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Lester's Okanagan Blog
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Fall Leaves, Okanagan Lake |
Burrowing Owl Winery, Oliver |
| Canadian Spirit Newsletter October 2007 Newsletter No. 1 Welcome to our first official Canadian Spirit newsletter. I thought this would be a quick and easy way to keep in touch with everyone, and let you know what has been happening in our new lives in the sunny (but now cold!) Okanagan Valley in British Columbia, Canada. We have been very, very busy since landing on Canadian soil on June 6, 2007. Some of the things we had to face: -buying a car -finding a place to live and filling it with furniture, kitchen ware, toiletries, you name it! -starting a new business and taking care of our first overseas visitors -getting Atsuko’s immigration situation arranged (only took us 7 months...!) -leaving Angela and Matthew with my sister and brother-in-law for 5 weeks -having to deal with reverse culture shock after being away from Canada for over 17 years -did I forget anything? Oh yeah, and lots and lots of more stuff! Anyway, if it sounds like I am complaining, I am not because it has been a real adventure with lots of excitement and loads and loads of challenges and opportunities. It has been a new beginning for us and like any new beginning it is chance to start over and see life from an entirely different perspective. It hits you on a very deep and personal level. For example, starting over gives you the unique opportunity to completely re-invent yourself. Big changes like this means you are no longer the person you were before. You are someone new in a new life with new surroundings doing something completely different. In Japan, I was always quiet and kind of hid in the background and let things happen to me. In Canada, I am up front and out in the open pushing to get things done 24/7. Anyway, enough of the psycho-babble (for now!). Oh yeah, how we plan to make money in Canada… In case you don’t know what we are doing, Atsuko and I started a business called “Canadian Spirit Services.” We offer 4 types of services to overseas visitors: 1. Homestay Accommodation (for now, the Patrick Family but in the future other families in and near Penticton) 2. English Language Study (practical English in real life situations) 3. Okanagan Cultural Activities (festivals and holiday celebrations, arts and crafts, wine and cuisine, First Nations cultural activities…) 4. Outdoor Sports and Activities (the Okanagan is a Mecca for outdoor activities – golfing, fishing, camping, and hiking in the spring and fall; beaches, water sports, and fruit picking in the summer; skiing, skating, and snowboarding in the winter - the list is endless…) We are focusing on the Japanese tourist market but in the future we hope to expand to other overseas markets. The Americans and Europeans have long discovered the Okanagan but it is practically non-existent for the Japanese and everyone else. |
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Red Wine Grapes |
Fairview Golf Course, Oliver |
We are accepting guests for 2008. For further information please fill in our form here.
If you wish to ask a question,
and we will be in contact with you shortly.
Thank you.
You can also send us a message on Skype:
Canadian Spirit Holiday Services
*Education and Holiday Packages for Overseas Visitors -Penticton, BC,
Canada*
Website:
http://www.CanadianSpiritServices.com
Copyright © 2006-2008 Canadian Spirit Holiday Services.
City of Penticton, BC, Canada Business License Number 10283.
All Original Photos and Written Material may not be used without our
written permission. All Rights Reserved.
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