The Detour Diary

While in Sydney, we decided to go to the Opera House. Because you can’t exactly come to Sydney and NOT go to the Opera House, right? I certainly couldn’t seem to pass by on foot or ferry without taking at least ten pictures, so we wanted to check it out up close and personally.

They had tickets available for an outdoor opera running that was all about the original design and construction of the opera house. Now let me just throw it out there that we are not normally “opera types”. In normal life, we’re more Sunday football, SNL or Will Ferrell movie types if I’m being honest (don’t judge). However, a huge part of this trip is about experiencing new things, so we decided to give it a shot.

The evening of the event we even got to walk the red carpet. And let me tell you, nothing says I’m dressed and ready for the opera like your best ath-leisure wear and sneaks! Okay, so to be fair, one of the challenges with around-the-world travel is that you don’t always have the most appropriate clothes for every occasion. I had also been walking all day, but now I’m just making excuses…I digress.

What exactly is an outdoor opera, you ask? Or maybe you don’t ask because you already know, but I’m going to tell you because it’s not as straightforward as it sounds. The opera itself is performed outside on the opera steps, but the orchestra performs inside. This means the audience is wearing headphones to hear the music as they sit outside.

The concept was really quite cool and I’ll be honest, for a 7-year-old, Jack hung in there MUCH longer than I expected him to! I think it was around 10:15 when we finally decided to bail because he was actually saying he was tired (which never happens). I don’t think this makes us “opera folks” quite yet, but hey, if you’re ever going to see one, this is the place!

Your bonus content for the day will be a behind the scenes look at what happens when you try to get ONE good picture of a crazy 7-year-old boy!