I have always said that I had a dream job, but never did I think that my dream job would lead me to a dream excursion as well! I decided to spend yesterday morning jogging around Syracuse, a lovely town with Greek, Italian, and of course Sicillian influences. I felt that my walkman was anachronistic as I jogged through "old world" streets while listening to a recording of "Flight," the new opera for the resident artists this year. As we made our way around Sicilia, the towns got more intimate and the dialect became thicker!

In addition to the fantastic friendships I have made with our fellow passengers, I have also gotten to know members of the crew. Dean has been practicing his greek with both crew members and passengers, while I was able to learn that indeed, my last name (Lesniak) does mean hazelnut in Croation (thanks to a lovely Croatian bartender on the vessel named Anna.)

Last evening's concert was inspiring for many reasons, but most of all because I genuinely felt moved by the emotional energy our audience was feeding us. I saw tears in various sets of eyes during Dean's "Ideale," Deb's "Vilia" and the West Side Story drew a similar response. We all owe kudos to Mark Trawka for planning such exquisite repertoire for these concerts!

This concert also presented me with an opportunity to perform a solo of my own-- and to fit the opera theme, I chose the "Rigoletto Paraphrase" of Franz Liszt. I was overwhelmed by the attentiveness of the audience, the solid wall of uniformed crew members who lined up to see us in the back of the lounge, and the gentle rocking of the ship that serves as a constant reminder that I'm living a dream here on board.

After the concert, Deb and I spent the evening into the late hours talking with our new friends as the evening unfolded perfectly. I hope our friends at home are faring well, and although we'll be sad to leave, I know this experience is changing and inspiring us in ways we had not imagined.