Our first full day in Italy

After a much needed night's rest, the chorale began the day with some sightseeing. Our double decker bus dropped us off at the Roman forum: the sight of many famous ancient ruins. Some students visited the Circo Maximo - the location of famous cariot races. Others strolled around and visited churches, including one where St. Valentine's skull is on display (Thanks for the details, Jen Myers). Others visited the Colosseum. I spent all my time there because I wanted to see the inside of the great structure. By the time we finally got in, we almost immediately had to leave again in order to catch the bus. At first I regretted not having enough time, but I guess no amount of time is really ample enough to totally explore the entire city.

After our sightseeing we went back to the hotel to practice some music and then set off for the Vatican to sing at a mass at St. Peter's Basilica. I think our experience would best be described as intensely beautiful and wonderfully insane. There was no way to prepare for this event so we all approached it with as much flexability as possible. In almost every way, things worked out in our favor. We thought we'd only be allowed to sing two or three songs at the most, but in the end we did all six possibilities, including a Gregorian chant and pieces by Poulenc I thought would not be accepted. The standing arrangement was not ideal, but we managed. The acoustics were amazing, sending warm echos of our singing back to us, but it was almost impossible to hear the people singing around you. I think the most terrifying music experience of my life was singing one piece that started quietly with all basses. I literally could not hear anyone else. We were tightrope walking without a net. Luckily, we somehow stayed together amd the piece was a success.

The entire trip was bizarre. Our bus parked in an underground lot that looked like it should be for a mall. When we rose to the street we were in St. Peter's Square before I even knew we were in the vatican. After singing several songs on our way to the church, we finally entered the structure. The baroque extravagence of the building was overwhelming. I think the most striking thing was the biblical verse set in giant golden letters around the great dome. "Tu es Petrus" it said, from Jesus telling his apostle Peter that he will be the rock of the church. These happened to be the lyrics to our final song and it was awesome to look up at the giant letters in some sort of holy karaoke. As we hit the final magnificant chord of the song, I knew we had done a very good job. We were complimented in both Italian and English by many people including Basilica regulars and professional singers.

After this incredible experience, we were dropped off at the Piazza Trilussa to have dinner on our own. I expected to walk a short distance into the center of the city, but I was surprised to find no shortage of delicious looking restaurants, pubs, and bars in the immediate area. A group of eight of us found a place where we could eat outside on the street. I was able to sample my first true Italian pizza and everything they say about it being completely amazing is true.

We have many more opportunities for sightseeing, singing, and pizza on the rest of the tour. We are all looking forward to it and I hope you are looking forward to hearing about it.