Dr. Eric Conway of Morgan State University in Baltimore writes:
Hello all,
Well, it is
that time of the year again - the time when the Morgan State University
choir will share our music with yet another part of the world! This
year’s installment will we in the South American country of Argentina!
We will tour most of the major cities in this country including
Rosario, Córdoba, San Luiz, Puente del Inca, and finally to the capital
city of Buenos Aires. We will perform in some of the finest and largest
halls of the country. The tour group is a little smaller than in
previous years. The group totals forty of which thirty are choir
members and the remaining ten are either staff or those who chose to
accompany the choir to this year’s destination. Included in this group
are two Morgan State University Regents: Linda Gilliam and Frank
Edmonds.
We were scheduled
to leave at 7:45 AM to drive to the JFK International airport in New
York. We departed from this New York airport to obtain a direct flight
from US to Argentina. We did not miss the departure time mark by much,
pulling away from the Murphy Fine Arts Center by a little after 8AM.
Given the unpredictable nature of traveling on Interstate 95 to NYC, we
allowed more time than usual to account for any probable traffic
delays. Of course when one allows plenty of time, one typically has
smooth sailing, which we did. After a generous rest stop on the way, we
arrived at the JFK Airline terminal over three hours ahead of time. We
flew on the Argentinian airline - Aerolineas Argentinas. Check-in went
smoothly and quickly. The direct flight was approximately 10 1/2 hours.
Many commented on how smooth the flight was, i.e. free from turbulence
and one of the smoothest landings ever experienced. Upon arriving, we
had the good fortune of everyone reconnecting with their luggage. Our
Argentinian guide Hernan Zapiola was waiting at the gate with a smile to
take us to our tour bus for the week. We were even impressed with the
beautiful double-decker bus. The bus presented generous cabin room
around the seats that almost-fully reclined if desired! This was an
exceptional start to a tour where we would see much of Argentina from
the road. Driving anywhere between four to eight hours between cities -
Argentina is the eighth largest country in the world and 2nd largest in
South America!
We
arrived at 4AM in Buenos Aires for a 4 hour drive to Rosario, the third
largest city in Argentina. Rosario is a port city adjacent to the 2nd
largest river in the country, the Rio Paraná, which begins in Brazil and
opens in the Atlantic ocean. After arriving in Rosario we took a
short walking tour of Rosario. We visited the Argentine Monument to the
Creation of their national flag. I called this monument their version
of our Fort McHenry. See attached a photo of their flag on a blue and
white striped background with the sun in the middle with a smile.
Like so very many memorials, a centerpiece of this monument was an
eternal flame memorializing an unknown soldier who fought for their
independence. We then walked through the city to get a sense of Rosario
- loosely meaning the City of the Rosary. Being a predominately
Catholic country, we could not tour a city without visiting a cathedral.
After the tour, we checked in to a very nice but small hotel - Hotel
Libertador. The hotel featured elevators so very small, we could
barely get luggage and two adults in the cabin. More importantly, the
hotel included free wi-fi access, which means the entire choir can
connect with their families and friends. Oh, to not be connected! We
will have an afternoon of rest prior to our first group/welcome meal in
Argentina this evening at 8PM.
All
in all this has been a fine day, with no drama. Our first performance
will be tomorrow evening at at 8:30PM in one of the principal venues in
this city, Teatro El Circulo. Hopefully we will have a good night sleep
tonight, not having to adjust to a large time zone change - Argentina
being only one time zone ahead of Eastern Daylight Savings Times.
EC
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