Balkan Day 5 - A Boat Trip

After breakfast, we all gathered down at the hotel pier at 10:00 am. After a few group photos, our ship arrived for our day trip to St. Naun. Although the sun was shining, it was very cool on the ship, mainly due to the strong wind. Nevertheless, the journey was very beautiful as we had a wonderful view of the entire lake and its shores.

After about an hour of sailing, we docked in the village of St. Naun. We were accompanied by the organizer of the Summer Festival in which we had participated. She took us on a tour of two churches, both of which are among the 365 churches in total (see last blog entry) and are now a tourist attraction. At the church, we encountered many beautiful peacocks who impressed us several times with their perfectly presented plumage in the wheel.

The second church was very small, so perhaps only a third of the choir would fit inside. It was decorated in very beautiful colorful colors. Behind the church, you could wash and drink holy water, which is said to help women with fertility according to a legend.

After leaving the church, we had free time until 3:00 pm. Most of us had lunch in a restaurant that was beautifully located by the water and strolled through the small nearby market. However, the return trip to the hotel was no less windy and cold than the outward journey, and everyone was relieved when they could warm up there again.

After dinner, there was a joint closing event for all the choirs that had participated in the festival in our hotel. After the organizer gave a short speech, we used the evening to get to know the music and dances of the other countries better and introduce some of the German pieces to the international singers.