A Little Tease

The best part of studying in Arezzo was the end- getting to perform in Arezzo! We sang in a beautiful museum courtyard complete with columns and an open sky. My opera was Handel's Radamisto, and I sang the part of the queen Polissena. For those that didn't see the show, or saw it and couldn't understand (yeah....it is complex), my husband Tiridate is trying to take over my brother's, Radamisto, kingdom, and has fallen in love with my brother's wife Zenobia. In our scene Tiridate is choosing to not surrender, and the rest of us are trying to figure out what to do. Emotions are running high, and you can see we are all considering the stakes and future!

Here are some pictures from our scene: (Photography by Lana Austin who can be seen at her blog http://www.lanaaustinmotif.blogspot.com/ )

I truly loved playing this character and would love to explore it more; maybe someday in the future I can do Radamisto again.

If I ever acquire a copy of the video I promise to post that too. Handel's harmonies are quite glorious and I loved singing in them.
Buon giorno amici! <3

For more stuffs :)

Please drop by and visit Lana Austin's Blog Motif for more pictures of Arezzo, Firenze, and other lovely Italian things and places!

http://www.lanaaustinmotif.blogspot.com/

Side note- She's my loving wonderful mother whom I love and adore :)
Thanks ya'll! Ciao amici!

Mia Vita Bella

Ciao! Io tornata a Blogger ;)
I have so many stories to tell...how do I go about writing it all? Thank goodness for pictures! The instant memory capturing device saves us for sure.
With only four weeks left in Napoli I feel anxious and excited. I want to see more of Napoli, and plan to definitely, but I will be quite happy to be home when the time comes. I'm gonna make the most of this last month!
Looking back on all that has happened this summer, I am comfortably saying that Arezzo is my favorite city in Italia (mio preferisco!!!), and Cortona is second. Milano would be third.
Let's discuss Cortona. If you can handle a long bus ride up a windy mountain, let me rephrase that- Up up up up a wiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiinding spinning circle-y mountain, then the city is well worth visiting. You can walk from  one end of the city to the other side in less than 20 minutes. But even though it is small in size, I went back several times and loved it each time. I never got bored or tired. How could I? The view from above is amazing, and the people there are quite lovely. I think they love getting the chance to practice their English while you practice your Italian. If you are feeling tired, or sorry for yourself, take a walk through Cortona.Get a grasp on perspective- you're in Italy! And not just anywhere in Italy, but lovely Tuscan Italy.

If the small loving size of Cortona or Arezzo is not enough for you, try Firenze; a lovely touristy big city. Honestly, there were too many Americans there for my enjoyment. No offense to my nationality, but I don't travel to see my people. I travel to experience the wonder of a new culture, and to learn about life outside of my comfort zone.

A few things this year has taught me:
*I love traveling and want to travel so so so much more. I have been bitten by the travel bug (yes, I made that up).
*I have fallen deeply and passionately in love with music, specifically opera. I want to fight for that and make it my life. Music truly has captivated me in a way I never thought possible.
*There is a difference between a metro and a bus...yes, some things have humbled me....
*It's ok to ask for help. Again, humility to be learned.
*You can learn new things every day, and really should try to be open to new experiences. Be open in general!
*God really does have a plan, and we should give Him more credit for that. He knows what He is doing ;)

Of course I learned a lot more than just that. Those are the things off the top of my head!

More stories and pictures soon :) I plan on seeing Pompeii, Spaccanapoli, and possibly some other neat Neopolitan places!!
<3 

A Tale of a Dinner in Arezzo

Arezzo, mi manchi! Milano, mi manchi! Time for one last month here in Napoli. I cannot believe I've been here for 5 months! Incredible! My life has changed, I've met such neat people, and had fun in every place!

When I lived in Arezzo I had the amazing opportunity to see a historical event- La Giostra di Arezzo! Yes, I saw a real legit joust!!!! What was neat about MY experience was I went to the joust dinner the night before! It was neat and special because typically Americans are not allowed to attend this, and it is an all Italian event. How lucky am I?! We learned drinking/game songs from the Italians, enjoyed several courses of a lovely meal, and enjoyed the energy building up before the joust!

A nice little waiter decided to steal our photo ;) 

Aw muaw!

 Aw, they wanted to dance :)

He taught us the songs that basically say "the other team plays like ----" ;)

Yum yum yum food! Just ONE of the many plates we had!

This night was super duper fun, and we met some very interesting people. The funny thing about Arezzo, because of its small size, we ran into several of those people again! 

Mi mancha Arezzo!!! <3

Mamma Mia!!!!!

Ciao tutti!
I cannot believe how long it has been since I have blogged last. I promise I have not forgotten the blog world; I have been immersed in opera world. I spent the month of June in Arezzo taking Oberlin Conservatory's Italy program. So so so much has happened, and my life truly has changed. How? I fell into a deep passionate love with music, and am now working harder than ever. But, I feel more joy than ever too! Music makes my day worth waking up for. I'm at the point where I'm excited to practice!

And what better place to practice music than Italia? Mi piace!!!


More stories and pictures to come! Buongiorno amici!
-Tuo Alessandra Anne <3

Fine Settimana Tre??? AHHHH!

I'm 3/4 of the way through with my stay in Milano! That's crazy!!!!! I'm excited for Arezzo, but am just now getting the hang of Milano and wish I could have more time. Sort of. Mixed emotions here!

Yesterday was a lovely lovely day which I spent with my classmate, the bella Fiammetta, and we walked around the city just taking our time and enjoying the sunny day! We even met some Americans who were touring through Europe for study abroad, and they took our picture after we took theirs. Lovely!

Today was also a neat day because I found a piano practice room that looked really neat (even had chandeliers!). I enjoyed my voice and composition practice!

The best part was definitely playing on a Steinway. *HUGE GRIN*
Bravissimo!

Una giornata a Milano...

Spontaneous, spur of the moment, and last minute; these are all things that do not describe me nor work well with me. I learned that yesterday! BUT, despite things not working out to my "last minute planning," by being open minded I was able to experience other things that could not have been planned or scheduled.

We started class with a new teacher, Irene, who's energy and enthusiasm reminds me of watching Cecilia Bartoli sing live. We also learned that one of our classmates, a young Brazillian guy, well, his version of paradise is ragazze!! (Young women!) That was just one of the many amusing and sometimes awkward subjects covered yesterday, but all of which were enjoyable, and I definitely learned so much in one class! I didn't know what to expect with a new teacher, but I think I like her and will continue to like her for the next two weeks of class.

I attempted to go downtown to find a practice room, but to no avail. (You know you're in Italy when all the pianos are being used and you hear opera in each room!) So I began walking back, planning on stopping at Porta Genova (a metro station that takes you to the part of town that looks like mini-Venice!). I'm walking my normal route back, and I spot a chandelier (ahh yes, my chandelier addiction is one for the books). I think "oooh! This is definitely picture worthy!" I pull out my camera and...internal memory full....I had left my memory card in the computer back at the apartment....really??? So much for walking around to take pictures.... However, on my walk back, I discovered another metro stop, saving me some walking! So I went down there, and had a few minutes to wait and was able to sit down. While sitting down, three people walked by me; one man was singing opera (or at least classically)!! I had to smile, and may have even chuckled. Then he gave me a greeting in Italian, and I laughed again. I suddenly appreciated the timing of my day, and realized that it worked out just right, even if it wasn't what I had originally planned.

All of this can happen on a day in Milan, if you just let it happen to you.
Ciao ciao!