Montag, 14. Mai 2012

Ein Paar Life Updates:

Here are some updates:


  • I officially have only 2 cakes left at Cafe Schwarzenberg to try.
  • I performed the Hartzell Workpoints for Bassoon and Horn at our last chamber concert, and met Eugene Hartzell's widow! Who gave me a free CD of his work! 
  • I went on the highest chained carousel in the WORLD! (117 meters) Which is actually in the Prater park in Vienna! (Sombrero is STILL my favorite ride though....may or may not have gone on that 3 times in a row Friday night..) Here's a little tip from me to you: I've gone on the famous Riesenrad (Ferris wheel) and now I've gone on this carousel. The Ferris wheel is 9 euros and the carousel is 5 euros....For almost half the price, SERIOUSLY consider doing the high carousel instead of the Riesenrad. YES, I understand, the Ferris wheel is seriously iconic. but SO IS THE CAROUSEL! THE HIGHEST IN THE WORLD! It's fast, exhilarating, OUTSIDE, and you get the same view if not better, WHILE feeling like flying. I mean, LOOK AT IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

  • I've gone to the Schönbrunn Zoo finally, and bought a stuffed giraffe that I've named Clara Franz Abraham Johannes. Please don't question Clara's gender ambiguity, she's sensitive about it.
  • I also bought a book called "Vienna Blood", hoping it would be like a Dan Brown-esque book on Vienna. But the most exciting thing that has happened so far was that an anaconda at the Schönbrunn zoo was "murdered". I'm like...cool? I've been there? 
  • Our crazy, furious neighbor hurled a bucket of water through our window above our door into our kitchen last night because we were talking loudly? #rude #ENTSCHULDIGUNG?!
  • I've officially gone skinny dipping in The Blue Danube (#inappropriateupdate #buttruenonetheless)
  • I learned that the dancing "King" street performer on Kärtner Strasse actually gets his legendary height from standing on a cinder block. That actually shattered the image of the King for me.
  •  I'm really proud of how defined my calf muscles are. I know this is a weird, borderline narcissistic life update to be revealing....but having spent a semester walking EVERYWHERE, and exercising more than I have..really since high school sports..(courtesy/luxury of not having a hectic Northwestern schedule), I have to say: DAMN my calf muscles look good.
  • I've officially eaten half of this chocolate gugelhupf in front of me now, in an attempt to bang out this final paper for my Arts and Nations class and am currently considering making some more coffee. Obviously I decided to blog about writing this paper instead of actually writing it.
  • I'm coming home in 5 DAYS?! Ready for school work to be done and to see my family, but not sure if I'm ready to leave the city. :/

Mittwoch, 9. Mai 2012

How To: Go Running in Vienna

       People in Vienna don't go running. Or at least, not visibly. There must be some sort of underground secret running cult where they choose a certain time of day for different days of the week to go running...I'm assuming in cloaks by the cover of darkness..I would not be surprised. At all. Because I see so few runners about! And you know ME, I'm not going out for the next marathon by ANY means....but I do enjoy the occasional morning jog....it turns out you'll get grossly stared at if you go for a run anywhere outside of a park.
      SO. What has become my favorite running haunt is the Schönbrunn gardens! You can run forEVER and not tire of seeing the beautiful trees, statues, tourists, horse and carriages, or the beautiful backdrop of the Schönbrunn palace. AND, it's like runner's MECCA! Runners everywhere! I should maybe earn a prize for discovering Vienna's runners' cult's headquarters. It's Schloss Schönbrunn. Just so you know, Vienna runners...I'M ON TO YOU.
But seriously. Gorgeous place for a walk, run, picnic...you name it.
        I guess that's another thing I'll miss about coming home--can't really go for a #casual jog past a palace can I?? (#himeg)
        BUT NO MATTER. I'll enjoy it while I can! :) I finally decided to bring my camera with me so I could snap some Schönbrunn photos...and it was the perfect day for it too!

(this is actually the view from the Gloriette)
So here I am running. Doo doo doooo. past these trees. Super pretty. I like those trees. Past this statue. And there are plenty of others like him. He sure looks heroic.


Just stopping to stretch by some Roman ruins. Doo do doooo.


       Ok. Now at this point in my run, I decided to run up to the Gloriette. I don't know why. It was a horrible idea. I can barely WALK up there! It's so steep and wind-y. I truly felt like I was scaling the walls of Helmsdeep or something, that's how strenuous this was. Also, I'm definitely not exaggerating or anything.....But right about halfway up, when I was starting to kind of hate life, the song "The Climb" by Miley Cyrus came on my friend's "workout" playlist on her iPod. Which was glorious to say the least. Made it to the top!


