http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm Tue, 24 Apr 2012 04:38:06 GMT http://bandzoogle.com http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=2011795 Sunday April 22, 2012 After a wonderful sleep I was up early...not on purpose, and used the time to catch up on some work and then headed out to pick up Cillian, Fiona and Ailie and head up to Bemidji, MN. Norah and her hubby Brian went up earlier with 2 other friends, Cory and Danielle, as Brian and Cory are from Bemidji and were going to play for a retirement home at 3pm. After a necessary Starbucks stop, we made our way 4 1/2hrs north to Bemidji with the company of podcasts of 'How Stuff Works'. Very interesting I must say! We finally arrived in Bemidji, as we had heard so much about it from Norah, Brian and Cory we were looking forward to finally seeing it for ourselves! I was most excited about the fact that as you go over the bridge into town it tells you all across the bridge that you are going over the Mississippi River! I was pretty excited...mostly because you hear of this river and have fun games spelling it with your friends as a kid and then finally seeing it for real was pretty neat! I even said the little saying in my head as we were crossing it! We arrived at the venue and unloaded our gear and then found a cool little coffeeshop to hang out in, grab a sandwich and a coffee and use the wifi, until Norah and Brian were done and we were able to go together and do our sound check...since Brian was doing sound for us. We eventually headed over to Headwater Unitarian Universalist Fellowship church and got all set up and sound checked and the volunteers had made everyone home made soups and bread for dinner for the community. How cool! It was SUCH good soup too! Bellies full, we got changed and ready for the gig and since there were no changerooms and only 1 small bathroom and many people already in the church, we used the van as a makeshift changeroom. How glamourous! One at a time we changed and got ready and all of us eventually ended up hanging out in the van listening to some good hit pop songs to pump us up before the gig. Anyone who walked by and heard Phil Collins pumping from our windows (thanks to Ailie who is a big fan) got a good laugh! It was such a gorgeous sunny day, so it was quite nice hanging outside or in the van before the show. What an amazingly appreciative audience! We had such a fun show and everyone was so into the music and having such a great time. From the wee little ones to the much more mature ones...we all had a great time! Thanks also to Brian for the great sound...and for just being hilarious and awesome in general. There were a few funny moments, including the dance board in front of the small raised stage which was warped and was a bit of a trampoline to dance on. Good exercise I suppose...especially when my clicker fell off! I was a little worried since the front row was literally at the front of the dance board, but luckily the clicker didn't go too far! The other funny moment was the fact that the stage was quite small to fit us all on with our instruments, and Ailie and I were at the very ends of the stage. Because Ailie has her harp on a stool, she doesn't get to move to much, but I didn't have much room next to the accordion and then having to move forwards a bit to sing into the mic. So, during one of the later tunes in our 2nd set, I was about to do a solo and went to tap my foot and there was no stage under my foot and I made quite a graceful dissappearance off the stage for a second....but didn't miss a beat! It was really funny! The 'stage' was only a few inches high, like a step, so I didn't fall or anything, it just caught me quite off guard and made the entire band bust out laughing...as well as the audience! Funny times! After the show we packed up and went to Brian's parents place, which was where we were staying for the night. The most beautiful house on the lake. Cory and Danielle came over also, (who were staying at Cory's house just down the road) and we had a nice hang out before we all decided to go to bed. Since we don't live in the same city, it's nice to visit when you can! All in all, and awesome day...made even more awesome with the much anticipated day off and sleep in the next day! Yipee!!! :-) Sunday April 22, 2012

After a wonderful sleep I was up early...not on purpose, and used the time to catch up on some work and then headed out to pick up Cillian, Fiona and Ailie and head up to Bemidji, MN. Norah and her hubby Brian went up earlier with 2 other friends, Cory and Danielle, as Brian and Cory are from Bemidji and were going to play for a retirement home at 3pm. After a necessary Starbucks stop, we made our way 4 1/2hrs north to Bemidji with the company of podcasts of 'How Stuff Works'. Very interesting I must say!

We finally arrived in Bemidji, as we had heard so much about it from Norah, Brian and Cory we were looking forward to finally seeing it for ourselves! I was most excited about the fact that as you go over the bridge into town it tells you all across the bridge that you are going over the Mississippi River! I was pretty excited...mostly because you hear of this river and have fun games spelling it with your friends as a kid and then finally seeing it for real was pretty neat! I even said the little saying in my head as we were crossing it! We arrived at the venue and unloaded our gear and then found a cool little coffeeshop to hang out in, grab a sandwich and a coffee and use the wifi, until Norah and Brian were done and we were able to go together and do our sound check...since Brian was doing sound for us. We eventually headed over to Headwater Unitarian Universalist Fellowship church and got all set up and sound checked and the volunteers had made everyone home made soups and bread for dinner for the community. How cool! It was SUCH good soup too! Bellies full, we got changed and ready for the gig and since there were no changerooms and only 1 small bathroom and many people already in the church, we used the van as a makeshift changeroom. How glamourous! One at a time we changed and got ready and all of us eventually ended up hanging out in the van listening to some good hit pop songs to pump us up before the gig. Anyone who walked by and heard Phil Collins pumping from our windows (thanks to Ailie who is a big fan) got a good laugh! It was such a gorgeous sunny day, so it was quite nice hanging outside or in the van before the show.

What an amazingly appreciative audience! We had such a fun show and everyone was so into the music and having such a great time. From the wee little ones to the much more mature ones...we all had a great time! Thanks also to Brian for the great sound...and for just being hilarious and awesome in general. There were a few funny moments, including the dance board in front of the small raised stage which was warped and was a bit of a trampoline to dance on. Good exercise I suppose...especially when my clicker fell off! I was a little worried since the front row was literally at the front of the dance board, but luckily the clicker didn't go too far! The other funny moment was the fact that the stage was quite small to fit us all on with our instruments, and Ailie and I were at the very ends of the stage. Because Ailie has her harp on a stool, she doesn't get to move to much, but I didn't have much room next to the accordion and then having to move forwards a bit to sing into the mic. So, during one of the later tunes in our 2nd set, I was about to do a solo and went to tap my foot and there was no stage under my foot and I made quite a graceful dissappearance off the stage for a second....but didn't miss a beat! It was really funny! The 'stage' was only a few inches high, like a step, so I didn't fall or anything, it just caught me quite off guard and made the entire band bust out laughing...as well as the audience! Funny times!

