Happy days :-)

So...a lot has happened since I last posted...

I went to Berlin for a week. great to see friends and did some singing that went much better than I was afraid it would...still a bit throaty I think though. Sadly I only made it to a couple Museums and not some of the ones I really wanted to see...but that just means I will have to go back. It was great to see my Marburg buddies again.

Upon return to Mannheim, I began rehearsal with the Opernschule. What a fun group of people! The director seems a bit to hands-on and exacting at times...but ultimately...I think it teaches people a lot and is necessary with the group.

I have made friends with a could of Serbian students among others and am starting to regret having to leave next year. I just wish I could bring a certain someone here with me...haha. I always thought it would happen that way. When I finally start to really fit in and thrive...I have to go home...but I at least have 3 1/2 months left

I had a very good and very frustrating lesson the other day. Piernay actually said I sounded good! Unfortunately, the reason I sounded good was the fact that I had practice almost exclusively technique for the last month and a half. However, I neglected to learn any new music for lessons untill 3 days before the lesson, so it was a little rough. I think I let Piernay down a bit and I guess myself, but the good thing is that lessons continue to go well and now that I have gotten to understand Piernay's personality I find him quite enjoyable (though one must always be a bit cautious :-)

I have gone from feeling like I have nothing to do here...to feeling slightly overwhelmed. This lesson was admittedly my fault but the next few months will be quite full with writing a report comparing vocal techniques, quite a bit of singing with Pepperdine, the opern schule, el Canguro and some possible klassenabends.

Still, first semester was precisely what I needed, a chance to really experiment and break down my voice to rebuild it without my lower tongue as an exhausting and uncomfortable source of stability. Now I get to enjoy the fruits and solidify what I have learned by performing!

I had a surprisingly enjoyable weekend as the director and codirector of the opera school invited the fellow playing Falstaff and I to go on an asuflug (excursion) with them. We are both ausländer so they thought it would be nice to show us some of the prettier parts of the area. We left about 11:00 and went to a couple nice little towns in the wine country surrounding Mannheim. We meandered and ate good food and had an ultimately relaxed day courtesy of Frau Gleue (the director). I was quite glad I accepted the invitation. I am really starting to feel at home here.(spring helps a lot too...hehe)

I guess that is the challenge of starting a new life somewhere, you can't live both of them. It is such a blessing and a shame that they are both so good.

Anyway, once again, this was written over several days so I apologize if it is redundant or random.

Oh yeah...two more things...I went on a ridiculously long hike up the heiligenberg to Weisserstein...I kept seeing this name on the signs and set my mind on reaching it before I knew how far away it was. Anyway, a five hour hike later and a potty-break in the woods (my first time!) I finally got back to Heidelberg tired but successful. I took the train home, slept for half an hour, scarfed down a döner and then headed out to the Lange Nacht der Museen with my roommate and her friend. What a cool night. All of the museums and various churches and so-forth were open and you could go into as many as you wanted with a fourteen dollar ticket. We visited a mosque, several art installations, the castle and went inside Wasseturm. The only downside of the night which was surprisingly mild was that after a rigorous 5 hour hike...I spent another 5 hours on my feet walking all over Mannheim and through museums. Nonetheless es war sehr schön.