Erfurt - Day 4

Guten Morgen!

Breaking our normal morning routine, once we arrived to the Musikschule, we skipped rehearsal and loaded up on the bus, heading to Erfurt, the capital of Thüringen. The kids were quite excited to do something different, get out to see the sites, and most of all, spend the afternoon shopping!! The ride from Meiningen was about an hour and a half. Once we arrived, kids got 50 euro coins to use the WC (what we have to pay to go to the bathroom!) We then hiked up many stairs and a hill to see an old fort where at some point, Napoleon stayed, and it was also where Gütenberg first used his printing press, publishing the first Bible. From the top of this hill, we also had a great view of the whole city. At that location, we set up camp for a bit and enjoyed our bagged lunches, either from our home stays or sandwiches that we had prepared. The Costco peanut butter sandwiches were the biggest hit, probably because the kids have been eating lots of meat and cheese from their home stays!

After lunch, we had a guided tour of a few historical landmarks led by Christine, a former member of Matthias' choir. She took us to the cathedral, which was quite a sight. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erfurt_Cathedral The acoustics in the cathedral were amazing and we took advantage of them, singing "Leise, Leise" and "No Enemies No Bombs." The visitors in the church were nothing short of amazed. When I spoke with a few of them, telling them they were competing in Bratislava, one said, "they will come home with the gold for sure!" After our brief performance, all the kids were treated to an ice cream. Some of the girls went to find a bakery to buy lots of birthday treats for Nick, which he thoroughly enjoyed. The kids wondered around the central shopping district, finding little trinkets along the way. The kids enjoyed seeing some familiar stores we have at home, especially H&M. After an afternoon of shopping, we loaded up on the bus and headed back to Meiningen, where the kids were greeted by their home stays and went home for their final night with them. What a fun day!

Tschüs!