Winding Down

Both the trip to Albania and the flurry of activity on this travel blog are winding down.  With the concert complete and after an amazing after-party, our producer, Mr. Tullamani, and his family took our remaining American contingent of singers (Matt Edwardsen, Thomas Fallon and me; Joseph Holmes had to head back to Boston to sing a gig) on a trip to Durrës.

In addition to sightseeing, we were treated to the most incredible meal of fresh Adriatic seafood.  Phenomenal.  As I said in my tv interview, when asked about what I will bring back from Albania, "about 5 extra pounds", as I patted my belly.

A city on the Adriatic Sea, Durrës is a small town where Albanian history is on display.  According to Wikipedia, "it has been continuously inhabited for 2,700 years.

Counter-Tenor Thomas Fallon takes in the view of the Adriatic Sea.

Town Hall, Durrës

The Mosque at the center of town

A short walk past a fence and a family of chickens leads to...

The Roman Amphitheater, still used for performances. (no lions)

The main street. Shopping, cafes and palm trees

Lights out, uh huh, dance dance dance

Despite my career choice, I am a bit of a hippie. That is why I absolutely loved a little device in my hotel room. In the picture below you see a small slot or cradle next to the door. I will be the first to admit that this could exist anywhere, but it was my first experience and it was great.

When I arrived at the hotel, I received one small key card that gained me access to my room. After fighting with the light switches, I finally realized that to turn on the power in the room, I had to put my key card into the slot.

When I left the room I would grab the key card and all of the power in the room including the heat would shut off. I had a, "well, duh!" moment. It seems like such a logical way for a hotel to reduce energy usage and help control costs. I hope this idea gains traction around the world! (If it hasn't already.)

Richard Scarry's Things that Go

It is always interesting to see different modes of transportation in a foreign country. Here are a few examples...

Notice the man on the bike, hopefully you can see the chickens... Ahem... Hanging out.

Rruga George W Bush

It was my single goal to find the road named after our recent President. Hopefully this is a clearer picture.

Achievement Unlocked!

Perambulation

And so today we had the morning off. Joe, my fellow tenor and new friend, and I took a walk through the nice, sunny streets of Tirana. We got to see several of the sites I had on my checklist. It is so exciting to have seen aspects of Albanian culture armed with only a map and a camera. The exploration has recharged my mental batteries and I am ready to enjoy tonight's final dress rehearsal.

These are the things we are fighting

I just learned that the deep Albanian affection for the United States began under President Woodrow Wilson, when he wrote an impassioned letter supporting the creation of the Albanian state as it was gaining independence from the Ottoman Empire.

I also learned that the Albanian Embassy in Tirana was the first one constructed by the State Department.

I made it out for a quick walk this morning. A couple of thoughts...

The traffic here is bananas. The best NYC cabbie would go home weeping with despair!

The National pride is palpable. Flags are everywhere. In conversations with our hosts and colleagues, the has been a real sense of optimism about the future of the country.

The musicians are remarkable. We raced through our first orchestra rehearsal last night and found our way through the music very well. It is nice to start off with a bang like that and then have two more rehearsals to truly polish the show.

I am going to have to do some extra workouts. The food here is delicious and because of our schedule we are eating dinner at 9 pm. Not my usual schedule!

Well, off to e embassy for our second Albanian lesson!

Post lunch break

Good morning, America. I know it is early for you. A couple of fascinating events today... After a brief rehearsal with our conductor and my wonderful colleagues, we went over to the American embassy for our Albanian lesson.

It was a good thing we had it, because I practiced in a couple of diction errors. In addition to learning the song, our teacher taught us a couple key phrases and greetings. When she mentioned the dative case, I flashed back to high school!

Tonight we rehearse with the orchestra for the first time. It has good to have a few moments to rest my weary brain.

I am locating our online publicity and I will post it ASAP. The concert is already sold out!

More Soon,
Eapen

Buon giorno a Milano

Good morning all,

It is nine thirty local time in Milan. The flight was good. Wine with dinner and I got to watch JGL in "Premium Rush."n wait, you aren't a fan of JGL? Go watch some of his new movies... I like them a lot. What made the movie so good was that it was set in NYC and respected the insanity of traveling the streets of the city.

So now I have a four hour layover and then a quick flight across the Adriatic Sea to Tirana.

I briefly chatted with a nice Albanian fellow here. Who is on the same flight to Tirana. We ended up having lunch together, talking about our families and about things to do and try in Albania. (The local moonshine was discussed for quite a few minutes!)

Rehearsals start at 10Am tomorrow. At 5pm we will sing with the orchestra for the first time!

Early

In the very first opera rehearsal I ever attended in my very first year of undergrad, the conductor gave a stern warning to all of us in the show.

"If you are not ten minutes early, you are ten minutes late,"

Those words are my mantra and allow me the freedom to be as early as I want. I find it comforting to be in a theater by myself well before the other singers arrive. Likewise, I am happy to get to airports early. If I am working with a new company, I usually tell them, "if I am not there by five minutes before rehearsal, then panic."

When I was younger and my voice was not as consistent, being on time was a way to show that I was a professional, despite my slightly weaker voice.

Today I am at least three hours early for my flight to Albania. I might be taking this a little too far, but no one was ever fired for being early.