Today was the first day back to being only at sea and getting ringers back into rehearsal at Summit 2016.
Rehearsals began at 9:00 am in the conference center on deck two all the way forward. I arrived closer to 8:10 am to help my fellow board members get the bells out and get the room ready for a fun morning of ringing.
Stephanie Rhoades had us ring through all four pieces paying particular attention to precision, dynamics, and tempo. Stephanie had us practice some weaving patterns to help with the accuracy in the music, and she even braved having us ring ‘Firework’ with the accompaniment track. The morning rehearsal ended after reading through a sight reading packet with music covering everything from Christmas to the Beatles.
The rest of the day was spent with ringers exploring Liberty of the Seas doing everything from ice skating and surfing (yes! surfing) to decorating cupcakes and parting until the early hours of the morning.
This blogger must say that it seems impossible that this Summit 2016 is coming to end tomorrow. Having boarded the ship on Sunday, it is almost unimaginable that tomorrow is Saturday – our last day of Summit 2016 and our last day aboard Liberty of the Seas. I have met so many interesting people, made new handbell friends, and learned more about long-time friends. I’ve checked some items off of my bucket list – going down a giant water slide that goes out over the ocean, checking in at two more Hard Rock Cafes, learning some new ways to fold napkins, getting in a towel creature battle with my room steward, seeing world-class shows, and so much more.
If you have never taken a cruise, I highly recommend it. While the ports of call are what will excite you the most, enjoy all of the activities on the ship. The staff is caring and do everything they can to make your vacation as memorable as possible.
If you have never attended a Summit, you will have another chance in 2018. I have heard a few ideas of things to come, and it will be another festival for the history books in Area 9.
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If you enjoyed this blog post from our Social Media & Communications Chair – Jeremy Springer – please stay tuned as we will have one new post and lots of new photos each day of Summit 2016: The Ocean Journey.
