for CHRISTINE MCLEAN:In 1911, William and Christina lived at Fort William, Thunder Bay, Ontario with their children Margaret,

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William and Kathleen. WIlliam was a Boilermaker.

Children of CHRISTINE MCLEAN and WILLIAM MORRIS are:i. MARGARET6 MORRIS, b. May 1906, Manitoba, CAN.

ii. WILLIAM MORRIS, b. Sep 19, 1909, Fort William, Thunder Bay, ONT, CAN (Source: Birth Certificate,Reads “William was born on September 19, 1909 at Ogden St., Fort William. The father was William Morris,Boilermaker. The mother was Christian McLean, Housewife. They were married on December 15, 1905 atWinnipeg. The Physician in attendance was Dr J C Martin. The birth was registered by William Morris,father, Fort William.").

iii. CATHERINE ROBERTSON "KATHLEEN" MORRIS, b. Feb 15, 1911, Fort William, Thunder Bay, ONT, CAN(Source: Birth Certificate, Reads “Catherine Robertson was born on February 15, 1911 at Fort William. Thefather was William Morris, Boilermaker. The mother was Christian Mclean. They were married in 1905 atWinnipeg. The Physician in attendance was Dr A Stewart. The birth was registered by Wm Morris, FortWilliam, Father.").

14. MAGGIE WHITELAW5 MCLEAN (GEORGE4, PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Jan 20, 1885 in Dundee, ANS,SCT, and died May 30, 1964 in St Canut, QUE, CAN. She married WILLIAM JAMES ROBERTSON SMEATON Apr17, 1912 in Montreal, QUE, CAN (Source: Montreal First Presbyterian Church Parish Register, Reads "WilliamJames Robertson Smeaton of Montreal, PQ, Photo-Engraver and a batchelor and Margaret Whitelaw MacLean,Spinster were married under a license by me on the seventeenth day of April in the year of our Lord onethousand nine hundred and twelve and in the presence of the undersigned. Signed W J R Smeaton, M WMacLean, F A Johnson, M J Smeaton, D G McLean."), son of JOHN SMEATON and MARY SMITH. He was bornDec 15, 1888 in Montreal, QUE, CAN (Source: St. Gaberial Montreal Parish Register, Reads "Baptism ofWilliam James Robertson Smeaton - John Smeaton of Montreal, Photographer and his wife Mary Jane Smith hada son born to them on the fifteenth day of December One thousand eight hundred and eighty-eight, who wasbaptized on the fifteenth day of April, One thousand eight hundred and eighty-nine, named William JamesRobertson, by me. Signed by Robert Campbell DD, Minister St Gabriel Church; John Smeaton; M J Smeaton;Annie Smeaton; M Hodge."), and died Jun 01, 1975 in Lakeshore Hosiptal, Pointe Claire, QUE, CAN.

Notes for MAGGIE WHITELAW MCLEAN:Burial Costs were $ 725.50

Notes for WILLIAM JAMES ROBERTSON SMEATON:William was a Photoengraver. After his retirement, they lived in St Canut at their summer cottage during thesummer and in Florida in the winter. William and Maggie were buried at Mount Royal Cemetery, Montreal, PlotF1099 C,D,E.

Child of MAGGIE MCLEAN and WILLIAM SMEATON is:18. i. JOHN JOSEPH MCLEAN6 SMEATON, b. May 28, 1915, Montreal, QUE, CAN; d. Apr 03, 1985, Lakeshore

Hosiptal, Pointe Claire, QUE, CAN.

15. DOUGLAS GERALD5 MCLEAN (GEORGE4, PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Oct 08, 1891 in Montreal, QUE,CAN (Source: Taylor Street Montreal Parish Record, Reads "Baptism - Douglass Gerald, son of George McLeanand Maggie Whitelaw his wife of the City of Montreal, born on the eighth day of October, One thousand eighthundred and ninety one years and was baptized on the fourth day of November of the same year."), and diedAug 1983 in Towanda, PA, USA (Source: Broderbund Family Archive #110, Vol. 2, Ed. 6, Social SecurityDeath Index: U.S., Date of Import: Aug 2, 2001, Internal Ref. #1.112.6.14603.195). He married RUBY E 1914.She was born 1894 in Massachusetts, USA.

Notes for DOUGLAS GERALD MCLEAN:In 1920, Douglas and Ruby lived at Cambridge, Middlesex, Massachusetts with their children Margaret andVIrginia. Douglas was a Chauffeur.

In 1930, Douglas and Ruby lived at Oneonta, Otsego, New York with their children Margaret, Virginia, Douglasand Gordon. Douglas was a Superintendent for the Electrical Company.

Children of DOUGLAS MCLEAN and RUBY E are:i. MARGARET E6 MCLEAN, b. 1916, Massachusetts, USA.

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ii. VIRGINIA T MCLEAN, b. 1919, Massachusetts, USA.iii. DOUGLAS G MCLEAN, b. Feb 20, 1922, Massachusetts, USA; d. Jan 08, 2003, Geneva, Ontario, NY, USA.

Notes for DOUGLAS G MCLEAN:U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946 U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946Name: Douglas G McLean JrBirth Year: 1922Race: White, citizen (White)Nativity State or Country: MassachusettsState: New YorkCounty or City: Ontario

Enlistment Date: 9 Nov 1942Enlistment State: New YorkEnlistment City: RochesterBranch: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USABranch Code: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USAGrade: PrivateGrade Code: PrivateTerm of Enlistment: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject tothe discretion of the President or otherwise according to lawComponent: Selectees (Enlisted Men)Source: Civil Life

Education: 4 years of high schoolMarital Status: Single, without dependentsHeight: 70Weight: 193

iv. GORDON S MCLEAN, b. 1928, New York, USA.

16. CHRISTIAN ALICE HAMILTON5 MCLEAN (SAMUEL4, PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Abt. 1880 in Dundee,ANS, SCT. She married JAMES INGLIS NOSS 1900 in Dundee, ANS, SCT. He was born 1881 in Dundee, ANS,SCT.

Notes for CHRISTIAN ALICE HAMILTON MCLEAN:In 1901, James and Christian lived at 26 Peddie St , Liff and Benvie, Angus with their son Peter. James was aPrinter Compositor.

Child of CHRISTIAN MCLEAN and JAMES NOSS is:i. PETER6 NOSS, b. 1901, Dundee, ANS, SCT.

17. JAMES SOUTTER5 MCLEAN (JAMES STEWART4, PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) was born Sep 20, 1920 in Dundee,ANS, SCT. He married CHRISTIAN JOYCE ROBB Dec 16, 1944.

Children of JAMES MCLEAN and CHRISTIAN ROBB are:19. i. JAMES ALISDAIR STEWART6 MCLEAN, b. Mar 10, 1949, Corstorphine, Edinburgh, MLN, SCT.

ii. PATRICIA ANN MCLEAN, b. Nov 02, 1947, Corstorphine, Edinburgh, MLN, SCT.

Generation No. 6

18. JOHN JOSEPH MCLEAN6 SMEATON (MAGGIE WHITELAW5 MCLEAN, GEORGE4, PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) wasborn May 28, 1915 in Montreal, QUE, CAN (Source: Montreal First Presbyterian Church Parish Register, Reads"John Joseph McLean Smeaton, William James Robertson Smeaton of Montreal, Photoengraver and his wifeMargaret Whitelaw McLean had a son both to them on the twenty eighth day of May One thousand nine hundredand fifteen and baptized on the third of January one thousand nine hundred and sixteen in the presence of the

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following; W J R Smeaton; Margaret W M Smeaton; M J Smeaton amd Mildred Thomson."), and died Apr 03,1985 in Lakeshore Hosiptal, Pointe Claire, QUE, CAN. He married ELIZABETH DORIS GERTRUDE HIGGERTY

Oct 25, 1941 in St Augustine of Canterbury, Montreal, QUE, CAN (Source: St Augustine of Canterbury,Montreal Parish Register, No 84 John J M Smeaton & E Doris Higgerty – This twenty fifth day of Octobernineteen hundred and forty one, considering the desperation for the banns, mixed religion and ad canteliandisparitatis cultus, granted by the Most Reverend Ordinary of the Archdiocese the forms having been signed: noopposition nor impediment being discovered we the undersigned parish priest, have received the mutual consentto marriage of John Jas McLean Smeaton, non-Catholic of Montreal, son of age of William J R Smeaton andMargaret McLean of the one part and Elizabeth Doris G Higgerty of At Augustine’s daughter of age of Patrick JHiggerty and Margaret Harris other the other part, in the presence of Noreen Higgerty, sister of the bride andNorman Stanley, a friend of the contracting parties who have undersigned witness. A marriage contract wassworn up at the offices of J N Labelle, Notaries Banns. This act was real. Signed E Doris Higgerty John J MSmeaton Noreen Higgerty Norman Stanley .), daughter of PATRICK HIGGERTY and MARGARET HARRIS. Shewas born Mar 16, 1914 in Ottawa, Carleton, ONT, CAN (Source: St Patrice Ottawa Parish Register, Reads "Thetwenty ninth day of March, nineteen hundred and fourteen, I the undersigned priest have baptized ElizabethDoris Gertrude lawful daughter of Patrick J Higgerty (Manager) and Margaret Harris of this parish born thesixteenth. The sponsors were James Higgerty and Mary Harris. Signed P Whelan."), and died Jul 20, 1983 in 4Cedar Circle, Dollard des Ormeaux, QUE, CAN.

Notes for JOHN JOSEPH MCLEAN SMEATON:Baptism Record God Parents M.J. Smeaton and Mathilda Johnson Rev Robert Campbell

Montreal StarMarch 18, 1972By Dan Rosenburg

HE HAS THE BEST seat in the house, and gets to hob-nob with the elite of the National Hockey League. Forthat, he is probably the envy of the Forum faithful.But John Smeaton, the penalty time-keeper at all Canadiens' home games, is not so sure he is to be envied. Thereare, you see, the hazards of his chosen profession to contend with."It's not really a profession," clarifies Smeaton, "it's more of a hobby. The salary is not that great. You do itbecause you like it. But there are dangers involved."Number one on the list is injuries. Naturally, when one sits as close to the ice surface as Smeaton does (In thepenalty box), one becomes more vulnerable than somebody seated, say, several light years away in the press box."I had six stitches in my right eye once on a ,shot from Jean-Pierre Bordeleau (now with Chicago Black Hawks)in a junior' game," recalls Smeaton. "And I've been hit with sticks crashing in front of me. Generally, I manage toget my arm up in time for protection, but sometimes I react too late."When that happens, they stitch me up quickly (in the Forum clinic), and I'm back at my post in five minutes orso. These incidents are seldom serious. It's all part of the game."Smeaton's son, Allen, however, has been involved in more disastrous episodes than that. Allen, presently theofficial scorer at Canadiens' games, has some unpleasant memories of occasions on which he served as penaltytime-keeper in the days of the single-bench penalty box."Until they split the benches, we (the minor officials) would have to sitbetween two players after a fight," recalls Smeaton. "I personally never had any trouble, but Allen got beaten tothe floor once when two players fell on top of him."It was a game between Peterborough and Junior Canadiens," continued Smeaton, "and there were only twoflimsy pipes separating the two sections of the penalty box. The players ignored Allen lying on the ground andresumed their fight over the pipes."Then, of course, there is the peril of flying objects."We don't get too much of that anymore," chuckles Smeaton, "but it used to present a real problem. Especially inthe Junior Canadiens' games four or five years ago. Once, someone heaved a pig's head at the referee. I guessthey were trying to tell him something. Anyway, it missed the target and hit a spectator near the penalty box,cutting his head open."Another time, somebody threw a frozen northern pike that would have done some damage if it had madecontact. And, one night, some guy tossed a live white hen on the ice. Nobody was hurt, but the hen waspetrified!"

