Mystery Tour? We choose to call it the Magical Mystery Tour-
the culmination of months of planning and arranging to present
a tour that will keep people smiling for weeks to come.
Of course, things never go completely smoothly. Mike and
Nadine were MIA in the beginning- never DID hear that story.
Thank you to Bob Meneely for doing whatever you did to get them
(and their fabulous depot hack!) to our destination safely. The
directions had a couple of minor flaws (Oops!), but the weather
was flawless and everyone seemed happy.
We started at Rancho with 3 Model Ts, 1 Model A, 1 Packard
and 3 modern cars. This was to be more of a destination tour
than a driving tour. The destination was a secret- hopefully
a well-kept one. Some select members had wrangled special dispensation
to meet us near our first stop, where we gained 3 more Model
Ts.
Our first stop? The historic 1928 Fox Theatre in Redwood
City. This place is truly magical. It's been undergoing an extensive
renovation in the past ten years, and history and style ooze
from every corner. We were greeted in front of the theatre by
John Anagnostou, one of the owners, and as he led us through
the various parts of the world-class venue and the more intimate
Little Fox next door, his passion for historic preservation,
live entertainment and downtown Redwood City was quite contagious.
If you missed this tour, you really owe it to yourself to come
here and experience it for yourself. You will not be disappointed.
Across Broadway, and the very welcoming Courthouse Square,
where we relaxed and chatted until our next tour, is the equally
stunning San Mateo County History Museum. As attractive as the
imposing dome is from the outside, the inside is breathtaking.
Formerly the San Mateo County Courthouse, built in 1910, this
building has been painstakingly restored as a showcase for San
Mateo County's history. The interior of the dome is a beautiful
mosaic of art glass and light. Our docent, Tom Brennan, was extremely
knowledgeable, and we appreciate his volunteering his time to
share some San Mateo County history with us. Again, this beautiful
and historic building is worth a trip, if you missed our tour.
By the way both the Fox Theatre and the old Courthouse hold
memories for several of our club members. Hmm…
From downtown Redwood City, we headed for yet another unknown
destination- lunch at David Allen's terrific home. David, his
brother Steve and friend Jesse spent hours getting ready for
our barbecue feast. There was something (and lots of it!) for
everyone- hotdogs, hamburgers, veggie burgers, chicken, salads,
chips n'dips, beans and other delicacies. Then it was Raffle
Time! We had a lot of generous donations, from both companies
and individuals and almost everyone got some type of goodie.
Dessert was carrot cake, apple pie and our favorite ice cream.
After dessert, people slowly started drifting toward home, hopefully
very full and very happy.
We'd like to take this opportunity to acknowledge those who
helped make this event possible.
John Anagnostou- Fox Theatre
Mike Monte- Fox Theatre
Tom Brennan- San Mateo County History Museum
Raffle Donations:
Talbot's Toyland- San Mateo
Joseph George Wines- San Jose
Chaffin's Garage- Corona
Fremont Ford- Newark
Bob Edwards
Ron and Barbara McKenzie
Barbecue:
David Allen
Steve Allen
Ed and Karen Archer
Ron and Barbara McKenzie
Photos:
Allan Greenberg
Chuck Christensen
For those of you who missed this tour- we missed you too.
Thank you all for your enthusiastic support of our tours. It
has been an honor to serve as your tour coordinators in 2008.
Ron and Barbara McKenzie
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