This past Thursday was an interesting day. It began with my German midterm. To this point I have done fairly well in that class... this immersion method seems to be working for me! And although I got an A grade on the test itself, my brain was literally fried afterwards. This increible numbness. And you know how you can never really tell how you did on a big test right after you take it? Yeah, it was like that. So Olivia and I did what every girl does in a stressful situation: Shop.... even though on a normal day I hate shopping with an incredible passion.
I am proud to say that I have set foot inside the largest shopping mall in Vienna, and most of Europe: the DonauZentrum. In this vast world of stores we were in search of shoes. For Olivia, still that darned pair of boots. For me, a pair of boots and a pair of brown stilettos. Long story short, after about 2 hours we walked away satisfied. And I'm looking snazy in my stilettos. Ow ow! Olivia's shoes are DARLING and I don't think I've ever witnessed such a strong relationship between a human and an inatimate object before...
Thursday was also our friend, Elizabeth's, 22nd birthday. Celebration station! So we met up with Ayla, Greg and the Birthday girl and went in search of a Mexican restaurant. We found it. And although there were only 5 things on the menu--those 5 things were the BEST Mexican food I'd ever had. Why is it that the Mexican food is better in Europe than it is in the States?! This makes no rational sense to me! What made it even nicer, though, was the friendly staff and waitors. They even gave Elizabeth a free Tequilla Rose, usually an 8 euro drink, having overheard it was her birthday. Again. We left satisfied.
As a voaclist, I am very happy to report that I have officially seen my first professional, live opera (I am more ashamed in the fact that it was my first... and I call myself a serious singer!).
Friday night--about an hour and a half before showtime--Ayla, Elizabeth, Olivia and I walked to the Wiener Staatsoper where we proceeded to wait in the "Stehplaetze" line. The stehplatz is probably the coolest thing that ever happened to professional opera. Basically, you wait in line an hour before the performance for these "standing room only" seats that cost a mere 4 euro. 4 euro! That's what I would pay for a sandwich at the Der Mann on my way to school! And yet I can buy my way into an atmopshere of history, talent, culture, and incredible musicianship. Granted, we were standing (in heels... whoops, my bad) for nearly 2 1/2 hours with no intermission. Somehow the time went so quick. And it helped to have a padded banister to lean against.
Before the opera, we did a little exploring in the operahouse itself... partaking in the wine and dessert bar and enjoying these delectables a top the operahouse balcony that overlooks Karlsplatz.
The opera being performed that night (there are different operas every night) was "The Flying Dutchman" by Richard Wagner. We all were particularly interesting in seeing this opera because we are taking a class this quarter on Richard Wagner and the opera "Ring Cycle." The opera is written in German, and we were lucky enough to have little screens at our places that translated the libretto into English. The stage production was fantastic... the costumes, staging, and lighting established an incredble mood... and the set--awesome. Hahahaha, although I should tell you that at one point (for no apparent reason, other than the novelty of it) some of the sailors randomly took their shirts of and simulated sex on stage with their sweethearts. Like, on the ground, on top of each other, moving back and forth. Our entire row turned to one another with looks of "what the HECK is happening right now?!" which was followed by muffled laughter. I mean, REALLY? This did not contrubute to my understanding of the plot, the characters, or the message. But it sure was good for a laugh! Then, the stage action was done and everyone went right back to their singing business lol! The story? Well... mythical and mysterious though it is, it lacked suspense and twists. The singers? The characters of Erik and The Dutchman were phenomenal. Erik's voice was seamless and milky, and the Dutchmann had such a resonant and rich tone. Mmmmm.
The leading soprano, however, was nicht so gut. Her pianissimos were inaudible and lacked resonance, she SWOOPED up to every starting pitch (particularly the high ones), and in her higher resgiter there were times when I couldn't actually determine what note she was actually singing. But enough music talk. She had her gut moments and she had her schleckt moments :)
So after my first live opera, we decided to dine classy -- McDonald's. That's right. And it was actually my second time in 3 weeks having given in to the McNugget craving. I hang my head in shame... but I will not deny that they were the most delicious tasting chicken nuggets. AND McDonald's is basically the only place where you can get ICE in your drinks... so can you really blame me?! Although it does suck to have to pay extra if you want ketchup (who doesn't want ketchup?!) They offer curry dipping sauce in Europe, which has been my new favorite thing about EuroMcD's.
