Is this the most-travelled Lynn News in the world?
TWO couples sharing a trip round the world to mark their 50th and 30th wedding anniversaries made sure they packed two unusual extras – a copy of the Lynn News and a supply of Heacham-On-Line T-shirts.
Ted and Joan Cox, of Old Hunstanton, and Robbie and Geraldine Topliss, of Heacham, had a plan involving our annual Take the Lynn News on Holiday competition and Heacham's village website.
During their five-week trip of a lifetime, globe-trotting from North America to New Zealand, they took 19 photographs featuring the Lynn News – possibly the most-travelled copy of the Lynn News ever.
More than 20 pictures were also taken of people they met and asked to wear one of the T-shirts to help publicise Heacham worldwide.
Mr Cox (73), and Mrs Cox (68), of Ashdale Park, and Mr Topliss (52), and Mrs Topliss (51), of Robin Hill, have been friends for more than 30 years.
They visited America, Australia, New Zealand's north and south islands and Singapore, taking a total of 980 photographs along the way. They stopped off at many well-known spots, including Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, the Hoover Dam and Sydney Harbour.
Posing for one photograph at the Lady Knox Geyser in New Zealand, Mr Cox said he was approached by a couple who asked: "Is that the Lynn News? Only we're from Snettisham."
In Queenstown, New Zealand, the friends ventured into a -5C ice bar. Mr Cox said: "Cold weather gear is supplied and you are allowed only 30 minutes inside. It's full of ice sculptures, even the bar is made of ice, and you get a cocktail or two out of a disposable ice beaker."
Visiting New Zealand was the highlight of the trip for the wives. For their husbands, it was Singapore.
Mr Cox said: "I had been there 40 years before, when I was in the RAF and it was dirty, small and untidy. They say the island has grown 30 per cent and now it's the cleanest, tidiest city I've ever been in. You wouldn't mind being stuck at Changi airport for 12 hours because it's so huge and there's so much to do. There's even a swimming pool on the roof. And everyone speaks English because it's compulsory in the schools."
He was also struck by the friendliness of the people they met in New Zealand, Australia and Singapore and said: "They couldn't help you enough."
Mr Topliss said everyone he asked to have a photograph taken in a Heacham-On-Line T-shirt agreed without hesitation, despite most never having heard of the resort.
"Many had heard of Norfolk and the Norfolk coast and a lot of people knew Hunstanton but not Heacham," he said. Those photographed said they were looking forward to seeing their pictures online.
"We know quite a few have looked at the website. We took photographs of a Korean girl and there have been a number of hits from Korea," said Mr Topliss.
The pictures can be seen in the photo gallery on www.heacham-on-line.co.uk under Around the World.
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Weather for King's Lynn
Sunday 27 May 2012
Today
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Temperature: 10 C to 25 C
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