Players awakened with great excitement as this is the day we will be visiting the famous Dead Sea.

The Dead Sea is a salt lake between Israel and Jordan and its shore line is the lowest point the surface
of the earth on dry land.  The lake is fed mainly by the River Jordan and has no outlet.  This means that as intense heat cause the water to evaporate, thick concentrations of minerals accumulate in the water.  The high level of minerals and salt inhibits life. So imagine a lake with the salt level of nine times the sea with absolutely no living entities.

Before the trip to the Dead Sea, we had another children's concert to perform in the morning. Right after breakfast at 7 A.M., we departed at 9:15 A.M. for the 10:30 A.M. concert in the National Music Conservatory (NMC). Our audience today had very little exposure to musical instruments and they were absolutely mesmerized to see the different performing groups.  We repeated yesterday's program with the string quartet performing first, then a percussion solo piece. Next, the woodwind trio performed, followed by a solo marimba piece. The brass quintet closed the performance.  Each time a new group was introduced, the children were 'ooh-ing and aah-ing' when they saw the different instruments. Our audience was very unabashed in asking questions and we had to limit the number of questions so that we could fit the concert within its allocated time.

After the concert, many of us changed into comfortable clothes in reparation for the visit to the Dead Sea. Some of us were prepared with bathing suits and swimming trunks. The journey to the Dead Sea
took about an hour. There were amazing wide expanses of mountainous desert along the journey. Upon arrival we paid a 10 Dinar (Jordanian Dollar) fee, about $14 U.S., per person to enter the resort that would allow us to swim in the nicer parts of the beach. The resort also had proper facilities to clean up after the swim. The concentration of salt and minerals in the water is so high that when it dries on your skin and clothing, it leaves a sticky residue.

Before we entered the resort, we had a picnic on the public beach as food and drinks are not allowed in the resort beach. It was falafel sandwiches which were very delicious!  I took the opportunity to take a
group photo in this beautiful setting.  After lunch, many members decided to swim in the lake.  Clearly swimming with a full stomach is notan issue!  Actually, swimming isn't the right word to describe the
activity in the water.  The correct word would be 'float.'  The high salt and mineral content made it impossible to sink.  We were advised by our guide not to let the salty water come into contact with your eyes as it would sting.  One of our members decided to take a dip to test the impossible sink theory and found the experience to be extremely unpleasant! 

After 'floating' for about an hour or so, some members decided to get a mud treatment.  For a small fee, you can get some Dead Sea mud slathered all over your body.  The mud is prized for its nourishing properties on the skin.  In fact, beauty products made from Dead Sea minerals are highly sought after.

About 3:30 P.M., we gathered to depart from the Dead Sea and return to the King's Academy.  On the way, we stopped by a small grocery store forsome snacks as dinner wouldn't be served until after rehearsal (9:30 P.M.).  Upon arrival at the Academy, there was a rush for the shower for proper clean-up and some fresh clothes.  We then headed to the NMC for our evening rehearsal.  Tonight was our second tutti rehearsal andthings are beginning to come together nicely.  There are some tuning
issues due to the pitch frequency change from A440 to A442, but the FSO members are beginning to get the hang of it. 

Rehearsal ended about 10 minutes early this evening.  Maestro Fakhouri must have been sensing our collective hunger!  We quickly departed for the Daya'a Restaurant.  It is a local Jordanian fast food  cuisine restaurant.  FSO members were delighted to taste some delicious Jordanian version of 'pulled-chicken' wrapped in Jordanian bread (it resembles a pita bread) stuffed with cucumbers, olives, pickles and other vegetables.  After dinner, we returned to the Academy to rest for another exciting day in Jordan tomorrow. 

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