JULY 17, 2003At right, Our choristers and chaperones arrive at the airport.
Photo below -- We sing for Channel 6 WPVI-News, who were there to send us off.
Scroll down to learn more!
E-Mail of Wednesday, July 23
Choristers
arrived at Buckfast
Abbey on Friday afternoon, July 18, after
the flight from Philadelphia to London. We
had a wonderful drive from London, with a
stop at Stonehenge to see the ancient stones
and hear the stories on an audio headset.
The weekend was spent settling in at our
three houses at Buckfast Abbey and traveling
to Truro in
far southwest England. We sang a Choral Eucharist
and a Choral Evensong at the Cathedral there
which is the birthplace of the singing of
Lessons and Carols. We then were invited
by a parishioner to have dinner (all 45 of
us!) at her lovely Manor House in the country
outside Truro.She had a beautiful spread
of Cornish Pasties with chicken and meat
and great, juicy hamburgers which were from
the beef grown on the manor. We even saw
her resident pig, Antonia, who resides in
her pigpen in the field.
. . 
. Monday,
we began a week at the Cathedral
of St. Peter in Exeter. Our Choral Evensong was
beautiful.
Yesterday,
Tuesday, July 22, we had a great day in Devon.
We took an open top pleasure cruise boat up
the Dart River (Dart is Celtic for Oak Tree
-- trees which line the Dart River, hence its
name). We ate delicious box lunches while we
cruised along, seeing the Royal
Naval College in Dartmouth (where the current
Queen met Prince Philip when she was only a
teenager), homes of Sir Walter Raleigh and
Agatha Christie, and resort homes along the
Dart. We then spent the day in the seaside
towns of Totnew and Peignten. We finished our
day with an authentic Steam Train Ride and
a ferryboat back across the Dart River.The
young choristers and chaperones ate by the
River at a place called Pizzazz and the adult
singers had a feast at Chez Cachet in Dartmouth.
Today,
Wednesday, we will return to sing another Evensong
in Exeter at 5:30 p.m. before a night on the
town at local restaurants. We are all having
a wonderful time. The young choristers have
performed absolutely professionally and have
been a pleasure to those of us who are in Grangehurst
with them.
Thanks
to everyone who made the trip possible. Our
prayers are with all of you as I know yours
are with us.
--Peggy Patterson and the Cathedral Choir and Choir
School Choristers.
E-Mail
of Thursday, July 24
This morning the Choir is rehearsing
in the beautiful Romanesque Buckfast
Abbey Church for their 1:30 p.m. concert.
They are standing in front of the gorgeous
gold leaf alter panel and under an eighteen-foot-across
circular chandelier. The acoustics in the
Abbey are so resonant that the Choir actually
sounds like angel voices.
This
afternoon there will be time for browsing
in the Abbey Gift and Book Shops which contain
lots of handmade beeswax candles, Buckfast
honey, lavendar products, and pottery all
made by the Benedictine monks. There is also
a vast Monk's Shop which includes items made
by monasteries and convents all over Europe.
This
evening the young Choristers have organized
a dance and talent show in Grangehurst, their
home away from home.
Lisa
Slinkard arrived Wednesday afternoon, meeting
us in Exeter for Evensong. She will be here
for the rest of the trip.
--Peggy Patterson
E-Mail of Friday, July 25
There was an enthusiastic crowd at yesterday's 1:30
p.m. Abbey Concert. People spontaneously burst
into applause after "For the beauty of the
earth" by Rutter and the spirituals.
After the Concert a Benectine
monk who has lived at the Abbey for 20 years
gave the group a tour which included a lot
of the Abbey's history. Founded as a monastery
in 1018, the Abbey closed in 1539 when the
Cisterian monks were forced to leave the
site following the order of Henry VIII who
dissolved the monasteries of England. In
1907 a team of only six monks began work
to restore the Abbey on the original foundation.
Their amazing work was completed 30 years
later in 1937. No other monastery has been
rebuilt to largely its original form within
a single lifetime.
