A seemingly straightforward title for tonight’s talk – but it led us into an amazing journey around the world, following Audrey’s adventures in far-flung places. She started her travels in her late teens, however following a successful career in banking, and having now retired (it would be rude to mention her age, but she retired in 1989) she has since indulged her love of travel. She is obviously not a fan of beach holidays – her first trip, in 1968, took her to Finland and Lapland, since when she has visited over 30 countries, many of which are now too dangerous to visit. We started the evening with an overland drive to India, then a year after that she visited Pakistan and Kashmir, accompanied by a small group of fellow adventurers, in conditions that would today be considered very basic. As we travelled with her during the evening we visited famous and not so famous sights, at Jalalabad, Syria, Ethiopia, Mali and Antarctica, and almost countless others, with Audrey reflecting on the destruction of ancient monuments in the Middle East by terrorists. Her presentation style was superb, clearly telling us the stories behind each visit.
This short report cannot do justice to the content of the talk. A thoroughly enjoyable evening with a high turnout of members and visitors – thank you Audrey!
