Fiddle Camp... from MY side :)

Hey loyal followers! :)

I officially started this post on the third day of camp, but internet ran out and I didn't have time to finish it. SO: Here is a post from then, and another part (which I'll write in a bit) from the end of the trip. : )

***Well, we're here at camp in Solingen, Germany. It's the end of day three, and I've learned (officially) ~18 tunes...... in a total of 12 1/2 hours (ish), including reviewing old tunes. UUUUUUUUUUUmmmmmmmmmmmmm that's a lot............ :) but I LOVE them.... mostly : ) the Shetland tunes that Kevin teaches (even tho he's like the coolest Scot I know) are a little strange. After all, Shetland is kinda secluded..... so I guess that explains a little of it : ) The tunes that Kirstine (a Dane) teaches us a cool; the tunes that Harald (the camp leader) teaches are awesome (and hard); and the tunes from Hanneke are GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! One of the tunes that Kevin taught us, called Christchurch Cathedral, is gorgeous, and I heard a beautiful harmony line in my head for it... so saying, in class that day I decided to play it just because, and Kevin LOVED it and wants me to teach it to the class tomorrow (btw, with hindsight, I did and everyone else loved it too :D). SO COOL!!!!!! I also did a masterclass today with Harald, playing a Danish jig called Trekant Fra Hardyssel II (a typical Danish name meaning a jig). I learned some really cool tricks - it was awesome. Then, we had a magic show (which I was a volunteer in) tonight. That's all for today!***

THIS part of the post will all be hindsight, cuz we're home : )

So here's the rest of the week: Wednesday (and Thursday and Friday) -- learned some more tunes (totaling more than 20 tunes learned now). I taught my harmony part to my class (the Super Advanced class or as we were more "lovingly" called, the Champion's League) and reviewed tunes. Wednesday night we went to the Teacher's Concert (SO GOOD!!) and then Thursday nacht was the open stage concert (btw, we learned some German too) Caiti, Chris and I played some Celtic Fusion and Bluegrass fiddle, then all of us played a tune that Mum and I wrote for Harald and his wife Helene, called Solskin og Latter (meaning Sunshine and Laughter in Danish). Friday, we reviewed tunes, rehearsed for the concert, and had the concert (in which I got to lead a tune, as the only non-teacher in the entire concert to do so - how cool is that??). Then we jammed and hung out until almost 2am (which I did almost every night - so fun). Saturday we packed up and left (which was sad) and drove to Haarlem, where (unfortunately) the Corrie Ten Boom house INSIDE was closed, so we saw the outside. We also got AMAZING Belgium waffles with "eis" (ice cream in German). Sunday we ate breakie in the castle and flew home!

So there you go! After a mindblowingly INCREDIBLE trip to the UK and Europe, WE'RE HOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!

~Meghan

This is it...

Well ladies and gents, tonight I am writing you from a castle. Nothing big. just a castle. WITH A MOAT. Just thought I would get that off of my chest...

Anyway, Yesterday we had our concert which was a blast. Everyone played very well and the audience loved all of our fiddle tunes. After the concert, we all went back to the hostel where we had dinner and some jamming time until like one AM. I was extra-happy because I got to play a contra-bass for a while... until I got a blister on my plucking finger that is...

In the morning, we were woken up by a kids football club that was being annoying loud at ungodly hours of the morning. After breakfast, we said our goodbyes, packed, said more goodbyes and then were off to HOlland for our last night in Europe. We Went through the city of Haarlem and saw Corrie Ten Boom's house... Haarlem was a really cool little city. Much better than Amsterdam. Then we went to the hostel which is a 13th century castle that was rebuilt in 1546. It is awesome.

Well, that's it for Europe. I will talk to you all again stateside!

Chris

Thursday

Howdy!

Well today I was sore. Besides that... Meghan got to teach part f Kevin's class and we had our last class with Kirstene :( and then Harald taught me some chords in his class. After lunch, we had the afternoon off so me and my family and 2 friends went to Cologne to see the cathedral. It was ENORMOUS and beautiful. The bones of the three magi are also kept there in a shrine... After that we went out for ice cream and has spaghettti shaped ice cream that was quite good :).

Tonight we had the open stage show. In the show, there were some pretty cool acts and my family did a couple of fun ones and a sing we wrote for harald and his wife.

No time for random thoughts today...


Probably wont have internet 2morrow but I should on Saturday night. See you all soon!

Chris

Tuesday/Wednesday

I forgot how to say hi in Swiss....

Anyway... After dinner yesterday (which by the way, the Germans tend to have big lunches and little dinners which I can't get used to...) we had a "surprise" magic show. For being done by a German, it was quite good. He did some excellent tricks i can only wish that I knew how to do. Then, because i wasn't feeling to good, I went to bed. Today, I felt better (praise the Lord) and during announcements, I was surprised with having Happy Birthday sung to me in 3 different languages and I was given some sweets and this shirt:

It comes from a local candy company called Haribo that makes some really good candy :)

Then we had classes in the morning, a class this afternoon, my parents provided cake and ice cream at tea and then we went out to play the Danish version of baseball in the rain. I ended up being the big home run hitter :). Now I am drying off before the instructors concert tonight. I can't believe it, but we're only in Europe for 3.5 more days!

