Dresden

Here are some pictures of Dresden!  There is the "Old Town" (or tourist heaven) where the famous churches and the Dresden Opera House are (Semperoper).  Then across the river is "New Town" where all the locals hang out.  There's definitely a big metal/punk music scene here.  The younger generation definitely make it an interesting city to people watch - people full of piercings, tattoos, neon hair, and people wearing all black with leather jackets and combat boots all year round.  Definitely a city with lots of character and colorful people that make it memorable and unique.

Old Town:

Semperoper:

View from room, these are dormitories:

Main Station:

Carl Maria von Weber Hochschule für Musik:

New Town:

Auf Wiedersehen

    The time is finally here to embark on my journey to Austria and Germany!  This blog is sounding cheesy already.  Oh well, I'll try my best to keep it updated.  But I'm super excited about this opportunity and am fortunate to have family who supports me.   It also wasn't easy to decide to leave a job in my field that I love, but I can always go back to it.  Between being an alternate candidate for the Fulbright Commission and auditioning for Master programs, my hopes are for one of them to work out and that the move will be long-term.  Auditions for the schools start at the end of May and go throughout June and September, so it will definitely be a busy and stressful few weeks.  The competition for a spot in these programs is fierce but if I don't try I know I'll have regrets.

    While my interest in traveling and living abroad started back when I was twelve on a trip to Italy and Greece with my family, my desires grew throughout high school when introduced to opera -exposing me to the Italian, German and French languages - all of which I had to take as undergraduate requirements in college.  German came the most natural to me, which is what brought me to attend a training program in 2013 that was located in Salzburg, Austria. I learned an incredible amount during this time and was once again determined to try and live abroad. So I don't know if I should blame my parents for taking me to Europe, or thank my first voice teacher for exposing me to opera in other languages, but I couldn't be more excited that the day is finally here, whatever the outcome may be.  I don't know what the next four months will bring but thanks for support and well wishes!

P.S. The background picture is of Vienna, Austria where I'll be studying this summer.