Visit to Europe 2008: Germany, Spain, England and Scotland
But for now, this is a snapshot of bits of the trip...
Dear friends and family,
Much of my current trip to Europe has been spent without easy access to internet cafes, so I did not do a running blog this time, neither have I sent any emails or news to anyone. Well, now that it's just about all over, here's a bit of a summary for anyone interested in where I've been for the last month...
Frankfurt : 22-23 Sep
Arrived here from Sydney. Took it easy the first day, walking around some of the city and catching a few hours sleep in the afternoon.On the second day, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe was playing at the Alte Oper. My friend Henny is a violinist with the COE. I had not told her I was going to be in Germany: instead, I planned to just turn up at the concert and startle her! I waited near the stage door for the orchestra to appear in their bus. They did, and I spotted Henny walking towards the stage door. I stepped in front of her and said "Hallo!". I think I surprised her just a little!
After the concert (Shostakovitch Cello Concerto, Beethoven Symphony 7), we met up for a drink and an enjoyable catch-up.
Munich : 24-Sep
The Oktoberfest was in full swing, I'd never been, so thought I should take the opportunity to drop in for a beer. Took the train from Frankfurt (I'm travelling on Eurailpass as usual) and spent the afternoon in Munich. The Bier fest is enormous, with each brewery's "tent" several times bigger than the famous Hofbrauhaus in the town centre. It's also a huge fairground. Good fun for a few hours, after which I headed out of town, towards Spain via Paris and then the TGV to the south of France.Spain : 27-Sep to 6-Oct
Made my way down through France into Spain, then via Barcelona and Zaragosa to Leon, where I was met by my sister, Cynthia. Cyn had been in Spain on an archeological dig, and had invited me to join her while she took a week's holiday at her house in the little village of Villasecino, near Leon.It was a pleasant week, isolated from modern inventions such as the Internet, except for when we visited the nearby towns of Leon and Oviedo. An astonishing number of mediaeval and Romanesque churches in the region. So many buildings dating from as early as the 12th century, maintained in very good condition. Seeing these is always a stark reminder of just how new everything in Australia is, where we tend to knock buildings down after a few decades and build something bigger and newer, and where anything from the 19th century is considered "ancient".
Cyn also drove me to a part of the Camino de Santiago pilgrims trail, one of the many routes across Spain which pilgrims have walked for centuries, leading to the cathedral at Santiago de Compostela in the far west of Spain, and which in modern times is enjoying a resurgence of popularity. People now walk the Camino for many reasons, not always purely religious, like escaping the pressures of modern society and evaluating the direction in their lives, or just for the achievement. Cyn walked one of the northern routes - over 800km - couple of years ago! On one section she had passed through a village where a trio of monks sing Vespers in Gregorian chant every evening. We revisited this spot - by car, not walking this time! - and heard the monks sing again. Quite fascinating. They provided service sheets which included the mediaeval musical symbols, so if you can follow that, there are parts where you can join in the singing! (Yes, we tried in a couple of spots, but cautiously and not too loudly!)
Cyn had taken her car into Spain on the ferry that runs between Plymouth and Santander. On the 6th October we drove to Santander for the overnight return trip. The Brittany Ferry is large, modern and comfortable. It's like a mini cruise, complete with entertainment. No real band, understandably for a ferry run, but quite a good magic act and singers with electronic backing in the cabaret lounge, and there was a real live cocktail pianist in one of the other bars, who wasn't too bad. I really enjoyed the feeling of being at sea again, so stayed up late and perhaps had one drink too many after Cyn retired to the cabin. Good fun!
England : 7-Oct to 13-Oct
I met up with a musical friend from Canberra, Gemma, who also happened to be on holiday in Britain at this time. One thing she had arranged to do while here was to sit for her RSCM Voice for Life Gold Medal, the Royal School of Church Music's highest singing award. I accompanied her on the piano for the exam, which was held in the choir practice room of Guildford Cathedral. All very interesting. (No result at time of writing this, but I think she did well!).After the exam, we went and saw the London production of Monty Python's Spamalot - hysterical!
Edinburgh : 14-15 Oct
Took a train up to Edinburgh to revisit the scene of some of my earliest musical failures (I was a music student at Edinburgh Uni in 1971, lasting only one year before running away to play rubbish on cruise ships). It's a lovely city, and it's amazing how little it has changed! Shortly after arriving, I discovered the Scottish Chamber Orchestra was about to start playing a short one-hour concert at St Cuthbert's church in the city, so I went along. Elgar Serenade for Strings and a piece I'd never heard of by Tchaikovsky, 'Souvenir de Florence', which was very bright and tuneful. The SCO played with great gusto - a good band!
The next day, I visited the Royal Yacht Britannia, now preserved as a floating museum at Leith, doubly fascinating for an old ships' musician and monarchist!
Then in the afternoon I visited the Uni's famous collection of old keyboard instuments, something I'd somehow missed seeing when there as a student. They have some harpsichords dating from the 1600s, many in excellent playing condition!
The Final Countdown : 16-19 Oct
Took train from Edinburgh back to London, then onto the Eurostar, arriving Paris at 11.15 pm, just to overnight.
Then took train to Heidelberg on 17th October for a last couple of days in Germany before flying home on Sunday 19th. With a 12-hour stop in Bankok plus the time difference, I will not arrive back in Australia until Tuesday 21 Oct.
At time of writing, I have just arrived in Heidelberg.
And later, back in Australia, we learned that Gemma had attained her RSCM Gold Medal with Distinction!
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