October 2003 - Nr. 10
Vienna Connection
Notes from the City of Music
There’s a new column that’s starting. There seems to be a trend for going back to the old countries and trying to get yourself established; finding yourself and where you fit in in this crazy, hectic world of ours. I am Caroline Kuehn. My sister, Elizabeth has already written several pieces for Echo Germanica, and I’ve decided to write a few myself.
I am on a different journey than she is. Even though we are both off in German speaking countries, our experiences are anything but similar. She is off working, and I am off to study. In fact, I will be off in a couple of hours, so this is my last look at the life that I’ve led till this point.
I spent the past 6 months in Austria, in the beautiful city of Vienna, trying to establish myself, and I decided to come back for a month this Summer. It has definitely been an interesting past 6 months, in a foreign country, learning the customs, and the way of the land. It’s been something that I thought wouldn’t really be much of a problem for me, since I had been there as a traveler many times in the past. I am so thankful for these experiences, but I do have to say that moving to a foreign country is a completely different ballgame! Although the locals seemed to find it a novelty that I knew the words to a lot of their folk songs, I found that most of the people who lived there didn’t know the words themselves!
I am living in a neighbourhood that is more than 50 percent non-Austrian, although I won’t be there for much longer, since I’ll be moving to a new place which I’m currently looking for (oh yes, the life of a youth!) in about a week and a half. I am starting a program at the Opera School of the Konservatorium Wien. I can’t wait to start school with my colleagues from around the world. I went through the undergraduate music program at the university of Toronto, but this is going to be a whole other ballgame!
This is all about going after dreams. Dreaming big and trying to make it all come true. I will be making some written instalments here in the Echo about this, and I urge any of you who dream, either big or small to shout what your dreams are and be proud of them and of yourselves and the steps you are taking to make them come true. We have so many opportunities open to us in this world, and it’s such a blessing to be able to take advantage of them. These are the thoughts that are running through my head now, as I am preparing to leave.
My bags are packed, my goodbye emails are written, I’ve spoken to some friends on the phone, and yes, leaving them is painful, as is leaving the comfort that the life I’ve led here has provided me. But to dream big and try to make it happen is worth it.
I hope some of you join me in telling the world (or at least the readers of this paper!) your thoughts on what you think is worthwhile in this world. I’ll be leaving this side of the ocean, but my memories and heart will still remain here. This is where home is, and home is such a big part of our lives. But there, across the ocean, is where the future and the dreams lie. At least my immediate future in any case, and maybe a few choruses of those old folksongs locked away in my memory!
Caroline Kuehn
Comments to: ckuehn@echoworld.com