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Smeaton finds maintaining neutrality the toughest part of his time-keeping assignment: "It's a challenge," hesays."You've got to force yourself to be neutral. After you get to know the players personally, you find yourselfrooting one minute for Bobby Orr to score and the next minute for Frank Mahovlich to put one in the net. Thelast time I had to stifle excessively partial feelings was when the Junior Canadiens' Memorial Cup team beat theRussians 8-3. Perreault (Gilbert) had a big night. and it was all I could do to hold myself back."Smeaton admits deriving much personal satisfaction from his work, and does not look forward to the day whenhe will be inevitably required to make the transition from neutral minor official to plain old Joe fan again."I often wonder if I'd pay to watch these guys play," says Smeaton. "The only fault I can find with this job is thatyou're no longer a spectator. I've trained myself to be so neutral it would be hard to enjoy the game as a fanagain."It would be difficult to work up enough enthusiasm to want to see a particular team win. Many times, I canwatch a game and not even realize what the score is."Smeaton is also quick to point out that his job requires promptness, accuracy and punctuality."I haven't made any major blunders to speak of," he says. "Touch wood. At least, not in the NHL, at any rate.Oh, I might have made a boo-boo or two in junior hockey, but everybody has to make some mistakes in order tolearn. The key is not to make the same mistake twice. Hockey is too big an operation. There's just no room formistakes by minor officials."Smeaton, who is in charge of the Forum's crew of minor officials, acknowledges that one of the most flagranterrors on the amateur hockey' level is the tendency of goal-judges to flick on the red light too soon."They're trying to outguess the puck," analyzes Smeaton. "I tell my men that it's better to be two seconds latethan a quarter-of-a-second early. You've just got to get used to the angle from behind the net. Often, you'll swearthe puck will go in, but many things can happen to alter its route at the,, last possible split-second."Smeaton, whose full-time occupation is photo engraving, is kept hopping. He works in the downtown area, butlives in Dollard des Ormeaux."I still go home for supper 90 per cent of the time on game days," he says. "My own personal rule is to get to theForum at least an hour before game time," which must be pressing it close. "Allen has to be there early to getthe lineups, and I have to find out who the referees are. We always take separate cars, just in case one of usdoesn't make it.Has that ever happened?"Yes, during the recent snow storm (when Philadelphia was in town). Allen didn't get there. And he left homeonly a half-hour after I did. You see, we can work one man short, because there is always a spare handy. But twoguys missing would present a real problem. I'm responsible for lining up emergency replacements."Smeaton is not adverse to giving readers a little peek at what NHL stars are REALLY like when caught withtheir misdemeanors down in the penalty box."I think hockey players are the best fellows alive," he enthuses. "They may be terrors on the ice, but I've seldommet a bad one. There are no real mean guys. Even the wild ones who go crazy on the ice are warm and subduedon the penalty bench. You could say it's because they are dedicated during a game. But off the ice, they aredifferent people altogether. Maybe they have split personalities."Among Smeaton's best 'friends' in the sin bin are Boston's Phil Esposito, Bryan Watson of Pittsburgh Penguins,and Norm Ferguson, of California Golden Seals."Guys like Watson and Ferguson, I got to know because they were reared in the Canadiens' organization," saysSmeaton, "but Esposito is just a naturally friendly type.""During the playoffs we minor officials are sent to work games in other arenas, and I remember one time whenEspo came into the box in Toronto. Orr was killing the penalty, and Espo kept nudging me and saying, 'Look atthat guygo, willya!""And, of course, the most common type of comment I get is from a player in the penalty box whose team has justscored a short-handed goal. 'Do I get an assist on that?' they invariably ask."Despite the drawbacks and disadvantages of the job already enumerated by Smeaton, his number one 'pet hate' isthe ticket-hunter."People seem to think that just because I work in the Forum, I can get tickets anytime I want," he protests. "Well,I have news for them. It's just as hard for me as anyone else. For games against the expansion teams, they can dojust as well as! can by lining up at the wicket. But the trouble is that they all want to see Boston or New York.It's a nuisance."Has Smeaton ever been yelled at during the course of his duties?"Barry MacDonald is my boss, but he normally leaves me alone," says Smeaton. "If he has a complaint, he letsme know about it quietly. But these are just minor things. Oh, there have been a few incidents whererepresentatives of teams come around and make disparaging remarks. But if this is handled properly, no feelings

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are hurt."The NHL will question you on occasion, with Brian O'Neill, Ron Andrews, or even Clarence Campbell. Butthis is to be expected. After all, Montreal is the hub of the NHL!"

Notes for ELIZABETH DORIS GERTRUDE HIGGERTY:Birth and Baptism Record God Father James Higgerty God Mother Mary Harris Priest A. Newman

Children of JOHN SMEATON and ELIZABETH HIGGERTY are:i. ALLEN PETER7 SMEATON, b. Oct 19, 1942, Montreal, QUE, CAN.

ii. PATRICIA ANN SMEATON, b. Oct 04, 1945, Montreal, QUE, CAN; m. PATRICK O'HALLORAN, Aug 16,1969, Mary Queen of Peace, Roxboro, QUE, CAN; b. Dec 01, 1939, North Bay , ONT, CAN.

Notes for PATRICIA ANN SMEATON:Birth NoticeSMEATON., On Oct. 4th, 1945, at the Homeopathic Hospital, to Mr. and Mrs. J. J. M. Smeaton, a daughter, asister for Allen. Both well.

iii. PETER JOHN SMEATON, b. Nov 02, 1951, Montreal, QUE, CAN; m. MAUREEN CATHARINE GRAHAM, Jul30, 1983, Church of Our Lady, Moose Jaw, SK, CAN; b. Oct 18, 1949, Moose Jaw, SK, CAN.

Notes for PETER JOHN SMEATON:Birth Notice

SMEATON. At the Homeopathic Hospital,on November 2nd, 1951, to Mr. and Mrs. John M. Smeaton (neeDoris Higgerty), a son. Brother to Allen and Patricia. Both well.

Christmas Letter 1994

Dear Allen

It is hard to believe that a year has past since we were in Australia. The girls still talk a lot about you andAustralia and when we are going to go back to Australia. A lot has happened here since we got back. I am notquite sure where to begin.

At work, I am no longer with Eaton’s. When we got back, I finished up the two projects that I was working onand sat doing nothing for two months. In the middle of June there was a major downsizing and I was let go onJune 15. Financially, I think that they are in a lot of trouble and about 150 middle management types were letgo. They gave me a package that would pay me until the end of February if I was out of work or 1/2 of theremainder when I got a new job. In addition, they also paid for an outplacement agency for me.

We decided that I was going to take the summer off and become a house husband. From the middle of Juneuntil the girls were finished with school, I played a lot of golf and did some things around the house. The girlsand myself went to Bird Lake for 10 days in July. A week after getting back from Bird Lake, the three of usdrove out west for 4 weeks. Maureen flew out for the middle week and joined us in Moose Jaw. While inMoose Jaw, I played golf every day except one. We arrived in Moose Jaw at 4pm on the Monday and Donand I were at the golf course by 4:15. After a drive of 1000km that day I did not have a very good game butas time went on my game got better.

Maureen’s father had a great idea while I was there. “If I had trouble finding the right job, Maureen wouldjust have to find a second job”. I don’t think Maureen was too impressed with this. By the end of our stay inMoose Jaw, Maureen’s sisters were happy that I was leaving. I was trying to talk Don, Albert and Lyle intoquitting their jobs and coming to Arizona with me to play golf all winter. They thought that that would be agreat idea but Rita, Cel and Eileen were ready to kill me.

On the way back, we stopped in Detroit and spend a few days with Joan and Tom. Maureen drove to Detroit

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with Liz for the weekend.

After getting back we stayed close to home and did a lot on camping. We sure got good use out of our camperthis year. At the end June, when it got very hot, I would take the camper up to Lake Simcoe on Fridaymorning and set it up. Later in the day, I would return home and pick up Maureen and the girls. The girls andI did the same thing in August.

Once the girls got back to school, I went back to playing golf for a couple of weeks. This year I had tworounds in the 80’s and a lot in the low 90’s. Once things started cooling off in September, I decided to paintthe house. I went through 10 gallons of white ceiling paint and 6 gallons of wall paint for the living room,dinning room and upstairs hall ways.

At the end of September, I started to send out my resume around town. I used the computer to draft“Marketing Letters” and I would send out 25-30 letters every week to different head hunters and companies. Ialso started responding to a lot of advertisements in the papers. By mid-October, I started going forinterviews. One company, FlavorCoffee, had me in for a 1/2 hour interview with their president.

Well, the interview lasted 2 1/2 hours and the next week they offered me a job as their MIS Director. Theyare located about 15 minutes from the house and don’t have much in the way of computers today. But, theyare growing at a rate of 35% a year over the past 3 years and could double in the next year. It is a groundfloor opportunity, I don’t have any staff yet, but will look at hiring some help next year once I figure out thedirection that I want to go.

It is very much a different type of company from those that I have worked for. I have only been there a weekbut it seems that only myself and the VP of Marketing wear suits. I had gone to Eaton’s the week before Istarted and bought a bunch of shirts and ties. Now, I have to go back next week and buy some more causalclothes. I still have my contacts at the local Eaton’s store, and they let me know when the sales are on andwon’t let me buy anything that is about to go on sale.

FlavorCoffee manufactures and distributes coffee to retail stores across North America. Their major clientsare Kmart, Price Club, Provigo and Krogers. They are also looking at opening a string of coffee stores. I havea lot of knowledge about retail, so I hope that I can help them. I figure that there is 2 years worth of hands onwork for me there. After concentrating so much on management over the last 10 years, the hands onexperience will help me. This, and the fact that they are 15 minutes from the house and are paying me morethan Eaton’s was, made me decide to accept the job.

So much for the employment news.

In sports, (or the lack there of) things are really messed up. The Baseball players went on-strike in the middleof the summer. The Montreal Expo’s had the best team in baseball at the time of the strike and were beingpicked as the number one contender for the World Series. This strike may end up killing that team. The BlueJays were not very good this year so Toronto fans weren’t as affected. For the first 2 months of the strike thetwo sides did very little talking. Only in the last two weeks, once the US government appointed a mediatordid they even start to seriously negotiate. The negotiations have gone slow and now it looks like the ownerswill impose a contract under their terms for next year. They will invite to training camp anyone who wants toplay. They can get away with this everywhere except Toronto where the labor laws won’t allow it. The talk isthat if the laws are not changed that the Blue Jays will play out of Buffalo until the government is changedand the law changed.

On the hockey front, we had training camp and the exhibition games. Prior to the start of the training campthe league changed the rules as far as the players were concerned. All contracts were two way, the playershad to pay their own way to training camp and all their expenses. On top of that, the league said that theywere going to impose a salary cap and/or have a luxury tax to support the small market teams. Well this gotall the players up in arms.

By the end of the training camp the owners said take it or leave it. The players offered to play the seasonunder last year’s terms, with a guarantee not to strike this year (both regular season and playoffs) The owner’ssaid no thanks, and one day prior to the start of the season they locked out the players. For the first 45 days ofthe lockout the two sides met less than 6 times. In the middle of November, they started talking but things aremoving very slowly. As it stands now, if we have a season it will probably be around 50-60 games, and theplayoffs won’t end until the beginning of July. What a zoo.

Some of the big name players have gone to Europe to play. Gilmour from the leafs is playing in Switzerland.With the lockout, we are getting to know a lot about European hockey. The news papers, all sports radio

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station and newspaper are dying for something to cover.

On the computer front, I still have my 386/dx33 but I hope to upgrade it shortly. I have 2x130mb IDE drivesand 1x540mb SCSI. All the drives are double spaced and I have about 100mb left. I will be getting Stacker4.0 from a friend shortly and that should add some capacity. I am attaching the latest listing of the softwarethat I have, if you need anything, let me know and I will mail it to you. Also at work, I am getting MS Office4.3, Lotus for Windows R5.0, Visual Basic 3.0 Pro, Visual C++ 2 Pro and etc. So if there is anything that youneed let me know.

At home, I am shopping for a new machine. With the new software the 386 is just too slow. I am thinkingabout either an Itel 486/dx2/66 or a Pentium 66 with 540mb harddrive and a 15” SVGA Flat screen. Theprices of these systems have dropped a lot over the past two months and I think that I can get a good deal.When I get the new machine, I also want to get a new printer. I have been looking at an EPSON 800 or HPLaser Jet 540. The girls what a printer that prints in color and the HP can be upgraded to color for $60. Theyare priced at under $400 and would add a lot of quality to what we have now. I would keep my sound card,CDROM, 540mb and 130mb drives from the 386. We are then thinking of giving Liz (Maureen’s niece) theold machine until she finishes University. Then when we get it back we would put it into Jessica’s room forthe girls to use. I will also LAN the two PC’s together.

I signed up for the FreeNet here. Also, at work I am going to get access to the Internet. Do you have access tothe Internet yet. It so let me know, as I will have 2 id’s and Al is also on the Internet.

On the political front here, the more things change the more they stay the same. In Ottawa, Chretien has beendoing a half decent job. It has not been so much what he has done as the approach that he has taken. Theirstyle is to do a lot of consulting with the people and they seem to want to get input from the people beforedoing anything. After the 9 years of the Conservatives that is refreshing. Next spring’s budget will be a toughone. the conservative’s had run the deficit up to $46 billion and the

liberals want to bring it down to $26 billion over the next 3 years. So there’s a lot of cutting to be done. Theyare looking at everything from RRSP’s to working for welfare and unemployment insurance. They areholding the discussions on where and what to cut public. The only thing that is government policy is that theywill cut. So, next spring’s budget will be interesting.

