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| Erin's Journal for 9-29-02 This was a day for seeing the wonders that are purely Vienna. This meant the Vienna Boys Choir, which was exclusively at the Sunday Mass at the royal palace chapel. We had to be up early to get ready and get out there, so we set our alarms ahead of what our roommates would need in order to make their 7:45am bus. Early! We made it downstairs a tad late - we'd met another guy the night before who also wanted to see the Boys Choir, and we'd agreed to meet up at the front door at 7:50am. He was waiting for us, and Jesse accompanied us on the U-Bahn down to the Palace, where we explored the grounds until we found the chapel The Boys Choir sings at Sunday Mass services there, starting at 9:15am. The only free 'seats' at this mass were the standing room only crowd, which ended up being about 80 of us crammed into the center aisle of a small chapel. The choir, when they sang, were located 3 stories above us in an alcove with an orchestra, so we could hear them but not seem them for most of the service. When the priests came in, they brought some heavy incense with them and kept rekindling it throughout the service. This, combined with the packed crowds we were standing in and the lengthy service, turned out to be too much for me, and I had to wind my way out of the crowd and get outside for some fresh air. I left during communion, thinking I'd catch my breath and go back in to listen from the back. Well, while I was outside, the ushers closed and locked the doors behind me, and I had to wait for the service to end alone in the courtyard! I only waited about 15 minutes before the crowd started coming out, and I waited with Jesse while Glenn took some photos of the chapel sans crowd. As it turned out, the choir came down to sing in front of the altar only 5 minutes after I left! To be continued - as of posting, this journal is finished but not transferred from personal computer to website! |
| The altar in the royal chapel, where the Vienna Boys Choir performs for Sunday Mass |