Did You Find Funky?

The quest to find funky facts about Nova Scotia's heritage is wrapping-up.

The Funky Museum Roadshow, a summer-long event featuring the neat stuff to be found in the province's museums, began on June 8. The roadshow will culminate in a Funky Finale at Highland Village in Iona on Friday, Sept. 8, at 1 p.m.

Nova Scotians and visitors alike took to this summer's challenge to find wacky, unusual facts about this province's rich history. These facts, along with stamps from each museum, were collected in Funky Museum Roadshow Passports and could be entered to win contest prizes, including a crazy quilt made by staff of the Wile Carding Mill Museum in Bridgewater, and a year-long family pass to the 25 Nova Scotia Museum sites. Prizes will be awarded at the Funky Finale for the funkiest find, craziest story and most museum visits.

"The Funky Museum Roadshow highlights the unique and wonderful aspects of Nova Scotia's rich heritage," said Rodney MacDonald, Minister of Tourism and Culture. "It goes even further by placing attention on the valuable role museums have in interpreting and reflecting our community history for all to experience."

The Funky Dynamic Duo of Garry Sowerby, professional adventure driver, and Peter Duffy, a local newspaper columnist, lead museum-filled day trips to various regions of the province over the summer. Last year, the duo compiled a list of their 25 funkiest finds, and managed to uncover many more treasures this year. Some of the funky finds of 2000 include fairy chairs in Annapolis Royal, German blackbread bottled since the First World War in Lunenburg, and Nova Scotia's largest insect - the water bug - at Halifax's Museum of Natural History.

"We're having fun getting to know Nova Scotia," said Mr. Sowerby. "Earning the Guinness Book of World Records title for fastest driving-time around the world took me to all ends of the earth, but I'm continually amazed at the richness of our history and the stories I'm learning about my home province."

The Funky Dynamic Duo will hit the road for the last time this summer on Thursday, Sept. 7. The pair will be searching for funky finds at museums in Sherbrooke, Lake Ainslie, and Cheticamp. After a morning visit to the North Highlands Community Museum in Dingwall on Friday, Sept. 8, the Funky Museum Roadshow will wrap- up at Highland Village. There, visitors can enjoy an afternoon ceilidh and discover some funky facts about Nova Scotia's Gaelic culture.

The second annual Funky Museum Roadshow is an event that promotes experiencing Nova Scotia's cultural and natural heritage in a fun and funky way by showcasing museums across the province. Roadshow participants include community museums and the 25 sites of the Nova Scotia Museum family. This event is supported by O'Regan's Chev-Olds-Cadillac, The Herald, Breakfast Television, Odyssey International and the Department of Tourism and Culture.

For more information on this event visit the Nova Scotia Museum website at museum.gov.ns.ca .

NOTE TO EDITORS: A complete list of all museums involved in the Funky Museum Roadshow is available by e-mailing <Release@gov.ns.ca.>