Monday, 2 July update

The hot summer days continue, however the effects of the high temperatures were minimised as the group spent most of the day indoors. Guests arriving at the Hyatt in the early morning spoke of load shedding in parts of Washington DC as a result of a line of violent multiple thunderstorms that hit DC over the week-end.

Today we sampled two of the most interesting museums which the boys really enjoyed. First up was the Museum of Crime and Punishment. Slightly surprised that our own College didn’t feature in any display, we were taken on a historical route through the earliest forms of punishment including articles of medieval origin. “Crimes” have also changed over time. A ship’s captain was once sentenced to two days in the stocks for kissing his wife in public on the Sunday of his return after months at sea. One could only wonder how many of the choir boys would still be in stocks on the West side after the cruise up the Hudson if this law was still on the statute books!

Next up was the “Newseum”, the world’s most interactive museum where one is immersed in the world’s greatest news stories. The boys were free to explore for themselves but many gravitated to the Pulitzer Prize Photograph Gallery with some of the world’s most iconic news photographs. The material on display was intense and we all felt extreme emotion on reading the stories behind the photographs. The starving child with a vulture ominously waiting in the background, a person falling from the burning World Trade Centre and a sickening South African photograph of an IFP supporter, set aflame and attacked with a machete in the 1990’s. Not one of us was unaffected by the sadness and sorrow depicted in many of the outstanding photographs. Up on the sixth level we were taken through the news coverage of the 9/11 tragedies at the World Trade Centre, the Pentagon and where a jetliner crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Video footage and commentary was profoundly numbing as the events of that day in 2001 unfolded on camera. On the second level, boys tried their news reporting skills in the “Interactive Newsroom”, each one filmed giving a live news update on camera.

The famous Tony Cheng Seafood restaurant at 619 H Street in Chinatown was the venue for a feast of Chinese food. It was a “call back the past” for the choir boys from the 2010 and 2006 tours to China but was a festive occasion with loads of tasty food and good humour. Today would mark the second time on this tour that Mr Kruger would be unable to purchase a beer due to the barmen believing him to be under the mandatory age of 21.

The evening performance at the Arena Stage would be hosted by the South African Embassy with Ambassador Rasool in attendance. SAA had agreed to sponsor the event, a gesture greatly appreciated by Kearsney. The pre-performance function, attended by the SA Ambassador, representatives from the Embassies of Zimbabwe, Botswana, Malawi and Mocambique, Kearsney Old Boys from far and wide, Kearsney parents and distinguished guests, took the form of welcomes and a presentation to Old Boy, Mr Leif Gjestland. Leif has been a long-standing benefactor of the College, establishing a memorial bursary in perpetuity for a boy to attend Kearsney. Known as the David Stranack Bursary, in memory of his late schoolboy friend, Leif was awarded the Sir Liege Hulett award for his exceptional benevolence to the College.

The Kearsney choir performed in the opening slot to much applause and enthusiastic participation from an appreciative audience. After a short interval, the touring Imilonjo Kantor Choir from Soweto took to the stage, all decked out in traditional costumes representing the major African ethnic groups in South Africa. Their performance was something very special. Struggle songs and religious anthems brought the audience to its feet. A number of the Kearsney boys mentioned that they had felt like they were at home. There was such a sense of unity, respect and celebration of being South African and African. The evening concluded with the singing of the National Anthem and a palpable exuberance amongst the boys.

A quick visit to MacDonalds on the way home, completed the day’s cultural experiences.