Choir Tour Part 1

We're back home after a ten-day trip to the northeast with 36 of our church choir friends. There is so much to tell that I'll have to spread it out over several posts. We flew to Boston on the 23rd, just in time to get rained on while loading the bus at the airport to go to our hotel. We stayed at a Holiday Inn right next to the train station at the end of the Riverside line. Our dinner and rehearsal that evening were at the Andover Newton Theological Seminary, just a couple of stops down the train line. We didn't get rained on while walking that night (but we were confused when we got off the train and didn't know which way the hotel was!), but the next morning there was plenty of rain as we headed back to the seminary for another practice session. We had only managed to pack one umbrella, so Ben, being the gracious gentleman that he is, ended up getting much wetter than I did!

Saturday afternoon was a delightful time of reunion with our former neighbors, Debbie & Greg, who moved to Maine ten years ago. We had not seen them and their daughters since then (Hayley was 3 and Hannah was 10 months old when they moved), and we got to meet their 2-year old son, Griffin. We spent the afternoon and evening exploring Boston, walking through the Boston Garden, Boston Common, Quincy Market, and the north end, enjoying the sights and sounds of historic sites mingled with the modern city. We enjoyed some great Italian food, saw some pretty amazing street performers, got rained on a bit, and just had a fun time visiting with our friends.


Sunday morning was our first time to sing. We drove to the First Baptist Church in America, located in Providence, RI, and unloaded the bus in a downpour. The church is really beautiful, steeped in history, and the people were very appreciative. Our organist played for the whole service, and we sang and rang (handbells) six or seven pieces. After the service, we went to the local mall and got lunch, then we drove to North Middleboro, MA for our evening gig. We presented our full concert to the First Baptist Church, which was the home church of Isaac Backus, a pioneer of Baptist life in America. The church was small, but the people were so glad to have us there and welcomed us enthusiastically. Here's a picture of the church.

Weary after a long, busy day, we were all glad to retire to the Holiday Inn!