Meanwhile, while we were hoi-paloying with the McD's elite, Olivia and I were in communication with our friend Mike from Munich (Recent readers will remember him from my Munich post as the 26 year old animator from Canada who we befriended randomly). He was in Vienna, staying with a friend, and was hoping to meet up with him during the weekend. He invited us out to Waxy Murphy's with him and his host, but none of us really felt like having asthma attacks in the increibly smokey hang-out. So the girls and I just wandered around Karlsplatz, looking for a Gelateria. We're just walking, talking, giggling when all of the sudden-- "HEY! English!! Where are you from?!" We turn and see three twenty-something American guys, looking about as excited as Olivia and I get when we hear someone speaking English on the train. We obliged in telling them where we were from and what we were doing in Vienna. Turns out these guys (whose names were something like Josh, Quinton, and alsdkfja;lsdfjk) were from Colorado and South Carolina (with the Southern drawl, I believe Josh was the Carolinian). They were studying at the University of Wien for a semester and were actually on their way to meet one of our classmates at Waxy Murphy's. Small world, once again!
All of us hung out for about an hour after this initial meeting--talking, laughing about all the crazy Austrian mannerisms and the lack of friendly (or even good looking, for that matter) Austrian men, and eating amazing gelato. It was a great time. Yay for random strangers!
We were pooped. Olivia and I came back home and did the sleep thing. It was good.
Saturday afternoon, after a lazy day in the dormroom eating junk food, listening to music and doing homework, Olivia and I set out to meet Mike. Back in Munich, we had all promised to see the Dark Knight together at the Vienna cinema when he came to visit. Staying true to our promise, we located a cheap, English movie theater and bought the tickets. It was really cool to reenite with Mike. Like I said, it was like we'd gone to high school together or something. But Elizabeth and Ayla enjoyed getting to know him (and we enjoyed fooling Ayla into thinking he was actually 35! Haha).
The Dark Knight. Creepy, eerie, moving, poignant, haunting. I have never left the theater with such knot in my heart. Heath Ledger is brilliant, in the best and worst way possible. At times during the film, I would remind myself of the fact that he is no longer alive... again, making my skin crawl even moreso. There are so many twists in this story... and there were times I was immediately brought to tears... times where I realized I hadn't been breathing for the past two minutes. I recommend seeing this film if you have not already. Mike also agreed that it was "brilliant," which apparently must be the default Canadian adjective... as we heard this phrase numerous times over the weekend lol.
After the movie we all wandered the Ringstrasse, in search of something to do. Surprisingly, when you don't have a game plan, this method of walk-around-for-a-bit-and-find-something-suitable does NOT work in Vienna. Olivia and I would learn this many more times throughout the remainder of the weekend. Mike was planning on meeting up again with his host and a few of our friends from Webster to go to a Hookah/Shisha Restaurant. I have heard of such things, but never actually been to one. What the heck, I thought, why not! I didn't have church until noon the next day, so I decided to tag along.
We met up with Mike's hosts, Casey and Collin, as well as our friend, Marie, from Webster. All great people. We walked about 15 minutes IN THE RAIN to find it. (I should take this time to tell you that the weather here has been wretched for the past two weeks or so. It gets almost down to freezing at night, the skies are consistently overcast, and the drizzle is everpresent). I mean to tell you, this place was amazing. There was a live Arabic band and traditional singer... the music was truly hypnotic. I fell in love with that type of music after being in Dr. Strasser's Listening to Musics of the World class, and I was in heaven as you can imagine. The ceilings were draped with ornate and heavy fabrics, the tables were low to the ground and surrounded by plush cushions, and there was a hint of incense in the air.
