Revised from Oct 23 blog

At the beginning of December 2017, then in our seventies –after having been fans for over fifty years- my husband and I set off on another “Petula Adventure” –this time to the southern United States. Because our home is near to New York state , we had easy access to Buffalo International Airport and flew from there to Austin, Texas, for the first part of this journey. I reference the first concert on this trip in another blog, highlighting the unique venue, One World Theatre –on the outskirts of Austin in the Texas Hill Country. ( Petula Moments : from Texas Hill Country to Port Macquarie’s Coastal Charm)

Austin really is a dynamic city, a growing center in the technology, medical and financial fields, but it has also a big entertainment and art scene as well. It is home to Austin City Limits and has a bustling country music strip on Sixth Street–both of which we visited while there. Its large artistic community is evident in many of the art shops and the murals around the city . Of course, it is the state capital of Texas and a tour of the legislative buildings was an interesting part of our visit .The grand stadium for the Texas Longhorns surrounded by the university buildings of the University of Texas have a prominent presence in the city, and are indeed worthy of a visit. We easily kept busy visiting these sites before our day outing to One World Theatre to see back to back Petula concerts! 

After the concerts in Austin, Petula’s Tour headed to San Antonio in Texas and then to other places. But we lingered another day in Austin before flying to Orlando to spend some time with our daughter and her family and take in some Disney attractions. Then, on Dec. 10 we drove to  Sebring , Florida to take in Petula’s concert on that evening at the Alan Jay Weinstein Center at South Florida University . The venue was situated on the University grounds which were decked out in festive decorations and there was a December chill in the air which added to the the Christmastime feeling.

The Living For Today songs that Petula featured included Paul Mc Cartney’s “Blackbird” –maybe my least favorite of the songs on the album, but the set also included some of my favorite covers, such as Petula’s rendition of Peggy Lee’s “ Fever”,” Steve Winward’s “If You see a Chance, “and John Lennon’s “Imagine.” Also included of course were Petula’s sixties songs and her stunning “With One Look” from Sunset Boulevard. She closed the evening with “Rainbow,” a song she wrote herself, offering an uplifting vision of what lies ahead.

We were off the next morning to drive to the Villages in Florida for Petula’s concert there that evening. We actually arrived  before she and her entourage –as we spotted Petula’s bus pulling in while we were having coffee at one of  the coffee spots in the Villages. The Sharon Moses PAC was a very impressive facility, I thought. It too was decked in festive decorations complete with a pianist entertaining with Christmas songs in the lobby. We had never visited the Villages before so we took some time to wander about and soak up the charming “village”, complete with a central town square with a bandstand. Golf carts zipped by, seemingly , the preferred transportation  for the senior residents enjoying what appeared a somewhat idyllic spot to spend retirement years..

The next morning we made the quick hundred mile jaunt to Largo Florida –this time for an afternoon and evening performance at the Central Park PAC. We returned home after Largo but managed one more concert near home  by going to Niagara Falls, New York on Dec. 16 to catch Petula’s performance at the Bear’s Den at Seneca Casino Resort. 

This December , some eight years later, I have just finished reading Petula’s autobiography Is That You Petula? and one of her parting sentiments is, “I would love to be back with you all once more, onstage, singing and connecting with you again ‘. I hope we can make it happen! “

I am sure all of her fans wish that to happen both for Petula and for us ! My husband and I always hoped to be able to see Petula’s farewell concert, if she ever chose to do that. We were fortunate to see the June 17,2019 concert in Toronto–the last full concert I believe. If there is another concert, I surely hope to attend, but my dear husband of almost 55 years and fellow Petula adventurer passed away in 2024, so, if it happens, it will have to be a memory I make for him in spirit! Nonetheless, I remain ever grateful for the joy of having been so often able to see Petula in concert with him. And I hope this Christmastime she is comforted in knowing how much joy she has given to so many of us over the years.