After the show we packed up and went to Brian's parents place, which was where we were staying for the night. The most beautiful house on the lake. Cory and Danielle came over also, (who were staying at Cory's house just down the road) and we had a nice hang out before we all decided to go to bed. Since we don't live in the same city, it's nice to visit when you can! All in all, and awesome day...made even more awesome with the much anticipated day off and sleep in the next day! Yipee!!! :-)]]> Tue, 24 Apr 2012 04:38:06 GMT 38E671B1E4926709702B5180913B113F http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=2011572 Saturday April 21, 2012 Some of us got a bit of a sleep in which was nice. Norah and Ailie taught 2 very early harp and flute lessons and I ended up waking up early unfortunately, but was well rested and decided to go for a run while I had the chance. I got all ready and walked outside...and it was snowing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had to really digest this, because just yesterday it was 20c in Fairfield, Iowa and today in Duluth, Minnesota it was SNOWING!?!?! It made for a very cold, but really fun and beautiful run as the snowflakes were falling all around. It really took everyone by surprise when I got back to the house to shower and pack up. Coming back from the run also gave me a chance to admire the beautiful house we were staying in! It looked like a real live doll house! It was stunning. I later found out that the house used to be called the ice cream house because of the colours it was painted. After we were all packed in the van again we headed to St. Paul, MN. We went to Norah's house to drop off suitcases etc and Norah decided to stay there and get some work done for the few hours she could be at home for! The rest of us went to the Mall of America. Oh yes. Mainly because Ailie had to go to the Apple store to get her computer fixed. We have had some fun and hilarious times at the Mall of America last summer and thought it would be fun to go back again. Not this time though. Of course it was a Saturday, so the mall was PACKED. About an hour later Cillian, Fiona, Ailie and I met back up exhausted and annoyed and left. Ailie did get her computer fixed and Fiona got a new pair of jeans. Mission Accomplished. We then went to the Celtic Junction and met up with Norah and her wonderful husband Brian. We had a rehearsal and sound check in the beautiful venue, had some dinner and got ready for the show. It was a full house and so great to be back and see so many good friends. Since Norah lives in St. Paul and works at the Center for Irish Music which hosts the Celtic Junction, we have spent a fair bit of time there over the past year and a half on different tours and I've definitely made some really great friends. The amazing Cormac & Natalie have made the Celtic Junction & Center for Irish Music an incredible and reputable venue and music school. The Fretless played there a month and a half ago and it was so much fun to be back again so soon and hang out with all my friends again...even if it's brief! We had the most fun gig! Thankyou to everyone who came out and of course Cormac for the awesome sound! We all hung out for a while afterwards and eventually headed back to our different places where we were staying for the night. I had the pleasure to be hosted by Cormac and Natalie and got a nice 'late' visit with them until we were all falling asleep and hit the sack. Saturday April 21, 2012

Some of us got a bit of a sleep in which was nice. Norah and Ailie taught 2 very early harp and flute lessons and I ended up waking up early unfortunately, but was well rested and decided to go for a run while I had the chance. I got all ready and walked outside...and it was snowing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I had to really digest this, because just yesterday it was 20c in Fairfield, Iowa and today in Duluth, Minnesota it was SNOWING!?!?! It made for a very cold, but really fun and beautiful run as the snowflakes were falling all around. It really took everyone by surprise when I got back to the house to shower and pack up. Coming back from the run also gave me a chance to admire the beautiful house we were staying in! It looked like a real live doll house! It was stunning. I later found out that the house used to be called the ice cream house because of the colours it was painted. After we were all packed in the van again we headed to St. Paul, MN.

We went to Norah's house to drop off suitcases etc and Norah decided to stay there and get some work done for the few hours she could be at home for! The rest of us went to the Mall of America. Oh yes. Mainly because Ailie had to go to the Apple store to get her computer fixed. We have had some fun and hilarious times at the Mall of America last summer and thought it would be fun to go back again. Not this time though. Of course it was a Saturday, so the mall was PACKED. About an hour later Cillian, Fiona, Ailie and I met back up exhausted and annoyed and left. Ailie did get her computer fixed and Fiona got a new pair of jeans. Mission Accomplished. We then went to the Celtic Junction and met up with Norah and her wonderful husband Brian. We had a rehearsal and sound check in the beautiful venue, had some dinner and got ready for the show. It was a full house and so great to be back and see so many good friends. Since Norah lives in St. Paul and works at the Center for Irish Music which hosts the Celtic Junction, we have spent a fair bit of time there over the past year and a half on different tours and I've definitely made some really great friends. The amazing Cormac & Natalie have made the Celtic Junction & Center for Irish Music an incredible and reputable venue and music school. The Fretless played there a month and a half ago and it was so much fun to be back again so soon and hang out with all my friends again...even if it's brief! We had the most fun gig! Thankyou to everyone who came out and of course Cormac for the awesome sound! We all hung out for a while afterwards and eventually headed back to our different places where we were staying for the night. I had the pleasure to be hosted by Cormac and Natalie and got a nice 'late' visit with them until we were all falling asleep and hit the sack.
]]> Tue, 24 Apr 2012 03:40:41 GMT 4541F4E34C7027D9B21338F4182489E3 http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=2010931 Friday April 20, 2012 Driving driving driving driving driving driving. We left Fairfield around 6:45am and quickly stopped at Café Paradiso for coffee and cinnamon buns and hit the road for our impending 10hr drive. Other than our cramped legs and boredom in the car, we had a smooth ride. Norah and I traded off on the driving, while Cillian watched pretty much a whole season of Deadwood, Fiona played DJ and Ailie read an entire novel! We all of course took turns sleeping too...because that's just what happens in a car after a while...but not the driver of course!! We were headed to Duluth, MN and luckily it was a beautiful day for driving. We arrived in Duluth and I was quite excited to see the gigantic Lake Superior! I've seen some of the great lakes before, but Lake Superior is the big momma of them all! I kept referring to it as the ocean by accident it's that big! We were about 2hrs early, so we found a nice little coffee shop/bakery and hung out there for a bit. We then headed to the venue at the Duluth Congregational Church, and were greeted by their big billboard sign advertising our show: The Outside Track: Celtic Superstars! 8pm. It was awesome and of course we all wanted a photo of it! We did our soundcheck, which turned out to not be much, as we mainly went acoustic with a few mics to help with the vocals. We then were treated by a lovely homemade soup & salad dinner by our lovely hosts, and got to chill out for a bit in the really big and comfy 'green room' before we got ready for the show. Ailie was a big hit at that show with all the harp players around town, which was great. The show was really fun and everyone was so nice! It turned out that Fiona had a friend from her town in Scotland that was living in Duluth and going to school there, and he came out to the show. Afterwards, we all went back to our hosts beautiful house and had a little hang out and session for a few hours...and were even treated to some home made popcorn! Despite the LONG drive, it was a really great day. Fiona and I even got to re-live our childhood that night by getting the room with bunk beds! Friday April 20, 2012

Driving driving driving driving driving driving. We left Fairfield around 6:45am and quickly stopped at Café Paradiso for coffee and cinnamon buns and hit the road for our impending 10hr drive. Other than our cramped legs and boredom in the car, we had a smooth ride. Norah and I traded off on the driving, while Cillian watched pretty much a whole season of Deadwood, Fiona played DJ and Ailie read an entire novel! We all of course took turns sleeping too...because that's just what happens in a car after a while...but not the driver of course!! We were headed to Duluth, MN and luckily it was a beautiful day for driving. We arrived in Duluth and I was quite excited to see the gigantic Lake Superior! I've seen some of the great lakes before, but Lake Superior is the big momma of them all! I kept referring to it as the ocean by accident it's that big!

We were about 2hrs early, so we found a nice little coffee shop/bakery and hung out there for a bit. We then headed to the venue at the Duluth Congregational Church, and were greeted by their big billboard sign advertising our show: The Outside Track: Celtic Superstars! 8pm. It was awesome and of course we all wanted a photo of it!

