Gloucester

April 26, 2012 Norwich We drove from Cambridge to Norwich and went first to a workshop. I always enjoy the workshops because it's a chance to share a lot about our music making with people who speak our same language. Unfortunately, our workshop in Norwich was with a very young group and we quickly found a bond through the music of Glee than through our regular repertoire. It was a bit rowdy for my taste, but hopefully some of those kids could feel something inspiring.  Following the workshop we went to Norwich Castle. After eating a nice sack lunch on the castle grounds, we had a nice tour of the castle by a local member of the church who just finished his dissertation on the history of the castle. It was a neat tour with lots of great history. So sad that for 500 years of its history it served as a prison before being given to the city as a historical landmark, now converted to a museum.  The feeling through all of Norwich was very old. The shops just down from the castle have been bustling since before the 9th century. To enjoy the city better, Michelle and I split off with Devin & Rachael. We went to first to the Norwich Cathedral which was absolutely stunning. While we were there, word got out that members of a choir were in the cathedral. We assembled and found that nearly half the choir was present with proportional representation from each section. So, we gathered an sang 2 songs. It was really incredible to sing in that space.  We wanted to have time to peruse the shops, so Michelle and I went with the Andertons to the shops where Michelle found a "big girl purse" as she puts it. That's how she decided to spend some of her graduation money.  We had to hurry back to our rehearsal sight which was St. Andrews Hall in Norwich. The rehearsal went well, but it was the first time I felt like members of the choir were beginning to feel the stress of tour. After our rehearsal we split into sections for a bit of kumbayah. I thought it was good timing and hopefully will prevent stress and frustration to grow. (Group dynamics on tour are very interesting.) After dinner, we sang another great concert. We're really, really spoiled this tour with the venues we have lined up. St. Andrews Hall was a great place to sing and the audience was really warm. We also had many dignitaries in attendance. What struck me the most was a tidbit of information that our concert sponsor included in a pamphlet for us about the area. Apparently the last time the Mormon church was addressed formally in St Andrews Hall was during the early days of the church in England when several pastors called a meeting there to discuss the erroneous Mormon doctrine. It was incredible to contrast that with the warm welcome we received from the Lord Mayor and all other dignitaries in attendance.  The most important part of our time in Norwich is named Rosalie Samaroo. Rosalie is a Scottish widow that hosted Michelle and me. I think Michelle and I must have a think for cute old ladies because we became attached very quickly just like we did to Janice 2 years ago. Rosalie was so warm and funny. She invited us down for a chocolate and biscuits (hot chocolate and cookies) after we changed into more comfortable clothes, which really is the number one priority. We laughed a lot and she talked a lot about her daughters and her late husband who was from India, which explains her interesting last name. She was so sweet to us. We had some laundry to do that night. After putting it in I notice that she didn't have a tumbler (dryer). I asked her about it and she told me not to worry, that she had a way of drying our clothes in time for our early morning departure. I'm pretty sure her "way" was to stay up late into the night ironing our clothes dry. She was so sweet and kind. We were overwhelmed.