FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

First Day of School... and then some.

So far I love all of my classes. I am taking a music history course exploring Mahler and his philosophy and music in Vienna, a music theory and rhetoric course, a musicology internship, more German and private lessons and a music workshop. I am blessed to be so challenged and to have such interesting material to learn for the semester. 

My first few voice lessons have been great. I am working through a few technique issues and I can already feel an improvement in the way singing feels and sounds. 

On the break that happened recently I did a whole lot of chilling. Although some of the highlights were Carmen at the Staatsoper, Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich Concert, a trip to the Music Composers graves, Dirndln shopping, and learning were I can purchase 50 different flavors of pop tarts. 

Also Otello at the Staatsoper was to die for! So far it has been my favorite performance of all the Operas I have seen this season. And there was a niffy tour that happened last night in the Museum Quarter for free. It was a modern, living art thing. There were 7 stops on the tour: a African spiritual choir, Scottish bagpipes, modern dance presentation in a hospital, Norwegian Folk band, 21st century classical music, Football choreographed dance, and the last stop was a punk rock party filled with people in fancy clothes, lots of confetti and a splash zone of popping champagne bottles. It was crazy awesome and only could happen HERE in Vienna. I am so glad that I came here to study and learn all that I could about music and culture and also about myself.

The Third Week of Intensive German, Registration, Staring Contests and The Gathering

I cannot believe I am almost all the way through intensive German. It has been...intense. Finals are on Friday and I can't help but feel uneasy about it. I have completed my homework to the best of my ability and finished my quizzes, but somehow I don't feel like I retain the information to well.

On a sixteenth note I have registered for my classes for the semester. I am taking a course in Mahler, Music Theory, Performance Workshop, Voice Lessons, More German, and the Musicology Internship. I also have plans to see all of the Operas, including Wagner's Ring Cycle in its entirety (I am will be getting standing room tickets y'all). I also am excited for all of the learning and music making and collaboration with my fellow musicians (who are crazy talented). 

On lower note, I won a staring contest with a complete stranger on the U-ban. Now before you judge me, this is a normal thing in Austria. Apparently, natives just stare at people. It's a thing, don't even think twice about it. So in my orientation, the program directors warned us of this oddity. There was a few comedic moments that followed this revelation and then one of the directors said "Just stare back at them, that's what Austrians do. Just don't smile, Austrian's don't smile at strangers. Unless they are trying to hit on you." So now I have made it my personal mission to win. all. of. the. staring. contests. ever.

On a higher note, we had a gathering at our house this past Friday. Now it wasn't a party, because Austrians don't have house parties; they go out to bars or clubs because there is a city-wide quiet hours at 10pm. The idea was to have a game night and play cards against humanity and relax with a drink or two. 

So it started out small with my seven roommates. Then we added our three brass-playing bros from another apartment. Cool that's not too bad. And of course the girl from upstairs who is super cool and I love her awesome wit (Jessica you're awesome). The there was Julies Boyfriend Ben, who is really funny. With Ben comes Matt, their mutual best friend from their home-school. And I invited, or rather I asked Julie to invite because I never see the guy, a pianist named John because he is pretty chill, very nice, and knows a lot about music, which is my favorite topic to discuss at gatherings. The total is now at 14. And somehow another violinist showed up for our gathering and to this day I have no idea where he came from, (but it didn't matter because he is actually super nice).

Our small game night gathering of 15 quickly escalated into a mild party. 

And it was awesome.

People were enjoying themselves, telling stories and jokes. A moderate amount of Alcohol was consumed (and all of the recycling was taken down before midnight). John played piano 3 of my roommates and I sang with him accompanying. Other people played piano. There was a gigantic round of cards against humanity. And it was all finished by midnight, the kitchen was cleaned before we went to bed, and everyone made it home safely to their own beds. 

Overall, not my style of a Friday Night, but it was a nice change and was so glad that I was open to allowing this experience to happen. 

Now, will we have gatherings every Friday night? Hell no. But once in a while is nice.

Cow tongue, celebrating the end of auditions, and internships

Earlier this week, I went the Naschmark and bought groceries in one of Vienna's biggest open markets. The food was super fresh and delicious. So fresh in fact that two of my roommates found worms inside their fruit. I got ripped off when purchasing nuts. But the biggest faux paux of the trip was the mystery meat. 

I feel the need to try new foods now that I am in a foreign country. This is certainly a noble endeavor. However, as my roommates have advised me after the fact, one should know exactly what they are eating. I purchased meat at he Naschmarkt. I thought it was bacon or some other kind of lunch meat. However when I opened it up and started to cook it, I realized it didn't smell familiar. 

Then one of my roommates chimes in, "Hey, that looks like cow tongue; my mother used to make it all the time." So we googled what cow tongue looked like and it didn't quite look like what was in my frying pan. I tried to dig the packaging out o the garbage container and locate what it was called. Well the packaging didn't say what it was. So to this day, I have no idea what kind of exotic meat it was that I bought that day. 

