North Lakeshore Chorus
16 day Performing Tour to Europe
June 27 - July 12, 2018
Itinerary
Day 1 – Wednesday June 27
- depart Canada for London Gatwick Airport
Day 2 – Thursday June 28
- arrive at London Gatwick Airport-
- lunch at Royal Tunbridge Wells, a historic Georgian Spa town
- tour of Bodiam Castle, a beautifully situated, medieval, moated castle, with a 15 minute mini-sing
- overnight at the Best Western Clifton Hotel Folkestone
- evening rehearsal at hotel
Day 3 – Friday June 29
- participate in the annual Canada Day Memorial service at Shorncliffe Military Cemetery. This involves local school children, hence the celebration on a weekday. Shorncliffe was the Canadian Army Headquarters in the Great War.
- ferry across the English Channel from Dover to Calais
- proceed to Dieppe, France, scene of the failed Canadian Assault in 1942 as a diversion for a failed attempt to obtain an enigma code breaker. Canadian casualties were very high and those that survived became POW’s.
- overnight at the Hotel de L’Europe, Dieppe
Day 4 – Saturday June 30
- morning visit to the 19th of August Memorial Museum
- 15 minute mini sing at Canada Square
- depart for Amiens and a visit to Amiens Cathedral. Amiens and points east were captured/liberated by Canadian soldiers in their 100 day push towards Germany beginning on August 8th, 1918.
- depart for Arras
- time permitting stop at Le Quesnel Memorial, with a 15 minute mini-sing, to visit Canadian War Graves; Canadian soldiers played a very important role in the Battle of Arras in 1918
- overnight at the Holiday Inn Express Arras
Day 5 – Sunday July 1
- visit Hill 70 with a 15 mini-sing. The memorial was only opened in August 2017, thanks largely to a group of volunteers
- visit Vimy Ridge, Canada’s National War Memorial overseas – time to visit the trenches, tunnels with a 30 minute sing at the memorial
- visit Neuville St- Vaast German Cemetery (a visit to this German cemetery will give an opportunity to see the difference between this and a Commonwealth War Cemetery) with a 15 minute mini sing
- travel to Arras Cathedral and sing
- optional tour of nearby Canadian cemeteries
- overnight at the Holiday Inn Express Arras
Day 6 – Monday July 2
- visit Beaumont-Hamel, the Dominion of Newfoundland’s Memorial to the horrendous losses suffered by the Royal Newfoundland Regiment on July 1st, 1916, as part of the launch of the Battle of Somme, with 15 minute mini sing
- travel to Ypres, Belgium, scene of the first use of chemical warfare on Canadian soldiers in April 1915
- participate in The Last Post Ceremony. This brief ceremony has taken place every night of the year since 1928, rain or shine, and honours the thousands of soldiers who marched to the front, many of whom did not return. The gate is inscribed with the names of 54,896 Commonwealth soldiers who perished during World War I and have no known final resting place. During the ceremony, a member of the group will lay a wreath
- overnight at the Best Western Flanders Lodge or New Regina hotels
Day 7 – Tuesday July 3
- morning stops at Ploegsteert, scene of the 1914 Christmas Truce, Essex Farm, where Lt. Col John McCrae penned the iconic poem “In Flanders Fields on May 3rd, 1915, and Tyne Cot Cemetery, the largest Commonwealth cemetery, with many casualties from the Battle of Passchendaele, with 15 minute mini sings at each location
- travel to Cologne, Germany, where Canadian and Newfoundland soldiers crossed the River Rhine in December 1918 and were stationed here for a short time. British troops occupied the city until 1926
- overnight at Maritim Hotel Koeln
Day 8 – Wednesday July 4
- guided walking city tour of Cologne including a visit to the Cathedral, with a 15 minute mini sing
- travel to Altenberg, to visit the Cathedral and sing
- possible visit to Marchenwald, where there is a restaurant here with fountains, music and a light show. One can also walk through a forest and see scenes from different German fairy tales, many collected by the Grimm brothers
- overnight at Maritim Hotel Koeln
Day 9 – Thursday July 5
- visit the Cologne South Commonwealth Cemetery , with a 15 minute mini-sing. There are 46 Canadians buried here and 6 Newfoundlanders all from the First World War
- travel to Calais, France to board a Coach Shuttle Train to Folkestone, England
- travel to London, England
- overnight at The Tower Hotel in London
Day 10 – Friday July 6
- guided tour of London including stops for mini sings at the Canada Gate, St. Margaret’s Chapel, and St. Paul’s Cathedral
- remainder of the afternoon and evening free to explore London
- overnight at The Tower Hotel in London
Day 11 – Saturday July 7
- visit Hampton Court Palace, built by Cardinal Wolsey and home of King Henry VIII and several other British monarchs, with a 15 minute mini sing
- travel to Kingston-Upon-Thames for a joint evening concert with the Kingston Choral Society, UK
- overnight at The Tower Hotel in London
Day 12 – Sunday July 8
- travel to Coventry Cathedral, which was destroyed by a German bombing raid in 1940, and visit both the old and new buildings, with a 15 minute mini sing
- travel to York, England, a historic medieval walled city with a beautiful Minster
- overnight at the Principal York Hotel
Day 13 – Monday July 9
- travel to Stirling to visit Stirling Castle with a 15 minute mini sing
- possible evening concert at Holy Rude Church, Stirling
- overnight at the Highland Hotel Stirling
Day 14 – Tuesday July 10
- full day trip into the Scottish Highlands, with a visit to the Fort George Museum, where the Royal Newfoundland Regiment trained in 1914 and 1915
- visit Great Glen, Loch Ness, Fort William, Glencoe and Rannochmoore
- overnight at the Highland Hotel Stirling
Day 15 – Wednesday July 11
- travel to Edinburgh Castle, where the Royal Newfoundland Regiment had the honour of the castle for 3 months with a 15 minute mini sing
- 15 minute mini sing at a 2nd location, possibly at Old St. Paul’s Church, Edinburgh
- remainder of the afternoon to explore the Royal Mile
- overnight at the Premier Inn Glasgow Airport Hotel
Day 16 – Thursday July 12
- depart Glasgow Airport for Canada