October 8-14

Monday, October 8

I spent most of the morning catching up: laundry, groceries, processing my photos, and writing the blog. I also practiced--working on some arias and the choir pieces, especially the solos for Britten's Ceremony of Carols. I was really glad I had, since the director for the Frauenchor had me do one of them with the group at rehearsal this evening.

The weekend choir retreat prompted me to get back on the ball with making phone calls to teachers/coaches/accompanists. I'd made my initial round of contacts through names and information given to me by friends and singers in the US. But I was sitting on the info that Liat had shared with me. I'm intimidated, struggling with some self-doubt, and anxious about taking the next steps. I think part of my reluctance is simply not knowing what my goal is. Aside from improving my technique, why did I want to work with a coach or teacher? Do I have the time and commitment to make the cost worth it? What am I hoping to accomplish? So late in the afternoon, while video chatting with a friend in the US, I suddenly realized I just needed to get on the phone and make some calls. "Have the problem first. Then figure out the answer." (One of J's life philosophies.) I called the coach whose name and contact info was shared with me by the soprano who does the Stimmeausbildung for the Frauenchor singers and left a message. I emailed the soprano who has performed with Liat. I emailed a voice teacher networking website (similar to Linkedin). Within 30 minutes I had two return calls and a friendly email reply which led to scheduling two lessons and an appointment with the coach/accompanist. Now to figure out what to sing for them and get over my performance anxiety...

The fall colors are popping out! (playground between buildings in our apartment complex)

Red ivy on the wall along around the cemetery.

Tuesday, October 9

I was still behind on the blog post from last week, so J and I took our laptops to Leib & Siegel for a working "date." A poster in the window advertised an upcoming chamber music concert, so I bought tickets for ME and myself! Later in the morning, I rode my bike up to the Maxvorstadt to meet a friend-of-a-friend, Lisa, who owns The Munich Readery, a used English bookstore. We chatted over coffee and then I headed home, stopping for a light grab-and-go lunch and groceries on the way. The rest of the day was fairly uneventful aside from HR having her first Mathe tutoring session (which didn't leave us super impressed--more on that another time; we're going to give him a few more chances...)

Wednesday, October 10

This morning I joined a MeetUp group for an early morning walk in the Englischer Garten.
The organizer was a young American woman from California who moved to München a couple of years ago due to her husband's work with Intel. The rest were of varying ages and nationalities: German (although she's lived in London and DC due to her work with the German State Department), South African (married a native Münchener and splits her year between Germany, Italy, New Zealand, and South Africa), Russian, another American, and myself. It was a pleasant, small, chatty group, and the weather was absolutely perfect for a walk in the Garten. Afterwards, a couple of them left while the rest of us made ourselves comfortable at a table outside the Café Königin for a cup of coffee before going our separate ways. We're meeting again next Wednesday because we enjoyed each other's company!

A 2 p.m. I greeted Eberhard F. Lorenz at our apartment for a trial lesson. He preferred to come here since he doesn't have a decent piano and only an ancient synthesizer keyboard. We worked for an hour on an aria from Haydn's Schöpfung (Creation). It was interesting... Definitely more influenced by German vocal technique (think big voice, Wagner), but he was very affirming and funny, so it was a pleasant experience. I told him I had several other meetings with teachers/coaches and would be in touch if I decided to proceed with more lessons.

Later in the afternoon I met GE at school so that her classmate, M could come to our apartment to play. They had a snack, then colored for a while before playing with the girls' American girl dolls. They took the dolls and played outside for a while until it was time for M's dad to pick her up. The rest of the evenings was spent with the girls, doing homework and having dinner together.

Thursday, October 11

Today was packed! I showered before the girls got up so I could be ready to go to the Grundschule with GE. She was taking her written test for the biking certification and her teacher asked if I could come translate for her. We set ourselves up in the same little kitchen room where I'd met her teacher last week and worked our way through the questions. Hard not to give any suggestions for the right answers! Just straight up translate what's there. We'll see how she does... if she passes, she can take the practical riding test next week with the police trainers.

While waiting for GE to come take her test, I sneaked photos from the hallway. The kids take their shoes off and wear slippers when they're in the classrooms and every child has a designated "Hacken" (hook) where they can hang up their jackets.

Colorful student-made art projects decorate the walls and the doors have signs that say things like "We hold the doors for each other!"