Quebec elected the PQ in September and we will have another referendum next year. Current opinion pollsindicate that they won’t win the referendum. We can expect that they will try and create incidents over thenext near with the rest of the country. What’s new? Ottawa and the provinces have adopted a stance ofignoring the PQ and not getting drawn into the stupidity. It seems to be working so far. In some way, I wishthe idiots would just separate and let the rest of us get on with our lives. (Don’t tell Patty this).

In Ontario, we just had our local election last week. A lot of politicians got the boot.(Mayor’s of Toronto,Markham etc.) The voters are still not in a good mood. In Toronto where the school board trustee’s had votedthemselves raises to $50,000/year, most of them did not get reelected. To a lesser extent the same thinghappened in the suburbs. We will have a provincial election in the spring. The NDP won’t win 12 seats andthey know it. Unfortunately neither the liberals or conservatives impress me so I’m not sure who’s going towin. All I know is that the NDP will come in 3rd or 4th. After taking the deficit from 0 to $12 billion a yearover the last 4 years, they deserve it.

Getting back to Australia, all of our pictures turned out great. I have two full albums of them. The girls stilllove to look at them. The movie’s that we took also turned out great. I hope you enjoy them and let me knowhow well they converted them for you.

My new office phone number is (905) 738-0103 and the Fax is (905) 738-6986.

Peter

Hi Allen,Peter seems to have covered the year pretty well , so I will just add my two cents worth. I have to tell youhow much we have all enjoyed the Australian cassettes. The girls know the words much better than me fromtheir travels in the car. You must remember how much better they travel when they have something good tolisten to.

It is quite a shock to my system to have Peter back at work. It was really great to come home to dinner allready. Now the girls are back at their old baby-sitters after school, with Peter picking them up on his wayhome from work.

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They are both doing well in school. Remember how we kept trying to get Jessica to read last Christmas?She now reads on her own without any prompting and is zooming through the “Sweet Valley Twin”collection. Her cousin Jackie, who owns a book store in Moose Jaw set her up with quite a few andsomeone from my office gave me another pile of them, so I think that she has the complete series. Jessicawent to camp for a week in the summer. It was in the Georgian Bay area and the weather was beautiful.Actually the whole summer was beautiful weather this year. The camp was quite an experience for her andshe would like to start going every year.

Alison is busy improving her skating this year. We have being going to the Community Center rink everySat or Sun afternoon for the past few weeks.

Christmas is a busy time for us this year. Last weekend we had my office’s Children’s Christmas party andadults dinner/dance and tonight is Peter’s office’s dinner-dance. Up to this week it has been a pretty mild fall, but we did get some snow this week and it is quite cold out there today.

Well I should get busy with some more letters so I will say good-bye for now. Hope that you decide to plan avisit sometime soon.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Maureen

dear uncle Allen Nov. 1 , 1994

I hope you enjoy are film especially the parts that dad put in .In school I ‘m doing speech’s my to pick is theNHL I found it rely interesting looking in books and seeing names of Smeatons. I heard one speech that Ithought would win first prize it was by JAMES PALERA .I really liked he’s and I think it was wellmemorized too I really think he desires to win I don’t wont to win LOVE JESSICA

Dear uncle Allen Nov. 14, 1994 About the speeches Daniel[gordanel] + James where the top two the backups where Diane and Michael I got75 witch is good to me Well got to go right soon love Jessica

Dear uncle DEC 5 ,94The are on strike still , my dad got a new job what nest? The school I just got to many things on my mind andwhy now. Well I wish I was going, away this year. Love Jessica

Christmas Letter 1995

Hi Everyone

We hope that this letter finds you all well. Another year has past and it is time for our Christmas letter. For us,it is hard to believe that Christmas is only a few weeks away. It is also hard to believe that it has been twoyears since we spent Christmas in Australia with Allen.

We have had a busy year. There never seems to be enough time to do all the things that you want to do.

The girls played soccer this year. Alison played last year but this was Jessica’s first year. When we sent in theregistration forms this year, I checked off that I was willing to help by being an assistant coach. Well, a shorttime later I got a call telling me that Alison and my team was the Thornhill Paints. When I asked who thecoach was, I was told that I was the coach. On top of that they talked me into being the convenor for that agegroup. They arranged for me to go to school to learn about coaching and soccer. I now have my level 1coaching certificate.

As a result of this, I had a busy time with soccer this year. Alison improved 100% this year, must have beenthe coaching. Alison played defense most of the time. At the end of the year, I tried her in goal and she did anexcellent job. Next year, I think I will play her more often in goal. Alison did score one goal this year and wasexcited about that. Our season started off slowly. Besides myself most of my players had not played soccerbefore. By the end of the season we were the third best team in the league and came close to upsetting theleague champions in the playoffs.

Jessica also seemed to enjoy playing soccer. I only got to see her play once, as they both played on the samenights and at different parks. Maureen would take Jessica while Alison and I went off together.

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At the end of the season we had a team BBQ in the back yard for the players and families of our team. Wewent through 36 hamburgers and 48 hot dogs. Luckily the weather was OK. Maureen would have killed me ifit rained and we all had to move indoors.

Last Christmas Santa got the girls hamsters. Boy was Maureen upset about having rodents in the house. Boydid Santa ever goof! It turned out that one was a boy and one was a girl. Their names are Patches andSplothes. By mid January we had 8 hamsters, with Spot, Puny, Ellen, Gus, Fluffy and Gondy joining thefamily. One of Jessica’s friends got Gondy for her birthday. One of Alison’s friends took Fluffy. One of thegirls at the sitters took Ellen. One of the girls in the office took Gus. That left us with 4 hamsters and 4 cagesin the house. Giving them away was expensive as we had to supply a cage with each one. I hope Santa doesnot do something like this again this year. Maureen will kill him if he does.

Jessica still takes piano once a week. In the spring there was a recital and I was impressed with how well sheplayed before all those people. Right now, Jessica is taking drama at lunch time at the school. We can hardlywait to see her premier performance.

Alison is in brownies. Most of the players on our soccer team are in the same group so she knows a lot of thekids.

In the spring, I got a new car or should I say truck. I got a GMC Safari Van. Boy have we put it to a lot of use.It is now 6 months old and I have 21,000km on it. We missed going to Moose Jaw this year. Instead we didour part for National Unity and spent our time in Quebec. We started at the cottage for a few days. Boy do thegirls enjoy going to the cottage.

Alison made a pile of money this year. Last year she had trouble swimming a few yards. This year she startedoff by swimming to the raft for .50. Next she swam to the neighbors wharf for $2.00. Next it was to the beachfor $5.00. Then she swam across the lake for $10. Finally she swam the length of the lake for $20. On top ofthe money that I had to pay her, Patty had to match it, so she turned out to be a very rich girl.

After spending a few days at the cottage we took the Van and Tent Trailer and set off. Our first stop wasPatty’s house in Pierrefonds to drop off Kelly (the cat). When we got there, I noticed that the trailer waslisting to one side. One of the springs was broken. Luckily, Canadian Tire had the part and we were onlydelayed for a few hours while I fixed it. We then drove to Quebec City where we camped for a few days.

We could not have picked a busier time to go, as it was their summer festival. The girls seemed to reallyenjoy Quebec City. They had heard me talking about it, but to actually see it was something else. They had ahard time believing that there were buildings dating back to 1700.

We did a lot of walking and it also seemed to tire them out.

After Quebec City we went to Montmercy Falls and Ste Anne de Beaupre which are just north east of QuebecCity. From Quebec City, we then drove to Trois Pistiolles. The girl at the check-in for the campground wasvery impressed that someone from Toronto could speak French as well as I did. I was even impressed withmy French. The camp ground there was very nice, but unfortunately we were only spending one night. Thenext day it rained, so we drove to Perce Rock. The rain stopped about the time we arrived and the weathercleared up. In the morning, it was a nice day and we went out to the rock at low tide. After that it was time forlunch and my favorite Hot Dogs. After Jessica had finished her first Hot Dog, she decided that she wantedanother. She went up to the window and ordered another Hot Dog and a Chocolate Milk in French. She wasvery impressed with herself.

From Perce, we drove to Forlin National Park at the tip of the Gaspe. I had been there years ago andremembered being impressed with the park. If anything, the park was even better. They have many restoredbuildings from the old Cod Fishery. From the shore you could see whales in the bay. At the tip of the park,when you looked out you could see 20 whales out in the Gulf. Along the shore, the girls were impressed bythe seals playing in the water.

I tried to get us on a whale watching cruise while we were there but they were all booked up. We decided thatwe would try when we got back to Trois Pistiolles. After spending three days at the park it was time to startheading back. As we drove along the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, something caught the corner ofmy eye. There were whales swimming about 100 yards out in the river. Several times during the trip we sawwhales.

When we arrived back at the camp ground at Trois Pistiolles, I got the information for a whale watchingcruise the next morning. As luck would have it, when we got up the next morning, the fog was so thick that

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you could not see two feet. So we packed up and started back to Montreal.

We picked up Kelly from Patty’s and went back to the cottage for the rest of our vacation.

While we were at the cottage, we went to see my Uncle Billy Smeaton, who has a cottage about 30 minutesfrom ours. Uncle Billy has been building the family tree. I have been interested in this and this time he reallygot me hooked on it. I now have a new hobby, Genealogy. I spend every Saturday morning at the libraryresearching the family tree. I have been using tools like:

• An index of births and marriages for Scotland.

• The 1851/1861/1871/1881/1891/1901 Canadian Census Returns

• The Ontario Index of Births, Deaths and Marriages

• Old City Directories

• The Internet

On my father’s side, we are now back to 1700 and an Alexander Honeyman in Dron, Perthshire, Scotland.The earliest Smeaton ancestor that I have found is my GreatGreatGreatGreatGrandfather James Smeaton whomarried Jean Marshall in 1763. In my search, I have written to Scotland for a death certificate of a Smeatonuncle who died in 1878. From that I found his address and occupation (Confectioner) and that of his father(Shoe Maker). The Smeaton family came to Quebec City in 1842. From the census returns and old citydirectories, I know the address in Quebec City where they lived and what they did for a living. All thisresearch is going to make the next trip to Quebec City interesting. My GreatGreatGrandfather AlexanderSmeaton was a Tailor in Quebec City. I have found an advertisement from the 1850’s for his store.

On my mother’s side, I have traced the family back to the 1850’s and a James Higgerty in Ottawa. In theprocess of tracing the Higgerty side of the family, I have met a cousin on the internet who is doing the samething. We trade electronic mail on a daily basis as we try and sort out the family. Although we have never metin person, I have come to know him very well and think of him as a member of the family. The Higgerty’soriginally came from Co. Clare in Ireland. One of the problems we have tracing them is that they keptchanging the spelling of their name. They also don’t seem to have stayed in any place very long prior to 1901.I have found records with it spelt Haggerty then Hagerty then Higgerty. We suspect that it was O’Hagertyprior to that. On top of this, they had a tendency to lie about their ages. I wonder what they were trying tohide.

I have not done much work yet on the Graham side. Searching for records in Ireland is more difficult thanCanada and Scotland. Most of the Census records before 1901 have been destroyed. Once I have completedthe Higgerty’s and off shoots in Canada, I will start on Ireland.

I am attaching the current direct ancestor family tree. In total, I have over 500 names in the tree and it growsweekly. Next summer when we go to Moose Jaw I will want to get all the details on that side of the tree.

I am still doing the hockey here in Toronto. The Leafs have a middle of the pack team. They are getting oldand I don’t expect that they will do much this year. I wonder how Lyle is doing. His Canadiens are goingdownhill quickly. I hope no one is picking on him about the Canadiens and the fact that they will miss theplayoffs for the second year in a row.

The weather here in Toronto has been very cold this December. Last weekend, with the wind chill it got downto -40c. On top of that we have snow on the ground. Last year, we did not get snow that stayed on the grounduntil Christmas and then it only stayed for a few days. In fact, last year we had such a mild winter that I didnot attempt a rink in the back yard as there was no snow and it never got cold enough. I guess we are going topay for it this year. So much for the Global Warming!

Last week we went to the local Conservation Park for a Christmas evening. We did crafts, walked in thewoods and roasted chestnuts over an open fire. Last year Alison and I went to this evening. This yearMaureen and Jessica wanted to go. On top of that, Brenda, Al and Brian came along too.

I have not started my Christmas shopping yet. The girls don’t seem to want anything big this year. They havementioned a dog but with 5 animals already that is out of the question.

I have not talked to Patty for a few weeks, but Brenda says that she will be coming after Christmas for a fewdays. We will be having Christmas dinner at our place with Brenda, Al and Brian coming over.

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Well, I guess that’s all the news from Toronto. We hope everyone has a good Christmas.

Christmas Letter 1997

Well, it is Christmas again. Boy time does fly.

We have had a busy time over the last year. To bring you up to date, here is the news from Thornhill.

