Love from Nauplia

First, let me start by saying ``Greek keyboards are tricky!``

Any typos from here on out are acceptable.


Sorry all to who have been follwing the blog with no results. We`ve had a bit of a slow start, but it`s only because we`ve been so incredibly busy! The last few days have been full of momuments (the Parthenon on the Athens Acropolis or highest point of a city, the famous apitheatrre, the ancient city of Mycenae and the Venetian fortress atop of the acropolis of Nauplia. 

We have learned not only a lot about this country, but a lot about one another over the last few days.  We`ve been letting our walls down and getting to know individuals better.  We hope to continue this trend as we move back to Athens tomorrow and Crete the following day.

We have had a number of fantastic musical experiences as well over the past few days: we sang in both the ampithetre & the tomb of Agamemnon in Mycenae as well as performed 2 concerts.  First was in Athens for over 1000 people (and unfortunately, their ringing cell phones at times) as well as a small audience at a church in the center square.  In my 3 years, I don`t know if I`ve ever heard concert choir sound so good. So many wonderful memories.

Tomorrow we head back to our Athens hotel for a new year`s celebration - can`t wait!

Hopefully the next post will be complete with video & picture- way more difficult than I thought from a public computer (in the Greek alphabet...)


-Lauren S.

Greetings from Athens!

Kalispera from Athens, Greece! (That means good afternoon!)

Wanted to throw out a quick line to tell you all that we have arrived safely, luggage and all : )

It is currently 10:21 pm here and we are definitely exhausted after a long day!  We arrived at the airport around 9:45 am (Athens time), went through customs, and hopped on our busses for a  tour of the city.  What a beautiful place!  An interesting mix of old and new- ten story buildings next to ruins of a temple dedicated to Zeus...unreal.

The weather thus far has been very nice and sunny! Much like a Wisconsin spring (when it's behaving, that is.)  There are many dogs and cats roaming around the neighborhoods and they have fruit trees everywhere!!

We had a lovely dinner at our five star hotel, met our tour guide & manager, and then got the chance to sing with one another for the first time since leaving campus for break.  Maybe jet lag had something to do with it, but I'd say it was quite an emotional experience for us :)

Tomorrow we'll be up to the Parthenon and performing our first concert for OVER 1,000 PEOPLE!!

Opa!!

-Lauren Schell 

Just in case...

...you wanted to see some photo-shopped photos of us in Greece...

Only 5 more days!!

Welcome!

Hello friends and family of Concert Choir!

The members of the ensemble have set this up in order to keep you informed (and entertained!)  as we travel through the beautiful country of Greece and the island of Crete!  We're not quite sure what internet access will be like overseas, but we're assuming we'll be able to update from our hotels.  With luck, we'll be able to take you with us through words and pictures!

Here is our current scheduled itinerary:

Day 1	Monday, December 26
Depart from Minneapolis via scheduled air service to Athens, Greece

Day 2	Tuesday, December 27 Athens (D)
9:30am	Arrive in Athens
Meet your MCI Tour Manager, Maria Papakonstantinou, who will assist the group to awaiting chartered motorcoach for a transfer to the hotel via orientation tour of Athens’ highlights en route, including Plaka, Constitution Square, and Kendriki Agora (Central Market)
2:00pm	Late afternoon hotel check-in at Hotel Metropolitan
7:00pm	Evening Welcome Dinner at the hotel

Day 3	Wednesday, December 28 Athens (B,D)
7:00am	Breakfast at the hotel
9:00am	Participate in a morning tour of Athens, including a visit to the Acropolis (Parthenon)
Lunch on own
Also visit the National Archaeological Museum
3:00pm	Return to the hotel
5:00pm	Dinner at the hotel
6:00pm	Transfer to ACS Center
6:30pm	Rehearsal for concert
8:30pm 10:30pm	Evening concert at Athens Theater in the Arts Center of ACS Transfer back to the hotel
Day 4	Thursday, December 29 Athens / Nauplia (B,D)
7:00am	Breakfast at the hotel followed by hotel check-out
8:00am	Transfer to Epidaurus
Lunch on own
1:00pm	Continue to Mycenae to visit this ancient city
4:00pm	Then it is off to Nauplia for overnight
7:00pm	Dinner at the Hotel Amalia
Day 5	Friday, December 30 Nauplia (B,D)
7:00am	Breakfast at the hotel
9:00am	Half-day sightseeing tour including seeing Palamedes Fort. The Palamedes Fort (Palamídi) is a powerful complex of eight bastions built on top of a hill 216m above sea level. The parapet walk provides magnificent views of Nauplion, the bay, the Argolid plain and the coastline of the Peloponnese
Lunch on own
2:00pm	Return to the hotel
5:30pm	Dinner at the hotel
6:45pm	Transfer to Vouleftikon Venue for the Sacred Music Festival
7:00pm	Rehearsal for concert
9:00pm	Evening shared concert with Nauplia Polyphonic Choir & Nea Kios
Choir as part of the Nauplia Sacred Music Festival
11:00pm	Transfer back to the hotel

