Thoughts and feelings from Drum Major Ashley Drayer
Apparently day 2 was the day the jetlag set in for a lot of us, which made for an interesting day! However, we were still able to tighten some more things down to make our show even better than before. Tomorrow is the big day! We were able to get a bit of a sound check in on the track, in between street cleaners and road crews needing to make their way by. We also got some great details and some guard work added into a couple posts of the show that really help keep things going.
Today, we got to make a quick stop off at Qal’at al-Bahrain, a fort here that dates back thousands of years. It’s so fun and exciting to learn about all this place has to offer, and all the rich history that accompanies it. It’s amazing and inspiring how much pride this country takes in its Kingdom. Red and white lights everywhere, Bahrain flags on every street light and on every house…. It’s absolutely incredible.
After the fort was some much-needed shower/ downtime to get ready for the festivities at the track, including the Enrique Iglesias concert. PRETTY stoked about that! I overslept my alarm…. Again. Apparently, that’s what I do here. Woke up at about 5:15 for a 5:30 bus time. Good job Ashley. Also tried to fit in a very brief Facetime with my family back in Colorado, where I got to see my beautiful daughter get super excited to me and “tell” me all about her day (basically a few words intertwined with toddler jibberish).
The nighttime spectacles of the track are seriously impressive. There is so much to do, so many lights and entertainment and so much life! It’s beautiful to see and be a part of in person. It was a really cool experience to just soak it all in, the smells of hookah, the sights of people from SO many places and walks of life, all the tents and exhibits…. We got some amazing Lebanese cuisine, hung out with a good number of people from the ensemble, then made our way to check out Enrique. The crowd was loving it. We tried to make our way closer to the stage but got stuck farther back, yet with all the cameras and such were still able to have a great spot for the performance.
Now I am back at the hotel, going over a few rehearsal notes from today and looking forward to tomorrow! Quick dress rehearsal in the morning, and then just prepping for the performance tomorrow afternoon. Hoping for no wind and cool temperatures… Hey, a girl can dream, right? Can’t wait to tell you all about the experience tomorrow as we get closer to wrapping this whole thing up!
Be sure to check in each day of our Bahrain trip for Ashley’s insights as she leads this group of passionate performers to a place where no drum corps has gone before!!
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