Later
in the evening, the younger choristers organized
a Talent Show at Grangehurst. Every chorister
played a role. The adult choristers were
the audience. An amazing array of talent
was displayed including: irish, interpretive
and hip-hop dancing; a rap (which began with
the phrase "The Choir is the place to
be, it's just you (pause), my fellows and
me"); a poem about the pervasiveness
of love; a cappela singing; the "banana
cheer"; and an on-site creation of a
small masterpiece drawing.
Today
after rehearsal, the group will go to the
beach town of Paignton to shop and play at
the arcade (the town is said to be somewhat
like Rehoboth).
--Lisa F. Slinkard
E-Mail
of Saturday, July 26
Yesterday, younger choristers spent the afternoon
in the beach town of Paighton. They enjoyed shopping,
swimming in the ocean and playing games in the arcade.
Then they traveled to Brixton and enjoyed a dinner
of fish and chips while watching the seagulls. Some
adult choristers traveled to Bath to enjoy the day
and others went to see a 50 room Country Estate.
Today after rehearsal and lunch at Buckfast we travel
to Exeter to get ready for Evensong. After the Evensong,
we'll enjoy a party given by Canon Carl Turner and
then dinner at Dartbridge Inn.
Tomorrow will be a busy day with choristers leaving
at 7:30 a.m. for Exeter to sing Holy Eucharist, Choral
Matins and Choral Evensong before travelling on to
the medieval Church of St. Petrox in Dartmouth for
Evensong. Dean Peggy Patterson will preach both Choral
Matins at Exeter and Evensong at St. Petrox.
Thus
far into our Tour of England, choristers
list the following as their trip favorites:
--Lisa F. Slinkard
E-Mail
of Sunday, July 27
Today, all of our concerts went extremely well. In
between concerts at Exeter, we had lunch in the Exeter
School cafeteria. The Choral Evensong at the Parish
of Dartmouth S.Petrox Chapel was lovely. The Chapel
was lit entirely by candlelight. The Evensong began
with four Chapel parishioners pulling the large bells
at the back of the church. The Choir then sang "Ev'ry
time I feel the Spirit" by William S. Dawson
as the Introit.
After
the Evensong we went to a barbecue at "Paradise
Point," the home of Duncan Gerrard,
Esq., S.Petrox and Parish Warden in Dartmouth.
We enjoyed hamburgers, chicken and sausages
cooked out on the grill and enjoyed a spectacular
view of the sunset over the water. After
everyone had had their fill, recognition
was made to Christopher Helyer, Headmaster
Exeter Choir School, for all of his fine
work in organzing the tour from England;
to organist Matthew Boatmon; to Dean Peggy
Patterson; and to Choirmaster Dr. Darryl
Roland.
--Lisa F. Slinkard
E-Mail
of Monday, July 28
We took a large coach bus to London and arrived in
the early afternoon. Then young choristers, sponsors
and interested adults took a walk through Hyde Park,
got some lunch, and caught a red line Double Decker
Tour Bus at the Marble Arches. From the Bus we saw
many sights, including: Speaker's Corner, Regent
Street, Kensington High Street, Piccadilly Circus,
St. Paul's Cathedral, Westminster Abbey, Buckingham
Palace, Big Ben, the City of Londong, Downing Street
and the London Eye. Then we took a Thames River Boat
Cruise and enjoyed the cool breeze as we sat back
and saw more sights from the water, including London
Bridge and the Tower of London.
Afterwards, we went to the restaurant
Planet Hollywood London for dinner. We also
began celebrating Dr. Roland's birthday.
We included his name in the restaurant's
video birthday announcements that appear
on video screens throughout the restaurant.
Each time his name appeared on the screen,
we gave him an enthusiastic round of applause.
--Lisa F. Slinkard
E-Mail of Tuesday, July 29
This morning we were free to see more sights of London
in small groups. Some groups went to Westminster
Abbey for a tour, some went window shopping, and
others did some serious souvenir shopping for family
members. We then took a coach bus to London's Heathrow
Airport to take our flight back to Philadelphia
Airport. This ended our incredible Tour of England
2003.
--Lisa F. Slinkard
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