We have had an addition to the family. Her name is Lucinda Biscuit. She is a 4 month old Boxer. Maureenand the girls had been on my case to get them a dog for a couple of years and I finally broke down and weadded Lucinda to the family. The girls had wanted to call her Biscuit because of her coloring but Maureensaid that no dog of her’s would be called Biscuit. She thought Lucinda would be a good name, Lucy for short.The girls, feeling that they were not going to win the argument, gave in and agreed. Maureen said that sheliked the name and “Was it not someone in your family that was named Lucinda”. She was a littleembarrassed when I informed her that your GreatGrandMother’s name was Lucinda.

In the few weeks that we have had Lucy, she has grown a lot. We have her trained to sit now on commandand I am working on “Come”. She must have Graham blood as she is very good at ignoring you when shewants to. I guess I will have to have her hearing checked out in the new year.

She is just about trained to do her business outside. She just has to learn a way to tell us that she wants out.The girls and Maureen like taking her on walks. She does not like the rain and cold weather. We bought her asweater to wear on cold and wet days to help out.

Kelly, the cat, is not too impressed with Lucy. Lucy would like it if Kelly would play with her. Unfortunately,Kelly is now 17 and likes to eat and sleep and do very little else. She does not like it when Lucy sticks hercold nose into her face. Kelly has been very paticent with Lucy, but by the end of the day, she will starthitting her whenever she comes close.

Just after we got Lucy, Patches , one of the Hamsters died. The girls were very upset about it but Maureentook it very well. This leaves me with 1 cat, 1 dog, 3 hamsters, 1 wife and 2 daughters.

On the employment side of things, FlavorCoffee and myself parted company in November. There wasn’t anywork left for me to do. I was able to negotiate a good severance package with them. Right now, while I amlooking for a job, I am doing some consulting. FlavorCoffee is my client and in a way, I guess I found a wayfor them to pay me twice. The job market seems to be hot here, so I hope to have no problems findingsomething once the holidays are over. If not, I can just stay home and let Maureen support me.

Alison is in Guides this year. They were short of leaders and Maureen is one of the Leaders. Jessica is stilltaking Piano She seems to be very good but she never practices. Jessica is also taking drama both at schooland one evening a week. For a girl that is as shy as Jessica, she really impresses me with her talent. Herteacher even gets her to perform before the school on a regular basis. Maybe some day we will see her in themovies.

I am still working at hockey. The Leafs don’t have a very good team this year. During training camp when Ipredicted that they would come in last in their conference, every one made fun of me and said that I just didnot like the Leafs. Well it looks like I was right and it is going to be a long winter..again.

The girls took Horse Back riding for a month in the fall and they seemed to enjoy it. I think that if they hadthere way they would take it all year.

Both of the girls played soccer again this year. I coached Alison’s team again this year. Jessica played for ateam coached by one of my players father. Our team would both the League and Playoff Championship. Thegirls played really well this year. We had the same bunch of girls from last year and I really enjoyed workingwith them. This year I managed to draft 5 assistant coaches and that really helped out. Alison was one of mygoalies until she broke her nose in a game. That was the last time in nets for her. She really impressed me byplaying the rest of the season with a hockey helmet and mask on.

I have been busy on my Genealogy Hobby. On the Graham side of the family, I have discovered that theGrahams came from County Derry in Ireland. I have not found any records of them in Ireland yet but it is onmy to do list. On my mother’s Higgerty’s, I have not made any progress since last year.

I have spent most the last year working on the Smeaton side of the family. I now have about 5000descendants of my GreatGreatGreatGreatGreatGrandfather John Smeaton listed. I am in correspondence with

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distant cousins in Tasmania, Australia; London, Ontario and Eugene, Oregon who are also working on thisline. I just started working on my grandmother’s McLean family in Scotland. I have been able to trace themback to the 1770’s so far and this line could prove to be interesting and they seemed to have been well off.My GreatGreatGreatGreatGrandfather Peter McLean was a Sawyer. This could make is easier to findadditional information about him.

This past summer we went to the cottage, north of Montreal, for a week. The girls really enjoy going to thecottage. The weather was not very good but we still had a good time. We managed to made one side trip toOttawa for a day to see Andrew who was part of the Changing of the Guards on Parliament Hill. Jessica andAlison were very impressed with this. I also got to see my cousin Will Lockhart for an hour before wereturned to the cottage. I felt bad that we could not visit with my other relatives in Ottawa but we ran out oftime. Maybe we can make a trip up to Ottawa some time in the spring. I know that the girls would love tomeet some of their cousins that they have never seen.

After we returned from the cottage, Tim and Cathy and family visited us for a week. I guess the highlight ofthis visit was the day Tim and I took all the kids to WonderLand for a day. You talk about Above and Beyondthe Call of Duty. Cathy and Maureen owe us for this one. We arrived at WonderLand at 10am and left at10pm at night. Jessica and Laera got stuck at the top of TOP GUN for 20 minutes. Jessica now likes to telleveryone about her adventure and how brave she was to have survived the ride.

In August, we went to Moose Jaw for 10 days. I managed to get in the only 11 rounds of golf that I played allyear. On our last day we went to the Hot Springs and don’t tell anyone (especially Albert) this but I was veryimpressed with the facilities. I am certain that we will be going there more often in the future.

I have left this letter to the last minute so I must cut it off now. We hope that you all have a great Christmasand that 1997 is the best year yet.

Christmas Letter 1999

Another year has come and gone and as we prepare for the new Millennium Maureen, Jessica, Alison, Lucy,Cody, Fox and Peter hope that you are all well.

We have had another busy year and all are well here.

We had some bad news in September when Kelly, our 20 year old cat died. She got sick on a Monday nightand was gone on Wednesday. Being older than the girls, they were really upset about her passing. Thankfullyshe was not sick for a long period and was active right up until the Monday when she got sick. I miss heryelling at me to be fed in the morning when I get up.

In October, we added two new members to the family, Cody and Fox. They are black and white kittens thatare forever on the go. Jessica’s kitten is Cody and Alison’s is Fox. They keep Lucy on her toes, as they seemto think that she is their mother. They like to cuddle up to Lucy or rub their faces in Lucy’s when she isasleep. Lucy used to like to eat Kelly’s food whenever she could, now she has to put up with the kitten’strying to eat hers. I have been really surprised with the patience that she has shown with them.

Alison is very active in TaeKwonDo. She just received her BlueStripe Belt and came close to getting a BlueBelt. (This means she is in the top 1/3 of the Belts) Out of respect (fear) we all call her Sir now. Her instructorseems to be very impressed with her progress even if his face is a little sore from where she kicked him lastweek.

Alison is doing well in school again this year and still reads 3 or 4 books a week between TaeKwonDo andmothering her kitten Fox.

During the summer, Alison played on my Soccer teams again. We did not do very well in the regular seasonbut played well in the playoffs, winning 2 games and losing 2 games in shootouts. In the playoffs, I changedmy strategy and used some hockey strategy like killing the clock when we were ahead by making lots ofplayer changes and pulling our goalie and putting Alison in nets when we were down. In the final playoffgame of the year, Alison scored the goal in the shootout that got us back into the game that we ended upwinning.

Jessica is now in her first year of High School and seems to be adjusting very well to High School. Besidesher old friends from grade school she has made a number of new friends. They seem to go to all the newMovies as they are released. She has also attended two Concerts downtown this fall.

During the summer she played soccer on my friend’s team and they ended up 2nd in a very tough age group

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(Under 17 Girls). Her team was very young when compared to the other teams in the division, so they didvery well. She played mid field and some forward and scored an important goal in one of her games.

Maureen has been working hard this year. She is involved in all that Y2K stuff you hear about on the newsand will have to work on New Years Day. I don’t understand what all the fuss is about. Why would anyonewant to take all that whiteout and change all the Y’s to K’s in all those computer programs is beyond me.

I still work at Purolator doing Computer Planning. Right now I am architecting their new Web Site that theyhope to launch early in the New Year.

I am also still working at hockey. This is my 30th season and I figured that I have worked 1100 regularseason NHL games and at least another 200 playoff games. I had thought of not going back this year, but thegirls insisted upon it. I don’t think they could stand the thought of be being around all the time if I stoppedworking hockey. This and the fact that Jessica is a real Maple Leaf fan and wants tickets to as many games asshe can get made me reconsider.

At a recent game that she attended with one of her friends she wanted to get some autographs. Luckily for me,I saw Don Cherry in the hallway and when I signaled to him, he came over and signed their Maple Leafsweaters.

For our vacation this year, we went to Ireland and Scotland. I had been talking for some time about going toScotland to try and find all the places where my ancestors came from. In April we decided to make the tripthis year.

We email Cathy Kelly (Maureen’s cousin) in Dublin and asked for some travel advice and before you knewit, we were also planning on Ireland. We booked a Flight for July 1st to Dublin and a return flight fromGlasgow for July 24th. Cathy booked us a flight from Dublin to Glasgow over there as they had special pricesfor short trips to Scotland.

When we arrived in Dublin, Cathy met us at the airport and I picked up our rental car. Luckily for me, I hadreserved a larger car as we had enough luggage to move to Ireland. When we got the car organized and wereready to leave the parking lot to follow Cathy to her house, the fun started. I had not driven a standard sincethe Calgary Olympics when Rose let me use her car. The rental was face in to it’s parking spot and backingout was comical. I think Maureen was ready to catch the next flight out by the time we got out of the parkinglot.

Cathy planned a route to her house that kept us off of the main roads so to avoid traffic. This sounded goodexcept for the fact that their roads are much narrower than ours are and have high stone fences on both sides.On the hour trip to Cathy’s, I learned to close my eyes and pray in tight spots.

A few times on the trip, I would stall the car, have trouble getting it going again and have traffic backupbehind me. To my great surprise, no one ever honked their horn or yelled at me from outside the car. (I cannotsay the same thing for inside the car). This will always remind me of the friendliness of the Irish people thatwe found on our trip.

We spent the next three days at Cathy’s in Brae, south of Dublin. On the weekend we went on a great hike inthe mountains. By this point in the trip, the girls were rating me on a daily basis on my driving skills. On ascale of 1 to 10, I was averaging 2s and 3s. In my defense, Maureen was navigating and I found it hard todrive a standard on the wrong side of the road and still be able to point out on Maureen’s map that we werenowhere near Belfast. On Sunday evening, Maureen started calling around to see if she could find anautomatic car for me to drive out of kindness to me. (She really meant for her safety) None could be had.

On Monday morning, we set out to explore the West Coast of Ireland. Cathy led us to the highway to thesouthwest, made a sign of the cross, wished us luck and we were off. We drove that day to Cloghane in Kerry.Halfway there, I made a change in the lineup in the car and had Jessica moved to the front seat to act asnavigator. It was at this point that my driving started to improve. That day, I received my first 5 on the scaleand things were looking up.

Cloghane is a town near Ballnalaken where Maureen’s Kane ancestors came from. There are about a dozenhouses in the town and 4 pubs. This it turns out is typical of Ireland. We arranged for a room in the Pub and Isettled into what became another tradition on the trip of having a good pint of beer in the pub after a day ofdriving to calm my nerves. That evening we drove up Brandon Mountain for a great view of Kerry’s DinglePeninsula. Before setting off, no one warned me that the road was what we would call a one-lane countrypath. Luckily, because of the time of day, there were no buses coming the other way.

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That evening in the Pub we meet many of the local people who were extremely friendly and welcomed us tothe area. We spent a great deal of time talking to a man who said that he remembered Maureen’s grandfatherfrom his youth.

In the morning, we explored the local area, including the ruins of the old church and the area wereBallnalaken use to be. The girls seem to enjoy seeing where their ancestors came from.

From Cloghane we drove to County Clare and visited with Maureen’s Aunt, Sister Johanna. What a nice ladySister Johanna is. I remember her from meeting her at the airport in Toronto years ago when Jessica was ababy. After a visit, a great lunch at the convent and a nice visit, Sister Johanna gave us a special religious cardfor the car to make sure we had a safe trip..

The scenery and roads in Clare are straight out of an Irish Postcard. When driving along the coast andespecially in some of the towns, the narrow roads, with cars parked on both sides, left room for only one carto pass. If it was up hill, I just prayed that everyone coming the other way would get out of my way. I still hadnot mastered starting the car in gear on an up slope. If I had to stop, I might never get going again.

We found a B&B with a good Pub a few doors away for the night. After eating at the Pub, we took the girlsback to the B&B and returned to the Pub for an evening of Irish traditional music. NO PATTY, we did notabandon the girls for a night of drinking with only a bag of Smarties for their dinner as Jessica suggested inher Postcard.

The next morning, the fog was so thick that when we got to the Cliffs of Moher that you could see only a fewfeet in front of yourself. The cliffs were one of the places that I was looking forward to seeing but had tosettle on a postcard.

