Days 1 & 2 - Travel to Barcelona
Today was an uneventful but long travel day. All flights were on time and everybody's luggage showed up...eventually. After arriving to the Barcelona airport, we were met by Oscar and Margarita. We bussed to the school where host families were eagerly waiting. Hosts were matched up with kids (many had already been in communication) and headed home to get to know each other, have some dinner and hopefully get some sleep. While rest was had by all on the long flight, the short flight and even on the short bus ride to the school, everyone was pretty beat from the long travel day and jet lag.
New adventures tomorrow... see below for more info from Day Two.
Buenos Días and bienvenido to this year's 2016 tour to España!
We are pleased to say that we all made it safe and sound, 45 very excited singers, and 7 great chaperones, with all our luggage and ready to go!
Flying into Barcelona was nothing shy of beautiful. Looking out the windows, flying over the beautiful Mediterranean and looking at the long beach lined shores, we all seemed to get over our jetlag and were ready to go!
Once we landed, we met our hosts, conductor of Cor Vivaldi, Oscar, and friend Margarita and left for Escola Ipsi to meet our host families.
On the way over, we learned a little about Barcelona, the languages spoken here, along with some of their traditional dishes to be on the search for, including a pureed tomato sauce spread over bread (delicious) and omelets, two very traditional staples in this area. We also learned the story behind tapas! Apparently, a long time ago, this area was filled with lots of bugs, so many, that whenever anyone got a drink at the bar, they would inevitably have a little critter landing in it! To help prevent that, they would put a piece of ham on the glass, "tapas," to keep their beverage safe! That is how the history of tapas started!
Our singers and host families were really excited to be united with each other, many of whom have already communicated via social media. Our kids traditionally greeted their families with a kiss on each side of the cheek and were off! Many little Spanish siblings looking up to their new American sisters and brothers for the next few days, holding hands, smiles, and then they were off.
Chaperones had a nice evening eating dinner atop a shopping mall, with beautiful views of the city skyline and sunset. The weather, very much like home, with a nice breeze. With our bellies full and happy, we were off to bed, looking forward to the next morning!
Click through the slideshow below to view some highlights from today:
