1999-2000 ROME TOUR

As the world nervously awaited the end of the twentieth century, fearing electronic meltdown, excitement was also building in the choir. Twenty boys were invited to represent Australia at Il Giubileo dei bambini e dei ragazzi - The Jubilee of Children and Young People - to be held at the Vatican in Rome.

With concerns about the unknown effects of the Millenium Bug on international travel, the boys had to be in Rome well before New Years’ Eve. Departing on 27 December 1999, the group spent an enjoyable three days of sightseeing, culminating in a six course New Years’ Eve dinner, followed by fireworks in the street.

Two days of chaotic concert preparations with children from all over the world followed, with the boys discovering the ‘Italian way of doing things’ was somewhat different from the level of organisation they were used to in Australia. The concert itself, though, went to plan, with a live audience of 6000 and a television audience of many thousands more. Away for just seven days, the boys met performers from many cultures and joined the festivities of a mammoth international event – to say nothing of the sightseeing!