Wednesday, January 26, 2011

I Love The Sydney Opera House

A few nights ago, I sat in bed with my husband and watched Oprah climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge-- and it was surreal... it felt like Oprah was here living with me.  Seeing her at our places we go all the time was strangely awesome.  And watching Oprah taste Vegemite for the first time, and wildly exclaim how much she loves it... well, that was just pure crazytime,  (note to Ameri-readers:  Vegemite is a fermented yeast extract that all Aussies spread on toast).  And being that it's a (correct me if I'm wrong) highly acquired taste, I think she was totally faking that Vegemite love.  Easy there Aussies, I'm not saying Vegemite isn't delicious-- my kids love it.

And all of this Oprah-watching, and all of this Vegemite-talk, reminds the hubs and I (once again, here it comes) that we have done the right thing in moving to Sydney.  This cross-cultural experience has changed us in so many ways, and it will always be a part, of who we and our children become. 

And so last week we went to see "Le Grand Cirque: Adrenaline" in the Concert Hall at The Opera House-- and I'll just say this...  we may have been due for a loser.  Ooo, that wasn't very nice.  Or,  possibly, I'm just not a "circus person".  The reality of the situation is, anything you see at the Opera House is awesome, because you get to go to The Opera House... duh.  But just being honest, somethings are significantly better than others.

These two guys were our favorite (that's "favourite" for the Aussies) from Le Grand Cirque.

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And even though Le Grand Cirque didn't blow us away, what did wow us, was the newly renovated restaurant area on the "lower concourse" of The Opera House.  Usually after a show we take the kids down for lunch or a snack at what used to be an underwhelming, airport-esque, food-court style dining area.

The newly redone food/ shopping area looked amazing, only adding to the already beautiful harbour and bridge background.


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Momentary, post-circus meltdown.

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This is The Opera House lower concourse food area today... they redid the casual restaurant area, added some really nice food options, and upgraded the furniture.

And just last night I got to take in all of that Sydney Opera House freshness with my girlfriend Erin.  Erin was one of the first Americans I met in Sydney, we met through our blogs and then in person, over a lunch which filled with deep conversation, and me picking coriander (that's Aussie for "cilantro") out of a burrito with my fingers (manners?), and we fell in friendlove... or at least I did.   Needless to say, Erin is a very special person to me here in Oprahland, I mean Sydney.  

Soooo, last night Erin and I met at the Opera House Bar for a little pre-show cocktail hour.

Opera House pizza and cocktails-- called the Dirty Carpet Disco, awesome.
Photo: Dirty Disco Carpet cocktail and artichoke prosciutto pizza from the Opera House Bar.

The crowd was dressed unusually islandy.  Hawaiian shirts and hats with parrots on them, perfectly normal wear growing up in South Florida-- but not so much at the Sydney Opera House.
You must be wondering, why were people dressed like this (see photo below)? 

Random lady posing for us.
Photo:  Random Woman.  (By the way, thank you nice lady for letting me photograph you).

and like this...


Photo:  Cute People at the Opera House wearing Parrotheads, but I did not ask to take a photo of these unsuspecting new friends.

And like this...

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Ooops, we actually were not dressed up, but we do look a little toasted-- not surprising since it felt like it was about 100 degress Celsius (that's about 212 degrees Fahrenheit) outside.

But THIS is the reason:

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I seriously cannot think of a place less "Jimmy Buffet Parrothead-ish" than Sydney Opera House--  it's so wrong, but yet so, so right.

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Jimmy Buffet in the Sydney Opera House Concert Hall.  Awesome.

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And here's just a little taste of the show... you may want to enlarge it to watch, I have no clue why it came out so small.


I guess you could say he really knows how to bring down the house, ha! no pun intended.

If you live near the Opera House you're destined to go to shows there, and if you go to shows there, you're going to love the The Sydney Opera House.  If you give a mouse a cookie, he's going to ask for some milk.

Bottom Line:  Sydney Opera House = Awesome.  Jimmy Buffet at Opera House = Even More Awesome.



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15 comments:

Marvin said...

Awesome pix! What a fun show that must have been! I never pegged you for a parrothead.

Geli said...

What a fun post, loved reading it all and great pics!!!

I clicked on your mouse link, does that mean it's ok to get stuff from Amazon to OZ or are the shipping prices crazy??

Natalie said...

:) Happy Australia Day!

Paul Steckler said...

I think Jimmy left some Key West-style humidity for us.

Laura said...

Marvin- I'm a total parrothead, even though incredibly this is my first concert... hmmm, so am I a real parrothead then??

Geli- Love your blog. And yes I order from Amazon all the time, using their prime membership, then I have it shipped to our house in Florida, from where my mom sends it to us. And yes the shipping costs are insane!

Natalie- Thanks! You too!

steck- Did you see major fog this morning? He's left Sydney in a fog---

suzinoz said...

Wow! What a post. I am so jealous that you got to see Jimmy Buffet--at the Opera House no less. That is really, truly awesome. As for giving a Mouse a Cookie...my kids love that book, If you give a Moose a Muffin, If you Take a Mouse to School, etc, etc, etc. All winners around here. Thanks for sharing your lovely photos. You and Erin look like you were having a great time. =)

The Taskers said...

OMG - Jimmy Buffet at the Opera House - too cool. I can't believe he's actually here, since NO ONE in Perth seems to know who he is when I bust out with "Margaritaville" (then again, they don't know what a good Margarita is either). Looks awesome! You really should have worn a parrot, though.

@ Geli - yes, you can order books from Amazon and shipping isn't too outrageous (plus the much smaller price tags on books plus shipping is still cheaper than anything in Oz) - however, check out bookdepository.co.uk - unbelievably cheap prices and FREE shipping anywhere in the world!

Paul Steckler said...

I did the Bondi to Bronte walk early on Australia Day -- dense humid fog all along the path. It was damper than Pampers out there!

Laura said...

Suzinoz- If You Give a Pig a Party... I had no idea she wrote that many of them! It was so awesome seeing Buffet there and I got the coolest concert shirt!

Taskers- I'm totally going to check out that website-- since moving here I find myself ordering from the UK too.

Steck- We spent the day in the pool and it was gorgeous-- but we could see fog around hanging over us.

Rosangela Silva said...

Long time I don't come here... Nice post and pics, as always! But tell me, was it the show Buffett fell down from the stage and had to be unconsciously rushed to the hospital? Btw, the kids are so so cute! Can't believe how tall they are!

Laura said...

Rosangela- This wasn't the concert where he fell-- omigod that must have been horrible, feel so bad for him. And yes they have gotten sooo big!

Paul Steckler said...

I thought "damper than Pampers" was a pretty good one-liner, and what thanks do I get? I thought I was back to my old form ...

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Laura said...

Hi Kelli! Thanks! I deleted the comment for privacy reasons... xoxox

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