Our Tour 1998
Here's the complete edition of all 14 daily Tour updates...Have Fun!
We're Home!
Thanks, everyone, for a great tour! I hope you all enjoyed those special two weeks as much as I
did... Now we have to wait a year until we can do it again. I hope to see all of those familiar
faces back again next year. Have a great summer!
- Joshua Wyatt / TC
You may notcie that although every day is represented by at least two pictures, some days do not
have a daily update text. This is due to the busy schedule we had on tour during those days. We
just didn't have time to write the updates at that time. During the next few days, we hope to
bring the reamaining updates online day by day. Please bear with us...Thanks!
Sunday, July 5 & Monday, July 6, 1998 - Days 13 & 14 of 14
Today we've been "Airporting" and travelling home. | This is what's going on as this is being written - dinner!
Hoping all of you back home in the
States had a Happy Fourth of July!
Saturday, July 4, 1998 - Day 12 of 14
More Waiting time - The Knot Game | Late Night Fun with Peter
An easy wakeup day today - 7am wakeup for breakfast at 7:30. After breakfast, we walked over to
the Complex for a mass rehearsal. The rehearsal was long and tiresome, but it was enhanced by the
presence of the tenor/bass adult choir and the Vancouver Youth Symphony Orchestra. Following the
rehearsal, we went to our staging area and had our sack lunches for the day. Then we went back to
the hotel and split up for free time: some went shopping, others swimming, a few stayed at the
hotel for a quiet afternoon. After waiting for the bus for an hour, we went to dinner, where we
had 14 minutes to eat a large plate of spaghetti. Then we went back to the hotel and changed into
our concert uniforms for the Gala Closing Concert. During the 3.5-hour concert, we sang four
songs as a mass choir, and listened to many more. The winner of the 'Choir of the World at
Kathaumixw' award was the Mixed Youth Choir from Velenje, Slovenia. Following the concert, we
found our way back to the hotel, where we changed into our own clothes. We celebrated the fourth
of July by singing our national anthem while holding sparklers...We even made our director use
one for a baton! Most of the 14+ crowd went to a cafe for coffee and dessert. The rest of us
stayed behind and had a pizza party, complete with rodeo-style entertainment provided by our
chaperone Peter. Finally we got to sleep for a few hours, to get up at 6am for our 6:30 bus
pickup to begin the long journey home. See Ya Then!
-Update by Michael, Laura, & Savannah
Wednesday, July 3, 1998 - Day 11 of 14
Our own Eva Nelson, 2nd place winner in the 16 and under Solo Competition | Newfoundland Symphony
Youth Choir, our hotelmates, as well as winners of 1st place Children's Choir & 2nd place Youth Choir.
Inside the Great Hall | Our choir seated in Great Hall
Today we woke up really early for the usual 7:00 breakfast. Following that, we were off to Dwight
Hall for the 16 & Under Solo Competition. All contestants did a great job. The four finalists
from the two groups of soloists (they split up the field because there were nearly 50 soloists)
faced off to determine the winners. First place went to a 9-year-old Russian girl. Our own Eva
Nelson took second place. After our group was done, we bussed to Brooks Hall for the soloist sing-
off. Following that, we ate our bag lunch on the curb, then went back to the Sports Complex for
the mass choir rehearsal. Then it was back to Dwight Hall for a three-way concert with
Choralations Choir (Canada) and the Newfoundaland Symphony Youth Choir (our hotelmates). When the
concert was done, it was off to Mowat Bay for a dinner picnic in the rain. Back in the bus, we
fogged up the windows on the way to the Complex for the awards concert. Following the concert,
Janet and Nancy treated everyone to a pizza party at the hotel. It was
a great day full of fun. See ya tomorrow!
-Update by Katie T, Jacob, Magen, Stefanie S, & Tammy
Tuesday, July 2, 1998 - Day 10 of 14
Honestly, these are the only two pictures we took today! (Both at lunch)
Monday, July 1, 1998 - Day 9 of 14
Fun at the Beach... | Hurry up and wait!... (going to dinner)
Sunday, June 30, 1998 - Day 8 of 14
We know where the food is! (breakfast) | Staging area for 40 choirs at the Kathaumixw...f
Happy Canada Day - July 1st!!
Monday, June 29, 1998 - Day 7 of 14
Waiting for the ferry to Powell River... | Sorting things out at the new hotel!
This morning we dragged ourselves out of bed at 4am to spend several hours travelling to our new
home in Powell River, BC. We spent about 5 hours on the bus, and almost 2 hours aboard two
ferries. We had wonderful weather for the trip, so we really didn't need the sweatshirts we were
instructed to bring. When we arrived at our new hotel, we dumped our luggage and then headed for
the swimming pool. After a wonderful afternoon of wearing our own clothes, we had a great
spaghetti dinner, and then rehearsed for a couple hours. Also staying at our hotel is a
children's choir from Newfoundland. Tomorrow we will have 5 hours of free time, and in the
evening, will perform in the Gala Opening Concert of the Kathaumixw Festival. See Ya Then!
-Update by Joel, Jana, Melissa, Jennifer M., Mollie, and Katie M.
Sunday, June 28, 1998 - Day 6 of 14
We're going to the beach!! | We couldn't do it without Marcia!
This morning we got up for breakfast, followed by a short worship service. And then a really long
rehearsal. There was a soloist rehearsal in the morning, followed by fish & chips at the beach
(which was a long walk away), Children's and Youth Choir rehearsals, and Camerata practice. Those
who were lucky enough to be in only one of the groups had free time during the other rehearsals.
