SEE-EE-EE  PRAHA-HA-HA

Resembling a tour organised by Saga,
The DCU set off for Prague. A
Lovely place we all agree
On the river Vlatava – and not by the sea.
The ash cloud had us thinking “Shall we? Maybe?”
But we all arrived safely by BMI baby.

On Tuesday morning we set off quick,
For the old town square and the church of St. Nick.
We swiftly put our baggage down
And went for a look around the town.
Some went to a square, where, without a doubt,
Good King Wenceslas was looking out.
Not over snow nor feast of Stephen
But a pizza place – deep pan, crisp and even.

We had our lunch – some with dessert,
Then to St. Nick’s for our concert.
Our first piece started off in a fury,
With Haydn’s “Insanae et vanae curae”
Richard danced up and down, sweat ran down his neck,
If he’d been a local, he’d be a bouncing Czech.
At the end of the verse we were huffing and puffing
And realised we were on a Haydn to nothing.

The main piece that we sang to them
Was the famous Fauré Requiem.
We’ve done it before - but please don’t groan,
We didn’t want a Fauré into the unknown.
Hostias and Libera me ranged from soft to loud
And David our soloist really did us proud.
There was some consternation there among the men
Because due to an illness the trip was beyond our Ken,
But they pulled out all the stops and together found
That tenors and friends made a really good sound.

On Wednesday we went on safari,
To the well known spa of Karlovy Vary
Where water bubbles up all over the town
Except on that day, it was also coming down.
Hundreds of people were walking about
Sipping water from cups with a funny spout.
They were all so intense – it was almost an art
But I wouldn’t drink it - ‘cos it smelled like a -----!

The Muse must have left me – it’s old Father Time
But I just could not think of a word that would rhyme.

We all then set off for the church up a hill
And performed our concert, which gave us a thrill.
The girls’ choir sang like angels- it was a genuine treat
And their a cappella, it would be hard to beat.
I thought that the Fauré would take a long time
‘Cos the audience clapped at the end of each line.
They really were with us – we just could not lose
As the Russian Mafia had made an offer they couldn’t refuse.
Richard’s direction – it stood out a mile
And in one or two places we started to smile.

To find a good organist he’d searched near and far,
And found Duncan Aspden – boy what a star!
When playing the organ – and this you can quote,
From Haydn to Goodall with ne’er a duff note.

And so to the finish, we hope that you’ll agree,
It has been quite a trip – our Bohemian Rhapsody.
Though it’s good to travel and yes it’s nice to roam
I think that next year’s trip will be somewhat nearer home.
I must make one confession at the conclusion of this pome
I breathed a large sigh of relief when all were safely home.

Be sympathetic to this poem, don’t shoot me down in flames
Because after filling all those forms - I know all your middle names!!

Phil Royle