In a few days I will be giving a card to some special people, Jack and Alice Newton in Osoyoos B.C. They share their home as a B & B, located high above the Okanagan Valley. The highlight of staying there is Jack's observatory at the top of the building. Every evening all the guests are invited to visit the observatory to look at the stars. In the morning they look at the sun. Jack and Alice are funny, charming, friendly people who happily share their love of the stars.
Several Years ago the Greater Victoria Police Chorus gave me a weekend at the B & B. I arrived with my daughter in the late afternoon and we were met by Jack and Alice. Their greeting was so warm and sincere it almost felt like coming home. Our room was perfect and the view of the valley below, spectacular! We headed back into the town below for dinner and arrived back at the B & B in plenty of time to sit on our patio and enjoy the sunset. When it began to get dark, which was fairly late as we were there on the longest day of the year, we were invited upstairs to the telescope. We had paid a bit extra for a more comprehensive tour and an opportunity to actually operate the telescope after the other guests joined us. We were also given a CD of the star and galaxy photos that were taken during the evening.
The next morning we had lovely breakfast and interesting conversations with all the other guests in the dining room. Because we were staying for two nights we spent the day exploring the area and just relaxing on our patio. That night we again had the opportunity to look at the stars. Travel time concerns meant we had to leave before breakfast the next morning but Alice kindly packed a breakfast for us to take with us. I've not managed to stay there since but several years later my daughter did and said it was still a wonderful place to be.
I wanted to include a picture of the Observatory B & B but have not found them I'll keep trying! Managed to find a picture of the sunrise view from our B & B patio.
