back from tour

i just returned from an amazing tour with the yale russki xor [pardon my weak transliteration]. 7 concerts in 7 days in the virginia/DC area, all of our concerts ranging in attendance from 75-150. the tour was amazing for two reasons. first, this is perhaps the greatest choir experience i've ever had. it's a small group, we do interesting and varied music (almost never in english), and i have a real, and important, role in this group - i'm the lowest of the low basses, and in a russian choir, that's pretty important. second, i got to bond with a lot of the other choir members, including a few who 2 weeks ago i would not have thought i could bond with. i actually stayed up all night last night hanging out with people - we chatted until the sun rose, and then went for breakfast at 7 when it started, and then i finally slept a couple hours from 8 to 10 am (and a couple more on the afternoon flight). spending a large chunk of time in close proximity with people really brings out who they are, in a way you can't perceive even after a year of occasional interactions.