It's been a good day so far...

So far today we have been to the Cork School of Music (I think that's what it was called) to practice our set for the competition and make sure everything was solid for this morning's performance. It went pretty well, although tensions are high because our competition is getting closer and closer. Then we got on our trusty coach bus and drove to a place called Cove, or in Gaelic, Cobh which is the port where all the immigrants who traveled to America, Australia, Britain, etc. went out of. It's the Ellis Island of Ireland -- if you want to trace back your lineage to immigrants, that's where you go to do it. It was, in my opinion, the most beautiful place we've been so far. It's right on the water (obviously, since it's a port) and the contrast of the blue water with the green landscape was gorgeous. It's also much more rural than Cork and you can see how the fields are laid out like patchwork as you drive through the countryside. We went to a school there in Cove to sing for a group of about 150-200 children. By the way, parents who are reading this, thanks for sending us to good schools in America -- that school needed some serious help. Anyway, we sang in their gym, which had AMAZING acoustics -- Silence of Time was magical with the echo effect it provided. We sang our whole competition set, plus our 3 "fun" songs. Chamber Choir sang Michelle and Country Dances, which both sounded good -- they were definitely a crowd pleaser. We closed with Star of the County Down, which all Irish people love because they know it (I guess it's like Sweet Home Alabama to us) and He's Got the Whole World in His Hands. There was this cute little old nun in the audience who was getting down to Whole World -- she was ALL about the choral music. ;-) Then we left there and went to visit the port where the immigrants boarded the ships. Like any historical site, it has been turned into a tourist attraction, which was still cool. It is a simulation of what the immigrants went through on their journey to America (or wherever they were going). It was really neat and educational -- always a plus. I actually found the Woods family name on the list of immigrants (Woods is my mom's maiden name) so I could possibly be Irish.

And now once again, we're back at the hotel. We sing again at 4:45 in the hotel lobby.

Thanks for all the posts. Charles left us a good piece of advice:

"Sounds like yall are having a great time...and I know you all are singing wonderfully. Just hang on EVERY word Dr. Copeland has to say to you, and always sing ACTIVELY. Don't try to oversing, and just have fun! Yall are great and love to you all. p.s. have a pint for me"

I think we should try to listen to those words of wisdom, especially since Charles has been through this before.

Keep posting comments! Tomorrow's the competition! Check back for the results!