Day 10 - Arrival in Hochhausen!
We met our singers early this morning at the music school in Hamburg to start our journey to Hochhausen! Our hosts from the Hamburg Mädchenchor were sad to see us go after only one night – they said there was much more that they would have like to show us. We all agreed, as in the very short amount of time we were in Hannover we saw beautiful architecture that we all would have loved to explore. We all agreed we will have to come back to Hamburg soon, and look forward to the Mädchenchor visiting us one day in California! Fingers crossed.
We hit the road around 8:30 for our long trip. Luckily, we were able to make only three stops! Elizabeth Fiske, whose 15th birthday was today, was generous to share her delicious treats that her host mother had lovingly packed for her. The bus trip was long, but provided beautiful scenery of the German countryside. Bob also spent part of the last leg of the trip doing sectionals to further perfect Last Ditch the Fight of the Wish and Mariposa, to make sure we are all set for our final two performances at the end of this week. At the very end of our bus ride, we sang all three of our birthday songs for Elizabeth, which now includes Viel Glück und viel Segen, thanks to chaperone Katrina.
After arriving in the charmingly picturesque town of Hochhausen, we were greeted by our host Sue Malick. John and Sue Malicks’ son is an alumni of PEBCC and his daughter now sings in Training Department. Sue also still serves on the board! We were all spoiled to find the Malick’s barn filled with goodie bags for all the singers, in addition to three beautiful homemade cakes, and some local Hochhausen cider that is made communally by the town each year. After a quick snack of cake and juice, the singers met their hosts, performed a lively rendition of Mariposa, and were off to explore the town and get to know their homestays for the next five nights.
Five of us chaperones are thrilled to be staying in the Malick’s amazing home during this trip, while Bob, Sue, and Suzie will be hosted by the Hochhausen Count, Dietrich, and his wife! All 8 of us were treated to a spectacular meal, cooked by Sue, and a special dessert of ice cream and preserved cherries (which Sue makes herself!)
We are all thrilled to be able to stay in this amazing place for the rest of our stay in Germany, which will be filled with tons of sight seeing, a bit of shopping, and hopefully learning much more about the history of this spectacular town!
Singing to Elizabeth: https://youtu.be/w0icQTAlS9s
Singing upon arrival in Hochhausen: https://youtu.be/bmixRbHGBPE
Click through the slideshow below for highlights:
