A contemplation on shopping culture

This one is dedicated to my sister, Samantha! I have spent a good number of times going in stores and ....wait for this one...SHOPPING. Not going crazy yet, but thoughts run through my head...read on!

During the week, I spend a lot of time at the Palais Corbelli, where I spend an hour and a half in German 4 days a week, and 2 and a half hours in performance workshops 3 times a week. The interval pauses I have in between are short, but I have no patience for sitting in the comfortable student hallway/lounge, like some of the other people taking classes here. (There are other groups at IES, not just the 11 of us music people). I can't stand the fact that I am trapped inside on beautiful sunny days when there is a whole city outside, waiting to be explored! I have probably walked down Kärntnerstrasse (the main street) about a hundred times now, and I still notice new things and new stores every single time I take a stroll! Kärnterstrasse is also the main street I have to walk down to get to the IES center. In the mornings, it is less crowded, but if I go early, I have to dodge large white vans driving wildly on the cobblestone footpaths, holding new packages for all the designer stores, as well as the abundant souvenier shops.

Today, I had a packed schedule from 10am until 5:30, except for a break between 1pm and 2:30. I had planned to practice and write postcards on that short break, but I just can not find the motivation to practice as much as I should! I am kind of getting my butt kicked here, technically and musically. I like it because I feel like I am in a 6 week music intensive program, which is great. My voice teacher is incredible, and I'm noticing things about the way I sing which I have never noticed before. She is very sweet to me, but she doesn't let things go! If I sing one note in not the prettiest way, she'll stop and tell me what to do, how to do it, and it goes on from there. Naturally, I have to stop a lot. In her words, "what you're doing doesn't sound bad, but when you make these tiny adjustments, you sould worlds better!" Well, good, I'm glad! I try to do my best for her. The repertoire I am working on here is not of great importance. I like the songs though--they are cute, and I am considering continuing on with some of them next semester.

Oops, a little off-topic! I didn't practice today. I was distracted when I stepped outside, thinking that I would buy a hoodie. I forgot to bring one with me, and it was around 60 degrees Fahrenheit and cloudy. However, when I stepped outside, it was not even really that cold! I went on an adventure anyway. I don't know really what I do exactly. I guess I just walk. I probably look pretty idiotic, with my huge black bag, staring up at the names of stores on both sides of the street as I walk down the center. Sometimes I pass one store, and then I have a second thought and turn around sharply because I suddenly decide I should see what the store offers. It is quite ridiculous. Today, on my search for an unnecessary hoodie, I pretty much went into every store that looked like it has a good assortment of ladies clothes. Some stores I walked in, and I surveyed the age group of the women roaming around. Average age: 45 probably. And what do I do? I keep looking! Sorry, Samantha! Actually, in one of those stores, I tried on a beautiful light brown blazer costing 150 Euros. I almost fell in love, and then I came back to reality. That was fun. Next store.

Ooo! Zara! I've always heard about it, but never gone in. So I go in and look around. Shopping has begun to tempt me. If you know my previous feelings about shopping, you know that I only shop for things I truly need, and only occasionally for fun, but mostly just looking. I never really have major urges to buy anything, in fact, I normally convince myself out of anything I really like. I have a short attention span for shopping, and you might as well call me a party-pooper when you put me shopping with my sisters! But now, I've experienced something new. I'm in a new city, where I have the attitude that when I leave here, I have no idea when I am coming back, so I don't mind spending my money on things that will help me remember my time living here. When I go in these stores, things call out my name. I even go into shoes stores where the average shoe price is about 85 Euros. And yes, I even tried on a pair of quite adorable, brown shoes. Who AM I?

Maybe shopping is different in Vienna? Maybe I'm going through an attitude change? Maybe I just like being by myself shopping, the feeling of being free, and not being swayed by others' opinions? I don't know, but it's weird!

Right now, I am in Cafe phil, a Viennese coffeehouse near Naschmarkt. The girls I live with are with me, and they have to work on a paper for their music history class--a class which I am thankful for abstaining from! I would describe the atmosphere of this cafe as "chill." The lights are dim, old books on bookcases line the walls, and we are sitting on couches and arm chairs with a low coffee table in between. They are playing alternative, zen and sometimes jazzy background music. I'm on their free internet. What a world I live in. I have a three day weekend ahead of me.

Enjoy summer, east coast! I don't know what to call this season that Vienna is going through!