nce shortly after 9 am to get to Ellwangen, Germany by 1:30. We ended up stopping twice (one rest stop and one lunch break) which resulted in running a little behind schedule. Ellwangen is a smaller city in the south of Germany (a part of Germany called Bavaria). Here the boys will be singing a full concert (sacred music only) and a church service on Sunday morning in the Basilika St. Vitus.
The church where the boys will be singing is rather unique. It is, obviously, a catholic church but it is connected to a Protestant church! The door has been kept shut for over 200 years, but was just recently reopened to reconnect the two. When the churches were originally built, the (now-Protestant church) was built by and for the Jesuits; but after Napoleon conquered the area it was overturned to the Protestants.
The surrounding area of Ellwangen now hosts several beautiful churches—including another GORGEOUS Jesuit church in the neighboring village (just up the side of the mountain—2 or 3 km away). This church is rather unique for a few reasons. First of all, it is situated on a mountainside nestled amongst the trees. Second, there are 12 buildings, shelters or “stations” if you will that house each of the Stations of the Cross. They begin in order at the foo
t of the hill and finish at the entrance of the church—it was quite impressive to see. Behind the altar on the balcony is a model of the Nativity scene—it is about 25 feet long and just breathtaking. It almost looks real (aside from the people being about 18 inches tall)…
Ellwangen also had something special to offer the monarchial enthusiast. Ellwangen is home to one of Germany’s numerous castles. In fact, Ellwangen’s castle is “world famous” because it was--for several years--the castle pictured on the German stamp (Deutsche Post).
As soon as we arrived in Ellwangen, the boys were split into host homes and left to get settled in. The boys arrived back later (at the church) fully dressed in concert uniform because there wasn’t a place for the boys to change. They didn’t have much time to warm up, but the boys still sang VERY well and impressed the audience. The
Basilika was PACKED!!! It was completely standing room only. The pews were packed—even the aisle and the back of the church was full! I wasn’t even able to get pictures of the boys singing! It was by FAR the best concert so far, and Francis gave the boys a rating of a “10+”. Now someone promised the boys ice cream if they got over a ten rating **ahem…ANDY…**, well little did he know it was actually going to happen! The boys were VERY well received! The other concerts the boys have put on so far have been full as well; however, none of those churches have been this large! This was quite an impressive sight to see!
Following the early concert (4:00 pm), the boys left with host homes again and did their own thing. Many boys visited the Castle and went sightseeing around Ellwangen, while others went to a local park and played soccer, while a few went right home for dinner (BBQ and things like that).
Ellwangen has been a great stop for us—too bad we leave tomorrow already! We have been treated like superstars, here, and that’s probably an understatement.
They truly love us here—it’s pretty sweet!
Tomorrow we’re off to Austria! Third country in three days! ;)
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