Day 8: Turralbia and Teatro de Municipal
Day 8! We boarded the bus after breakfast to head to Turralbia to see the Guayabo monument. Before bus nap time, Eric entertained bus 1 with a read-aloud excerpt from a Sherlock Holmes book, with flawless accents for each character. After getting some rest, we arrived at Guayabo Monument, one of the 3,000 pre-Columbus ruins left in Costa Rica. We walked a path over 1,000 years old, and it was so beautiful to witness the structures built by Indigenous peoples so many years ago. The Guayabo Monument was designated a Human Heritage Site by the American Society of Civil Engineers and is preserved to prevent damage.
We saw the various tombs of the chiefs and other members of the tribes and learned about the general structure of the society that lived there. It was a beautiful hike and educational, and we were able to visit with some artists hanging outside of the monument, and some singers purchased their wares.
We then headed to lunch in Turralbia, where we could enjoy our casados before returning down the hill. Once in Turralbia proper, we headed to a market where local artists sold their work, with jewelry and churros being the most popular items purchased. After some downtime, it was time to prepare for this evening’s concert in the Teatro Municipal de Turralbia. The festivities began with a band and processional, where members from each performing group marched in, holding banners with the Choral Festival for Peace logos on them. After the orchestra finished playing, we were enchanted by a folkloric dance team. It was exciting to see traditional Costa Rican dances! Then the singing began!
First, we heard from two Costa Rican choirs. The first was a community chorus, and the second was a children’s chorus that performed a fun dance number. Then Ancora hit the stage! They began with Anchor Bay, then Moon Welcome, finishing with Abuelita. The audience seemed to appreciate their stellar work as an ensemble and beautiful vocal tone.
Following Ancora, Ensemble sang! They began with Canticum Novum and continued with Factum Est Silentium, and they concluded with Nagasaki, for which the announcer made a special request for silence during the performance. The festival organizers were impressed with the message and delivery of Nagasaki and wanted to ensure it was received with proper respect. At the end of the performance, the audience gave Ensemble a full 10 seconds of silence before a standing ovation, where many audience members were visibly moved to tears.
After Nagasaki, Ancora joined Ensemble for a rousing performance of Aires de Quisqueya, and then, a Costa Rican choir joined them to sing Homeward Bound. The concert concluded with another Costa Rican choir and our friends from Tobago, the Signal Hill Alumni Choir. After the concert, we had a homemade dinner prepared by a local family from Turriabla. We boarded the bus and returned to San Jose for bed. Pura Vida!
Click here for pictures and videos from today’s adventure!: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/irgt1i4bd1i8rcl/AABoYgz7EJJs-MsMQ5_8wbrha?dl=0