The moral of the story is this: Alicia is not allowed to go grocery shopping by herself--ever. 

Yesterday was the vocal auditions for placement in the music workshop. I felt very good about my audition. I was content with my diction, technique and tone. As it turns out there are many very talented musicians and I am honored to have the opportunity to work with them, and grow as musicians together with such wonderful people. 

Afterwards everyone decided to go out to an event put on by our resident assistants. We were going to locos (a bar) for loco Wednesdays. Because my roommates and I are all auditioning for the music workshop we all went later than our fellow participants in the European Culture and society section. 

Navigating the U-ban as I-don't-know-that-much-german speakers is super interesting. We called our R.A. (who was apparently in Italy at the time and we had no idea) several times in trying to get to where we needed to go. Then we arrive and enter our first encounter with local Austrians. 

Apparently I have no idea how to order drinks in German. Also my rommie got hit on by this one random guy who was dancing in our area. I was cracking up because she was very unsuccessful in trying to display her disinterest. And then later in the evening I was hit on by that guys wingman and the interaction was interesting. The conversation follows:

Me: Wie heisst du?

Him: mumble drunkenly auf Deutsch about loving all kinds of women

Me: nervous laughter

Him: Wie alt bist du?

Me: Zweiundzwanzig jahre alt.

Him: Zweiunddreissig?

Me: Nein. Zwansig, zweiundzwansig. 

Him: 22. Shit your young. 

Me: How old do I look?

Him: I am 28 so...

And that was my first interaction with the locals.  

Moral of the story: Dress down at bars so I don't get mistaken for an old woman. 

On a happier note, I received a musicology internship through my program and am super stoked about it. My roommate is also participating in the internship which is mega cool.  

Shopping, Walking, Ect.

SHOPPING ADVENTURE!

We finished orientation on a Saturday afternoon and drove from Mariazell to Vienna. It was an interesting couple of days.

Fact: Practically everything (like grocery stores and many restaurants and pharmacies) are closed on Sunday in Vienna.

Fact: Grocery stores close early on Saturday, like 6 pm.

Fact: We arrived in Vienna and had to move in, meet the landlady, and deal with all of that craziness.

Reality: One of my roommates and I ran to the grocery store when we arrived with our resident Austrian RA, and grocery raced to get a few nights of food.

WALKING ADVENTURE

A few roommates and I decide to go attend the Stephansdom mass. We decided it was nice enough to walk. We found the place okay. Then we tried to get home. Imagine a girl in heels, dressed tot the nines for church and all hovering around a map saying, "Perhaps, I think it is that way?"

We walked in several circles. Eventually, we made it home.

I laid down on the bed and then "Hey, were going on a walking tour of the district in a few minutes."

Reality: It is true that the Austrians walk everywhere, all the time and a lot.

Orientation Update

I cannot believe I have survived International Travel. I have met many amazing peoples in my travels to Study Abroad. 

On my flight to Dusseldorf I met a very nice lady who offered me food and hand sanitizer. She was from Poland originally, but she was visiting friends in Germany.  During the flight we chatted about her sons, her beautiful garden and her cute dog. In turned I shared with her a little about my family and background. And the most ironic thing is she was a music theory teacher and I was to be studying music.

My roommates are all super awesome and everyone I have met so far has been super nice.

Once you get over the jet-lag it is all a pretty awesome experience

 

Flying out of the Country tomorrow

I can't believe the time to leave is almost here. The last few days have been spent preparing for my impending trip. I have said my goodbyes, without tears I might add, and have packed my bags. Although I am fairly certain I picked up a cold, because my throat is a little soar, but we deal with it. I am beyond excited to begin this semester and learn all I can about music on Vienna.

20 Days!

This summer has been a roller coaster of the good, the bad, and the weird.

I started my summer job working for a movie theater. Which was pretty awesome. I have worker there previously and really liked my coworkers, bosses, and even the customers. 

My grandfather, whom I love very much and was close to passed away due to kidney failure at the age of 92. 

I quit my job due to stress and slight depression. 

I leaned how to cook, made many new friends, and trying to live each day as a reflection to the love I have graced with. 

I am still preparing for my adventure abroad. Recently I acquired a new camera and cannot wait to shot photographs of literally everything. I have been working on some new pieces as well as dusting off a few pieces for upcoming auditions in Vienna. I have all of the clothes I want to take with me picked out and waiting to be packed. Slowly I am acquiring a nine month supply of contacts, contact solution, deodorant, among other things I can't live without. I began a personal journal to help me deal with any emotionally challenging encounters that I don't feel comfortable sharing on the internet.

On the happiest note, I am dying to get started and to learn more about music and see the world as it may be.

56 Days until my Flight leaves for Vienna

This summer has been a roller coaster! I was excited, nervous, terrified, and on the verge of chickening out. I became intimidated by the realization that I would have to shop, cook and clean and live in a foreign country. I don't understand metric, my "brushing-up" on German is coming along slowly, and trying to understand the physical cost of a euro was blowing my mind. But thankfully my older brother talked some sense into me and I am back on track. I have an opportunity to study music in the birthplace of Western music. I am excited and nervous about all the preparations I need to make before I go.