So we sat down at the next free table. I glanced over at the next table and saw a familiar face--it was Josh! One of the guys we had met outside of the Operahouse the night before! Once again, the irony seems to find us here.
The entertainment is really what sticks out in my mind. It was so pulsating and energetic... and rhythmically ambiguous! At one point, an middle eastern family (their actual descent I wasn't completely sure of) got up from their seats, joined hands, and did this complex looking traditional dance in the center of the restaurant. It almost had a Russian aire about it; very upright, very sharp, very quick. There even was a bellydancer (which I'm sure the men enjoyed a little more than I lol).
For those of you wondering, I did try the Hookah, and didn't find it nearly as repulsive as I expected to (and for those not familiar with what Hookah is and are assuming I'm turning into a drug addict, I recommend you wikipedia it or something lol). It is an Arabic traditional specialty: a very light, flavored water vapor that is inhaled (and then, of course, exhaled). I felt like I was breathing in Jasmine tea. Very great aftertaste. But even though it is mostly harmless water vapor, I was concerned about the bit tobacco that was laced with it.... you know, with the "voce" and all, not to mention health reasons. So, I was limited in my usage. But it was an interesting experience nonetheless!
Not wanting and frankly not knowing how to take the night busses home, I resorted to the other alternative: spending the night at Elizabeths flat. Thank goodness for friends who actually live IN the city!
Sunday afternoon was basically devoted to showing Mike around Vienna. Olivia and I did have a gameplan, but most of it was foiled by the fact that it was the Sabbath and NOTHING was open. I kind of felt bad dragging him around the sights with nothing to really DO. But thank goodness we all converse so well! One of our triumphs of the day was walking up 343 stairs in the clausterphobic spiral staircase of Stephansdom cathedral North tower. From the top you are able to look out over the city--and it was not the open-air view we expected, but it was wonderful regardless. Honestly though, there were times when I felt like I was in a bad dream... the stairs just kept twisting and twisting.. up and up and up... neverending! My legs are still sore!
We hit up the museum quartier, Stephansdom, the Graben, the Rathaus, the Ringstrasse, Mozart's statue, and some great dessert. After realizing that every restaurant downtown was way too expensive for our tastes, we settled with a Chinese food place. Think KFC for Chinese. We introduced Mike to spaghetti ice cream. Meanwhile, we were learning about his life, his career, and his travels this summer--the guy has had some pretty amazing experiences these past three months abroad. Finally, we just wanted a place to sit and have a chai latte. We found a cute little coffeehouse and did just that. It was great to just chill and enjoy the atmosphere, smokey as it were... watching the guy beside us blow smoke rings and making fun of a young couple who couldn't keep their hands off of each other... laughing, joking, talking about life in the real world. Good times.
Then, Mike, Olivia and I came to the executive decision that we should have a second dinner. This would be, in fact, Mike's last dinner in Europe. He would leave the next morning for Hong Kong to have a "family reunion" of sorts. We managed to find an Austrian restaurant with great food at reasonable prices. We spent two hours here; the majority of that time Olivia and I were picking Mike's brain for a male perspective on relationships, dating, and attraction. It truly was enlightening to have a man's point of view... and as mature and wise as Mike is, there were times when I almost had to roll my eyes (do guys REALLY think these female things actually work like that?) Within three days of hanging out, we all had managed to get to the conversations that define friendship: 1) Why are we attracted to certain people? 2) Our iPod playlists 3) How we like our eggs. And a friendship is born! Mike continues to call me "the little sister he never had."
The more Mike talked about his career and his experiences, the more I realized that Olivia and I were rubbing elbows with a pretty important and signifiant person. He is highly sought after in the animation world. After viewing his online portfolio, it was crazy to think that we had just sat down with him, talking about family and friends, watching the Dark Knight! But it just goes to show that even the most respected and idolized celebrities are still people.
http://student.vfs.com/~mtse/
Here's his webaddress if you want to check out his work
Anyway... that's all for this weekend. More updates as they become available :)
LOVE AND MISS YOU!!!!
Tschuss,
Laura
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