fare liste

With my departure drawing ever closer (sunrise this coming Sunday morning to be precise), I know that it's probably time to get stuck into a bit of packing. Having been away from home so much over the past two years especially, packing is one of those things which should be much more boring than it actually turns out to be. I think this is due to my healthy obsession with making lists; if there is a need for one, one shall be created!

As I sat down at my table today with my cuppa and my breakfast and tried to get stuck in on some serious planning this morning, I realised how little I knew about Florence itself, and in fact the language course I had enrolled on. It then occurred to me that I had next to no idea about how, once I'd flown in to Pisa airport, I would be able to make the hour long journey to the centre of Florence, where I would then be looking for my accommodation (which thankfully I had at least acquired and have now googlemapped)... on a sunday morning. I also realised I had no idea how I would be spending my time whilst studying at the language school, apart from the learning Italian bit of it of course... 

It struck me as odd how little I was concerned by all of this - knowing how under-prepared I was despite setting off in less than a week's time. As I took a deep breath I thought to myself - 'well at least I have a valid passport, a supportive family, caring friends and a pen and some paper' - and I began to write my lists.

The first list on my 'to list' list (told you I liked lists) was everything I needed to pack, which in itself induced another deep breath when I combined my needing to pack for unknown activities and the extremely important and extremely challenging you are only allowed to take 20kg of luggage.

The second on the list was my 'to do' list, which made my stomach turn as its points started to outnumber those of things I'd need to pack... though if there's anything better than drawing up a list, it's checking things off, so I gave myself some easy 'to do' ones too.

I saved the best til last. Next up tonight is opening my extremely touristy tourist guidebook, flicking through the hundreds of pages and making lists of everything I want to do and everything I want to see.

It seems that life is all about balance, and though at the moment the chores are far outweighing the fun stuff, I know that this means the next coming month will be amazing. I also know that actually being there will make the reality of it all sink in. So I'm not scared, not yet!

la mia estate

This whole Summer has been what seemed like a logistical nightmare... I wanted to fill it with every possible event and catch up with as many people as I could before I left the Country. This meant over 30 days worth of solid to-ing and fro-ing and sometimes a rest (though not really) filled with a lot of singing. I loved every second of it, even the seconds I spent crying in the car with my ever-supportive Dad as I psyched myself up for another few weeks away...

First up was a trip back to my favourite Geordie-filled City to sing for one last time at the Church that made my second year in Newcastle just that little bit more exciting, and to say as many goodbyes as possible and wish everyone else good luck as they all slowly start to move out to Montreal, Berlin, Utrecht, Perugia, Helsinki and Gothenburg.

Then, after a five hour train back from Newcastle, a quick two hour blitz-pack (eventually ending in everything imaginable being thrown into the suitcase until I could barely lift it), and a 20 hour coach trip, I was in Spain. Sunny Spain... until the forest fires started and the ash cloud became so great that the sun could hardly shine through it. I managed to snap this though, which was taken as the ash was still raining down right over this seaside town. The light was so beautiful.

We spent our time in Spain either rehearsing for Choir concerts or sat out by the pool or actually singing in beautiful locations in Catalonia when we weren't being evacuated from the town we stayed in just so we could escape the ash cloud!!

So after a much quicker drive back through Spain and France and a ferry back to England, my friends Gary , Hannah and I were dropped at Dover station at a respectable 6am after having seen the sun rise over the English Channel. There we waited for two-and-a-half hours for a train to London, Gary kindly be-friending my needs-superhuman-strength-to-lift-it suitcase, and off we went to a six hour rehearsal...

The highlight of my holidays for the past four years has to be the amazing opportunities presented to me by NYCGB. With no other group of people or organisation would I have been able to say I sang at the Royal Albert Hall twice this summer (going from Beethoven to Bob Chilcott in less than a week) and then at Salisbury Cathedral too. I feel truly privileged to not only have such an amazing time - despite some serious hard work - but also to have made some amazing friends too.

The last stop before home was up to Hexham - another six hour journey - to see my boyfriend play a recital at Hexham Abbey, which was truly spectacular. And they say men can't multi-task..! Perhaps I'm biased or perhaps it was the beautiful acoustic of such an old yet well-kept site, but I really was swept away by it. Especially his rendition of Flor Peeters' Concert Piece which, to me, showed off nearly every aspect of the Organ and its capabilities.

Oh and by the way, the B&B had a pet peacock named Charlie... life doesn't get much cooler than that!

All in all, having fit this into 30 days, I enjoyed the few days of rest which followed, and am slowly getting back into the swing of being busy, just in time for more adventures!

Ciao...

sono una cantante

My name is Victoria; I am twenty years old and I am a singer. At least, this is what I say whenever anyone asks what I do. Makes for a much more interesting conversation with a stranger on a train than a simple, awkward-silence-inducing "I'm at Uni...". And I do sing. In fact, slowly but surely, my mind is becoming set on the idea of finding some comfortable niche of performance to fit into when I finally grow up, graduate and need a real job.

I finished my second year studying Music at Newcastle University in June, and after an extremely busy and extremely musical Summer, I shall be off to live and learn Italian in the centre of Florence for the whole of September. And no, this isn't a Gap Yah two years too late. I've been accepted to study Canto at Il Conservatorio Arrigo Boito di Parma (in Parma - in case you were wondering) from November and I know NO Italian. Talk about jumping in at the deep end... Yet somehow I find myself two weeks away from leaving England and ending up in one of the most culturally rich cities in the world. And I'll be living right in the middle of it! And in November, aside from the fact I'll have nowhere to live, Parma - the City of Parmesan cheese and fabulous Opera - will be my new home until June next year.

I wanted to create a blog to share some of the stories and sights and situations I'll be privy to over the coming months. Beautiful moments and nightmarish ones alike.

Ciao....