New Egham Singers 15th Anniversary Tour

12th-14th July, 2024, Bruges, Belgium

TOUR REPORT

 
In our 15th year, NES took on the challenge of our first ever Tour outside the UK. We selected Bruges as our destination, based on the fact that it’s a short hop from Calais, a beautiful city with lots to do, and there are some beautiful venues within easy striking distance.
 
We left Egham at around 10am on Friday, leaving our cars parked at Strodes College for the weekend – a big thank you to the College for allowing us to use their overflow car park. After an uneventful journey we arrived at Dover and were processed through passport control pretty quickly. We had a minor mishap when we failed to collect the tour manager provided by Club Europe, resulting in his having to make his own way to the hotel in Bruges! However, despite a delay at Dover for the ferry to be refuelled, the rest of the journey was uneventful.
 
Arriving in Bruges, we were greeted by friendly and helpful staff at the Ibis Brugge Centrum. Rooms were either single or twin, small but comfortable and situated across a courtyard from the Novotel, where all meals were provided. We had already pre-ordered our group dinner, so the service and food quality were, overall, excellent. The hotel bar stocked a range of good wine and local beers which kept everyone happy for the evening!
 
Saturday morning was free for sightseeing and a group of choir members joined a guided tour including a boat trip round the canals of the ‘Venice of the North’. Some members took advantage of the time to sample the chocolate, beer and sights of Bruges. Photos sent in by members seem to incline towards a lot of swans! Some of the group found time to climb the clock tower in the town square which gives amazing views of the city, even in the drizzle.
 
Our concert at 3pm at St Gilliskerk was underwhelmingly attended, but fortunately the church was absolutely beautiful, and the acoustic made it a real treat to sing in. We were delighted to see that three family members of one of our altos had come all the way to Bruges to support us. The choir performed really well, with solos from Cindy Hughes and Siw Harston very well received. Slightly unfortunately some more audience members arrived near to the end of the concert, explaining that one newspaper had the time advertised as 4-5pm, not 3-4pm. Sadly we were unable to perform for longer as we had to get back on the coach for our next stop in Ypres.
 
It would be remiss not to mention the awkward moment when our coach got stuck in the Bruges one-way system, and the ensuing police escort the wrong way down a one-way street – not something our members will forget in a hurry. Despite this, and having aimed to be in Ypres by 6pm, we were only 12 minutes late, allowing the choir time to wander around the beautiful town and grab some dinner. Happily the sun had come out and the evening was absolutely beautiful. Meanwhile, the musical professionals met with the Last Post Association to finalise details of our performance, and we reconvened at the Menin Gate at 7:15.
 
The Menin Gate is currently being renovated and while much of it is still covered in scaffolding the inside has now been re-opened, allowing the ceremony to once again be held inside the structure. The ceremony is performed every single night at 8pm, and commemorates those lost around the Ypres Salient during the First World War. Groups of singers and instrumentalists, including pipers, are invited to perform serene, quiet and contemplative music during the wreath-laying.
 
At 8pm, the Last Post sounded, followed by a minute’s silence, then as the wreaths were laid by various groups, the choir sang Abide With Me (Siw Harston beautifully singing the solo first verse) and the Irish Blessing. The acoustic inside the gate made the choir sound wonderful and the whole event was incredibly moving. Some members were close to tears by the end of the ceremony. We all felt it was a hugely special occasion and almost worth the whole trip just to take part.
 
We boarded the coach back to Bruges at around 8pm and were back at the hotel by 9:30pm, where everyone as free to socialise and venture into town for some beers or more sightseeing. One of the best parts of our tours is the opportunity for choir members to get to know each other better, mixing between voice parts and making new friends.
 
Sunday morning saw us checking out at 10 – late enough for some early risers to have already walked into town for more exploring and last-minute chocolate shopping. We left around 11:30am and made our way to Calais. Unfortunately we were met with a very long queue at passport control, which meant we missed our 2:30pm ferry, and with no space on the 4:10pm, we waited for the 5:50pm instead. A small blip joining the queue had us heading out of the exit by accident but fortunately we managed to re-route and get to the ferry with no harm done.
 
Owing to the planned closure of part of the M25 our return route was somewhat circuitous meaning some members had to watch the football on their phones on the coach, but we returned to Egham around 9pm none the worse for wear.
 
In conclusion, while there was a lot of travelling for essentially one day of activities, we did pack a lot into that one day! The overwhelming sentiment from our choir members was that it was a very special weekend, and one which will provide treasured memories for many of us. Any future tours abroad will probably be over four days, rather than three, to allow us a full day of sightseeing at our destination. Applications are now open to help manage the 2025 tour!
The following photos were taken by choir members on Tour, and are not in any particular order. Please do not download or share without permission. For permission, email [email protected]