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OUR STORY - A California Adventure

Pete, Cindy, Tony, Chris
Family
Pete - thumbs up!
Pete
Tony at Newport Beach
Tony
Chris with his harvest and tractor!
Chris
Our home in the UK

Goodbye, England

In 2010, three weather-weary residents of Finchampstead, Berkshire in the United Kingdom embarked on an adventure. We sold up and moved out to California.

The move had been in the offing for several years, but with children still at University , and elderly family to care for, it was a dream on the back-burner.

 

Aircraft taking off

Up, Up and Away

Both Tony and I were lucky enough to live in many countries. We also both worked in aviation for many years so we definitely have the travel bug! We continued our travels throughout our time with the airlines, visiting most corners of the world. After an early retirement, we decided it was time for a change and an adventure. So we sold up, packed up, and with Tony’s green card in hand, Made the move to the US, continuing our story!

View at Morel Vin, Platinum Temecula Wine Tours

Hello, California

Sending our belongings via China bought us time to find a place to live. We were headed towards North County San Diego because we knew the area well. 

A real-estate mishap landed us in Temecula, with first a dilapidated condo, and then a house in Wine Country to renovate!

Somerset Winery

Now for Some Work

Renovations completed, we decided we needed a job. By that time we had fallen in love with Wine Country, and sampled our way through some fantastic vineyards. 

We decided to combine our love of London Black Taxis with our growing love of Wine Country, and  the idea ofTemecula Black Car was born.

On the Road

Anxious to get our venture underway, we managed to locate our first cab in Florida (the Duchess) and off we flew to get her… our story rolls on!

We had the most wonderful road trip back on the I-10 through the South, none of which we had seen before. Though we all struggled a bit with the Southern accents (any they with ours!) we found nothing but kindness and good spirits the whole way.

Range Rover

Setting Up

We started setting up the company on our return, and with all the permits and licenses in place, we were off and running with our Temecula Wine Tours

The second cab (the Duke) was added a few months later and we had a “fleet”!

Range Rover

…and a Happy Ending

The rest is history. Thanks to the support of our lovely clients, our fleet has expanded and we now have “Louise” our silver bus, “Falcon” our Chevy limo van, “Sally” the Lincoln limousine, “Angie” the Range Rover and our VIP Van, as yet unnamed. Watch this space! (You have to take your time about these things – after all, they’re family too!

Chris with his harvest and tractor!

…with Some Great People!

We’ve had a blast over the last 15 years – met over 5000 great people, had huge adventures, and learned a lot about ourselves and our community. And we couldn’t have landed in a better place! When we’re not driving our beloved LTI TX2s you can find us puttering through our orange grove and vines on our ancient tractor, so our story has a very happy ending! Thanks for reading! 

xxCindy

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