We headed inland to avoid the fog. We stopped in some nice towns and visited some churches that dated fromthe 11th century. In Burren of Clare we say a tomb site that was 2,000 years old. Later in the day Alison and Iwent through some caves in Clare. That night we made it to a Pub on the coast past Galway. We had plannedon calling in on Maureen’s cousin in Galway but by the time we got there, Jessica was not felling well and wedrove up the coast a bit before stopping for the night.

The next day we continued up the coast to the Monastery. It is a girl’s school now and I suggested that maybethe girls go there for school but they did not think that that was a good idea. From there we started southwestto Ballyhaunis, were Maureen’s Kilkenny ancestors came from.

After spending the night at a B&B in Ballayhaunis, we telephoned Ed and Mary Grourke, Maureen’s cousin.With their directions we found their house and they took us over to the Kilkenny house up the road. It’s hardto believe that the house is 150+ years old by the shape that it is in. We spent several hours visiting with Edand Mary before setting off for our drive back to Dublin.

We arrived back safely in Dublin and even with getting lost in Dublin managed to find Brae and Cathy’shouse. I think this impressed Cathy as she was probably expecting to hear about us on the News. By this pointin time, my driving rating was up to the 7 and 8s and the girls were no longer white when I stopped the car.

We spent the Saturday resting in Brae and I got to play golf with Paddy. He managed to borrow a left-handedwood and an iron and he had a 2-sided putter for me to use. It was not one of my better rounds of Golf but atleast I can say that I have played golf in Ireland.

On Sunday morning we boarded our flight from Dublin to Glasgow after a great time in Ireland. Cathy andPaddy were so kind to all of us that I will always be grateful to them.

In Glasgow, we picked up our rental, which turned out to be the same car as Ireland. This made me happy, asI knew that the luggage would all fit. We drove from the airport to Edinburgh where I had booked a B&B for3 nights.

We spent the next few days sightseeing in Edinburgh and looking for the Beannie Baby “Britannia” forJessica’s collection. We must have checked out 15 stores that sold Beannie Babies but saw only one Britanniathat was a way too expensive. Edinburgh with it’s Castle and other historic buildings is a great place to visit.Jessica was still not feeling well so one rainy day we left her at the B&B and went to the Royal Museum.

From Edinburgh, we went to Dunfermline where there is an old Abbey where Robert The Bruce is buried. Iwas also able to find the house where my GG-Grandfather’s sister lived.

After a short visit in Dunfermline we drove to Fossoway, Dron, Dunbarney and Forteviot, where my Smeaton

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ancestors lived. We found the old churches and several of the buildings where they lived in during the late1700 and 1800’s. In Fossoway, we found the houses where my GGG-Grandmother lived in the 1850’s(Gartwhinzean Feus and Bridgeend Cottage). In Dron, we found Burnside, the house of my GGGG-Grandfather. And in Forteviot, we found the place where my GG-Grandfather was born. When we arrived inPerth that evening, we found out that all accommodations in Perth and to the east were booked for the BritishOpen Golf Championship that was just starting. This forced a quick change in our plans and we headed westto Stirling Castle. By this time, I was had caught the cold and had to spend the day in bed.

This turned out to be a good thing for Jessica. While she, Alison and Maureen were out in Stirling, they cameupon a store that had Britannia at a very good price. Jessica bought it and this made her trip. It was onlyafterwards that we realized that she had bought 2 as she could have sold the second one a home for enough topay for both of them.

We spend the next morning at Stirling Castle. Alison, at a historic show that they put on, gave the 2 actorssuch a rough time that they threatened to through her in the dungeon for a 100 years. It was all in good humorand they encourage the audience to participate.

From Stirling we drove to Oban on the West Coast of Scotland. Oban is a very picturiest seaside town. Wespent sometime there shopping. From there the drive took us through the Highlands of Scotland which arevery much like our Rockies only condensed in a very small area. At the top of one Glen we found a Piperplaying the pipes to the background of the valley below.

At Loch Carron, we visited with Jessica’s soccer coach’s cousins for awhile and then headed inland forInverness.

The next day we saw the Loch Ness Monster. For those of you that don’t believe us, I have enclosed thepicture to prove it. It tried to eat Alison but found her to be too tough and went on it’s way.

From Loch Ness our travels took us to Blair Athol were we spent the night is an old Country Estate. The roomwe had was by a large margin the largest of the trip. We spent the next morning at Blair Castle and thenheaded to Dundee.

We spent 2 days in Dundee. I tried to find where my GG-Grandparents were buried but had no luck. Thepeople at the archives were very nice but I could not find any information on them. We did find the tombstonein Longforgan for my GGGG-Grandparents (James Galloway (1763-1820 and Catherine Galloway 1774-1851) who are buried there.

In Leetown and St. Madoes , we were able to find the places where my Brough ancestor lived in the 1700sand 1800s.

From Dundee we went down the road to Perth. In Perth we found the Smeaton Bridge, built by John Smeatonin 1769. South of Perth we went to Dunning and found the farm Middle Third of Pitcairns where my Smeatonancestors lived in the 1700’s. To the west, we also found Coul, a farm in Auchterarder where I believe thefamily lived prior to Dunning.

Our last stop on the trip was Glasgow. When we arrived near the airport, the hotel was all booked so we hadto go to Greenock to find a place for our last 2 nights.

I had not had a good impression of Glasgow and was not that interested in spend a lot of time there. Now thatI have been there, I would definitely go back. We drove into Glasgow in the morning and I found a subwaystation with a parking lot into which to park the car.

When we went into the station to get some directions, the ticket taker was great. He went searching for a mapof Glasgow and then spent a long time pointing out places on the map for us. He circled a number of placeson the map that we should visit and worked out a circular route for us to take that would bring us back to thestation where we were parked.

We then got on the Subway for 2 stops and got off. While I was looking at a map on the wall to get mybearings, a man that had gotten on the subway with us offered to take us to where we wanted to go. Thisfriendliness of the people was only one of many examples how nice people had been to us on our trip.

We took a Bus Tour of Glasgow that was great. After that we went to do the last of our shopping. When wegot to the station to take the subway to our car we stopped into a small shop. The man was so nice andinterested in where we had been on our trip that a 5 minutes stopped turned into a 2-hour talk on Scotland andit’s history.

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At closing time, we caught the subway back to out car and from there to the hotel for one last night inScotland. All in all it was a great trip.

Yes, I am still researching the family history. For the first part of the year, I worked mostly on myGrandmother Margaret McLean’s family. I had a lot of success with her Brough ancestors in Scotland and inthe process have made contact with 4 cousins from this side of the family in Australia.

On the Smeaton side of the family, the number of 4th and 5th cousins that I am in contact with continues togrow. While we were in Scotland, I was amazed how close the various place were where I suspected that thefamily lived. This has provided me with new leads to be checked out. Currently, I am awaiting the detail of aWill from 1663 that a friend in Ottawa found reference to. It is for a David Smeaton the Younger of theMiddle Third of Pitcairns the place where I have traced the family to in the early 1700’s. This Will couldprovide with the information to trace the family back 3 more generations.

I have also started some serious work on Maureen’s family. From the information that I picked up in Irelandon our trip, I have many leads that need to be checked out.

Well, If I don’t stop soon, I will never get this letter printed and mailed off to you. Once again, from all of ushere, we wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and an even better New Year.

Maureen, Peter, Jessica, Alison, Lucy, Cody and Fox

Christmas 2002 in Venezuela

A diary of a Christmas Away From Home

Background

The story of how we can to spend Christmas in Venezuela begins in June when Andrew makes the shockingcall from Montreal that he is engaged. This comes to us and his mother completely out of nowhere. Clarissa, agirl he met while attend University, and Andrew where engaged on his most recent trip to Venezuela. Hecalled us to tell us shortly after telling his mother of his plans.

The initial plans are for the wedding to be held in Peru at Christmas. Andrew asks if we are going to be ableto attend and I immediately say “Yes” and start thinking of how I can get Maureen to buy into this trip.

Over the next few days, I spend some time on the Internet checking out Peru as a travel destination. The moretime I spend looking the more excited I get about making the trip. After a few more weeks, I give Patty a calland she tells me that it looks like the wedding will be help in Caracas, Venezuela and not Peru. So it’s back tothe drawing board with a new destination to research.

Over the next couple on months, there are numerous conversations with Patty and Brenda on possible travelplans for Christmas. By the end of August, the date is set for the wedding to occur on the 28th of December inCaracas. I make a trip to the Venezuelan Consulate in Toronto, and they give advice me on several places tovisit while in Venezuela.

Brenda and I have cornered the market on travel books on Venezuela and there are so many interesting placesthat are worth visiting. We decide on starting the trip at the main tourist location of Margarita Island for thetime period leading up to the wedding. Also under consideration is a 2-day side trip to Angel Falls. The onlyproblem with Angel Falls is that it’s the trip involves a small plane and sleeping in hammocks. Maureen doesnot seem too excited about the small plane and Jessica is worried about the hammocks and no electricity.Meanwhile, Alison is ok for anything.

After the wedding, it is decided that we will go to Henri Pitter National Park. This is Venezuela’s oldestNational Park and is on the migration path for Birds from both North and South America. The only majorconcern I have now is our lack of Spanish and will the girls be able to eat the food.

Now the problem is how do we go about booking the trip and how much is it going to cost. The first place Icheck are the charter companies. They seem to fly to Margarita Island during the winter months from Torontobut don’t have any flights yet scheduled. Air Canada does not fly to Venezuela. A friend of mine works forExpedia.ca, so I decide to give his web site a check and find that Delta flies from Toronto to Atlanta toCaracas on a daily basis.

The next problem is to find out how we get around the country and where are we going to stay. The Internet

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has sure changed the way of planning a trip. By putting “Venezuela” into a Search Engine many travel sitesare immediately identified that would have been impossible to find in the past.

On Margarita Island we are able to identify 6 places that seem to be nice destinations. We start sending emailsto all of them as to their available, rates and recommendations on things to do. Over a few weeks we havenarrowed down our choice to Villa Cabo Blanco at Playa Parquito.

For the Henri Pitter part of the trip, I found a tour company in Venezuela that recommends a convertedHacienda at Choroni that seems very nice.

By the beginning of September, a phone call to Andrew confirms that the wedding is still on and Brenda and Idecide that we better start booking flights and accommodations so not to end up disappointed. Since we aredoing this over the Internet, I get Brenda on the phone and we both go to the Expedia.ca site. At the sametime we both start the booking process for the flights to Venezuela. When we get to the final confirmationpage, Brenda gets an error and has to start over. Meanwhile, my tickets are now booked. Our first challenge tothe trip occurs when Brenda gets back to booking their tickets and finds that there are none available. A fewhours’ later things get sorted out with Brenda having to fly to Venezuela a day earlier than us.

Next step in the booking process is booking Villa Cabo Blanco on Margarita Island. This is painless as aquick email is answered immediately with instructions on where to wire the deposit. The same occurs withbooking the Hacienda in Choroni. Brenda does some shopping for the Airfare between Caracas and MargaritaIsland and finds a local airline that is very reasonable. When I check out their website, I notice that the planesare very small but decide that it’s in everyone best interest that we keep this information from Maureen until alater date.

By the 15th of September, everything is booked that has to be done ahead of time and the only thing to donow is wait for December.

December – Civil Unrest Throughout Venezuela

By the beginning of December, everything for the trip seemed to be under control. All the plane tickets werebooked and paid for. The hotel on Margarita Island is booked and ½ paid for. Brenda and I have decided to goScuba Diving with Jessica, Alison and Gary. Maureen and Al will have a day at the beach with Patty whilewe are diving. The side trip to Angel Falls is still under consideration but we will leave that until we get toMargarita Island. The Hacienda at Choroni is booked and paid for. The Hotels in Caracas are organized. Theneighbour’s girls will be looking after the cats and Maureen’s friend is taking Lucy while we are away. All Ineed to do is get some Venezuelan money and get to the airport.

Then I start reading news reports about a General Strike in Venezuela. While a little concerned, I am notworried. How long can something like this last? By the middle of December, the General Strike is making theNational News and Maureen is reading about it in the newspapers. It is be portrayed in Canada as a CivilWar.

Maureen talks to some people at work who gets her upset about the situation that is developing in Venezuelaand she starts preparing me for not going. I make a phone call to Andrew who emails back that the unrest ismore like a party that a Civil War. This seems to calm Maureen down for a while.

With 2 weeks to go before departure, Maureen has some anxious moments. The latest reports that we havegotten from Caracas is that there are mass demonstrations in Caracas, up to 1 million people but that theatmosphere is almost party like.

Todd (Lyz’s husband) talks to a friend who goes to Venezuela all the time. This friend’s comments promptLyz to call Maureen. Lyz asks Maureen if she had been following the news on Venezuela and points her tothe External Affairs website. Words cannot describe what happened next. Maureen calls Brenda and the nextthing you knew was that the world was ending.

