The Opera House

In front of the Bridge
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Katie:

Whenever Sham and I said that we were going to Australia, there were several guidelines I made for myself. There were several things that I HAD to do, before I got on the plane to go back home. One of those was going to the Sydney Opera House and seeing something inside.

I knew that there was no doubt, I had to go

The first time I saw the Opera House – the day we arrived – it was even bigger and more beautiful than I thought it would be. It just perfectly sits beside the water, looking out over all of the boats. I knew that there was no doubt, I had to go. Sham and I looked up the schedule of the shows at the Opera House and decided to go see an opera and a ballet. The ballet we do not see until the weekend before we leave, but the Opera we saw one of the first weekends after spring break.

In front of the Opera House
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The opera was called “La Bohem”. It was an opera that was sung in Italian, but took place in France. That bothered Sham because he said that it should just be in French then, so that he could understand. The story was about two young lovers, trying to make it in Paris at the beginning of the 1900s. However, nothing can have a happy ending. Even though they loved each other very much, they do not stay together because of little arguments. Yet, they are reunited in the end, when the heroin, weakened by TB, dies in the hero’s arms. Yep, it was one that even though I did not know one word they were saying, I still cried.

Picture of the stage, I took before I was yelled at because I had a camera
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The Opera House sits in a part of Sydney Harbor called “Circular Quay” (pronounced like Key). At this spot there are several docks were ferries and boat tours come in and out. On the weekends there is normally a large Cruise-liner along the side. Hundreds of people are walking around, getting on/off boats, eating, visiting, and having a good time. Sham and I had decided to see the early show of “La Bohem” so that we could look around (this was our first of many times going down to Circular Quay and we wanted to get to know the area). It was wonderful. We had lunch at one of the restaurants that looked out over the harbor. As we ate we watched the water taxis drive to and fro with tourists, leaning out of the boat trying to get a better picture of the bridge.

We headed over towards the Opera House. It was the first time I had ever seen it so closely. I could not believe it. It was even bigger than I had thought. We decided to just walk around and take some pictures before we headed in. We stopped and read some of the signs about the architecture and design. We found some cool facts. If you look at the Opera House, from the harbor, there are two sets of “shells”, each with three “shells”. When the architects were designing the Opera House they wanted it to look like sea shells, but were having issues with how to make them look. However, the lead designer was eating an orange on day and was inspired by the peal. He found that you can make different sized curves, all from the same radius. That is how they build the shells. Each of the two sets comes from its own circle. The idea is pretty ingenious.

We finally headed inside to see “La Bohem”. There are several different stages and “houses” inside. The one we went to was one of the smaller ones, but still lovely. It was wonderful to watch and I was excited.

Once we left, I knew that this had been another great experience that I would mark off my list.