         Here's the Gloriette at the top of the hill! A Gloriette, meaning "little glory", basically is just a building erected (in a garden) on a site that is elevated with respect to the surroundings. The Schönbrunn Garden has probably the most famous Gloriette...although I'm going to see one at the Esterhazy Palace in Eisenstadt, Austria on Sunday! Eisenstadt is Haydn's birth place WHAT UPPP


         Fun historical fact of the day!: This Gloriette was built in 1775 and was the last building constructed in the garden. It was meant to serve as both a focal point and a lookout point for the garden (And there certainly IS a fantastic view of the city!) Also, it was used as a dining hall, festival hall, and a breakfast room for emperor Franz Josef I (and it now houses..surprise surprise....a café!)


 
Yay! I love Schönbrunn!

Dienstag, 8. Mai 2012

The Three C's: coffee, cake, and communication


       So I just had to write my Intercultural Communications final paper. The prompt was almost overwhelmingly open-ended, ranging from drinking/eating cultural differences, media's role in intercultural relations, to merely reflection on your experience in Vienna and offering advice to others looking to study here.
        Well... it got me thinking....And now with only a week and a half left in Wien, I'm getting a liiiiiittle bit sentimental..so,(surprise, surprise) for this paper I chose to write about Franz! (And with that: coffee, cake, and communication!) The 3 C's!! Or at least, according to me.
Seriously, a life with coffee, cake and communication is a life complete, and a life without those is a life..not...replete! Also, I write poetry sometimes.
ANYWAYS!
       Here are basically some of my thoughts, for what they're worth: (I'm going to rephrase what I wrote in my paper even more informally because no one cares about Grice's Communication maxims--they're just putting terms to concepts we already know, anyway!)

Most adorable photo ever award???
          So with Franz, we come from completely different backgrounds, speak completely different mother tongues, and are at completely different stages in our lives! But, we're still friends. Basically the point I'm trying to make is: I believe that language and cultural barriers only exist if you allow them to. (This is, of course, assuming both parties at least have a fundamental understanding of a common language.)
         I mean , in all my experiences throughout Europe, and especially with my horn professor, the times when I’ve successfully communicated with others didn’t really depend on theirs or my own proficiency at a language, but rather a willingness and commitment on both ends to communicating.  If you have a basic grasp on the language the other person speaks, no shame in exaggerating expressive hand gestures, and a genuine interest in conveying thoughts and understanding them, communication is absolutely possible. It may not be the most felicitous communication imaginable, but communication will be possible if you want it to be. I mean it!
          So as you all know, because I always make a point of shamelessly mentioning it, Franz and I go out for coffee and cake every week after lessons, where we more often than not converse about... Salzburg.


          But our conversations aren’t without bumps and language obstacles. Franz is fluent in German and speaks decent, albeit basic, English. And I, contrastingly, speak fluent English and basic German. Both of us are better at understanding each other’s Mother tongues, than speaking them. When Franz tells stories in German, I know what he’s talking about, but can’t always offer good conversation in reply, beyond a “natürlich!” or “sehr schön!”. If we wanted to, we could have a complete conversation, where he spoke German and I English. But as he’s always trying to improve English, and I my German, we attempt to try and keep our conversations to having one language being in use at a time—unless it’s a “Wie sagt man das auf Deutsch, (or auf Englisch)…” moment, and there are certainly many of those!


            But the point is, our conversations aren’t perfect. Although we make grammatical errors, forget words, pause to collect our thoughts, grossly overuse hand gestures (“Wenn man hinuntergeht” is accompanied by a HUGE swooping arm gesture suggesting someone going downstairs), we understand each other—even if it is sometimes, only at a basic level.  But it goes to show: you don’t need to know the inner workings of a person’s soul to be able to have a conversation with them and get along grandly. You don’t need to be able to express profound thoughts on the nature of mankind or verbally dissect the global climate, to carry on a pleasant conversation. You don’t need to explain in excruciatingly detail how much you are enjoying the cake you’re eating, because “Es hat mir sehr gut geschmeckt!” works, or even more simply, “Schmeckt gut!!” “Tastes good!”