I can't believe I only have a month and a half before I have to leave the country and embark on a journey of learning and self-discovery. So many thing to do and so little time to do them!

Finals, Recital, and Visa Applications

It has been a long time since I posted last. Essentially nothing super cool has happened yet. I successfully completed my role in the Texas Tech Production of Iolanthe, and completed my junior recital on May 4th. I have finished finals and am excited to be heading home for the summer to prepare for Vienna in August.

The most eventful thing that has happened was this past week. Because I lived in the dorms, I was kicked out May15th. However my ride back home was graduating and wasn't leaving until May

19th. So I illegally slept on my ex-roommates couch until she was kicked out on May 17. Since then I have been couch surfing with some of my really awesome and super cool friends who have graciously allowed me to crash at their houses. I finally feel like a real college student.

Anyways.....

My to List looks like this:

Apply at Consulate for Visa and resident permit

Purchase a camera for pictures

Watch Star Trek Into Darkness 38 times

Pack for Vienna

I am beginning to feel nervous and excited about my up-coming trip. 

Application Update

Hello Everyone,

I was officially accepted to the program in Vienna. I am beyond excited. I have almost all of the signatures needed for my pre-approvals and am well underway for getting my entry visas, passports and temporary resident permits in order. The fundraising stage begins now.

Today, I  applied for my passport, which was an interesting experience to say the least. The passport office in the International Cultural Center is open Monday through Thursday from 1pm to 6 pm. Today is Wednesday. On Thursdays, I have class from 11am to 6 pm. Next week is Spring Break and the office is closed until show week. It was imperative that I get my application in today, considering I needed to add a rush fee in order to be getting the rest of my documentation and forms in on time. 

I had convinced my parents to send my birth certificate up to Lubbock to apply for my passport. I knew it was supposed to come by 3 pm today. So, after Opera rehearsal (which I am performing on Thursday the 21 of March and Saturday the 23 of March) I went to my mailbox to check and see if it had arrived. It wasn't there and I was disappointed. I went to my room and checked my email, and bingo a package had arrived for me. I went downstairs to my dorm office and picked it up. 

The time is now 3:30. I then went to the bank and withdrew the exact amount of cash I would need. This particular account has a debit card attached to it, so I have never felt the need to order checks for this account. I take a 20 minute bus ride to the International Culture Center and walk into the Passport Office. 

The time is now 4:15. Apparently for the particular office I wanted to apply doesn't accept cash for passport fee. They only accept checks or money orders. Well, barnacles. 

I walked 20 minutes back to campus because the bus system is super sketch and I had no idea if another bus would come by with enough time to correct my problem. I arrived back on campus at my bank in the Student Union. I asked if they could do money orders. They said yes. But wait, today, of all days, they were out of money order forms. 

The time is now 4:40. I call my friend, Nikki, almost in tears, begging for a favor. She agrees and we drive to Walmart. 

The time is now 4:50. The very wonderful lady at the Walmart money center-bank thing helped me out. I credit that woman with being the one person today with the ability to turn my entire day around.  I now had my money order, my birth certificate, and my application. 

The time now is 4:55. We drove the International Cultural Center. I went in to the passport office. 

The time is now 5:15. There is a large family with four small children, a young man and an elderly gentleman in line in front of me. The passport office lady makes quick work of the line. 

At 5:45 it is my turn to apply. The application goes without hitch this time. 

I leave the office at 5:55. Nikki and I drive back to our dorm and breathe a sigh of exasperated relief. I had successfully applied for my first passport ever, just in the nick of time.

The Journey Begins

Hello, my name is Alicia Grace Yantosca. Let me tell you a little bit of information about me. I am a vocal performance major at Texas Tech University. I play violin, piano and love to sing. I am hard-working and love to learn. My favorite subjects in college are post-tonal theory, choir, and German. I am a junior and will be having my junior recital on May 4th, 2013 at Texas Tech University's School of Music room 010 at 3pm. It will be a short thirty minute recital with a small reception to follow (it includes free food). I have thoroughly enjoyed making music with various colleagues and friends. I have been very fortunate to have much love and support from my family in friends.

 I decided at the beginning of the semester that I wanted to study abroad in Vienna for the entire academic year in 2013-2014. IES Abroad has an affiliate program through Texas Tech that I will be studying at. In the Fall of 2013, I will be taking elementary German I, advanced music theory I, a performance workshop, and voice lessons. In the Spring of 2014, I will be taking elementary German II, Lied (German song literature), music history from Arnold Schoenberg to the present, advanced music theory II, and voice lessons with a recital. I am very excited to take these courses and live in Vienna for a year and take in the opportunities that studying abroad will present me.

I will be have a benefit recital in the near future to help fund-raise the costs of the program. More information to come in following posts.