We did our soundcheck, which turned out to not be much, as we mainly went acoustic with a few mics to help with the vocals. We then were treated by a lovely homemade soup & salad dinner by our lovely hosts, and got to chill out for a bit in the really big and comfy 'green room' before we got ready for the show. Ailie was a big hit at that show with all the harp players around town, which was great. The show was really fun and everyone was so nice! It turned out that Fiona had a friend from her town in Scotland that was living in Duluth and going to school there, and he came out to the show. Afterwards, we all went back to our hosts beautiful house and had a little hang out and session for a few hours...and were even treated to some home made popcorn! Despite the LONG drive, it was a really great day. Fiona and I even got to re-live our childhood that night by getting the room with bunk beds!]]> Tue, 24 Apr 2012 01:16:54 GMT 5C8B6F901AF59E8DC8BECEF4E2D0C7DE http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=2010264 Thursday April 19, 2012 What a gorgeous day in Chicago! Norah and I went for a run first thing in the morning and what a gorgeous day it was. It was about 17c and the neighbourhood was beautiful, the flowers were out and birds were chirping away. The perfect day. I got back to the house and there was a beautiful breakfast served. We took turns eating and having showers and eventually packed up to head out. This packing up process ended up taking a bit longer than we thought because we all felt so at home at Kathy's house that our suitcases kind of exploded in the comforts of our rooms! I'm pretty sure Norah was the worst, as she almost forgot her flutes in one room, whistles in another, laptop and iPhone in yet another! It was pretty funny but we all got sorted out and we finally hit the road. It was kind of like leaving home for college, as we drove away yelling our goodbyes and waving to Kathy and Cary in the driveway. Awwww! :-) We then headed to Fairfield, Iowa. Looking at the beautiful huge & funky houses as we drove into town. Norah always talks about how relaxed she feels whenever she comes to Fairfield, probably because there are so many people that practice transcendental meditation here, everyone just feels the vibes! We arrived at Café Paradiso and got our coffee's and hung out for about an hour or so before our soundcheck. Thanks to their free wifi, we all got to catch up on some business and phone calls. We then got set up and did our soundcheck which was a breeze because of the lovely Tim who does sound there and is great at it. It was lovely to see him and be back in Café Paradiso again, as I had just been there a month and a half earlier with The Fretless. We had a nice little catch up after soundcheck as we all went for Thai food for dinner. We then headed back and got ready for the show. We all were so exhausted for some reason, so tried to get ourselves pumped up for the show, which worked. The audience was into it and we had a great time...despite Cillian breaking about 3 strings. Every time Cillian would break one of his guitar strings, I would break about 2 bow hairs, so I told him in the break that he can't break anymore strings or else I wouldn't have any bow hairs to play with!!! It was so hot and our instruments weren't used to the different temperatures so were acting up a bit. It all turned out ok and I even saw many people who were excited to The Outside Track, as they were at The Fretless' show the month before. Gotta love music lovers! Exhausted, we piled back in the van to head to Tim's place as we were staying there for the night and were going to follow him there. Somehow we missed seeing his vehicle drive away and we literally thought he disappeared! He was parked right beside us and then he was gone!! After circling the block a few times, we guessed at a street and luckily he was just on his way back to find us! Another adventure! We unloaded at the house but the funniest scene yet, for this tour for me was Norah unloading the van. Everyone had taken their stuff inside and I was coming back out to help with the last few bags, and all I could see was Norah pick up a suitcase and fling it out of the van as it flies through the air and lands on the grass! It was probably the funniest sight, as she was bent over the seats in the van, lit up by the interior lights of the van. Both her suitcase and mine are broken and the most awkward to get out, and with our exhaustion those 2 bags ended up flying out of the car. Definitely a funny tour moment! We were very happy to see our beds that night! Thursday April 19, 2012

What a gorgeous day in Chicago! Norah and I went for a run first thing in the morning and what a gorgeous day it was. It was about 17c and the neighbourhood was beautiful, the flowers were out and birds were chirping away. The perfect day. I got back to the house and there was a beautiful breakfast served. We took turns eating and having showers and eventually packed up to head out. This packing up process ended up taking a bit longer than we thought because we all felt so at home at Kathy's house that our suitcases kind of exploded in the comforts of our rooms! I'm pretty sure Norah was the worst, as she almost forgot her flutes in one room, whistles in another, laptop and iPhone in yet another! It was pretty funny but we all got sorted out and we finally hit the road. It was kind of like leaving home for college, as we drove away yelling our goodbyes and waving to Kathy and Cary in the driveway. Awwww! :-)

We then headed to Fairfield, Iowa. Looking at the beautiful huge & funky houses as we drove into town. Norah always talks about how relaxed she feels whenever she comes to Fairfield, probably because there are so many people that practice transcendental meditation here, everyone just feels the vibes! We arrived at Café Paradiso and got our coffee's and hung out for about an hour or so before our soundcheck. Thanks to their free wifi, we all got to catch up on some business and phone calls. We then got set up and did our soundcheck which was a breeze because of the lovely Tim who does sound there and is great at it. It was lovely to see him and be back in Café Paradiso again, as I had just been there a month and a half earlier with The Fretless. We had a nice little catch up after soundcheck as we all went for Thai food for dinner. We then headed back and got ready for the show. We all were so exhausted for some reason, so tried to get ourselves pumped up for the show, which worked. The audience was into it and we had a great time...despite Cillian breaking about 3 strings. Every time Cillian would break one of his guitar strings, I would break about 2 bow hairs, so I told him in the break that he can't break anymore strings or else I wouldn't have any bow hairs to play with!!! It was so hot and our instruments weren't used to the different temperatures so were acting up a bit. It all turned out ok and I even saw many people who were excited to The Outside Track, as they were at The Fretless' show the month before. Gotta love music lovers!

Exhausted, we piled back in the van to head to Tim's place as we were staying there for the night and were going to follow him there. Somehow we missed seeing his vehicle drive away and we literally thought he disappeared! He was parked right beside us and then he was gone!! After circling the block a few times, we guessed at a street and luckily he was just on his way back to find us! Another adventure! We unloaded at the house but the funniest scene yet, for this tour for me was Norah unloading the van. Everyone had taken their stuff inside and I was coming back out to help with the last few bags, and all I could see was Norah pick up a suitcase and fling it out of the van as it flies through the air and lands on the grass! It was probably the funniest sight, as she was bent over the seats in the van, lit up by the interior lights of the van. Both her suitcase and mine are broken and the most awkward to get out, and with our exhaustion those 2 bags ended up flying out of the car. Definitely a funny tour moment! We were very happy to see our beds that night!]]> Mon, 23 Apr 2012 22:51:01 GMT 2E932F9DC5303BB3A55DD38C9DB00EA7 http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=2010113 Wednesday April 18, 2012 After a bit of a slow start to the morning and a nice run in Champaign, IL, we got ready and Fiona, Norah and I went to pick up Cillian and Ailie at the other hosts house they were staying at. All the neighbourhoods around the area were so quaint and beautiful with all the trees and flowers blossoming and the streets made of bricks, we felt like we were in a movie! It was also quite warm, so it was the perfect start to the day. A while later we arrived in Chicago and had to find the radio station for our interview on Live Ireland with the lovely Maryann Kiefer and Bill Margeson. They are such great people and supporters of celtic music and new bands, it was great to see them again. We got a bit lost in the maze of the buildings, as the station was in one of the school buildings in a massive college. After a quick stop in the student center for a snack and coffee--of which Cillian was so excited about, but proceeded to accidentally drop his entire coffee on the way out the door before his first sip! Poor guy! We drove around and eventually found the right building. This is how awesome Maryann is: she was waiting outside the doors for us with instructions that we could just park right there as the police have been notified that it's ok AND a huge tupperware container of homemade cookies!!! Amazing! We also think she just wanted to see us unfold ourselves out of our packed van! hahaha. We had a lovely interview and visit with Bill, Maryann and Imelda. Always good laughs and a fun time. We stopped for a bit of a late lunch at Panera Bread and had some amazing salad, sandwiches & soup that they are known for. We also got to do some business thanks to the free wifi. It's the little things I tell ya! :-) We made an important pit stop at Walgreens Pharmacy on the way. Somehow I only brought 1 pair of black tights (my favourite pair that I got in England) and they ended up getting lost in the wash, so I had to buy a new pair...not as good, but it'll do until I get to the UK again in 2 weeks! Also, Norah left her entire makeup bag at the gig in Lansing, MI, so she needed to buy all new stuff. And the lovely Fiona helped us both, as she is the master at Pharmacy stops! Oh the glamour of being on the road! HA! We then headed to the infamous and lovely Kathy and Cary Brown's house. Since I had just been there with The Fretless on Feb 29th, it was great to be back again so soon! The most epic hosts and nicest people and supporters of celtic & live music, we were all looking forward to being back. We had a nice visit and I had a few hours of practice time before our homecooked dinner. We got ready, had a brief band meeting/rehearsal and then did the show. It's always so much fun doing house concerts, as the setting is so intimate and relaxing. Everyone was so nice and we all had a really great time. We hung out with Maryann, Kathy and Cary afterwards for a bit and then we were all so tired we all headed to bed. Wednesday April 18, 2012