(Cake from the gods)
          What I’ve learned from Franz’s and my time together is that sometimes less is more.  When you are confronted with a language barrier, that barrier curtails all rambling and irrelevant ponderings by forcing you to getting down to the basics—to communicate your thoughts in their most fundamental forms. It forces you to assess how you’re actually feeling and what you’re actually thinking, instead of just talking and talking, until the substance of what you want to say only eventually reveals itself through the murk of your words. So, again: comparing my cake to “being kissed by the sweetest chocolate from the heavenliest gods of chocolate” is essentially saying “I like this cake; tastes good”. While getting coffee with Franz, I may not be able to convey the first loquacious thought, in German, I definitely have command over the second thought! And that is more than enough! Because the essence of what I’m feeling as a result from eating that particular cake is “I like chocolate”, and no matter how you express that feeling, the feeling is the same.


            Yes, admittedly, breaking your thoughts down to their basic elements, allows for nuances of sarcasm, puns, any sort of jokes that aren’t blatant, to be lost. But is that really a huge loss? It is in the long run….but when you’re trying to get to know someone short-term, their command over language can potentially hinder this endeavor! We have the propensity to use language as a shield—we use big words, impossible expressions, obnoxious jokes, and hide behind them. When you don’t have this luxury, to throw around words so effortlessly, you have to say what you mean, and say what you feel—no complications. (for these would inhibit comprehension and communication!)

In front of the Musikverein!
            A teacher-student relationship when it comes to private musical lessons is a very unique relationship. In lessons, you don’t need a vast expanse of vocabulary to demonstrate changes you want made in the music. You can make a swooshing arm gestures or personally sing a passage to demonstrate your thoughts. Music acts as a language between people. Even if Franz and I couldn’t speak a single word of English and German respectively, we’d be able to make music. Which if you stop and think about it, is TRULY AWESOME!
        BUT.  Outside of lessons, getting to know each other as teacher and student is also important. Despite Franz’s and my language barrier, we’ve established a light-hearted and very friendly rapport. We joke, if trivially, and we converse, if superficially, about Salzburg and cake. Yeah, yeah, we may not be meeting to discuss the fate of mankind or the economy any time soon, but I feel confident saying that we have a good relationship. There is so much more about him that I’ve yet to know, and likewise with me, but we have a basics understanding of each other. And that’s a start. If I were to stay in Vienna for years more, improving German, and he English, more of our personalities and lives would reveal themselves to each other. But in the 5 months I’ve been here, I’m satisfied with the connection we’ve established.  Music, coffee, and cake, has a spectacular ability to bring people together and establish a connection. And you won't hear a complaint from me! Music, coffee, and cake are some of my biggest loves! <3
            My teacher-student relationship with Franz is one of the greatest achievements and memories I’ll leave Vienna with. I’m really sad to only have two lessons left with him. They’re the highlights of my weeks. The opportunity to play music by Austrian composers and be instructed by an Austrian himself, makes me feel even closer to the music. 
So in a whirlwind of Musikverein lessons, Café Schwarzenberg dates, and hilarious, hilarious conversations I've drawn this INDISPUTABLE conclusion! (I dare you...DISPUTE ME):


          I’m convinced that the concept of language and culture barriers need not exist if you don’t want it to. There are so many ways to communicate that transcend mere language structures—body language and music being but two of countless other ways. Language and culture barriers can seem like daunting hurtles when you have to put yourself out there, make mistakes, sound foolish, look foolish, all in an attempt to know a person. But the rewards are paramount. Leaping over these boundaries with some Strauss in your heart, and a piece of cake in your hand, can bring results you never even imagined. It can open you up to a whole new person and a whole new world. It is absolutely worth it.  I wouldn’t trade my time here with Franz for anything in the world.

Disclaimer: This photo has nothing to do with this blog post.

Samstag, 5. Mai 2012

Café Schwarzenberg

      I believe in an earlier post, MONTHS ago, I said that M&M was my favorite coffee house.....well I would very much like to rescind that statement because Café Schwarzenberg definitely TAKES THE CAKE! (pun absolutely intended.)

       So my horn professor here, Franz Söllner, was a former member of the Wiener Philharmoniker. He has a special affinity for drinking große Braunen (espresso with cream), talking about Salzburg, and making very lame jokes, and we've developed a weekly tradition of frequenting Café Schwarzenberg after my Wednesday lessons! (Where we drink coffee and talk about Salzburg!
          Every Wednesday at 10am we walk over from the Musikverein to Café Schwarzenberg, situated right on the corner of the Ring Strasse, and on the way to the IES center. I especially love my cake and coffee dates with Franz, not only because I get free cake and coffee (WOO!!) but because I can attempt to tell him in my broken German all about everything I'm doing in Vienna and he tells me stories of his times in the Vienna Phil, of his travels to the States, and gives me suggestions on places to travel, and almost always gushes about Salzburg. Franz really loves Salzburg. Ask him about Salzburg sometime!

