Swiss chocolate. Swiss army knives. Swiss watches. Swiss cheese.
That’s how good it’s gotten for Nick Parton after traveling in seven European countries as part of the Oregon Ambassadors of Music Tour.
Saying he was happy to be back in an English-speaking country last week, the 18-year-old Sweet Home High School graduate reflected last week on his different stops along the way.
By far, his favorite was Crans-Montana, Switzerland, where he was able to try real Swiss cheese and chocolate and buy a real Swiss army knife and watch.
His trip, starting July 3, took him as part of a group of 150 singers and 300 band members from Oregon through the United Kingdom, France, Italy, Austria, Lichtenstein and Germany – with stops including legendary cities like London, Paris and Venice.
Former choir teacher Matthew Clark, who moved to a new job last year, nominated Parton for the annual tour, Parton said. Clark nominated other Sweet Home students, but they chose not to go.
“He was also a teacher for my oldest sister, Shaniqa Lewis,” Parton said. “She told me about him. I took his class. He was pretty cool.”
His friend Ryan Pointer urged him to join the choir his sophomore year after hearing Parton singing along to something on the radio. He signed on as a bass.
Parton was in band for about half of his sixth-grade year. He dropped out to focus on slumping grades. He was able to push those up and finish school this year on the Honor Roll.
He participated in choir his sophomore and junior years of high school, Parton said. “It took me a while to get adjusted to it. Reading music was kind of different for me. The last time was sixth grade. I got used to it, eventually.”
When Clark nominated him, Parton jumped at the chance, and his mother, Tabitha Shaw, gave him lots of support, working to help him save up money for his trip. Parton said he got a job last year at Safeway to help out, although with “minimal” hours, he didn’t raise much that way.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime trip,” Parton said. “There’s not that many kids that can get to go.”
He traveled in a group of 47 students, performing a variety of music, including “Nellie Bly,” “Bring Me a Little Water, Sylvie,” and “Jabula Jesu,” in churches and cathedrals at stops all along the way.
Their first stop was London, England. While there, they stayed in a “four- or five-star hotel,” and the tour visited the sights and rode in the London Eye, a giant Ferris wheel on the south bank of the River Thames, overlooking the British parliament building, the Palace of Westminster and Big Ben.
They moved on to Paris, where Parton went to the top of the Eiffel Tower and visited Notre Dame Cathedral.
Their next stop was Switzerland and the Alps. The students visited Geneva and stayed in Crans-Montana before traveling to Zermatt. A train ride put them in front of the Matterhorn, one of the highest summits in the Alps and Europe.
After traveling through Lich-tenstein, the group stayed in Seefeld in Tirol, Austria, and performed in the 250-year-old Wilten Basilica church in Innsbruck.
While in Austria, the musicians took a five-hour drive to Venice, Italy. A tour guide showed the group around the legendary city, which can be traveled only by foot or by boat. Venice is “super crowded,” Parton recalled, and his group followed along in single file, each member wearing headphones to listen to the guide.
They returned to Austria and then traveled to Rothenburg ob der Tauber in southern Germany, where he was able to sample German beer – the legal age to consume beer there is 16. The city is known for a well-preserved medie-val town.
“I went to a medieval weapon shop,” Parton said. “I actually bought a sword. It’s on its way here now. I had to ship it.”
The most somber part of the trip was a visit to Dachau concentration camp.
“Knowing what happened,” Parton said, “it was horrible.”
The tour spent a couple of nights in Germany before returning to the United States July 18.
“It was fun,” Parton said.
He said he noticed many differences – healthcare is free in Europe. Things were cheaper wherever he went. Architecture varied across England, France and Italy. He said he thought the water was better than Sweet Home everywhere – except London.
“It was all just so fun being able to see everything,” he said.
Generally, the people were nice, Parton said, although many expected the visitors to learn the basics of the local language and were annoyed with those who didn’t.
“Most of the time, you’d run into people who spoke English,” Parton said. “Landing in Detroit, I was happy to be back in an English-speaking country.”
Switzerland was most like home in terms of the landscape, he said. “Switzerland is probably the nicest place I visited. It’s so much like Oregon.”
Parton enjoyed a traditional Swiss bread and fondue game, he said. Whoever drops bread into the fondue must kiss a member of the opposite sex on the cheek. He figured out the secret.
“You push it all the way onto the fork, spin it in circles and lift it up,” Parton said. “Don’t pull it toward you –
“And Swiss cheese and Swiss chocolate was super good. The Italian pizza was so good.”
In fact, he said, European food is just better, he said. It’s real food, with no additives. The Europeans tended to have healthier builds as a result.
Even the bacon in London and Paris was better than at home, he said. It was something about how it’s cooked there.
Parton said he enjoyed making new friends from around Oregon and was most excited about touring, though he enjoyed performing as well.
“They loved the music,” he said. “Knowing they loved it made me happier to sing it.”