I end up spending the entire weekend trying to calm everyone down. I had to read the riot act to Lyz, Toddand anyone else who dared bring up the trip with Maureen. Jessica and Alison talked about seeing a doctor toget her some pills to calm her down but by Sunday she seemed much better.

Jessica takes on responsibility for screening all incoming phone calls until we leave to ensure that no one getsher upset again. Lyz has been told that if she calls then Maureen will be spending Christmas with her.

In the week leading up to departure, I am watching the news from Caracas hourly. The Charter Flights toMargarita have been all canceled but the Delta flights are on time every day. Our flights between Caracas and

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Margarita Island seem to be changing on a daily basis but they respond to our emails that we will be OK.Brenda leaves for Caracas the day before us, so if things are real bad then she can calls us when she arrives.

Toronto to Caracas

No phone call from Brenda on Thursday night so no last minute panic. We get up early on Friday morningand do a last minute check that all is packed. Maureen takes Lucy for a walk and leaves her with her sitters.Lucy is a little confused but is not too upset when Maureen leaves her. The Limo Driver arrives on time andwe load everything into the Limo for the trip to the airport.

When we get to the airport, it is very quiet, no long lineups. We check in at Delta and proceed through USImmigration and Customs. The guy at Customs seems more interested in having a conversation with Jessicathan in anything we are bring into the country. Once through Customs, a friend of mine who works for USCustoms comes over and has a coffee with us. He makes a few jokes about this size of the plane to Atlantaand the service on the flight but backs off when Maureen seems a little nervous. The flight to Atlanta isuneventful. The girls joke a little with Maureen that it’s too late to back out now but that is it. We have a 2-hour lay over in Atlanta before our flight to Caracas. After a lunch in the airport we head to our gate and waitfor the flight.

We arrive in Caracas

Our flight from Atlanta to Caracas is only half full and once again uneventful. At 9:30 we arrive in Caracasand the adventure in Venezuela begins. Andrew fiancée Clarissa is going to meet us at the airport to makesure we get to our Hotel ok. I am a little nervous with having to go through Immigration and Customs and notbeing able to speak Spanish. I have my Spanish-English dictionary ready as we head to Immigration. I putdown the 4 passports and visa papers and the Immigration Officer starts going through them veryyyyy slowlybut never asks us anything. With our passports stamped, we collect our baggage and head to customs.

To decide who’s baggage gets check, they have a system in place where you push a button and if you get ared light then your baggage is checked. I push first and get a green light and head out. Jessica is next and shegets a Red Light. As I watch with all the passports the Custom Official spends 5 minutes trying to tell Jessicawhere she has to go before giving up and letting her, Maureen and Alison to pass.

Once outside the Customs area in the Terminal Building, I am greeting by a hundreds of people yelling“Taxi”. The first thing that goes through my head is “I guess the gas shortage is not affecting the Taxi’s”.After a couple of minutes Clarissa finds us. I guess that was not too hard as we were the only NorthAmericans on the flight and the pale colour of our skin gave us away. After introducing ourselves, shenegotiates a Taxi for us, tells us how much it will be and helps us get our bags to the Taxi.

Once outside the terminal building, the temperature and humidity hits us. When we left Toronto thetemperature was about 0 and it was snowing. On arriving in Caracas it is 30 and humid and this is 10:30pm.What a difference!

It turns out that our Taxi Driver speaks some English. On the way to the Hotel he explains to us how he has tolineup for gasoline for 9 hours each time he has to fill up. The gasoline station at the airport has a lineup over2 miles long. This is our first glimpse of the impact of the General Strike.

After a 15-minute drive we arrive at our Hotel. I had read that their traffic laws are based on the biggest carhaving the right away. The Taxi driver proves this as he cuts off several smaller cars and motorcycles on thetrip. By 11:00pm “Mission Accomplished” – I have us checked into a Hotel in Venezuela without having ourpictures broadcast on the Canadian National News.

Venezuela – Day 1 – December 21

We are up early on day 1 in Venezuela. Today’s agenda is to get from Caracas to Margarita Island. Ourflights were originally scheduled for 11am but the day before we left, I noticed that the flight had beenchanged to 2:30pm. When we were checking in on Friday night, I noticed that they Internet Access in thehotel. After breakfast, a quick check shows we are still on the 2:30pm flight. We spend the morning in thehotel and by the pool outside. At 11:30 we checkout and wait for our Taxi driver from the previous night totake us back to the airport at 12:00. When he does not arrive by 12:15, I arrange with the Hotel’s driver forthe transfer to the Airport. Arriving at Avior checking, I quickly discover that no one speaks English. - NoProblem – as hand signs and gestures get us checked in with a few laughs from the Check in Clerk. There isnot much to do in the Domestic Terminal at Caracas Airport, so we make our way to where our gate shouldbe.

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Looking out the window, I see some planes with Avior on them. I start hoping Maureen does not look out thewindow too! Those planes look veryyyy small. “We may have trouble here!" I tell Jessica as she sees what Iam looking at. Jessica tells me not to worry, she will keep Maureen occupied until we have to get on theplane.

30 minutes prior to departure, I move the girls to the waiting room where the flights for Avior seem to bedeparting from. There is no flight information for our flight so we just sit and wait. 15 minutes prior todeparture, just as I am getting worried there is an announcement in Spanish from which I pick out the wordPorlamar – the main city on Margarita Island. When I go to the Check in desk the girl takes my ticket andpoint me out the door. I yell back to the girls that that announcement was for us. Out the door we go and geton a bus that takes us to a small plane. On exiting the bus Maureen says “We are not flying on that are we?" Ilead the girls over to the pilot who tells us we are in the right place and to get on the plane. On the planebehind the pilot there are 2 rows of 9 seats on each side of the plane. We get settled into our seats and Jessicapoints out the look on Maureen’s face.

We are no sooner seated and the door closes and the pilot starts taxing for takeoff. There's nothing Maureencan do now. It’s a clear day and the flight to Porlamar Airport is smooth and 45 minutes later we are back onland. Maureen even says she enjoyed the flight!

Our luggage seems to take forever to come out but when it does; we load up and go looking for a Taxi. At theTaxi stand, I negotiate a Taxi with the help of the Spanish-English dictionary and we are off to Villa CaboBlanco on Playa Parquito beach. On the way there are no lineups for Gas and the driver tells us there are veryfew problems on the island. We also notice the gasoline costs about 6 cents a liter here in Venezuela. Maybeit’s time for civil unrest back in Canada. After a 40-minute ride we turn off the road at the Villa Cabo Blancosign to see Brenda, Al and Brian returning from the beach.

We quickly find Michel and Carman, the owners of Villa Cabo Blanco, get checked in, changed and off to thebeach. Brenda quickly introduces Maureen, Jessica and Alison to all the beach vendors that she hasestablished a business relationship so far. I quickly see that this is going to be a costly beach to be on. Alquickly points out that there are no silly restrictions on drinking in Venezuela and beer cost 1,000bs ($1) abottle on the beach. I give Jessica 5,000bs and send her off. Back she comes with my beer and a fancy drinkfor herself that costs 4,000bs.

After an hour at the beach, it’s back to Villa Cabo Blanco where Michel arranges a Taxi and sends us off tothe first on many great restaurants.

Venezuela – Day 2 – December 22

Everyone except Jessica is up early on Sunday morning. Brenda bought coffee before we arrived and deliversmy morning coffee to me. After getting Jessica up and everyone eating some food that Brenda had, we headoff for our first full day at the beach.

As we arrive at the beach, all of Brenda’s Vendor Friends come over to say good morning and introducethemselves to us. Since all the tour companies have cancelled their flights to Venezuela, we are the onlyNorth American/European people on the beach. No Americans! Just some local people and us!

By 9:15, the girls are looking at Pearl Necklaces. By 9:30, we are negotiating for 6 beach towels ($10 USeach). By 9:45, it’s back to Villa Cabo Blanco for more money! While I am gone Brenda leave the girlsunattended and I get back to Alison and Jessica having their hair braided. Maureen did not negotiate the priceso we end up paying 45,000bs for something we would see later costing 8,000bs. What the heck it’s onlymoney!

While the hair is being done, Brenda is negotiating for some pearl necklaces for herself and Jessica. Once shesettles on a price, she turns to me for the funding. I try and get the vendor to take 45,000bs instead of $45US.He quickly gives Brenda the nickname of Mafia and calls me the Capitalists.

Later in the morning while I am practicing my first Spanish word “Polar” (the local beer), Maureen, Jessica,Alison and Brian have worked there way down to the end of the beach. The sea is quite rough and Maureengets caught up in the waves, loses her glasses and has to be rescued by one of the locals who gives her hell inSpanish for being out too far and too close to the rocks at then end of the beach.

Just after noon we head back to Villa Cabo Blanco were we leave Jessica, Alison and Brian while we walk tothe local grocery store to pick up some things for snacks and breakfast. While in the store, I notice that a 26ozbottle of Barcardi cost 2,800bs ($2.80) and beer is 6,500bs for a case of 24 bottles. I think I have died andgone to heaven!

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We spend the rest of the afternoon waiting for Patty and Gary to arrive. Once they arrive it’s off to the beachwith some fresh dollars for the Beach Vendors. That evening the people from Atlantis Diving drop by to goover our desires to go diving. Jessica has an ear infection so it is decided that Jessica and Brenda will gosnorkeling while Gary, Alison, Brian and my self do 2 dives on December 24. This means that we will bespending the afternoon of December 23 taking a ½ course in diving. At the time this seems excessive but asthings turned out, I was happy we did it. Later it’s off to a great Thai Restaurant that Michel hasrecommended to us. Boy is the food great here. Even Alison is able to get her Vegetarian Meals without anytroubles.

Venezuela – Day 3 – December 23

The Roosters have me up at 4am with their squawking back and forth to each other. There seems to be moreroosters here than people! By 7am everyone is up except Jessica. Brenda has my coffee ready and Maureen ismaking toast for everyone. After getting Jessica up it is off to the beach for the morning. We need tointroduce Patty to all the Beach Vendors! Looks like another expensive morning!

As we get to the beach at 9am all our friends come by to say good morning and introduce themselves to Patty.More necklaces are bought. Our favorite vendor calls Patty Mafia #2. Maureen and the girls end up withbeach dresses to go along with their necklaces. I am going to have to stop bring money to the beach with me.

At 11:30 it’s back to Villa Cabo Blanco where our dive master (Anna) is picking us up to go see a one-hourvideo on diving. After the video and some classroom talks, it’s back to Villa Cabo Blanco for some practicetime in the pool. Anna has us taking our masks off and on, taking off each other’s masks, removing thebreathing regulator, sharing regulators, etc. The course is quite extensive and is suppose to prepare you foranything. It seems after this course, a second course and 4 dives you can get your certification to diveanywhere.

By the end of the course, I am exhausted and need a couple of Polar’s before we head out to the beach foranother great meal. This time Jessica, Alison and Brian discover that they are developing a taste for Alcoholand Wine and think that Venezuela has great drinking rules. (That is none)

Venezuela – Day 4 – December 24

Dive Day Arrives.

The Roosters have had me up since 4am again. I had talked to Michel last night about buying the Rooster thatkeeps waking me up but he tells me there are dozens of them and if I bought one, it would only be replacedby 12 more by the end of the day.

Michel drives us to the small port where we meet Anna and the other people going on the dive trip. The seasare very rough and Brenda and I are concerned about Jessica, Alison and Brian becoming seasick. The tripfrom Margarita to Los Frailes takes 45 minutes. By the time we arrive, Jessica is very green. Alison and Brainare only slightly better off. Alison and Brian say they are ready to go diving. Since Jessica and Brenda arejust snorkeling, everything seems to be a go. Gary, Alison, Brian and myself start getting into our wet suitesand diving equipment. Gary and Brian are to go with Anna’s husband while Alison and I will be with Anna.

Once in the water, the first thing that we are to do is go to the bottom which is 15 feet and go through takingthe mask off and putting is back on and exchanging breathing regulators and few times to get use to doing itin salt water. With the in water test passed we head out. The rough seas have made the water clouded but it islike be in another world. As we move along, there are fish and coral everywhere. We become so interested inour new surroundings that we quickly lose track of time. Anna, the dive master comes over to me and checksmy air regulator. She quickly shows it to me. I am almost out of air. She gives me the sign that I am to buddybreathe on her air supply until we can get back to the boat.

Using her air supply, we turn and start back to the boat. We start to slowly go from 55 feet depth up towardsthe surface. After a few minutes we surface to get our bearings. My weights that have been giving meproblems the whole dive come loose. Anna goes back to the bottom to find them. They are too heavy for herto swim with, so she tells Alison and me to go to the boat and send the boat back to get her and the weights.

All the training and practice from the previous day have paid off. I ran out of air on my first dive.

After lunch and a break we head further down the coast of the island for the second dive. This time Anna isgoing to take all four of us. She reminds us to keep a close watch on our air supply after the incident with me.With our equipment back on it’s into the water again. Our first dive was in a small bay. This time we are on

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the coast near a point between 2 big islands.