         I put on a short solo recital earlier this week and afterwards, not surprisingly, Franz, Bill McElheney and I went to Café Schwarzenberg for celebratory coffee and cake! (And really, is there anything better than this??? If you're looking for way to tell me you like me, express your appreciation for me, or simply be kind to me (all of these things are very much welcome by the way), all you need to do is give me coffee and cake. Seriously. It's all I really want. Ever.) Café Schwarzenberg has been around since 1861!! It was really never an artists' café or musicians' café, but it still upholds the atmosphere and tradition of Viennese café culture.


       So anyways, back to my recital: It went well, blah blah...I played Mozart's 2nd horn concerto, Franz Strauss Nocturno, and the David Amram Blues and Variations for Monk. Short and sweet. But I was happy with it! Following that, Franz, Bill, and I came here, and I tried yet another NEW cake. (Franz said I had most certainly earned it! after my recital and all..) 
        I have a self-imposed rule for Café Schwarzenberg that I'm not allowed to get the same cake twice. It is because of this rule that  I've tried 8 cakes at this café! I can keep track of how many times I've come here, by how many cakes I've tried...weird? Maybe....but the cakes are so good! Maximilian Torte, Mohn Torte, Trüffel Torte.......And I'm SO close to trying all of them; that has become my new goal for these last two weeks in Vienna: EAT ALL THE CAKES. Franz joked WEEKS ago "Du wirst alle Torten probieren!" (You're going to try all of the cakes!) And yes, Franz...I DO plan on probiere-ing all the Torten. Nothing would make me happier.

      
       I've started taking my friends here. I'm only going to have two more lessons :( </3 And I definitely have more than 2 cakes left....GAME ON! Everyone is equally enthused with Café Schwarzenberg and their assortment of coffees and cakes. But I'll always associate this café with Franz and my lessons, so it is rather special to me.....


         SO. CAKE IS GREAT. But on a more serious note (or maybe not at all--the Viennese aren't very serious people), I do truly love the coffee house culture in Vienna. There's nothing better than chatting with friends, reading a book by yourself, maybe doing homework, meeting colleagues, or just having some alone time and people watching at a café in Vienna. It's one of the things I'm going to miss the most when I come home. In the states, everyone is always on the go, on the move....and don't get me wrong--I'm aboslutely ENAMORED with my colorful iced coffee travel cups. But it is nice to slow down sometime, and give yourself a few hours to enjoy a cake and a coffee. You deserve it!

Dienstag, 1. Mai 2012

In der Steiermark!

Hello!
     So today is May 1st! May Day in Vienna! No classes, parades, everyone outside tanning, 80-degree weather, bands playing, and surely some fireworks later tonight!
     I actually just got back from relaxing by the Danube river. Read, went swimming and got rather sunburnt......SO now I'm back home. I'm seeking refuge from the sun, and planning on going to go practice in a bit...(recital tomorrow?!) But while I wait for my water to boil, I might as well recount my most recent weekend adventure!
     This past weekend I went on another IES-organized field-trip. This time to Austria's Bundesland: Die Steiermark. Its capital is Graz, which is Austria's second largest city, next to Vienna. But compared to Vienna's 2.7 million residents, Graz has 300,000....it's also very much a "college town", has a much younger population and more modern buzz. I loved Graz!
     But lets not get ahead of ourselves. Before our bus made it to Graz, we stopped in Stübing to visit Austria's open-air museum. The concept of an open-air musuem (started by the Scandinavians I believe?) is that historical and traditional homes/buildings and such from the country are taken and put in one walkable plot. So in Austria's open-air museum, we were able to "walk" through all 9 regions and look at original houses, grain mills, you name it. (in a much shorter time obviously than it would take to ACTUALLY walk through all the Bundesländer of Austria.) It was really, really cool actually.







       After a few hours here, we had an incredibly filling lunch of Schnitzel! And were off to Graz.. We went on a walking tour of the city, and then later that night after dinner, a few of us returned back to climb up to the clock tower! (Uhr Turm). Great view of the city. The tower is on top of a rocky hill where a large impenetrable fortress (that even kept out Napoleon!) once stood. Very cool.
    