After a bit of a slow start to the morning and a nice run in Champaign, IL, we got ready and Fiona, Norah and I went to pick up Cillian and Ailie at the other hosts house they were staying at. All the neighbourhoods around the area were so quaint and beautiful with all the trees and flowers blossoming and the streets made of bricks, we felt like we were in a movie! It was also quite warm, so it was the perfect start to the day.

A while later we arrived in Chicago and had to find the radio station for our interview on Live Ireland with the lovely Maryann Kiefer and Bill Margeson. They are such great people and supporters of celtic music and new bands, it was great to see them again. We got a bit lost in the maze of the buildings, as the station was in one of the school buildings in a massive college. After a quick stop in the student center for a snack and coffee--of which Cillian was so excited about, but proceeded to accidentally drop his entire coffee on the way out the door before his first sip! Poor guy!

We drove around and eventually found the right building. This is how awesome Maryann is: she was waiting outside the doors for us with instructions that we could just park right there as the police have been notified that it's ok AND a huge tupperware container of homemade cookies!!! Amazing! We also think she just wanted to see us unfold ourselves out of our packed van! hahaha. We had a lovely interview and visit with Bill, Maryann and Imelda. Always good laughs and a fun time.

We stopped for a bit of a late lunch at Panera Bread and had some amazing salad, sandwiches & soup that they are known for. We also got to do some business thanks to the free wifi. It's the little things I tell ya! :-) We made an important pit stop at Walgreens Pharmacy on the way. Somehow I only brought 1 pair of black tights (my favourite pair that I got in England) and they ended up getting lost in the wash, so I had to buy a new pair...not as good, but it'll do until I get to the UK again in 2 weeks! Also, Norah left her entire makeup bag at the gig in Lansing, MI, so she needed to buy all new stuff. And the lovely Fiona helped us both, as she is the master at Pharmacy stops! Oh the glamour of being on the road! HA!

We then headed to the infamous and lovely Kathy and Cary Brown's house. Since I had just been there with The Fretless on Feb 29th, it was great to be back again so soon! The most epic hosts and nicest people and supporters of celtic & live music, we were all looking forward to being back. We had a nice visit and I had a few hours of practice time before our homecooked dinner. We got ready, had a brief band meeting/rehearsal and then did the show. It's always so much fun doing house concerts, as the setting is so intimate and relaxing. Everyone was so nice and we all had a really great time. We hung out with Maryann, Kathy and Cary afterwards for a bit and then we were all so tired we all headed to bed.]]> Mon, 23 Apr 2012 22:24:36 GMT C7D2CFB0324781405CE411824E118ECE http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=2010037 Tuesday April 17, 2012 Another fairly early and cold start to the day. 7am, but we got to see a beautiful sunrise...and scrape thick frost off the window! We drove to Champaign, IL for our next show. It was a good 5 hours, but quite a nice drive. We had an interview on the local public radio station and it went really well. We had an interview there last year around this time, so it was nice to be back again to the beautiful station. We met Dean, our presenter for the show that evening at the station and he took us out for lunch to the local pub. We then headed back to his house, where we were going to be staying that night. Because I had driven most of the way, I was pretty tired, and after a bit of computer work, I took a nap. After a few hours, we all reconvened and headed to the gig for our sound check with a quick stop to pick up some dinner on the way. As they were filiming the show, we had a good sound & video check and then got ready for the show. There were a lot of great things happening in town that night, and since it was a Tuesday, we weren't sure what the turnout would be, but we had a good crowd, and they were really fun and enthusiastic! The venue is super funky and they had fixed it up a bit since the last time we were there (last year), but it's such a fun room to play and we had a great time. After the show, we headed back to the 2 different places we were staying and hit the hay for a good nights rest. Tuesday April 17, 2012

Another fairly early and cold start to the day. 7am, but we got to see a beautiful sunrise...and scrape thick frost off the window! We drove to Champaign, IL for our next show. It was a good 5 hours, but quite a nice drive. We had an interview on the local public radio station and it went really well. We had an interview there last year around this time, so it was nice to be back again to the beautiful station. We met Dean, our presenter for the show that evening at the station and he took us out for lunch to the local pub. We then headed back to his house, where we were going to be staying that night. Because I had driven most of the way, I was pretty tired, and after a bit of computer work, I took a nap. After a few hours, we all reconvened and headed to the gig for our sound check with a quick stop to pick up some dinner on the way. As they were filiming the show, we had a good sound & video check and then got ready for the show. There were a lot of great things happening in town that night, and since it was a Tuesday, we weren't sure what the turnout would be, but we had a good crowd, and they were really fun and enthusiastic! The venue is super funky and they had fixed it up a bit since the last time we were there (last year), but it's such a fun room to play and we had a great time. After the show, we headed back to the 2 different places we were staying and hit the hay for a good nights rest.
]]> Mon, 23 Apr 2012 22:02:25 GMT B46E1912D4514AE59C8C915C23953A7B http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=1999083 Monday April 16, 2012 Official day off. Yet, it was super stormy and windy and the big old house we were staying in ended up losing a part of the roof after a loud bang. We were using this day off for some much needed admin work. The never ending admin work of a touring musician! Because it was so stormy the power kept going in and out, so we decided to head into Kalmazoo (which was about 20min away) and go to the library to use the internet and their computers (as Fiona's laptop has unfortunately died). We couldn't believe just how windy it was. Hard to even walk across the street from where we parked the van to the building! crazy! We spent a good few hours in the library catching up on business. I have a lot of exciting stuff brewing for myself and The Fretless, so please keep checking the website! The rest of The Outside Track was working on promo for the brand new CD 'Flash Company' to be released in May, and the single 'Mountain Road' which is being released on Monday, April 23, 2012--all proceeds going to 2 charities: Mountain Rescue and The Prevention of Cruelty to Children. The first Trad band to do a single 100% for charity, please check it out and support it! These 2 charities are not government funded and help save many lives every year, so every pennie helps! You can download the single on iTunes, Facebook, Twitter, the website (www.theoutsidetrack.com), Bandcamp (where you can donate more $ if you'd like) and Amazon. It's very exciting to be touring with a great band doing such great things. After a long afternoon in the Kalamazoo library, which is actually really really nice! We headed back to Richland, where we were going to be staying again that night. Dave was making his world famous pizza for us, and we were excited for another home cooked meal with great company. Cara and her husband came over as well for pizza and some tunes and we had another wonderful night. Since Dave's wife Mary was a great photographer as well as another friend that was also over for dinner, they were showing us some of their prints. They are also both very interested in doing very old fashioned photography, like on metal plates, and photos that look like ones you would see in the very early part of the century. It was so interesting. They were showing us with special viewers and explaining how they did it. Very very interesting. Eventually Cara, Norah and Cillian peeled themselves away from the amazing food and photos to have a little Irish Flute fest in the other room and played tunes for quite a while. Fiona, Ailie and I hung out and chatted and did some much needed laundry and eventually went to bed. Monday April 16, 2012