Around 10 a.m. I left on my bike to ride to the north end of the city center, almost all the way to the far north end of the Englischer Garten, to meet with Roxana Mihai and her husband, Robson Tavares, at their home at 11 a.m. Liat had given me Roxana's name, contact info, and that her husband is a teacher and freelance performer in München. We chatted for a little while, sharing background info about our training and experience, then he took me through some warm ups and we worked on the Schöpfung aria. Robson's training is based primarily in Italian Bel Canto which is definitely more my speed. I really enjoyed the work and felt good about my ability to respond to his suggestions. Could be a thing... As I was leaving I mentioned that I have an appointment to meet with an accompanist, Stellario Fagone, next week and Robson said, "Oh! I'm giving a recital with him on Sunday evening in the Gasteig. You should come!" Networking win...

I wish I could adequately describe the weather right now. There is apparently a technical meteorological reason for the glorious weather in Bayern. It's call Föhn. Now, whether that's the reason it's been so glorious the last few weeks, it's hard to say. Might also be climate change in general... I digress. My point is, I rode my bike to and from Roxana and Robson's home through the most Herrlich fall weather, following the Isar river for a long stretch and then passing over into the Englisher Garten. It was in the upper 50's with the sun slanting through the trees whose leaves are changing into brilliant shades of yellow, orange, and red. People were out walking their dogs, pushing baby buggies, running, biking to work, or just moseying along. I didn't have enough time on the way there to stop for pictures, but on the way back, I couldn't resist pulling out my phone to video tape my surroundings as I biked. Now if only there was a way to transmit the smells and feel of the air through the computer screen...

My route from our apartment (Start) to Roxana and Robson's home (Ziel). One-way trip was about 10 km since I didn't stick to the route exactly (the paths through the Garten aren't exactly labeled and once I left the river, I wasn't able to orient myself). It took me roughly 50 minutes to get there, biking pretty steadily the whole way--thank goodness it's basically flat! Going back home I followed my nose a bit and after getting out of the Garten, took an already familiar route through the city rather than going back to the riverside path. So, all told, I'm sure I biked over 20 km.

After I got home, I ate a quick lunch and then hopped on my bike again to race over to the Gymnasium to meet HR. We had an appointment with the cello teacher. We left the meeting with a wonderfully sounding borrowed cello (3/4 size) and an appointment for a private lesson with him at his studio on Saturday. Unfortunately, she falls right between the school strings groups, cello ensemble, and orchestra in terms of ability and age. The younger groups are all very much beginners (and their rehearsal times don't fit in her schedule) while the cello ensemble and orchestra are more advanced. So, we opted for private lessons and he'll work on some of the cello ensemble parts with her so that if she wants to jump in for one of their concerts (Christmas and spring), she could join them for the last evening rehearsals.

Outside school with the "new" cello. Now, how are we going to get this beast home?

Strapped onto my bike, of course. (I walked.) On Saturday at her lesson, we'll swap out the big hard case for a soft back-pack style carrying case.

I unabashedly bribed her to walk with me by stopping at a café for coffee and a treat and a little HR-&-Mommy time.

Lilli & Lulu - I ride past this little café every time I go to choir rehearsals, but of course, at that time of day it's closed. HR helped me "check it out."

She approves.

In the evening, I got on my bike one more time to ride to choir practice for the Himmelfahrtskirchen Chor. Whew!

Friday, October 12

My day was slower, although we filled it up quickly! I ran along the Isar, this time taking a loop north to the Reichenbachbrücke and then went back down on the city side. Not as long of a loop and far more traffic, so I think I'll stick with my southern route for now.

J and I sat out on the balcony to eat breakfast and sip our decaf coffees, then showered and headed into the city center. J's favorite haunt is the Viktualienmarkt. He's memorized the stall plan and so he knew where to get good coffee and some fresh German apples. Then we parked ourselves at some of the open seating tables and read our books for a while before we had to head home to meet GE who gets out of school early on Fridays.

 

Cappucino for J. Americano for me.

There are a series of statues in the Viktualienmarkt. Read more about the history of the market here.

From Wikipedia: "During World War II this square with its cosy atmosphere was severely damaged. There was even talk of closing down the market in order to erect multi-story buildings on this important site. Instead, the municipal authorities revitalised Viktualienmarkt with considerable financial support, and the citizens of Munich enriched it with memorial fountains for the folk singers and comedians Karl Valentin, Weiß Ferdl and Liesl Karlstadt. Later, memorial fountains for the folk singers and comedians Ida Schumacher, Elise Aulinger and Roider Jackl were added."

I bought one of these baskets after I took the picture (blue and white checked lining with a square bottom). The lining can be pulled up and has a drawstring to cinch it closed. Perfect for covering your fresh produce or protecting your purchases from light rain!

Fresh fruits of all sorts! Mostly regional:Germany, Belgium, France, Poland, and even Denmark! The furthest source was Spain.

The Peterskirche steeple tower (which you can go up to get a view of the city) peeking over the rooftops.

Christmas stuff is already making an appearance (even the grocery stores are carrying Lebkuchen and cookies already!).

After we got home, GE arrived. She had not passed her bike test the other day, but was allowed to retake it--however, her teacher called me while I was on my run this morning and I wasn't able to come translate for her again. Instead, the Schuldirektorin, Fr. H, translated it for her. This time she passed! So, on Monday she'll go with her classmates to the city bike training center for the practical test--they've been twice before for training sessions, so I'm pretty sure she'll do alright despite the language barrier.

Later in the afternoon I accompanined HR to her first Deutsch tutoring session. She'd had her first Mathe session on Tuesday and it wasn't quite what we were hoping for, so J and I decided one of us would go along this time and sort of check things out. This was a different instructor though, and he seemed to grasp what we were trying to do for HR (give some extra support and explanation and start where she's at and go from there). So, she was chipper and cheerful when it was done and glad for the extra help. Next week J will go with her to the Mathe session again and see if we can't help make that one go a little more smoothly too.

Date night (2 dates in one day--gotta love sabbaticals)! I've been biking past the strangest site whenever I go to and from choir rehearsals: a ship on top of a bridge over a side street. At night it's strung with lights and seems to be quite a gathering place. So we decided to check it out. The Alte Utting opens at 4 p.m. with live music starting around 7 p.m. We headed over around 5, expecting to have to get there early to get a table, but the whole set up was entirely something else! Basically, the place is one "recycled" venue. The Alte Utting is a decommissioned cruise ship from one of the Bayerischen lakes. Some club or another decided to save it from being scraped, found a place to put it in the city (on an abandoned stretch of a rail bridge) and turned it into a Biergarten style food, hang-out, gather, music, sort of place. The food stalls are either shanty-style shacks or old shipping containers that have been retrofitted with electricity, counters, coffee-makers, and fridges full of Bier and Wein. It's all self-service and you get a little round wooden chip to get your Pfand (bottle deposit) back when you return your dishes. The food is mostly vegetarian or vegan with stalls containing curries, Kombucha, crêpes, and more! We didn't even explore them all. Inside the ship are picnic tables and down in the ship is a small Bühne for the live music bands that play once during or so during the weekdays, Friday nights, and on the weekends during the late morning "brunch" hours. The place was just starting to get going when we arrived, but by the time we left around 9 p.m. it was hopping! More info here and here.

Schedule through mid-November. I wonder what happens during the winter months...

A cozy corner "Wald" with a Piratendeck (on the left) and Yurt-style tent (on the right)!

Covered seating areas mixed with open picnic tables. Another spot circled around a fire pit. The stairs in the background lead up to the ship itself.

Inside the Yurt after the sun went down.

The place is starting to fill up! There's a line for the drink counter in the old shipping container.

Looking down at the street from one of the entrances, the ship itself is on the bridge (white with dark blue at the bottom and lit from below).

We got to enjoy a little of the band, "Cheerio Joe."

The band "Cheerio Joe" was playing. We walked in as they were wrapping up a cover of a favorite song!

Saturday, October 13

We caught up on our sleep and let the girls relax a bit. J went for fresh Semmeln, taking GE with him. We get bread during the week at the grocery store, but on the weekends we get the fresh stuff so the kids can enjoy a truly German Frühstuck. They each have their favorite toppings--not just Nutella!

HR got some of her homework out of the way in the morning and then we heading to the Altstadt to H&M for pants--the ones she brought are suddenly 2 inches too short! It's another Herrlicher day!! On the way back, we stopped for a coffee (well, Kaffee Americano for me and water for HR) at one of the cafés with outdoor seating next to the Peterskirche.

Good grief! We literally just got these pants in July. But HR is thrilled with this... She wants to be taller than me by the time we return to the US. At this rate, she will be. <Sigh>

Couldn't resist stopping to snap photos... HR kept begging me to quit and move along to our shopping destination, but oh my! The sky! The people! The architecture. I can't get enough.

