Drake Choir Tour 2012: Friday, May 18

Friday, May 18, 2012
by Sarah Bannon, alto and 2011-2012 Drake Choir President

We made it! I was on the first flight to Minneapolis and after a slight delay we made it to Minneapolis. A large group of us ate dinner together at T.G.I. Fridays and wandered around exploring the airport. We boarded the flight around 8:40pm Minneapolis time and that’s when my nerves started to kick in! I’ve flown internationally before, but the nerves seem to get me every time. I feel like the choir had quite the range from very nervous to flying pros.



Eight hours later we landed in the London-Heathrow airport, got those passport stamps, and we were off!  Our wonderful tour managers, Tom Doyle and Anita Baker, led us to our coaches and we headed towards Stonehenge. We stopped along the way to get a bite to eat and some fresh air. I was able to get some coffee to fight the jet lag (they had a Starbucks where we stopped!) and also some snacks for the road. I love the grocery stores in England because they have so much variety in terms of “grab and go” things, such as sandwiches, salads, and fruit. Yum!

We arrived at Stonehenge an hour or so later and began the audio-guided tour. The tour went in a circle around the site and there were points along the way where you clicked a number on the audio device to hear information about Stonehenge. I started with the first few numbers, but then got distracted by all the photo opportunities! I think my favorite photo of all of them is the one of the entire Drake Choir. We partially blocked the walkway to take the photo, but it’s definitely a good one!

Next we made the trip to Hereford, which is about twenty miles away from Wales. We broke up into our dinner groups and checked in at the hotel. We were treated to a three-course meal – it was a very nice change from airport food and snacks! We had different options to choose from for each course and I think everyone enjoyed their choices.

Now, I am back at the hotel getting ready for bed. It still baffles me that yesterday I was on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean! I am looking forward to what the rest of the tour holds for the Drake Choir and our first performance tomorrow evening!

Following is the link to Friday's photos:

Friday May 18th