Chorus Trip 2010
News & pictures from the travelers
Follow this link for pictures:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/valley_schools/sets/72157623514610669/show/
Today was not as rushed of a day for us, but we saw a lot of things. We headed into the city a half hour later so we avoided a great deal of the rush hour traffic. We arrived at the National Archives and got in line. We got in very quickly. We have found that security is very, very tight. Many people have mentioned how so many things have changed. You use to enter the Archives up the steps and in the front door. Now you enter underneath the building, it is just like going through airport security.
Inside the archives we saw the Declaration of Independence, Magna Carta and the Bill of Rights. After the Archives we went to the Holocaust Museum. It was an extremely well done museum that spanned three floors. It is a very somber atmosphere with many people wandering around but not much talking. It was a moving afternoon. It caused all of us to stop and think about what many people went through and how they were treated.
We then headed to the Fourth Street Presbyterian Church. This is the church that Abraham Lincoln attended. There is even a pew that was left from when he attended services there and is called the 'Lincoln pew." Many other Presidents have attended services there too. The students spent two and half hours singing and performing with the guest clinician. The acoustics in the building were amazing. Our students really filled the place with the their voices.
After the clinic, we loaded the bus for a two hour ride back to Baltimore. We went to Toby's Dinner Theatre where we saw the play Oliver.
The food was delicious, and we all loved the play. Oliver was a very cute little boy whom some of our girls wanted to take home because he was such a doll.
We arrived back home around 10:45 and tried to settle down for our last night in the motel.
We hate to think about leaving Washington but are anxious to get home and tell everyone about our trip.
Another busy day in D.C.
We started the day by loading the busses and heading out. We ran into some heavy traffic and were delayed for a while. We spent the morning touring George Washington's home, Mt. Vernon. We then loaded the busses and headed to the Capital. We thought we were late for our scheduled tours. So the bus dropped us off and we hiked it up the hill to the Capital. As we walked we noticed some snipers sitting in the corners on rooftops. As we rounded the corner on the back side of the Capital we realized why they were there. President Obama was there speaking to the House and Senate. It was really crazy! Police and security were everywhere. We got to see him walk down the Capital steps.
After things quieted down from his visit we were finally able to enter the Capital. We toured that. It was amazing to stand in the Rotunda and look up.
After the Capital we boarded the busses and headed for supper. We had a sit down supper at an Italian restaurant. After supper we took a bus tour of many of the memorials, in front of the White House and many other really neat places. Once again our tour guides boarded the busses and did an excellent job showing us around the city.
We have learned so much and are having a great time. We arrived back at the hotel at 11 just in time for bed.
The kids are doing an amazing job of being good listeners. They have been so flexible with our schedule changes and all the places we have herded them in and out of. Many people have commented on how polite and well mannered they are. We are very proud to be with our Valley Chorus!
We finally arrived at Gettysburg. around 11:30 this morning. We had some issues with regulation hot and cold on bus number 2 (freshman/soph) on the way here, but our drivers were so good about everything. Such nice nice people. Some people found some really comfortable spots on the bus to sleep while others did not sleep much at all.
Today we went to Gettysburg. The weather is beautiful here. We had great tour guides that got right on our bus. We drove around and looked at some of the 25 plus acres of battlefield. We stopped the bus at several places and got off to get a closer look at the monuments and things. It was very informative. After the guided tour, we spent some time looking around the gift shop. Then we did a walking tour of the Gettysburg National cemetery and where Abe Lincoln gave his address.
For supper we went to the Dobbin house. We all sat down to a buffet supper of delicious food. After supper we boarded the busses for a 2 hour ride to our motel. We arrived and got settled in.
Many exhausted people (like the chaperones) but we are having a great time. Tomorrow is another busy busy day.