Random thoughts:

I am feeling better...

I can't wait to have no driving restrictions back in the states...

Kevin Henderson is pretty awesome. Not only does he have the best accent in all of creation, but he also is very much a freestyle fiddler that doesn't care how his tunes are played and he's pretty good at Rundbold (Danish baseball)

The building where we are all staying is an old scissor factory...

I'm convinced that one of the guys here is a direct descendant of both William Wallace and Tarzan...

I really wish I knew how to speak German...

I think I pulled a muscle in my upper thigh...

Cody, I was thinking about you and your football games while I was out playing in the rain...

I fall asleep to Taylor Swift music almost every night...

I need people for my fantasy football league (email me if you are interested...)

One of the Swiss gals here is from the village where Swiss Army Knives are made and was the teacher for the owner's daughter...

I'm ready to hear some good pop/country music again...

I'm still singing Wicked songs like all the time...

Sometimes, it is hard for me to not start speaking Spanish...

And that's about it for today!!

Chris

Tuesday/Monday night

Hey all!

So last night, we had a dance. We did some Danish dances, a few Scottish/American dances, a crazy Swiss dance, and few others. It was quite fun :)

Today, after breakie, we had class with Hanneke (the American teacher) and she taught us 2 tunes in an hour. After that, I had a headache and slept the rest of te morning until lunch. Then it was off to class with Harald (where we learned another 2 tunes) but they weren't too bad. Then we had coffee/tea break before afternoon activities. While the girls did a master class with Harald, I went to hear Kevin (the Shetland fiddler) talk about "trows" which are the Shetland version of trolls. It was pretty unique :)

Tonight we have a surprise waiting for us followed by a jam so we'll see how that goes...

Random notes:

As big as football is in the states, no-one else cares...

REAL football on the other hand...

There are many more different kinds of bagpipes than I thought including French and Swedish versions...

The Fins spend a ton of their off-road car racing...

Danish cheese isn't too great...

Swiss people are pretty wacky...

Apparently I have a better English accent than an Englishman...

I am about to be an adult (at 6 oclock on the East Coast...)

Please pray as I am not feeling 100%...

I am drinking more coffee than i ever have...

Maybe the two are connected...

Adios!

Chris

pictures :)

here are some long-awaited pics

Getting off in Scotland...

Random pretty flowers...

Random interesting archway...

Chris...

The Highlands...


Eillein Donan Castle... (like the coolest ruin in all of Scotland)


Scone Palace


Self explained...


Part of Edinburgh castle


Hadrian's Wall

The Roman Baths at Bath

Sunset over our ferry to Amsterdam

Big Ben


Amsterdam


Anne Frank's house

Chris being a goof on a bouncy animal thing


~mj

Let the music begin!

Hey everybody!

So we started out the week with church at the Arche (sovgrace) Church in Hamburg. It was especially cool because we were asked to play with a worship song and do some special music as a family. Despite the fact that most of the people spoke very patchy English, they were all very grateful that we could be there. Then our friend Frank and one of the youth of the church, Matthias, gave us a tour of the church. It's pretty big. Almost as big as Covenant Life actually... Anyway, the youth group room was awesome. I want one. It had like 20 couches and armchairs, a bar with sodas and cocktails (legal drinking age here is 16...), a stage for worship, a pool table, "kicker" table (fooseball), lots of games, so yeah. It was cool. Anyway... after having a little bite at the Church's cafe, we said our goodbyes and drove off. Right before dinner, we arrived at Solingen for Harald Haagard's International Fiddle School. Then we joined people from England, Japan, America, Switzerland, Denmark, Finland, the Shetland Islands, and a lot of Germans for a good meal, some dancing, and some jamming.

Today, we got up, had a traditional German breakfast of rolls, cheese, sliced bread, various meats, and a wee bit of cereal, then we were off to fiddle classes. We have 4 fiddle teachers: 2 Danes, a Shetland fiddler, and a zany American that teaches modern, Scottish, and Cape Breton fiddle. And we were taught by all of them today (so just about 6-7 tunes have gone into my ears and back out my fingers). After frying our brains we had afternoon activities of which I chose to do Danish dancing for the "ball" tonight. I have some new dances to teach when i get home nnow :) The funniest thing for me is that the Danes also do the Virginia Reel just uder a different name... Kinda funny :). Anyway... right now we're in a little bit of down-time before dinner and the "ball" tonight.

Random thoughts:

I am the only male between the ages of 14 and 20... There are like 10 girls in that range... and they all speak German with only a little bit of English...

Harald wears pointy shoes and skinny jeans...

Kevin Henderson, the teacher from Shetland, has the coolest brogue of all time (the Shetland Islands are just north of Scotland)...

I am one of two cellists and play the only electric cello most of these people have ever seen...

Danish fiddle tunes were never intended to be played on the cello because they love to play them very high up in the register...

I wish i spoke German...

I miss home...

I REALLY want to play my acoustic cello again...

I am not ready for the fair in any dimesnsion and it starts 4 days after i get back...

I love Europe...

I should stop rambling...

Chow!

Chris

P.S. the fam says hi!