        So that was Saturday! On Sunday, we visited the Schloss Eggenberg. (Schloss = Castle!!!) The castle was so beautiful, with rooms and art that took my breath away. There were rooms where Maria Theresia and Marie Antoniette had once stayed, the grounds had peacocks!!, and the weather was perfect. Excellent morning.




     We had a tour of the castle, and then were free to wander the grounds after. We actually found a Kinderspielplatz (playground) and entertained ourselves there for a while, haha. What a beautiful castle! Wouldn't mind living there.....



       After our visit to Schloss Eggenberg, we ended the day at a Thermal Spa on our way back to Vienna. I went down my first water slide and enjoyed yet AnOtHeR spectacular Eiskaffee in a water bar! (No pics, cause I didn't want to get my camera wet!)
FABULOUS weekend.



Sonntag, 29. April 2012

The Blue Danube

       If you ever get the opportunity to bike along the Danube River in Vienna in the Spring.....DEFINITELY do it. It was he most beautiful Monday I've maybe ever had?! I can't think of a more magical way to start a week actually....we biked so far we left Vienna and were in Niederösterreich for a bit! Gorgeous day.


       I would like to make an important side-note that ALL of these fabulous pictures were taken by me while I was riding my bike! I think I deserve a little bit of credit--risked my LIFE weilding that camera to photograph those swans. And it was absolutely worth it!
      I would now like to make a second side note, that taking these pictures was really not difficult at all; our bike ride was leisurely and I'm being dramatic. Please kindly disregard the first side-note.

Freitag, 27. April 2012

Budapeshht!!

          
       Last weekend I went on a class trip to Budapest! It was so fantastic!!!!--two of my professors here in Vienna happen to be Hungarian and wanted to personally show us where they were from! So they organized an optional weekend trip to Budapest. Tibor Frank, my Arts and nations professor, gave us a tour of the "Pest" side of Budapest on Saturday, and then Gez, my Intercultural Communications professor, showed us the "Buda" side of Budapest on Sunday, which is just across the Danube...
        This picture^ is of the famous Hero's Square (or Hősök tere), complete with many statues of (you've guessed it!)..Hungarian heroes! On the right side, there used to be some Hapsburg figures, but those were taken down and replaced with Anti-Hapsburg figures for obvious reasons. Tibor knew far more information that anyone should about every single statue. He knows so much!!!! 
       Ok, now the next picture is what Tibor refers to as "the Fun castle!!!" (he's so cute). But apparently, this castle has 17 different building styles from across Budapest put togethe. Or maybe it was 7. No, I think it was 17. I can't remember, Tibor! I'm sorry!!!


         Our wanderings took us to this special little statue. (If you're thinking it looks an awful lot like George Washington, you're CORRECT!) Here's Tibor himself! With George Washington--a monument put up on Budapest by Hungarian Americans.

 

      Then Tibor took us to the Liszt Museum! (The Music Conservatory). I'm actually reading about Liszt right now in a book....he's from Hungary, but he didn't spend that much time there, until later in his life. BUT anyways, there's a marble cast (of sorts) of his hand (because his piano-playing hands are LeGeNdAry!!) and I decided to compare my hand to Liszt's hand....conclusion: not as elegant.


        This is the view of the Pest side of Budapest from the Buda side of the Danube River. Gorgeous!


And here is where Tibor's tour ended! :(:( Until our next class, Tibor!

        So, the next day we got a little lost on the Metro lines and missed Geza's "Buda" tour...but we still had an excellent day--wandered around both Buda and Pest, enjoyed the sites and some beautiful weather! Here's St. Peter's Basilica (Looks like Budapest has as "Stephansdom" as well!)


And here is the most impressive Opera House I've ever seen!


And here is the Parliament Building! Such an impressive building...


       And of course, every phenomenal example of architecture surely deserves a selfie with Heart-shaped sunglasses, am I right??


     Famous Chain Bridge in Budapest! This is a weird picture actually...self-taken..and I think we were trying to get the lion in between us!


Der schönen blauen Donau!! View from the bridge :)



        After crossing over the bridge to the Buda side we decided  to climb up to the Buda castle! It was quite a climb....


The castle:


 View of the Danube from the Castle. So pretty!!!!


And here is St. Matthias' Church


         I took many more pictures, but they're not important! Budapest was a gorgeous city, and we were so lucky to have Hungarian professors take us through the city they know and love! The only thing I didn't have time to see, were the Baths...guess I'll just have to go back someday!!