November 2003 - Nr. 11
Vienna Connection
Last month I wrote about leaving home in pursuit of your goals and aspirations. Well, it’s been about a month now since I wrote the article just before boarding the plane, and things are most definitely different than when I last checked in. Different in a good way of course, since classes have started and life is very busy as of now.
To my own shock, I’ve only been to the Wiener Staatsoper once! It was a beautiful production of La Sonnambula, by Bellini, but there was so much that I would love to have had the chance to see, but just wasn’t able to because of time constraints.
I’m now studying at the Konservatorium Wien, which is what I originally came here for, but on top of that I decided to do an extra audition for the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst Wien, and was very pleased when I was also accepted into that school. So, being the workaholic that I am, but absolutely loving every single minute of it, I decided why not just bite the bullet and do 2 programs at once!
Well, to North Americans this might seem a little on the crazy side, but I’ve found out that I’m not the only one who’s doing something like this. Several people join programs together, it just takes them a little longer to get through them, that’s all! This brings me to my main point...the rush we all seem to feel in our daily lives. I for one am the first to admit that I am a culprit when it comes to needing to be the first, the fastest, the best.
Don’t know what it is, there is just the impulse to achieve, achieve, and then achieve some more, that lies within. For some people it’s a little bit more buried than others, but I KNOW for a fact that I’m definitely not the only overachiever out there! People seem to take a lot more time here. A lot more time to figure themselves out, to live, to experience...maybe that’s the true Meaning of that infamous word, Gemütlichkeit; taking the time to Geniess, or to enjoy the moment in which we’re living instead of moving as quickly as you can trying to cram the most information in as possible so that you can just get out there and move on to the next thing on your plan.
Now don´t get me wrong, I’m not advocating to sit down with that Tim Horton’s coffee (which I’m very much missing...English Toffee Cappuccinos are my own personal delight and sin, anyone who knows me will know this fact!) while taking 10 minutes to open the lid and smell the aroma before bringing the thing to your lips, (mmm, suddenly craving Tim Horton's...) but just taking the time to enjoy that moment away from whatever hectic experience you seem to be in, and just think. Think about the colour of the sky, or a sport you’ve always wanted to learn, or for crying out loud, why there’s a Hare Krishna sitting at the computer next to you, ready to hand you a mysterious cake (yes, even in Austria!). Think of something! We go through our lives in such a routine that we don’t have the chance to use all of our senses. We have 5 of them, some are even lucky and have a 6th (my mom would say she’s a part of this group...). Take the time to hear (or rather listen!), to see, to feel, to smell, to taste (oh, especially to taste!). Make the most out of all of your experiences, and enjoy what you’re doing right now, even though that might be the last thing you want to do.
At the risk of sounding like a very corny email forward, I’ll end this optimism talk and move on to a brief description of Vienna. It’s a gorgeous city, of course, a music-filled city (big reason why I’m here) and also a city where tradition plays a very large part of daily life. We don’t have that same kind of experience coming from a relatively new country, but you KNOW that this place has a distinct culture and tradition that goes way beyond the buildings, the coffee houses and the Infamous Sacher torte. (although these are quite enjoyable too!) There is a certain way things are done here, as chaotic as they may be. I recently experienced the mayhem known as University Anmeldung or Inscriptions here, which well, I won’t even start to describe, because that’s another topic all on its own!
Let’s just say that it’s a big mess, but it’s never going to change, nor does anyone seem to want to make an effort to change it. Everyone loses sleep, waits in line-ups for hours only to be told to come back the next day because the office will only be open for 2 hours a day, and can’t accommodate the thousands who are fighting for a spot...literally it almost came to blows! But in the end, life goes on, classes start, and you’re either in them, or you’re not. So you’ve got to learn the way things have always been done, or get left out in the cold...literally, it's freezing cold here in the city!!!
Well, hopefully next month I’ll be able to report a little more about the cultural scene here, seeing as I will try to attend many more events and be participating in some as well! Now that I’m actually enrolled in my programs after wondering if my spot in the line would ever reach the door, I can look back and laugh about the experiences, and the people I’ve met along the way. I can appreciate a little more just what the word tradition means...even when something is not the most efficient, it’s the way things have always been done, so it’s going to stay that way, like it or not! I hope that we all can keep some traditions in our lives, and no this is not just a shameless plug for everyone to go out and join the nearest German speaking choir, or dance group, although having done that, I have many great memories from my youth and I do highly encourage anyone to at least give it a try. I’m just saying that we should be proud of who we are, and where we’re from, and enjoy every bit of it.
Comments to: ckuehn@echoworld.com
