It has been a full month since my last post, and there's a great reason - I moved to Berlin! Since beginning this journey, I knew Berlin would be my home base. The time I spent in Rome was strictly for voice lessons, which was necessary to building a strong foundation of the new technique.
I moved to Berlin on 1 February and have spend the last 12 days setting up my apartment and preparing for my residency permit. The residency permit appointment is a huge deal because - you guessed - it determines whether you're actually able to STAY in Berlin, once you get here. There are a ton of documents to procure, not to mention hiring a translator (he's pictured in the thumbnail), getting an appointment to begin with (trust me, this is no small feat), and convincing at least two German businesses to write letters on your behalf.
It was very hard to concentrate on much more than the permit, since I've basically risked everything to be here and I could, potentially, be asked to leave. Long story not-so-short, I've been approved! Despite a pretty big flaw in my application, the clerk gave me a two-year permit to work as an artist in Germany. This means that I have 24 months to prove that I can live here without being a burden on the government. I have 730 days to prove that I made the right decision in leaving my fundraising career to follow my dreams.
I can do it. I look forward to keeping you in the loop while I do :)
P.S. I've already started - I was offered an opportunity to sing in a quartet for a series of concerts in Spain!!!
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