Down we go and start heading towards the point. We come upon a large boulder with a big ell like fish livingat it base. Anna points it out to Brian and myself and we move in for a closer look. She then motions for us toback up and let Gary and Alison have a look. Brian and I turn to back off and by the time we turn backeveryone is gone. Just off of the boulder there is a strong current and it’s taking all our strength just tomaintain our position. After 10 minutes of waiting for the rest of the group to return I check my air supply.Not only am I getting tired maintain our position, we are 45 feet down and I only have ½ a tank left. Usingwhat we had learned, I single to Brian that I am getting exhausted, running low on air and we should head forthe surface. As we start up, I have to remind Brian what we learnt. Not to go up too fast or else we will get thebends. Brian shows me that he still has lots air so if I run out, I can share his. Slowly we make our way to thesurface, taking 10 minutes to do this. Once on the surface, we see the boat off in the distance. The seas arerough where we are and even at the surface there is a current coming around the point. I send Brian off forhelp, as I am too tired to fight the current. Anna, Alison and Gary when they realized that they lost us hadheaded back to the boat. When they see us surface, Anna and her husband swam out to rescue me and tow meback to the boat.

With us all tired now, we packed up the equipment and started the 45-minute trip back to Margarita.

It’s Christmas Eve and Michel and Carman have planned a large Christmas Eve Party for us and the otherpeople staying with them. They have also invited some of their local friends including our Dive Masters.Once again the food, wine and Polaris are great. There is great music and everyone is having a great time. By11:30 pm, still exhausted from the days diving I sneak off to bed.

Venezuela – Day 5 – December 25

It’s Christmas Day and the temperature our side to 30 degrees. Celsius.

Christmas day starts off like every other day so far only we all sleep in a little. At 8:00, Brenda brings me myusual coffee. By 9:00, we start trying to get Jessica up. There are no presents under the tree in Venezuela.They are on the beach. By 9:30 we head off to the beach to see what Santa brought the girls. As usual all ourVendor Friends are there to greet us and delivery all the presents that my wallet can afford.

Santa has a new hat for Jessica along with some necklaces. Both Maureen and Alison get some necklaces alsofrom Santa. Boy is Santa Generous in Venezuela, what with all those necklaces.

We spend most of the entire morning on the beach. At about 1pm we decide that we are going to walk downto the next beach where there is a flea market and several stores. So off we go. At the flea market moreshopping for bargains. As we head down the road off of the beach we stop for a late lunch and a Polar. Byabout 5pm, it is time to head back to Villa Cabo Blanco. We have made arrangements with Michel andCarman for dinner in Porlamar. We have hired a large Van to pick us up just at dark to take all of us(Maureen, Jessica, Alison, Brenda, Al, Patty, Gary, Julien (the best man), Elizabeth (his girl friend), Micheland Carman) on a tour of all the Christmas lights on the Island, ending at what Michel tells us to be the bestrestaurant on the Island.

Boy Michel was not wrong about either the Christmas Lights or the Food. Many of the small towns betweenPlaya Parquito and Porlamar have a contest to see who can decorate their houses with the best lighting. I havenever seen so many Christmas lights and Santa Clauses in my whole life. Then the food in Porlamar is justgreat. I ended having 8 shrimp that must have been 6 inches long each…what a feast…not Turkey but then Idid not have to cook it either. After dinner we make our way back to Villa Cabo Blanco, passing more townsand their light show. The driver of the van will be back on the 26th to take us on a tour of the Island so it’s offto bed.

Venezuela – Day 6 – December 26

The 26th starts the same as every other day so far. Brenda has my coffee ready by 7am. Today Jessica has toget up early as the Van, Driver and Tour Guide are picking us up at 8:30 for our daylong tour of the Island.From Villa Cabo Blanco we head off along the north coast of Margarita. After 15 minutes we get to the top ahill over looking a bay on the north shore where we make our first stop. Our guide point out the large resort,with a golf course and large beach down in the bay. She then tells us that it has been empty since thebeginning of December because of all the troubles and the charter airlines canceling all the flights. She tellsus that all the large resorts on the Island are shut down and how this is their high season.

Further along the coast we come to a number of beaches that are completely empty because it seems we arethe only tourists in the country. We drive to La Restinga National Park where we go a boat ride in the

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Mangroves. There are Pelicans and Cranes on the shore. We stop at one place to look at the clams and theirpotential future pearls. We also see a number of starfish that feed off of the clams and our boat driver catchesa Seahorse for us. Just as our luck would have it, the boat that Maureen, Alison, Brian and myself are on runsout of gas and Brenda, Patty, Al and Jessica’s boat has to come rescue us.

After the boat tour I have an Empadis that I had been told about and they were great eating. I tried to get therecipe for Maureen but since I did not have my Spanish-English dictionary with me no luck.

From La Restinga we headed towards Porlamar and stopped at the islands religious shrine of SantoarioVirgen de la Valle. The tour guide had heard of Maureen collection of holy water from around the world andwanted to make sure she got some from here. From here we went to La Asuncion, the capital of Isla deMargarita where there was some time for shopping. At the store we stopped at they had Internet Access andthey let me send off a quick email to everyone. Next on the agenda was an old fort and then onto the PearlFactory. The Pearl Factory, which is geared to American Tourists with prices in US$ that only the rich couldafford. Luckily for me, the girls had already locked up the Pearl Market at Playa Parquito and did not want toexpand their market penetration.

Our last stop was Playa El Agua, the next beach down from where we were staying; we had dinner beforereturning to Villa Cabo Blanco and an early night.

Venezuela – Day 7 – December 27

December 27th started the same way for me. After being awakened by the Roosters at 4am again, I managedto get some sleep until 7am when it was time to get up. Once again Brenda had my coffee ready. I wonder ifMaureen was noticing how Brenda made coffee for me every day. Back home I would be on my own! Pattyand Gary leave today for Caracas while we will be spending our last day on Margarita.

After Patty and Gary leave for the Airport with Julien and Elizabeth, we make our way to the beach from onelast day of shopping. We are a little later than usual and as we get to the beach there is much relief from allour friends. They all knew this was our last day and wanted to make sure they made that last sale before weleft. Our friend who called Brenda the Mafia and me the Capitalist came over to say hello and show us whatspecials he had for us today. Since it was our last day, he had very special discounts for us. By the time themerchandise was looked over and the selections made, there were 8 necklaces selected for purchase. Brendadid her usual job of getting his price down in $US and then I started in on him in Bolivars. Things got soconfusing, that in the end he throw up his arms and agreed to our price…even if it meant that his 3 childrenwould not eat that night.

In the afternoon we made the long walk to Playa El Agua for some more shopping at the flea market. Therewas also a store there that had promised Brenda that they would have earrings to match her necklaces for hertoday. It turned out that the earrings cost more than the necklaces that they matched.

Exhausted from all the shopping we returned to Villa Cabo Blanco for some rest before venturing out to PlayaEl Agua later that evening via taxi for another great shrimp dinner.

Venezuela – Day 8 – December 28

It’s Wedding. I wonder if our flights are still on. The people we took the tour with called the airline andconfirmed our flights for us. They are picking us up at 8am to take us to the airport and make sure we getchecked in ok. It will be nice not to have to use hand signs to check in again. Maureen seems resigned toflying on a small plane again and is not making too much of a fuss over us trying to kill her.

We are picked up on time and get to the airport and checked in without any trouble. Our flight leaves on timeand once again it’s a beautiful day, so a smooth flight for Maureen. Upon arrival in Caracas we collect ourluggage and find a Taxi to the hotel without any problem.

On the 45-minute drive into the city we pass many lineups for gasoline that are miles long. They even haveice cream vendors out selling their wares to the people in line. We see numerous cars being pushed, as theymust have run out of gas already. At the gas stations, there are soldiers with guns keeping all in order.

The hotel in Caracas is the Tamanco, which we have heard is the best hotel in the city. On arrival it looksvery nice. Patty is in the lobby when we arrive and Andrew shows up a few minutes after our arrival. We getchecked in and it’s off for lunch in the Hotel. What a difference in prices! On Margarita dinner for 4 withseveral Polars was costing us 40,000bs ($40), here at the Tamanco lunch with a coke is 75,000bs or $75. It’smy first coke of the trip as with the shortages on Margarita there was no coke.

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The wedding is scheduled for 7pm at a church in the city. We meet in the lobby at 6pm. Andrew is supposedto be picked up in a limo and we are going to take taxis. At 6:30pm, we start to get worried when Andrewslimo does not arrive. December 28th is the Venezuelan equivalent of April Fools day. I start teasing Andrew,asking him if this is all a joke to encourage tourism to Venezuela. Andrew’s limo arrives at 7:15pm. Wearrange with the hotel for 2 of their limos to take us to the church.

Caracas is a city built in a narrow valley with high mountains on either side. Our ride to the church takes usover and around several hills. Brenda’s limo get lost on the way to the church and ends up having to go thewrong way down several winding streets to get caught up.

At the church, our driver asks if we want him to pick us up in an hour. Sounds great to me and we make thearrangements for both limos to pick us up. The one thing I have learnt so far about the people in Venezuela istheir willingness to got out of their way to make you feel very welcomed and to assist in any way they can.

There is something going on in the church when we arrive so we wait outside. Andrew does not seem toonervous but Julien his best man is sweating. That’s all the encouragement I need and I have a few words of“Encouragement” for Julien.

Inside the church we find our places. When the service starts, the priest stops everything and in Spanish asksfor someone who speaks both Spanish and English. He then instructs this person to sit with us and translateeverything that he says. Another example of how nice and considerate the people are here.

After the service, a number of Clarissa relatives come up to us to tell us how many of us they can take in eachof their cars. Patty, Julien and Elizabeth are the only ones needing transportation so that is easily handled.

We were warned ahead of time that wedding receptions/dances last all night in Venezuela. On arriving backat the hotel were the reception is being held we head to the banquet hall. One of Clarissa cousins helps get ussettles. After the usual wedding pictures everyone settles in. At our table a bottle of whiskey is placed in fronton me. The waiter at our table seems to take a liking to me and spend the night constantly refilling my glass.If he feels I am drink too slowly he gives me hell.

The dancing starts almost immediately. The music is all Spanish. With a little encouragement we haveJessica, Alison and Brian up dancing also. In the case of Alison, I don’t think she ever sat down. Severalpeople come over and get each of us up and give us lessons in dancing to their music. Alison seems to begetting the most attention.

After a few dances, I am very hot and Maureen encourages me to take off my jacket. Everyone else is stillwearing their jackets but I decide to introduce a Canadian Tradition to the wedding and off goes the jacket.

After over an hour of fast paced dancing it’s time for a great buffet dinner. Clarissa family makes sure that weare first in line. The food is just great. I am not sure what everything is but enjoy everything. My waiter friendputs a bottle of good wine in front of me and makes sure I drink the whole bottle while we eat.

Time again for another Canadian Tradition. I get Brian, Al, Jessica and Alison organized and we startclanging the glasses every time Andrew or Clarissa takes a bite. It seems they don’t do this in Venezuela. Infact, clanging glasses means that there are federalies in the room in Venezuela.

Clarissa cousins catch on very quickly to what’s happening and start leading the charge. Later, Gary, Brianand myself start going from table to table showing everyone how to do it.

After dinner it’s dancing again. By 3am, all my fellow Canadians are exhausted and go off to bed leavingAlison and myself to uphold the Canadian tradition. By 5:30am, things die down when Alison runs out ofpeople to dance with and we go to bed.

Venezuela – Day 9 – December 29

Today day is a day of recovery for everyone. Alison and I are up relatively early and go downstairs to thepool area while Maureen and Jessica recover. Since it was Alison and I that were up to the very end, this doesnot make a lot of sense. While downstairs, Al point out a demonstration on the highway outside the hotel. Theentire highway is full of people marching against the government. Our first live encounter with ademonstration in Caracas!

Brenda and I are concerned about our plans for December 30th. We have arranged for Car Rentals to take usto Choroni. We decide to call out Tour Operator to see what the gas situation is like in Choroni. All we needis to get there and not have enough gasoline to get back!

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No answer at the Tour Company so we leave messages and hope for the best. We spend the rest of the dayhang out at the Hotel with a short walk into the neighborhood around the Hotel.

Venezuela – Day 10 – December 30

Maureen, Alison and myself are up early. Jessica won’t move so we decide to go for a walk in theneighborhood around the Hotel to see if we can get a coffee for less than 5,000bs. We come upon a restaurantthat seems to make freshly squeezed drinks and has food so inside we go. A nice girl points us to a table andasks us what we want in Spanish. I try some English on her and it’s time for sign language. The owner comesover and points towards the kitchen. Up we get and he leads us over where he points out items on the menuand then points to them being prepared.

