Friday was opera night at die Deutsche Sommerschule! We all dressed up and climbed into two vans to drive to Santa Fe. I wore a dress (thanks Cousett!) and heels, which I never do, so that was special. It was also extremely uncomfortable and I could barely walk–I felt like Tony Curtis in Some Like it Hot, except I think he could walk in heels better. We arrived early so we stood around and talked, in German of course. It was funny to watch all the people at the opera: mostly older, while we were the youngest group, and they paid very little attention to us. I think it was also because we weren’t speaking English. People mistake us for Germans all the time, because they don’t listen for fluency if they don’t speak the language. They only hear the sound of it. In any case, it made a little accident all the more interesting. I tripped while I was in line for coffee and accidentally hit my friend, who spilled white wine. Most of it landed on the ground, while a few drops landed on the jacket of the man in front of me. He was not happy! I managed to apologize in English (not my first reaction anymore) but it didn’t seem to help much. I think I’ll wear Converse from now on.
As for the opera, it was wonderful! We saw Tosca, and I hesitate to criticize the story line because it is so classic, but we all knew what would happen. Most importantly, it was beautiful. The Santa Fe opera is an open stage, with the mountains behind it and a breeze that flows all the way to the last row of the audience. The opera singers were all fantastic, as were the costumes and sets. They also had some sort of electronic screen on the back of every seat that had English captions, so I could follow what was going on pretty well. I think it was good for my first opera! On the way back, the guys in the back of the van played Simon and Garfunkel, the Beach Boys, and other classic rock, singing all the way home. One of the highlights of the Summerschule for sure!
Yesterday was the Frühschoppen, or a very fancy brunch with the school of music. They set up tables outside the sommerschule and we all dressed up again. There were so many guests, from UNM and older days of the Sommerschule. (It’s been running for 37 years now!) I got to meet some people I’d only heard about and the food was wonderful. We should have breakfast outside every day! Also, quite a few of us wore purple so we took a picture together. Seems to be a popular color!
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I went on a small hike with my friends last night–we took the ski lift up the mountain and hiked down. I think the ski lift was fun but I spent quite a bit of time with my eyes closed. Probably not the best thing for someone with a paralyzing fear of heights to be doing. But I made it! It’s good to get some fresh air, and to go hiking with friends in what is possibly the most beautiful area I have ever been to. I am going to miss these people a lot in a few weeks.