The Vienna State Opera House - fancy dresses provided

Did you ever watch Covert Affairs on USA? It was one of our favorite series, and one of our favorite episodes was shot in Vienna at the Vienna Opera House. I remember the characters walking down the main opera stairs, and thinking how neat it would be to visit in person. A few years ago, we got the chance! It's actually called the Vienna State Opera. Unfortunately, there were no performances when we went, but as in other cities, you are able to tour the house, and we were super excited to do so!

Above is a neat shot as night time was falling. They have tours almost every day that last about 40 minutes where you'll hear the building's history, about the architecture, and of course, opera everything! The day we went it was blue skies and sunshine. Beautiful!

The first thing you see, of course, is the grand stair case. On either side are beautiful wall sculptures; one for opera, the other for ballet.

 

There were so many "outer" rooms - ballrooms, waiting areas, the Emperor's room, etc... We learned that about 80% of the the opera house was destroyed during WWII.

 

 

They did a great job rebuilding from the damage back to the original conditions, but it was very neat seeing the drastic change for those rooms designed and decorated with a 1950's feel. 

 

The auditorium was round with many boxes -- they also sell standing-room-only tickets the day of the performance for only 3 euros! That actually is a State mandate so that ALL Austrian people can have the opportunity to see opera and ballet. Isn't that wonderful!?!

We also got to take a peek backstage - it's an enormous amount of behind the scenes work. Our tour guide told us all about the many set changes and sub-stages used to make things go quicker during the show.  

 

The final thing he told us about was the annual Vienna Ball where the entire Opera haus is transformed to a ballroom. Can you imagine? Click on this link to see some of the pictures. That would be a #bucketlist item for sure. To participate in the opening ceremony, you have to be able to:

• dance the Viennese Waltz
• only do it once in your life
• be between 18-24 years old

Since we've missed the opening ceremony cutoff, we'll just have to watch it. They said a box rents for about 20,000 euros.  ;-)

We loved the tour and enjoyed learning about the history and architecture of the building. One day, if we are ever lucky enough to go back, maybe we'll just get to see a performance!  We'll make sure and wear our fancy dresses.  :-)

Auf Wiedersehen.

A night at the Verona Opera - Arena di Verona

When we went to Italy a few years back, I researched places and events near our main cities to see if anything peaked our interest. I found out that in fair Verona (yes, of Romeo and Juliet!) the Verona Arena is internationally known for it's large-scale opera performances. We found out there were performances while we were over there, so routed our trip to Verona for a few nights!

The arena is something else. We have never been to Rome (one day), so this was our first Roman arena in person. It is so big and is really the center of the town. It was built in 30 AD. Yes, THIRTY. It's located in the Piazza Bra and is surrounded by restaurants and shops. Such a neat city.

If I didn't say it -- this is also our first opera! CARMEN!! We didn't know what to expect, but the doors opened at 7:30 PM, so we finished our daily gelato and headed to the arena. It is made entirely of marble and stone, and we headed through the tunnel (feeling a little like we were about to enter the movie Gladiator!). Our seats were in the "general admission" area which meant they were ON the marble steps. (We'll come back to this fact later in the four hour opera.) The stage was huge -- it stretched from one side of the arena to the other. The show didn't start until 9:00 PM, so we had plenty of time to people watch and watch the sun starting to set behind the arena walls.

We even saw a bride and groom heading to the show! It is the place to be! 

Finally the show is about to begin. The orchestra comes in, and they line the stage with beautiful colored curtains!

The lady in the picture above came out to introduce each act. She would ring her gong. She was fabulous. The production was in French, and we bought a book that had it translated in many different languages. In the first act, the orchestra did a prelude/overture, then they rolled back the curtains for Act II. The sheer number of people involved in the production was mind boggling. They were hundreds on stage at a time -- the choreography had to be timed perfectly!