Official day off. Yet, it was super stormy and windy and the big old house we were staying in ended up losing a part of the roof after a loud bang. We were using this day off for some much needed admin work. The never ending admin work of a touring musician! Because it was so stormy the power kept going in and out, so we decided to head into Kalmazoo (which was about 20min away) and go to the library to use the internet and their computers (as Fiona's laptop has unfortunately died). We couldn't believe just how windy it was. Hard to even walk across the street from where we parked the van to the building! crazy! We spent a good few hours in the library catching up on business. I have a lot of exciting stuff brewing for myself and The Fretless, so please keep checking the website!

The rest of The Outside Track was working on promo for the brand new CD 'Flash Company' to be released in May, and the single 'Mountain Road' which is being released on Monday, April 23, 2012--all proceeds going to 2 charities: Mountain Rescue and The Prevention of Cruelty to Children. The first Trad band to do a single 100% for charity, please check it out and support it! These 2 charities are not government funded and help save many lives every year, so every pennie helps! You can download the single on iTunes, Facebook, Twitter, the website (www.theoutsidetrack.com), Bandcamp (where you can donate more $ if you'd like) and Amazon. It's very exciting to be touring with a great band doing such great things.

After a long afternoon in the Kalamazoo library, which is actually really really nice! We headed back to Richland, where we were going to be staying again that night. Dave was making his world famous pizza for us, and we were excited for another home cooked meal with great company. Cara and her husband came over as well for pizza and some tunes and we had another wonderful night. Since Dave's wife Mary was a great photographer as well as another friend that was also over for dinner, they were showing us some of their prints. They are also both very interested in doing very old fashioned photography, like on metal plates, and photos that look like ones you would see in the very early part of the century. It was so interesting. They were showing us with special viewers and explaining how they did it. Very very interesting. Eventually Cara, Norah and Cillian peeled themselves away from the amazing food and photos to have a little Irish Flute fest in the other room and played tunes for quite a while. Fiona, Ailie and I hung out and chatted and did some much needed laundry and eventually went to bed.]]> Fri, 20 Apr 2012 03:23:19 GMT 6488ED1A911BB08545439DEE92C7D699 http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=1999082 Sunday April 15, 2012 And yet another early morning. The earliest yet I believe! 5:30am start. Oooh boy! Of course it's always the times you stay in the nicest hotels with the most comfy beds and the best amenities that you have the least amount of time to stay. Oh life on the road. So, we headed out and before we left Canada, we HAD to make the most important stop: Tim Hortons. With our coffee, hot chocolate, breakfast sandwiches and Boston Cream donuts we were ready to hit the road...and it wasn't even 6am yet! The border crossing turned out a breeze with no lineup which was nice. We drove to Richland, MI and we made good time because of the quick border crossing. We ended up arriving a bit earlier than expected, so we checked in at the venue at the lovely community hall, and then went to the local diner for lunch. Since church had just got out, the place was hopping...and we very much could tell we stuck out like a sore thumb because of a) our accents and b) our clothing! Everyone was dressed for church and we had been in a car for 7 hours! We had a nice big meal and then headed back to the venue for soundcheck and to get ready for the show. It turned out to be a really great gig and a lovely crowd (despite our exhaustion!). The 2 promoters for the gig Dave & Cara did such a great job with everything and we all had so much fun! It was great to have a 3pm matinee show, because it was still light outside when we finished! After we packed up, we stopped at the grocery store to pick up some food and headed to Dave's house (which was where we were staying that night). We got settled in and then Cara and some other of their musician friends came over to the house for dinner. What a good home cooked dinner it was. It was so nice to have done the show and just get to enjoy dinner and chat and chill out. Norah and I went for a walk, as it was so beautiful and warm...and we were so full! We then got back to the big old house and they had set up a projector screen and had connected it to a laptop, so we got to watch a movie...on the big screen! Ailie, Fiona, Norah and I fell asleep after about 15min, so we didn't end up watching the movie and just went to bed. Sunday April 15, 2012

And yet another early morning. The earliest yet I believe! 5:30am start. Oooh boy! Of course it's always the times you stay in the nicest hotels with the most comfy beds and the best amenities that you have the least amount of time to stay. Oh life on the road.

So, we headed out and before we left Canada, we HAD to make the most important stop: Tim Hortons. With our coffee, hot chocolate, breakfast sandwiches and Boston Cream donuts we were ready to hit the road...and it wasn't even 6am yet! The border crossing turned out a breeze with no lineup which was nice. We drove to Richland, MI and we made good time because of the quick border crossing. We ended up arriving a bit earlier than expected, so we checked in at the venue at the lovely community hall, and then went to the local diner for lunch. Since church had just got out, the place was hopping...and we very much could tell we stuck out like a sore thumb because of a) our accents and b) our clothing! Everyone was dressed for church and we had been in a car for 7 hours!

