Whether touring the famous Acropolis site in Athens, exploring the vibrant culture and blue waters of Greek islands, climbing the tall steps of the old Amphitheater, or performing musical pieces to locals, the Greece Music Tour was a once-in-a-lifetime educational and adventurous experience. Students from the choir, band, and orchestra accompanied by six teacher chaperones and two tour guides traveled from March 16-23. After a very long travel day, students took in the views of Athens. Kai Capistrant ‘25 said after reflecting on the trip, “It was a life-changing experience for me. It was a really formative experience being able to experience traveling with my friends.” The Blake Music Department traveled around the three cities Nafplio, Itea, and Athens, while visiting other sites and taking a boat ride to islands. In the cities, students toured the ancient ruins in archeological sites and learned about the history of Greeks who once lived where they stood.
The first concert at the Fougar Art Center brought local school kids, from young ages to high schoolers. After a long drive with views of the ocean and mountains, they reached Itea, the location of their second concert. Overall, the choir students believed this was the year’s best performance. Sofia Wyatt ‘25 explained, “Our best performance by far was the second one. I think it was really cool to perform for local people in the town, and they seemed to really enjoy it. The space was good too, so as a whole, the quality of sound was great and we just performed well.” The performers were given key chains or magnets from locals as a reminder of where they visited and an appreciation for their performances. Their third and final concert was at a venue in Athens. Jayla Ferguson ‘26 said each performance was “super fun because we got to do them in different venues. I feel like we all came together and made really beautiful music.”
One of my personal favorite experiences of Nafplio was when we visited the Ancient Amphitheater of Epidaurus, a theater created in the late 4th century BC, that was known for its amazing acoustics and amount of seats. The views of each site were like no other, filled with the bright blue ocean and beautiful mountains. While the first half of the trip was a little rainy and chilly, the second half was filled with clearer skies and sun. One morning, we visited the museum and hiked up the mountain of Delphi. It was fascinating to learn about the Greek mythology of this site. The students who participated in the school musical this year especially enjoyed this part of the trip, as many mythological stories related to their characters.
Our adventures in Athens began by hiking up a hill for sunset with one of the most gorgeous views I have seen. A person can look off this peak from all directions and see a different beautiful view, whether it looks over the city with water, mountains, or the Acropolis. In the morning, seniors hiked to this peak again for a full-circle senior sunrise moment. Even though all of us were tired on the walk, we all agreed that the venture was worth it. After an in-depth tour of the Acropolis, students were given a few hours of freetime to venture through the downtown city of Athens. Ava Broll ‘25 explained “It was so fascinating to learn how populated Athens is.” Exploring around was a great opportunity to learn more about the local culture, buy souvenirs, and eat at a local restaurant. One night, we went to an interactive dinner, where there were live performances of cultural Greek dancing that got students out of their chairs to partake in the dancing. One of my favorite parts from this night was when the performers selected a small portion of kids to mysteriously leave the room with them for around twenty minutes. When they came back, each person was in traditional costumes, dancing with the other students.
The last day of the trip was a personal favorite for us students. We took a boat to the islands Poros, Hydra, and Aegina. At each picturesque island, students were given freetime to explore. While each location had relatively similar architecture, it was clear that they all were unique for different reasons. For example, Aegine was filled with pistachio stores on every block. As an avid Mamma Mia fan, exploring the Greek islands made me feel like I was in the Mamma Mia movie myself. The 2025 music tour was a unique experience that I know my peers and I will hold onto forever. Capistrant reflected, “I really had so much fun on the trip. Honestly, it was such a great way to meet more people who I hadn’t talked to before, and just travel to a place I had never really been. ”
