7 July update

A long hot day…Temperatures rose to 38 degrees C as we drove across the countryside to West Virginia from Pittsburgh. Green, rolling hills and even a few little deer along the side of the road. Of course the boys did not see any of this as they spent the entire bus trip in a near unconscious state.

The boys loved being with their host families in Pittsburgh and even asked why we could not stay another two days! I am sure the very hospitable Pittsburgh families would have balked at the idea, especially as one family hosted 9 boys. Linda, the “house mom” of the 9 boys organised a cook-out for the boys after the concert last night, then she tackled the boys’ washing and then she started on the breakfast feast which the boys enjoyed this morning. While the moms were slaving away, the boys spent the night chatting away!

In the parking lot of the Methodist church which was our meeting point this morning, there were offers of daughters’ hands in marriage and open-ended invitations for future visits, baseball memorabilia was handed out to the boys of the local baseball team (Pirates), and there were many positive comments on the boys’ behaviour.

The boys were raised, briefly, from their slumber for an hour shopping experience at an outlet mall. Brand name goods at factory prices. The boys moved from shop to shop in a blur and arrived back at the bus laden with bags. Soon the euphoria of the various shopping bargains wore off and hunger took over. We stopped at the Burger King for a quick take-away lunch. The Burger King was a pleasant surprise, they took 70 orders in their stride and we were all done within 40 minutes. All dietary requirements were catered for and 70 happy tummies boarded the bus once again for the second leg of the journey which would bring us to Charleston. The rumble of the bus engine, the heat, the full tummies, and the satisfactory shopping experience combined with the lack of sleep of the previous two nights produced two very quiet busses within ten minutes of hitting the road for the next two and a half hours.

Our companions of the journey, Jin-Chu Jou and Eliane Sussman are wonderful with the boys at once fun and responsible. Jin Chu travels on Bus A and Eliane on Bus B – they organise the smooth flow of the tour and inform the boys what is happening (especially relating to food, shopping and concerts – probably in that order!) and get them where they need to go.

We arrived at the theatre rather late, but well rested! The air-conditioned interior was a welcome respite from the blazing heat outdoors. The concert tonight is our last full concert before the competition of the World Choir Games in Cincinnati. The audience at the Pittsburgh concert were most generous with the purchase of Kearsney CDs and many made donations to the choir tour – we thank them and greatly appreciate their generosity and enthusiasm.

The concert took place with many "crinkled boys" as we did not have the time or opportunity to press their costumes - I am really missing your help in this department Karen! They did, however, enjoy themselves onstage and joined with the Appalachian Children's Chorus for the final two songs which were those that they sang at the Rhythms of One World Concert at the UN.

Appalachian Children's Chorus

Afterwards the boys were served supper at the theatre and were treated to an hour or so of Square Dancing during which time they became friends with their dancing partners.

Tristan Dixon gets the Hang of sqaure dancing

We really miss Rob and Karen Easton-Berry's and Ewlyn's presence with the group. Rob and Karen should be home already and Elwyn leaves the USA tomorrow (8th).