We had a nice big meal and then headed back to the venue for soundcheck and to get ready for the show. It turned out to be a really great gig and a lovely crowd (despite our exhaustion!). The 2 promoters for the gig Dave & Cara did such a great job with everything and we all had so much fun! It was great to have a 3pm matinee show, because it was still light outside when we finished! After we packed up, we stopped at the grocery store to pick up some food and headed to Dave's house (which was where we were staying that night). We got settled in and then Cara and some other of their musician friends came over to the house for dinner. What a good home cooked dinner it was. It was so nice to have done the show and just get to enjoy dinner and chat and chill out. Norah and I went for a walk, as it was so beautiful and warm...and we were so full! We then got back to the big old house and they had set up a projector screen and had connected it to a laptop, so we got to watch a movie...on the big screen! Ailie, Fiona, Norah and I fell asleep after about 15min, so we didn't end up watching the movie and just went to bed.
]]> Fri, 20 Apr 2012 03:22:30 GMT 08908F9E1851A5FF68F032DD2667C238 http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=1999081 Sat April 14, 2012 Another early morning for us, as we headed from East Lansing, MI to London, Ontario. Not too far away, but it's better to be safe than sorry when dealing with border crossings! We had an early sound check, and a bunch of friends in and around London that we hope to see, so it'll be a great day. When we reached the Canadian border, it was quite a breeze, but the funny part was when Cillian was asked how long he'd been a resident of Canada. We all looked a bit confused and wondered if it was a trick question, but Cillian answered that he'd never lived in Canada and has been (and still is) living in Ireland. It ended up that one of his previous trips to Canada a border agent must have accidentally put the wrong stamp in his passport! A bit of a funny moment to pass the long time in the car! It was nice to be back in Canada again...if only very briefly! We finally reached London, and checked into the hotel. We were quite excited that we were staying at the Hilton and the Harlem Globetrotters had just been there the night before, so everyone was pretty excited about that! As we only had about an hour and a half before sound check, we all went our separate ways and some of us grabbed lunch, or did some errands/admin. We then met up and drove to the gig at the Aeolian Performing Arts Center. What a cool venue! We did our sound check and what an awesome sound guy as well! We were very much looking forward to playing the gig that evening. We realized that we had a bit of time and everything was quite close, so we went back to the hotel and got to chill out for a bit (or teach a skype lesson! I love my students too much! :) and Cillian went for a swim in the nice pool. We then were taken out for dinner by 2 hosts from Sun Fest (the presenters for our show) to this super cool restaurant. Since it happened to be the eve of the 100th anniversary of the Titanic sinking, many people were talking about it on the radio, as well as reenactments all over the world. The restaurant just so happened to be doing a Titanic themed night. The whole place was decorated like a ship, all the staff were in costumes and the waiters were all dressed as sailors and the owner was dressed as the captain. He even came to our table and told a bunch of interesting facts about the Titanic! and the soundtrack to the movie was playing the whole dinner. My Heart Will Go On was heard so many different times, in all different arrangements (yes, we are all musicians and notice things like this!)...until we noticed that and a few minutes later the music switched to Evita. We were wondering what that was about...until a lady dressed in the most beautiful costume walked down the stairs and started singing! She even came to our table and serenaded us. We didn't want to leave the restaurant! We thought this was way more fun than out show could be! hahaha As we were leaving the restaurant, more people were coming in for the first dinner seating of the Titanic dinner...all dressed in costume! It was SO COOL! We even saw this older couple dressed in period costume & tux and it reminded us of the couple at the end of the movie that stayed in the bed together as the ship was sinking. Oh man! That was the most epic dinner I've ever experienced! We headed straight to the venue and got ready for the gig...only to arrive to 2 home made pies by friends of the band! Amazing. It was quite a lovely show. We even included our 2 songs about drowning...unintentionally...but then got to tell our story about our Titanic dinner! :-) The audience was awesome and we all had a great time. After such a long and eventful day though, we were quite tired by the end of it and SO happy to see our amazingly comfortable beds...although bittersweet because of our early wake up! All in all, an awesome and epic day in Canada! Oh, Canada :-) Sat April 14, 2012

Another early morning for us, as we headed from East Lansing, MI to London, Ontario. Not too far away, but it's better to be safe than sorry when dealing with border crossings! We had an early sound check, and a bunch of friends in and around London that we hope to see, so it'll be a great day. When we reached the Canadian border, it was quite a breeze, but the funny part was when Cillian was asked how long he'd been a resident of Canada. We all looked a bit confused and wondered if it was a trick question, but Cillian answered that he'd never lived in Canada and has been (and still is) living in Ireland. It ended up that one of his previous trips to Canada a border agent must have accidentally put the wrong stamp in his passport! A bit of a funny moment to pass the long time in the car! It was nice to be back in Canada again...if only very briefly!

We finally reached London, and checked into the hotel. We were quite excited that we were staying at the Hilton and the Harlem Globetrotters had just been there the night before, so everyone was pretty excited about that! As we only had about an hour and a half before sound check, we all went our separate ways and some of us grabbed lunch, or did some errands/admin. We then met up and drove to the gig at the Aeolian Performing Arts Center. What a cool venue! We did our sound check and what an awesome sound guy as well! We were very much looking forward to playing the gig that evening. We realized that we had a bit of time and everything was quite close, so we went back to the hotel and got to chill out for a bit (or teach a skype lesson! I love my students too much! :) and Cillian went for a swim in the nice pool.

We then were taken out for dinner by 2 hosts from Sun Fest (the presenters for our show) to this super cool restaurant. Since it happened to be the eve of the 100th anniversary of the Titanic sinking, many people were talking about it on the radio, as well as reenactments all over the world. The restaurant just so happened to be doing a Titanic themed night. The whole place was decorated like a ship, all the staff were in costumes and the waiters were all dressed as sailors and the owner was dressed as the captain. He even came to our table and told a bunch of interesting facts about the Titanic! and the soundtrack to the movie was playing the whole dinner. My Heart Will Go On was heard so many different times, in all different arrangements (yes, we are all musicians and notice things like this!)...until we noticed that and a few minutes later the music switched to Evita. We were wondering what that was about...until a lady dressed in the most beautiful costume walked down the stairs and started singing! She even came to our table and serenaded us. We didn't want to leave the restaurant! We thought this was way more fun than out show could be! hahaha As we were leaving the restaurant, more people were coming in for the first dinner seating of the Titanic dinner...all dressed in costume! It was SO COOL! We even saw this older couple dressed in period costume & tux and it reminded us of the couple at the end of the movie that stayed in the bed together as the ship was sinking. Oh man! That was the most epic dinner I've ever experienced!

We headed straight to the venue and got ready for the gig...only to arrive to 2 home made pies by friends of the band! Amazing. It was quite a lovely show. We even included our 2 songs about drowning...unintentionally...but then got to tell our story about our Titanic dinner! :-) The audience was awesome and we all had a great time. After such a long and eventful day though, we were quite tired by the end of it and SO happy to see our amazingly comfortable beds...although bittersweet because of our early wake up! All in all, an awesome and epic day in Canada! Oh, Canada :-)
]]> Fri, 20 Apr 2012 03:21:52 GMT CFC4C60C891F4C354221FF1CD7B5DA8E http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=1981011 Friday, April 13, 2012 Friday the 13th!! It always reminds me of the TV show I loved when I was little...Mr. Rogers Neighbourhood...you know with the puppet of King Friday the 13th. Oh the good ol' days. I think I just dated myself. Oh well, Mr. Rogers was pretty legendary!  Well, after a bit of a sleep in, we had a slow start to the day and Norah, Ailie and I had a nice hang out for a few hours... all on our laptops doing music biz. Oh it's so glamourous, but the work doesn't stop! Eventually everyone was up and we all decided to go out and enjoy the beautiful day, if only for a short while. We went for lunch and found this mediterranean restaurant which was so good. Afterwards, we all were so full that we had to go for a walk. Norah and I ended up going on a major powerwalk...since we didn't end up going for a run earlier in the morning, like we wanted to. It was really nice to get out and do some exercise other than step dancing! We got back and had a bit of a band rehearsal and then got ready and headed to the gig for soundcheck. The Ten Pound Fiddle is a lovely venue with such nice people! They even had an amazing home made vegetarian dinner for us. The gig went really well and we even had a family of 3 young Irish Dancers join us and dance on our last tune. It's so nice when that happens. What a fun show and a nice and relaxing tour day. Friday, April 13, 2012
Friday the 13th!! It always reminds me of the TV show I loved when I was little...Mr. Rogers Neighbourhood...you know with the puppet of King Friday the 13th. Oh the good ol' days. I think I just dated myself. Oh well, Mr. Rogers was pretty legendary! 