Day 6	Saturday, December 31 Nauplia / Athens (B,D)
7:00am	Breakfast at the hotel followed by hotel check-out
9:00am	Return to Athens via Corinth. Corinth is a powerful, prosperous Greek city that controlled the sea routes linking Attica and the Peloponnese, the Ionian and the Aegean Seas. It’s almost impregnable acropolis Acrocorinth, controlled movement in all directions on the Isthmus of Corinth
Lunch on own
Drive to Athens
3:00pm	Check into Hotel Metropolitan
7:00pm	Dinner at the hotel
Possibly attend a New Year’s Eve Party
Day 7	Sunday, January 1 Athens / Crete (B,D)
7:00am	Breakfast at the hotel followed by hotel check-out
8:30am	Transfer to St. Paul Piraeus Cathedral
Enjoy a full-day of New Year’s Day festivities. New Year’s day is one of the most exciting days of the year in Greece and will be sure to live up to the expectations
9:00am	Rehearsal
10:30am	Sing/participate in mass followed by a concert at St. Paul Catholic Cathedral of Pireaus
Lunch on own
7:00pm	Transfer to the Port for embarking the ferry to Crete
7:45pm	Board your overnight ferry (that is more like a cruise ship), the Knossos Palace, to Crete
8:00pm	Dinner and overnight on board
Day 8	Monday, January 2 Crete / Heraklion (B,D)
6:00am	Morning arrival in Heraklion, Crete. The beautiful island combines mythology, history, tradition, and life, making for an exciting destination
7:00am	Breakfast on board
8:00am	Disembark ship and transfer to hotel for luggage drop off
Walking in Heraklion City
Lunch on own
Enjoy some time at leisure to relax possibly enjoying some beach time or to explore the island
5:00pm	Dinner at the hotel
6:15pm	Transfer to St. Mark Basilica
6:30pm	Rehearsal for concert
8:30pm	Greek–American Friendship Concert at Basilica San Marco sponsored by the Mayor of Heraklion
10:30pm	Check into Heraklion Astoria Hotel
Day 9	Tuesday, January 3 Crete / Athens (B,D)
7:00am	Breakfast at the hotel followed by hotel check-out
9:00am	Enjoy a visit to the Minoan Palace of Knossos, home to king Minos and his legendary beast, the Minotaur. Knossos is grander, more complex, and more flamboyant than any of the other palaces known to us in Crete
12:00pm	Return to Heraklion
Lunch on own
Spending time in Heraklion City
7:00pm	Board your overnight ferry, the Festos Palace
7:30pm	Dinner and overnight on board

Day 10	Wednesday, January 4 Athens (B,D)
6:00am	Morning arrival in Piraeus
7:00am	Breakfast on board
8:00am	Disembark ship and transfer to the New Acropolis Museum. A walk through the New Museum’s galleries is a walk through history – between the masterpieces of the Archaic and Classical periods, but also in the ancient neighborhoods of Athens. The museum has over 14,000 square meters of exhibition space
Lunch on own
Check into Metropolitan Hotel
7:00pm	Farewell Dinner and overnight
8:00pm	Luggage out of the rooms for pickup/storage from the Hotel staff
Day 11	Thursday, January 5 Depart for home (B)
1:30am	Collect Breakfast Boxes
2:00am	Transfer to Athens International Airport for return flight to Minneapolis
4:55am	Depart Athens via KL flight 1572

You can also reach us by email: concertchoirgreece@gmail.com

Opa!

~Lauren Schell