DAY 5, April 23
Reflection by Will Remley ’25
¡Olá once again from Portugal!
As I am writing this the BC High Chior is currently stuck in traffic on the way back from another exciting day in Portugal. I was hoping to write this after dinner, but because of the traffic, I am being told that I have to do it now. So without further adieu, here is my recounting of the sixth day of the BC High Chior Portugal Trip.
The day began bright and early, starting with a wake-up call at 6:30 (which students were not super fond of). We all put on our white shirts and blazers before rushing to the lobby for a quick breakfast.
We were on a tight schedule this morning as we didn’t want to be late for any of our activties in the town of Évora. So we all threw down some coffee and pastries, prepared our binders for the concert, and got comfortable on the bus for a nice 90 minute ride.
After a ride filled mostly with making up on our minimal sleep, we arrived in Évora. Here we were quickly unloaded off the bus and introduced to several wonderful students from the Salesianos Religous Primary and Secondary Schools. They then gave us a tour of the school where we got to see there classrooms, there very nice courtyard, and their game room (something BC High should consider adding to its campus).
After seeing the Portuguese students at work and having given many fist bumps to the little kids, we headed to the auditorium. Here we rehearsed our music and prepared for the concert. We then sang our hearts out infront of the whole school, especially Ben who had a beautiful solo in the song “Coffee”.
Once we finished the concert, we answered some audience questions about life in America and who was the best soocer player (correct answer: Messi). We then made our way to the cafeteria for lunch with the other studnets before heading outside to play some games. After some games of volleyball we said our goodbyes and headed off to tour Évora.
On our tour of Évora we saw many beautiful and amazing sites, including ancient Roman ruins and medieval walls. We were able to learn about the history of the town and some of its industries like cork wood production.
One of my favorite things on the tour was the chapel of bones. This was a haunting chapel made of the bones of 5,000 people. The whole place was built as a reminder of mortality and the finite nature of life.
After coming to terms with our own mortality, we had some free time to go and explore Évora before we hopped on the bus and headed back to the hotel in Lisbon, which is where we got stuck in traffic for a long time.
After what felt like ages in the bus, we finally made it back to the hotel. Once here, we ran to the restaurant to have some delicious hamburgers and pizza. At the end of the meal, all seniors offered Dr. Rozenberg a traditional farewell to mark our time in choir coming to an end. We also upheld another tradition; we sang Happy Birthday to Dr. Rozenberg and presented her with a birthday gift, a cork bag to hold her music papers.
Today was another wonderful day for the BC High Choir and we can’t wait for tomorrow!
BC High Concert Choir 