Well, after a bit of a sleep in, we had a slow start to the day and Norah, Ailie and I had a nice hang out for a few hours... all on our laptops doing music biz. Oh it's so glamourous, but the work doesn't stop! Eventually everyone was up and we all decided to go out and enjoy the beautiful day, if only for a short while. We went for lunch and found this mediterranean restaurant which was so good. Afterwards, we all were so full that we had to go for a walk. Norah and I ended up going on a major powerwalk...since we didn't end up going for a run earlier in the morning, like we wanted to. It was really nice to get out and do some exercise other than step dancing! We got back and had a bit of a band rehearsal and then got ready and headed to the gig for soundcheck. The Ten Pound Fiddle is a lovely venue with such nice people! They even had an amazing home made vegetarian dinner for us. The gig went really well and we even had a family of 3 young Irish Dancers join us and dance on our last tune. It's so nice when that happens. What a fun show and a nice and relaxing tour day.
]]> Sun, 15 Apr 2012 01:35:00 GMT D4EDCEA2C660C11146629DCBEE79B905 http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=1981010 Thursday, April 12, 2012 Day off! Ummm....I mean driving Day. Yes, a 10 hour drive. After being woken up by screaming kids in the hotel hallway and jackhammers at 7:30am (the hotel was undergoing renovations) we got up and had breakfast and packed up the van and headed out. With a couple of pit stops along the way, and an entertaining Mexican Restaurant stop (thanks to Norah's iPhone!) for dinner, Norah and I took turns driving all the way from DC to East Lansing, MI. According to Fiona, I am full of random facts...while listening to top 40 radio! Hmmm, maybe I should get a job on E! News. HA! Needless to say, we were very happy to finally see our beds when we eventually arrived, and not be moving forward for a while! Thursday, April 12, 2012

Day off! Ummm....I mean driving Day. Yes, a 10 hour drive. After being woken up by screaming kids in the hotel hallway and jackhammers at 7:30am (the hotel was undergoing renovations) we got up and had breakfast and packed up the van and headed out. With a couple of pit stops along the way, and an entertaining Mexican Restaurant stop (thanks to Norah's iPhone!) for dinner, Norah and I took turns driving all the way from DC to East Lansing, MI. According to Fiona, I am full of random facts...while listening to top 40 radio! Hmmm, maybe I should get a job on E! News. HA! Needless to say, we were very happy to finally see our beds when we eventually arrived, and not be moving forward for a while!]]> Sun, 15 Apr 2012 01:35:00 GMT 2D1CD2C23A2CBCDC6BA7BCE820208B10 http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=1976772 Wedesday, April 11, 2012 What a beautiful day in Baltimore! After a restful sleep, we all met up for breakfast and then a rehearsal in the hotel room. Lots of new tunes and arrangements to practice, as The Outside Track has just recorded a wonderful new CD. We then took a break to pick up the rental van and drive 45 min to Takoma Park, MD where our gig in the evening would be. We checked into the hotel and then went off to find some lunch. Norah, Fiona and I ended up finding the always lovely Whole Foods and got some yummy food. We then headed back to the hotel for some more rehearsing and show planning, and a few hrs later we packed our gig gear and headed to the Institute of Musical Traditions. What a lovely and well run venue! We had a good sound check and then Cillian and I practiced step dancing and taught each other some steps. Irish vs. Ottawa Valley. Good times! They ordered us some amazing food from a local restaurant which we ate pretty quickly...partly because it was so good, and partly because half an hour later it was showtime! Norah really enjoyed her meal as we could all tell from the extended intro on the 2nd tune, so she could catch her breath! ha! Oh the trials and tribulations of being a singer! We had a lot of new tunes and had a great response from people after the show. It turned out that there were a lot of harp players in the audience, so during the 2nd set we all wondered why Ailie was especially picky about her tuning, and then she explained! What a fun show and a great music loving & supportive audience. Norah had some friends at the show who play in the pipe band for the White House, so after we packed up, we went to a great little session at the Limerick Pub for a pint and some tunes and visit. Cillian, Fiona and I ended up taking a bit of a scenic 'tour' to try and find the pub...as we were given incorrect directions. But we had an adventure and ended up eventually finding the way. Thank goodness for smartphones! We didn't stay too long at the pub, as we knew we had a major driving day ahead of us the next day, but it was great to get to play some tunes and hang out after the show. All in all, a great start to the tour! Wedesday, April 11, 2012

What a beautiful day in Baltimore! After a restful sleep, we all met up for breakfast and then a rehearsal in the hotel room. Lots of new tunes and arrangements to practice, as The Outside Track has just recorded a wonderful new CD. We then took a break to pick up the rental van and drive 45 min to Takoma Park, MD where our gig in the evening would be. We checked into the hotel and then went off to find some lunch. Norah, Fiona and I ended up finding the always lovely Whole Foods and got some yummy food. We then headed back to the hotel for some more rehearsing and show planning, and a few hrs later we packed our gig gear and headed to the Institute of Musical Traditions.

What a lovely and well run venue! We had a good sound check and then Cillian and I practiced step dancing and taught each other some steps. Irish vs. Ottawa Valley. Good times! They ordered us some amazing food from a local restaurant which we ate pretty quickly...partly because it was so good, and partly because half an hour later it was showtime! Norah really enjoyed her meal as we could all tell from the extended intro on the 2nd tune, so she could catch her breath! ha! Oh the trials and tribulations of being a singer! We had a lot of new tunes and had a great response from people after the show. It turned out that there were a lot of harp players in the audience, so during the 2nd set we all wondered why Ailie was especially picky about her tuning, and then she explained! What a fun show and a great music loving & supportive audience.

Norah had some friends at the show who play in the pipe band for the White House, so after we packed up, we went to a great little session at the Limerick Pub for a pint and some tunes and visit. Cillian, Fiona and I ended up taking a bit of a scenic 'tour' to try and find the pub...as we were given incorrect directions. But we had an adventure and ended up eventually finding the way. Thank goodness for smartphones! We didn't stay too long at the pub, as we knew we had a major driving day ahead of us the next day, but it was great to get to play some tunes and hang out after the show.

All in all, a great start to the tour!]]> Fri, 13 Apr 2012 19:40:00 GMT CF8D0A13862B66FF50A3C508B0AA8B1F http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=1976703 Tues, April 10, 2012 Well, after a long morning of running errands in Boston and getting my things packed, I'm finally ready for the next 3 months of being on the road and can really appreciate the gorgeous sunny spring weather! I ended up catching the fastest cab in Boston to the airport...to the tune of being selected to be put on the next flight! So I ended up getting some work done (thanks free wifi at Logan airport!) and watching planes for 2hrs until the next flight to Baltimore. Day 1 of tour, I arrived at my first destination after my first flight of the tour...to a broken suitcase! Lovely. Luckily the airline was so nice about it and we got it all sorted. I then called the shuttle to the hotel, and an hour and a half later it finally came! Geeze! What a day. Funny enough, by that time, the rest of the band had arrived from their flight from London Heathrow, so little did we all know, but the stars aligned and stop #2 of the shuttle happened to be to pick them all up from the international terminal! It was unexpected but so great to see them...even though we were all exhausted! It's been 8 months since I've seen Fiona, Ailie and Cillian, so we had a nice catch-up in the van to the hotel...which ended up being driven by the chef at the restaurant at the hotel because the driver didn't show up....what a day!  It turned into quite the eventful day, but we all made it and were very happy to see the super comfy hotel bed! Tues, April 10, 2012

Well, after a long morning of running errands in Boston and getting my things packed, I'm finally ready for the next 3 months of being on the road and can really appreciate the gorgeous sunny spring weather! I ended up catching the fastest cab in Boston to the airport...to the tune of being selected to be put on the next flight! So I ended up getting some work done (thanks free wifi at Logan airport!) and watching planes for 2hrs until the next flight to Baltimore.