After some consideration, I order a coffee that turns out to be the best coffee of the trip. Maureen gets a teaand Alison gets an oversized pancake filled with local fruits that is very tasty. After second coffees and teas, Itry to find out ho late he is opened as this looks like a good candidate to come back to. No luck. I should havebrought the dictionary with me!

Once back at the Hotel, Brenda and I ask the people in the Hotel for advise. They tell us that the gas situationwest of the city is not very good. We try to call to the Tour Company and get through Jose Luis who says hewill make come calls and for us to call back in 45 minutes. We call back he say that there was some gas inChoroni but that it will not last very long. We ask about other modes of transportation and he tells us he willmake some phone calls.

Back downstairs in the lobby, the entire Hotel Staff are now trying to find a way to help us. They fell rentinga car will not be the right thing to do. A conversation with 2 of the Hotel Limo Drivers gives us an alternative.They will take us to Choroni today and come and pick us up on January 2nd. The trip is 3 ½ hours each way.The cost for the return trip will be less than renting 2 cars. Sound like a plan to me. A quick call to the TourOperator and it’s time to pack.

Our driver Miguel speaks some English and helps to get us organized. We leave 3 suitcases with the hotel, aswe will not need the contents on the trip. With the 2 cars loaded, the people at the Hotel gives us somenumbers to call if we have any troubles and see us off.

As we drive through Caracas, Miguel points out all the line-ups for gas. He tells us that he spent 12 hoursyesterday filling up. Once outside of the city and on the highway to Maracay, there is little traffic. The roadsigns say its 80km to Maracay, which is 2/3 of the way. This puzzles me as they said that it was a 3-½ hourtrip. Is there something wrong with my math?

As we near Maracay, Miguel points to the mountains to the north. He tells me that we have to go over themountains to get to Choroni. He says the road is real dangerous but hopeful with the gas shortage there won’tbe much traffic to deal with. Maureen asks from the back seat what we are talking about and I tell her it’sabout the beautiful weather we are having for the drive.

At Maracay, we turn off the highway and Miguel navigates through the city. We slowly start climbing up themountain and the road slowly starts to narrow. The next 2 hours are spent going 20kmh on the switchbackmain road to the coast. We get behind a bus that has to stop and backup to go around the many turns on theroad. On the driver’s side of the car it is straight up and on the passenger side it is straight down. I hang on fordear life. Maureen is making comments along the lines of “What have you done to me now!"

Several times we round a corner only to have to jam on the breaks to avoid hitting a car coming from theopposite way. On coming cars are not bad, they try and stop to avoid you. It was the on coming buses thatnearly killed us several times. They would not stop. It’s get out of the way or be hit. The buses travel withboth a driver and a lookout. The lookout hangs out of the passenger door to keep a lookout for oncomingtraffic.

After making it to the top of the mountain, Miguel tells me, he does this drive about once a year and swearsthat he will never do it again. Once half way down the coast side of the mountain, the 2 cars pull over. Migueltells me it is to let the brakes cool down before making the rest of the trip.

10 minutes later we are off and slowly make our way to Choroni where we ask for directions to Hacienda ELPortete. On arrival we all get out of the cars and I get down and kiss the ground. Maureen is glaring at me fornot telling her about this ahead of time.

We walk into the Hacienda and find the bar where a Polar is promptly opened for me. Once unloaded and

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organized Miguel says take they will meet us here between 1pm and 3pm on January 2nd for the return trip.

After another Polar we decide to go for a walk to get over the trip, so off we go. We find a small residentialarea we come upon a Tour Truck with Bird Watching on the side. Veevee, the owner comes out to introducehimself and welcome us to Choroni. Like Margarita, there are no foreigners here so we kind of stick out like asore thumb. We tell Veevee where we are staying and he says that if we want a tour to give him a call.

Back to the Hacienda El Portete we go where we decide to have dinner. Another excellent meal! Richard ourhost comes by to welcome us and tells us to let him you if there is anything he can do to help out. He gives usdirections to the beach and says the first time we go to let him know and he will drive us. We ask aboutVeevee and he highly recommends him to us. If we want he will arrange Veevee to come by and discussvarious things to be seen in the area.

Venezuela – Day 11 – December 31

New Years Eve!

We are all up early for breakfast and what a feast it is. Scrambled Eggs – Venezuelan Style, Pancakes withMaple Syrup, many different fruits, toast and more local things. After eating we talk to Richard who tells usthat he is putting on a Venezuelan New Years Eve dinner tonight if we are interested. We agree immediately.We then ask about Veevee. Richard tells us to wait a few minutes and he will have Veevee come right over todiscuss things with us.

After another coffee Veevee arrives. After some discussion it is agreed that tomorrow, Veevee will take usbeach hopping up the coast for the day and on January 2nd we will go for a hike and bird watching in themorning. When I ask how much, Veevee suggests $15US a head for the 2 days. When I suggest $20USeveryone is happy.

When we tell Veevee that we plan on spend the day at the beach and in the town, he tells us that he will driveus down to the beach and give us a tour of the town. We all get changed and loaded into Veevee’s tour truckand head off. Ask we drive down the road towards the Port, Veevee point out the various sites. At one pointhe stops to talk to someone who seems excited that some tourists have come to visit. It seems like we arecelebrities here for being the only foreigners again.

As we walk from the town towards the beach we pass a large number of restaurants. The owners all come outto greet us and offer us menus. Maureen promises each that we will come back later in the day, making manynew friends. We spend the next several hours on the beach. They are some vendors here and Maureen ends upwith several bottles of Coconut Oil.

Late in the afternoon, we start to head back. Through the row of restaurants Maureen explains that we are justgoing for a walk and will be back shortly. In the town, we find a restaurant were I can get a Polar or 2 and thegirls some food. After being refreshed we take the 15-minute walk back to the Hacienda and a nap in theHammocks.

Around 8pm we head into the pool/restaurant area for a couple of Polars before dinner. When the food comesout for dinner it looks great, roast pork, turkey and several Venezuelan dishes. Richard comes over andexplains each dish to us. He also has the kitchen prepare special meals for Alison and Jessica. After stuffingourselves, Richard and his wife sit down with us and start telling us about the surrounding area, it’s historyand the history of the Hacienda that has been in his mother’s family hands for 100s of years.

He use to work for a Canadian Company and has been to Toronto several times. We make a comment abouthow bright the stars are in the sky and he volunteers to shut off the lights for a better view. As he is about toshut off the lights there is a general power failure in the Choroni area that affords us of even better view.Richard tries to explain how he did not arrange for the complete power failure and we have a few laughs overit.

10 minutes later, with power restored we celebrate New Years sitting by the pool drinking wine and Polars.

Venezuela – Day 12 – January 1

We are up early again. Veevee is coming by to pick us up at 9:00 for our day of beach hopping. As we headoff towards the Port Veevee tells us more stories about the local area and where we are going. When wearrive at the Port the first thing I notice is that the sea is very rough today. Poor Maureen! What am I doing toher! Veevee gets all of us loaded into an 18-foot boat for our trip. The owner of the boat has to time the 4-footswales in order to get out of the landing for the boats. After this 10-minute exercise is completed we start

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making our way along the coast. We are going against the waves and are getting bounced around a fair bit. Ionly hope Maureen can survive the trip.

We pass the beach we spent yesterday on and round a point towards a second smaller beach. 20 minutes laterwe round another point and come to Playa Chauo. We make a 1-hour stop here to go visit a Cocoa Plantation.Being New Years day there is no activity but Veevee explains that the plantation is run as a Co-op. He cutsdown one Cocoa and opens it for us. This Cocoa from here is shipped to Europe to make high end chocolatesin Belgium and Germany.

Back in the boat we make another ½ hour trip to Playa Cepe where we will spend most of the day. We startoff by going for a walk in the local area where we see many fruit and bananas trees. There is a baseballdiamond and a lawn bowling area. The only way into the area is via boat and once again we are the onlytourists here. After several swims at the beach and a walk from end to end we sit down at the restaurant for alunch of fried bananas, the local favorite.

After another swim and some time on the beach, we see our boat round the point to come pick us up. I alsohave noticed that the waves are much higher now with swells up to 10 feet. Maureen is going to kill me if shecatches on. Into the boat we get for the trip back to Choroni. Maureen is sitting beside me with one hand onthe side of the boat and one hand on my knee hanging on. By the time we reach Choroni there are deep markson my knee from Maureen’s hand but she has not complained at all.

The owner of the boat has to wait about 10 minutes off the point where we are to land for the seas to settle todo in safely. Once on shore we head to Veevee Truck from the ride back to the Hacienda.

Because of the sun and the air conditioner at night in the room, I have come down with a fever and thebeginnings of a cold. Rather than going into the town for dinner, we decide to eat at the Hacienda againtonight.

Venezuela – Day 13 – January 2

My cold is not much better in the morning and I still have a little fever so it is decided that I won’t go on thehike and bird watching trip. At 8:30 everyone deserts me and heads out with Veevee. Just as they are leavingour 2 drivers from Caracas arrive. They tell us they are going to the beach for the day and will be back at2pm.

I ate breakfast and spent the morning in my hammock resting.

Shortly after 1pm everyone returns from the trip and we pack up for the long trip back to Caracas. Our routeback to Maracay is the reverse route of the trip to Choroni. This time we are prepared for what we are to face.Also this time the traffic is much heaver. After several close calls we make Maracay and get caught up in atraffic jam cause by a lineup at the gas station. As Miguel makes his way around the city, I can only think ofhow lucky we are that we did not rent cars. With Maureen navigating we would have got lost for sure.

After Maracay the highway ride to Caracas is non descript. As we enter Caracas, the road is blocked by ademonstration and TV Cameramen. Following the directions from the Army we eventually make our way bythe demonstration and arrive safely at the hotel.

Miguel asks when we are leaving for the airport in the morning and agrees to pick us up at 7am.

We check in and decide to go to a Pizza Restaurant that we saw on our walks. On arriving and getting seated,I saw my favorite Spanish word “Polar” The waiter quickly responds “No Polar”. The owner seeing that weonly speak English sends over his English Speaking waiter who explains to me that they have no beer leftbecause of the strike. He also tells us they have no flower so no Pizza. Someone on Margarita told me thatwhen they ran out of beer because of the strike then the violence would start. May be its time to go home.

Venezuela – Day 14 – January 3

We forced Jessica to get up early on January 3rd. After I get dressed, I start taking the luggage downstairs andget us checked out. Miguel is at the front door on time and gets us loaded in the limos for the drive to theairport.

We arrived real early for the flight but there were long lineups at Delta. When it came time to check in, theymade the girls check in separately from us, which caused a lot of confusion since I had the ticket and all thepassports. It turns out that I was picked for a complete search of our luggage for security purposes. Thisturned comical when the girl do the checking could not pronounce Peter and the guy working with her spent

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the whole time teasing her.

Once through the process we made our way through Venezuelan Exist Immigration without incident. After acoffee, we went to the gate where once again it was my turn to be searched again. Off with my shoes, jacketand carry on luggage and a lot more joking because we had to us hand signs to communicate.

On the plane, we left Caracas for Atlanta. On arriving in Atlanta, it took us 15 minutes to get through USImmigration. The Officer we had was being transferred to Vancouver in a month’s time and we spent 15minutes talking about Vancouver. It did not seem to bother her that there was a long lineup behind us as shewas looking for pointers on Vancouver.

The first thing we noticed in Atlanta was that it was very cold. (55F) Jessica started suggesting that we returnto Caracas, I could only think of what she was going to say when we got into Toronto later that night. Ourflight was delayed for a ½ hour to Toronto and we could hear the people next to us on the phone to Torontoand talk of 15cm of snow. At this point, I join Jessica in suggesting we return to Caracas.

We arrive home in Toronto to blowing snow and veryyyyy cold temperatures without incident ending a greattrip to Venezuela.

iv. BRENDA ELIZABETH SMEATON, b. Nov 08, 1953, Montreal, QUE, CAN; m. JOHN ALBERT ALFREDPUTRE, May 27, 1978, St. Ignatius Loyola, Montreal, QUE, CAN; b. Aug 14, 1956, Verdun, QUE, CAN.

Notes for BRENDA ELIZABETH SMEATON:Birth NoticeSMEATON. To Mr. and Mrs. J. J. M. Smeaton (nee Doris Higgerty), a daughter, on November 8th, 1953, atQueen Elizabeth Hospital. Both well.

19. JAMES ALISDAIR STEWART6 MCLEAN (JAMES SOUTTER5, JAMES STEWART4, PETER3, PETER2, PETER1) was bornMar 10, 1949 in Corstorphine, Edinburgh, MLN, SCT. He married CATHERINE FERGUSON Sep 30, 1977.

Child of JAMES MCLEAN and CATHERINE FERGUSON is:i. NEIL STEWART7 MCLEAN, b. Jan 20, 1981, Belfast, NIR.