We had lunch at home then I hurried out to grab some groceries from the Lidl (discount grocery store). HR's first cello lesson was at 3:45 p.m. but we needed to take the bus and U-bahn, so we were going to leave early enough to make sure we had time to get lost, find our way again, and still get there early. Herr Schmidt's studio is in the basement of an eyeglasses store in Sendling, a neighboring suburb. We walked a short distance (me carrying the heavy cello case) to the bus stop and then changed over to U-bahn at Poccistraße. We had a short walk after getting off the U-bahn--only got slightly disoriented coming out of the station on the wrong side of the street and having to make a little detour to get back on track. We arrived with plenty of time to spare and since there was a REWE City nearby, I backtracked to get the last of my groceries for the weekend while HR waited with the cello. I made it back in time to go in with her. Herr S. gave us the soft case for the cello so that HR could wear it on her back for the return trip. Yay! The lesson went well--mostly in German which HR could understand. We were both pretty happy since he is gentle and kind and clearly experienced with working with pre-teen students (he teaches the 5th and 6th grade strings classes and leads a cello ensemble for 8th graders and the orchestra at the Klenze Gymnasium). He has developed his own curriculum and will use music he has written for the various levels and difficulty. He took her through scales and positions, bowing and shifting exercises, and some sight-reading. I was impressed. HR liked him and felt comfortable.

Meanwhile... ME had been invited to a classmate's birthday party. She biked to her friend's house and the group of girls made homemade pizzas together and hung out. She posted some photos on Instagram, if you're on that (PM me if you want to follow her). She seems to be settling in pretty well. We hardly ever hear anything about homework--in fact, she usually has stories to tell of how she was able to answer in class and the teachers now call on her as much as the other students. Oral participation is a BIG deal at the Gymnasium level and students receive Mündliche Noten (oral grades) for most classes, so this is a pretty big deal.

At home in the evening, the girls finished homework while I worked on the blog and hung out with MK via WhatsApp and Google Drive (she's working on her college applications).

Sunday, October 14

J and ME were invited to an all-day board games gathering by a guy they've gotten to know playing board games every Thursday night at FUNtainment game shop. One of the other players invited them to join him at Müttertreff Moosach e.V. for the club's board game day. They pretty much spent the day there!

The little girls and I had some quiet time at home, playing, straightening up, and running a load of wash which I could hang out on the balcony again because the weather continues to be HERRLICH (not even sure how this is possible in Germany, but we are drinking it in every moment that we can)!! After lunch I told the girls we'd walk over to the Alte Utting and I'd show them what the old ship on a train track was like. They were totally begeistert (thrilled)! Since the pirate's nest was already occupied by other people, they camped out in the yurt. I took my Kindle and sat at a table out in the shimmery shade, sipping sparkling water and a really good espresso. When they got the nibbles, we went to the crêpe stand. After an hour of relaxing with my book, I headed home to get supper together so I'd be ready to leave for the 7 p.m. concert in the Gasteig. The little girls wanted to stay a little longer and since it's an open park-like environment (there were tons of families hanging out and Kindergarten-age kids running around willy-nilly), I decided to let them. HR had her little cell phone with her and knew the way home (it's on her route to/from the Gymnasium). I gave them a time to be home and reminded HR to keep track of what time it was. The little bits of independence do them both good!

Nutella crêpe!

Watching how it's done.

The remnants of Nutella crêes along with a wooden Pfand chip and an almost empty bottle of spring water. They came back later to polish off the leftovers, of course!

In the evening I left around 5:40 to catch a bus up to the Gasteig, a large cultural and performing arts center that houses the Münchener Philharmonie, among other things. There were multiple entrances and box offices, so I had to download a map graphic to figure out where to go. I'd ordered my ticket online (only 20 Euros) ahead of time, but had to pick it up at the box office window. The Gasteig is in a part of the city I hadn't explore yet, so I took my time walking from the bus stop, taking photos with my phone along the way. The concert, "Der Junge Verdi" (The Young Verdi), was more like a lecture recital, held in the Kleine Konzertsaal (small chamber music hall). The accompanist, Stellario Fagone, would stand up between sets to explain what the context was for the next set of arias and duets. He told stories of Verdi's life and the historical and political contexts of the operas that the arias and duets came from. It was really quite fascinating! The singing was good (although there were a few moments when the soprano sounded a little strangled--but singing a whole concert of Verdi arias is, in my opinion, insane). I really enjoyed the baritone, Robson (the teacher I worked with on Thursday). After the concert, I stood in the hall outside the dressing room and was able to meet Stellario, introducing myself (Robson hadn't come out yet) and making the connection with this coming Tuesday's meeting. Networking done, I headed home, stopping to take some night-life photos...

A spot to come back to? This is apparently an indoor public pool. Spa?

Walking up the hill towards the Gasteig. It's quite a sprawling complex--the brick buildings up the hill to the right are also part of it.

The performers invited the audience to sing one of the famous Verdi choruses as an encore. The text was printed in the back of the program booklet. Fun!

The Isar and church steeples at night.