Another spectacular day in Cork--we are getting spoiled. Although not all have been brave enough to try the black (blood) sausages, everyone is certainly enjoying the rest of the buffet. What a great way to start the day! Another good way is to rehearse, and the choir managed to fit into a very small room and have an excellent 90-minute rehearsal as they continued to prepare for tonight’s first concert of tour and tomorrow night’s competition concert. Dr. Staheli never ceases to work for perfection.
Soon after the rehearsal, we all made the trek to the train station, guided by our unflappable cultural advisor, Rosalind Hall. As we were gathering to leave the hotel, we realized that the impossible was happening yet again: the rain of the morning had stopped, and the clouds were decreasing. It began to warm up a bit and turned into another gorgeous Irish day. Two in a row! Who would have thought that could happen?!
We trained down to the coast to Cobh—more or less pronounced “Cove” but with some extra fun happening on the “v.” The ride down was so pretty. We loved seeing all the different styles of houses, and spotted our first castle. And of course, lots of gorse. This time I have photos to prove it, though they were taken through a dirty train window while in motion.
This is a beautiful little town from whence the Titanic set sail on its ill-fated maiden voyage, and also from whence the first immigrants left during the potato famine that hit Ireland so hard during the mid 1800s. We had a couple of hours to wander the streets and just enjoy the beauty of the town.
Our only disappointment so far is our inability to find authentic fish and chips. But we shall persevere; after all, there are still almost three weeks left on the tour.
We returned in time to grab a snack, change clothes, and walk to the City Hall where a bus met us to take us to St. Michael’s Church, Black Rock. After so many rehearsals lately in small hotel rooms, it was a pleasure to be anywhere else, let alone a cathedral.
Singers performed a program of just American music. The audience came from the parish in which we sang; their enthusiasm and warmth exceeded their numbers by far. For Singers, it was a treat to be performing again after what seems like a very long time. Days on tour without a concert are extra long! I’ve had to assure a few people we've met that Utah is not a town in Nevada, but my level of ignorance about Ireland probably equals theirs of Utah. It makes for interesting conversations. This was a wonderful first concert of tour—obviously a joy to sing, and very much a joy to hear. There is nothing like hearing glorious music sung by these great students, and looking into their faces while hearing it.
Back to the hotel with a plea from Dr. Staheli to get sleep tonight as tomorrow is the competition concert.Another wonderful day in Cork.