Day 1 of tour, I arrived at my first destination after my first flight of the tour...to a broken suitcase! Lovely. Luckily the airline was so nice about it and we got it all sorted. I then called the shuttle to the hotel, and an hour and a half later it finally came! Geeze! What a day. Funny enough, by that time, the rest of the band had arrived from their flight from London Heathrow, so little did we all know, but the stars aligned and stop #2 of the shuttle happened to be to pick them all up from the international terminal! It was unexpected but so great to see them...even though we were all exhausted! It's been 8 months since I've seen Fiona, Ailie and Cillian, so we had a nice catch-up in the van to the hotel...which ended up being driven by the chef at the restaurant at the hotel because the driver didn't show up....what a day! 

It turned into quite the eventful day, but we all made it and were very happy to see the super comfy hotel bed!]]> Fri, 13 Apr 2012 19:20:00 GMT A3519F44D0A1C0065D789E6743E72943 http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=1699985  Happy 2012!  Wow! I can't believe it's already January 2012. After a crazy, amazing, and eventful year last year, I can only hope that if 2012 is even half that great it'll still be amazing! I'm really looking forward to a lot of new adventures both musically and personally this year. I've been collaborating with some long time friends and amazing musicians in the past few months. There is some great new music coming up and we will be touring together at various times throughout the year and are all very excited about it. I'll be able to share more about these projects very soon!!!! I have a lot of musical travelling coming up this year and I'm starting to get quite excited. Keep checking back on my tour schedule, blog and facebook page to find out more details. My new years resolution is to keep everyone updated on my adventures. So far I'm off to a good start! :-)   Thanks for all the support and I wish everyone a happy and successful new year! xxIvonne Wow! I can't believe it's already January 2012. After a crazy, amazing, and eventful year last year, I can only hope that if 2012 is even half that great it'll still be amazing! I'm really looking forward to a lot of new adventures both musically and personally this year. I've been collaborating with some long time friends and amazing musicians in the past few months. There is some great new music coming up and we will be touring together at various times throughout the year and are all very excited about it. I'll be able to share more about these projects very soon!!!!

I have a lot of musical travelling coming up this year and I'm starting to get quite excited. Keep checking back on my tour schedule, blog and facebook page to find out more details. My new years resolution is to keep everyone updated on my adventures. So far I'm off to a good start! :-)  

Thanks for all the support and I wish everyone a happy and successful new year!

xxIvonne
]]> Tue, 10 Jan 2012 06:41:01 GMT A3508C310C54E60025E35E374885126B http://ivonnehernandez.com/tourdiary.cfm?feature=2838998&postid=1408460 Oct 2011 Hello Hello! Well I've finally done it! I've started a blog where I'll be able to keep you updated on my crazy and wonderful life as a musician! I've had a great and busy year so far and can't believe it has gone by so quickly! I am still based in Boston, MA (USA), but haven't seen much of it this year as I've been touring all over the place! In fact, I've probably spent more time at 'home' in Victoria, BC than in Boston this year! At the beginning of the year, I went into the studio with my wonderful and talented friend Jeremy Walsh to record a duo project over the winter holidays. It has been 10+ years playing together for us to finally get in the studio and record together and we are quite excited about it! Jeremy and I released our CD in the US on tour in Hawaii, which was a blast. Did I mention how much I love my job!! We also performed at some wonderful Canadian shows and festivals this summer. We are OFFICIALLY releasing our CD "Live off the Floor" in November in Canada. Please check my tour dates on my website for more info. We'd love to see you there! My crazy touring started in February with a fun tour through the Midwest with the band The Outside Track. We met up again for two more big US tours this summer, which were insanely fun! With members from Canada, Scotland and Ireland, they are so much fun to play with and excellent musicians and friends. Definitely check them out! A video of a show at the Minnesota Irish Fair is below. In April and May I was in France and the UK performing and doing workshops which was amazing. I had never been to Paris before and definitely can't wait to go back! I had such a blast as always in England and Scotland, and got to visit some old friends and of course play lots of tunes! I also got to meet up with the amazing Mark O'Connor for more American String Celebration shows. Because our show was on July 3rd in Oklahoma (day before Independence Day), they Jets put on a special 'preview' show over the theater for us 10min before the concert started. Everyone went outside and watched the air show, then came back into the theater for our show. Wow. I can't say THAT has never happened leading up to my performance before! Amazing and very rock star!!! The rest of the summer was very busy globe hopping but I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. I had the most amazing summer of great music, great friends, great tunes and sunshine! I hope your summer was wonderful too! I'm gearing up for a fun and busy Fall and will keep you posted on my adventures. Best Wishes and Happy Fiddling! -Ivonne Hello Hello!

Well I've finally done it! I've started a blog where I'll be able to keep you updated on my crazy and wonderful life as a musician! I've had a great and busy year so far and can't believe it has gone by so quickly! I am still based in Boston, MA (USA), but haven't seen much of it this year as I've been touring all over the place! In fact, I've probably spent more time at 'home' in Victoria, BC than in Boston this year!

At the beginning of the year, I went into the studio with my wonderful and talented friend Jeremy Walsh to record a duo project over the winter holidays. It has been 10+ years playing together for us to finally get in the studio and record together and we are quite excited about it! Jeremy and I released our CD in the US on tour in Hawaii, which was a blast. Did I mention how much I love my job!! We also performed at some wonderful Canadian shows and festivals this summer. We are OFFICIALLY releasing our CD "Live off the Floor" in November in Canada. Please check my tour dates on my website for more info. We'd love to see you there!

My crazy touring started in February with a fun tour through the Midwest with the band The Outside Track. We met up again for two more big US tours this summer, which were insanely fun! With members from Canada, Scotland and Ireland, they are so much fun to play with and excellent musicians and friends. Definitely check them out! A video of a show at the Minnesota Irish Fair is below.

In April and May I was in France and the UK performing and doing workshops which was amazing. I had never been to Paris before and definitely can't wait to go back! I had such a blast as always in England and Scotland, and got to visit some old friends and of course play lots of tunes! I also got to meet up with the amazing Mark O'Connor for more American String Celebration shows. Because our show was on July 3rd in Oklahoma (day before Independence Day), they Jets put on a special 'preview' show over the theater for us 10min before the concert started. Everyone went outside and watched the air show, then came back into the theater for our show. Wow. I can't say THAT has never happened leading up to my performance before! Amazing and very rock star!!! The rest of the summer was very busy globe hopping but I wouldn't have wanted it any other way. I had the most amazing summer of great music, great friends, great tunes and sunshine! I hope your summer was wonderful too!

I'm gearing up for a fun and busy Fall and will keep you posted on my adventures.

Best Wishes and Happy Fiddling!
-Ivonne]]> Wed, 19 Oct 2011 09:29:27 GMT 4C463E29C34832E903F1D7CB3D377FEB