In the evening, after all the practice (6-7 hours), we performed a small concert for ourselves.
Each competing group performed their pieces, interspersed with our 21 competing soloists. It was
a very, very long day! See ya tomorrow...
-Update by Joel, Jana, Melissa, Jennifer M., Mollie, and Katie M.
Saturday, June 27, 1998 - Day 5 of 14
Waiting in the lobby of our new hotel... | Waiting for rehearsal to start...
Spent a final morning with homestay hosts, who were really 'cool.' We met up with the rest of the
choir at the Pacific Inn around noon, and then began the day's rehearsal. Rehearsals were in
shifts today so everyone could grab a quick lunch. After that, we split up into small groups so
that we could go swimming, to the arcade, or just 'hung' in the hotel rooms. Others in the group
met in the rehearsal hall to run through their solos. Tomorrow night the soloists will be singing
their pieces for the group. For dinner, we had a choice of chicken or salmon, with salad,
vegetables, and potatoes. A wonderful dessert was ice cream with peach sauce. We also had
wonderful rehearsals with each competition choir. We worked on the details of our specific
pieces. Tomorrow we will have intensive rehearsals with all the groups, which will culminate in a
mini-concert featuring the soloists and each choir. Hope you're enjoying summer as much as we are!
-Update by Sarah L., Sarah T., Ashlee, Kevin, and Marcia.
Friday, June 26, 1998 - Day 4 of 14
Today We Waited... | And Sang!
Another interesting day. We had until 4pm to explore the area with our host families. Some of us
got to see the scenery, others went to visit local atractions, such as Science World. As we got
to the church, our evening staging area, we were directed to dump our stuff in a large hall. We
met the Amadeus Children's Choir, our host choir, and prepared for our joint concert. After
stopping for a short dinner break, we go up and sang our concert. Then we packed up our stuff
(We've got boxes full of instruments, programs, drums, music, etc...), loaded it into the 'stuff
van,' and parted for the evening at our hosts' homes. Tomorrow we go to our Vancouver hotel,
where email and site updates will be much easier. (I know many of parents have sent email to your
child, we did get it, we just haven't had time to read/reply to it. Give us a day or 2....)
Tomorrow, we don't have to be to our hotel until 12noon, so we can SLEEP IN!!! Oh, yes, that will
be fun! See Y'all Later, Eh?
-Update by Joshua (I know you're getting tired of hearing from me, we'll be in a hotel tomorrow night...)
Thursday, June 25, 1998 - Day 3 of 14
Lots of airports... | But much needed swimming time!
Well, not really an exciting day today, but we survived... We had to 'Rise and Shine' early in
the morning and mosey on down to the Juneau airport, then we waited for our plane. After a two-
hour plane ride, we got off in Seattle. We caught lunch in the waiting period between planes, and
then it was off to Vancouver. We packed our stuff into the bus for the 45-minute ride to the
pickup location for our host families. We bounced around on the trampoline, and jumped in the
swimming pool for a cool dip. One by one, our host families came to pick us up, and we had the
evening to ourselves. Tomorrow we don't meet the group until 4 o'clock pm, so we have plenty of
time to explore the area. We'll see ya then!
-Update by Joshua (John's playing chess)
Thursday, June 24, 1998 - Day 2 of 14
Outside State Office Building | Concert Inside State Office Bldg.
Walking Through Town... | Exploring Group in Front of Figure Carved in Tree
Another great day in Juneau... We started off with breakfast with our homestay families, then
proceeded to the church, which served as our staging area for the day's activties. From there, we
split into our chaperone groups for exploring time. We saw many shops, including a sushi bar, 3
cruise ships, which were thouroughly "ooh'd" and "aah'd" over, and a fudge factory. Juneau is a
nice small town, the folks here are friendly, and they have very narrow, winding roads, which
require skilled navigation by the local motorists. Following our exploring period, we sang a 25-
minute program in the Atrium of the State Office Building. Then it was off to ride the tram to
the top of Mt. Roberts. Nice view there, but an exhausting hike to reach the top. (Sorry, none
of the topside pictures came out.) After the return tram, we walked back to the church, where our
host families greeted us with a wonderful dinner spread. Then we went downstairs to change to our
concert uniform. Our 1:30 concert was followed by a reception, complete with a cake featuring our
logo! Now we're all (supposedly) with our hosts sleeping, as we need to be at the airport at 6:00
in the morning tomorrow. So we'd better get to bed - See ya tomorrow! (From Vancouver!)
-Update by John and Joshua (In homestay - will have others tomorrow.)
Wednesday, June 23, 1998 - Day 1 of 14
What A Mess! (Airport Ticketing Area) | Merrily Waiting for the Plane
Well, we got here! After showing up at the airport, merrily waiting for our check-in queue to
move along so we could get our boarding passes, we proceeded on down to the gate. Before getting
there, however, we had to pass through the dreaded 'metal detector of death.' Only a few of us
made it through without beeping. After careful checks to eliminate all possibilities, even the
buckles on our shoes, we were allowed to proceed. We waited more, laughed, cried, and sang at
the gate. After about a half hour, we boarded the plane. We had wheels-off at 7:15. The
approximated flight time was 1:18, and we had wheels-down at 8:38. We got off the plane, met our
homestay families and went home for the night. Tomorrow we meet at the Northern Light Church,
which will serve as our staging area for the day's activities. We'll be singing in the Capitol,
as well as performing a concert on our own. Stay tuned for more great pictures and words! See ya!
-Update by John and Joshua
Our Tour '98! Home |
Website Front Page