 

OK...so, neither of us realized how LONG this opera was. As a reminder, we are seating on concrete. Roman concrete. Each act was about one hour long, and there were FOUR acts. Also as a reminder, it started at 9:00. We were in it for the long haul. :-)  With that said -- the music was simply beautiful and breath-taking. We were surprised at how many songs we recognized. 

 ACT 3

A little stand-up stretch between the final acts!

ACT 4

 

BRAVO - BRAVO!

As we were leaving the arena, many people were headed to the cafes in the piazza for dinner and drinks (it's after 1:00 AM, now mind you!). We had to catch a train the next morning, so said good-bye to the square and all it's nighttime magic. It truly was an amazing once-in-a-lifetime experience. The venue, the atmosphere, the music...a night of memories. Next time, we might just opt for a cushion to sit on.  ;-) 

 

XO,

Notre Dame, the Opera and a CHEESEburger

Today we had planned a day of leisure to take a few tours on our own. Our first taxi driver told us that everything we needed to see was "above ground", and the easiest way to see it all was to walk. We took his advice and walked EVERYwhere! For energy and to fuel our day, we started with a croissant and coffee. (OK, we may have started everyday with this!)

We lucked out and it was a picture perfect day. Our first stop was Notre Dame. Touring the cathedral is free, but they do take donations/offerings. One of the neatest part of the architecture is the many gargoyles around the cathedral known to ward off evil spirits. You can see them from every side. They offer free guided tours of the inside in various languages throughout the week. Just look on their website for the language/time. There is so much history inside the cathedral. The stained glass windows are so beautiful. The most famous are the Rose Windows - so much detail and beauty. There are also famous statues throughout, our favorite being Miss Joan of Arc! Definitely a must-see in the city!

 

 

We walked from Notre Dame (and walked and walked) to the Opera House. Everywhere you walk in Paris you can find some historic monument or famous "square".  You could just spend the entire day strolling in the various neighborhoods and never tire of seeing something new. It was so beautiful.

We finally made it to the Paris Opera House. This was probably the most unexpected yet top tour we did! On a previous tour, someone had mentioned that the inside was even more beautiful than the outside. As you can see below, the outside is magnificent itself. (You can also see the crazy drivers. They just drive where there is space!)

We bought our tickets for our audio tour and took off. I mean. COME ON, GUYS. Look at this. Can't you just imagine people being dolled up and going to a performance in their ballgowns and tuxes!? It would be the perfect place to people watch - that's for sure! 

We were not supposed to take pictures "inside" the actual performance hall, but we had to take a quick pic to show you the detail. And look at the ceiling. Work. Of. Art.

The halls and spaces were just over the top. You could also go outside to the balcony that stretches over the front of the building. It looks out over the streets of Paris.

I'm sure you all have heard of the Phantom of the Opera. Did you know that this is HIS opera house?

Here is a neat article that talks about the myth vs reality. He has his own box at the opera, Box Number 5. They leave it empty at every performance just for him. I love that.

We highly recommend taking a tour if you are able. If it is hot, cool, rainy, etc...it's the perfect place to spend a few hours. We would love to see a performance here. Maybe one day!

Our croissant from earlier had long gone! We looked for somewhere to eat right around the Opera and found Mon Paris!  They had seating either inside or outside. The service was very friendly, and there were a lot people there. It was a mix of locals, businessmen, and tourists. The prices seemed a little high, but probably pretty "normal" for that area of the city. We decided to split a salad and a burger. The salad was so fresh and flavorful. 

Then came the burger. Would you like a side of burger with that cheese!?!? :-) YUM. I promise there is a burger under that cheese and bacon. And that unassuming side of "frites" behind the plate. The French really know how to prepare a potato! It was the perfect late lunch.

Time to keep going and walk off that lunch. Happy and full we are headed to the Eiffel Tower! To not overload you with pictures, we are going to dedicate the entire next post to the tower herself. She's worth it! Until next time!

XO,