About Us
Dave & Nancy Shaffer
My name is Dave Shaffer. I have been married to my wife, Nancy, for 50 years. We have resided in Las Vegas, Nevada the entire time. We met in September 1970 at the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas. I was the General’s Aide at Nellis AFB and she was a flight attendant with Airwest airlines.
We both had professional jobs that required a lot of time on airplanes and travelling. I would leave the office early to meet her at McCarran Airport in Las Vegas and go wherever she was scheduled for an overnight. I would fly back the next morning and head to work. She would come home, after usually 11 take offs and 11 landings.
Travel
A shared passion for exploring the world.
Beginning in 1972, we began to pick a place in the world we wanted to go and secure a 10% airline ticket for that destination. Travelling on a pass in those days was fairly easy.
So, in 1972 we visited New Zealand; to discover there was a North and South Island. In 1973, we ventured to Hong Kong to see a Chinese friend I had met during the Vietnam war. This not only started a travel focus for our lives, but it also began our collection of items from around the world. We began to bring back small items that not only represented where we had been but the culture as well.
Over the last fifty years we have been to over 100 countries on 6 continents. We have sailed around the world on cruise ships and spent time in many countries living in the local communities to get a flavor for the country.
Continents
Countries
Oceans
Photos
Building Memories
Through images and collecting items during our travels
Nancy is a photographer who has won several prizes with Nevada Magazine and she has taken over 10,000 pictures from our first trip to New Zealand through our latest adventures. Some of the older ones are on half frames from a camera I purchased in Hong Kong in 1969 during R&R from Vietnam. All of them are available in the photo section.
00238 Hippos
00033 Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, Africa
00015 wart hogs
00139 Vic Falls
We decided that we would sell our collections rather than let our estate make that decision. Each item has a story as to where we bought it, how and why. We have been to estate sales where the Estate sellers and many family members were not familiar with the item or the story that gives the item an identity.
Our collection consists of coins from the countries we visited, small trinkets about each and Christmas decorations for our tree that we never take down. It serves as an inspiration for the next trip to fill that branches with something new. It also includes art pieces from artists in different countries as well as some sidewalk pieces from locals around the ports and tourist attractions.
We hope you will enjoy travelling the world with us on the website in photos, paintings, and trinkets.
Everything is for sale since as the program on Fox Business channel says, “you can’t take it with you.”
