Squeeze the Juice!: The Opera

As I lie here sick in bed on a Saturday morning I'm cursing my cold, but am determined to enjoy myself, regardless. I've been sick for just over three days now and have been able to get out and do things, but this morning I feel terrible. Luckily, I have nothing planned until 12 when I'll be going out to lunch to finish making plans for the 10-day break coming up. (I'll be going to Ireland and England! Eek!)

So, to pick up where I left off last time, I had just finished the bus tour of the city. As an American, it feels almost surreal to be constantly surrounded by such ornate architecture. It really is a constant barrage of beauty. If I were to take a picture of every ornate building, I'd have to tackle one street at a time, and I wouldn't be done with half the city by the time I had to leave in the spring!
Now, what you've all been waiting for - the answers to the Name That Viennese Monument Quiz! (And if you saw the answers on Facebook already, it doesn't count!)

1. Austrian Parlament Building
2. The Rathaus
3. Vienna Medical School (I believe this is part of it, but I may be mistaken. Whoops! I'll make this one the extra credit question.)
4. The Votivkirche
5. Franz von Assissi
6. Prater Park Ferris Wheel
7. Hundertwasser
8. Statue of the Prince of Schwarzenberg
9. The Upper Belvedere Palace

The evening after I went on the bus tour was also my first chance to go to the Staatsoper (or State Opera). I had packed a dress with me on the tour as we would have to grab a quick dinner and go immediately to start standing in line for the standing room tickets. The opera playing that night was The Barber of Seville, and though I was semi-familiar with the plot, it was not one I had studied in class before. We got to the opera at 4:30 to begin our 3-hour wait for some of the best seats in the house, and we were not disappointed.
To explain how the system works, if you want decent standing room tickets you must plan your day accordingly. You will be spending around 6 hours at the opera. Those well-practiced in this art of waiting bring stools to sit on while they wait in line. Those of us who are less experienced sit on the floor and try not to get our dresses too dirty. (That would be me.) To keep yourself occupied, you bring something to do while you wait, like sudoku, a good book, or a roommate to talk to. You'll be sitting on the floor for a good hour or so, and then when the first waiting room fills up, you'll move the line into another room to sit on the floor and wait for another hour. When the people in front of you begin standing up, you know it's time to start mentally preparing yourself for the battle ahead. Once you move through the line and get your ticket (a standing room ticket costs either 3 or 4 Euro, depending on whether you want to be in the balcony or on the main floor) you move as quickly as you can to go stand in another line outside of your standing area. There will be uniformed people standing there and officiating the lines to make sure no one cuts ahead of anyone else. Then, when there's an hour left before the performance, they let the lines loose into the standing room "seating." This means pandemonium. You run (as best you can in heels, or if you're smart, flats) down the steps as far forward as you can and file sideways in between the bars marking off the standing area rows. I was lucky enough to land myself a second row spot! If you want to reserve your standing room area, you must mark it with a personal item - preferably a scarf tied around the bar behind which you will be standing. Then you are free to go roam about the opera house for the last 45 minutes before the show begins, and when you come back, your spot will still be reserved for you.
Standing through the opera was not as difficult as I thought it would be. Thankfully, there was a bar to lean on, and a translation pad that flipped up so I knew what was going on, but I couldn't decide where I wanted to look most! The conductor was fabulous, the actors were incredible, and it was such a rewarding experience, I couldn't believe I got away with seeing an opera for 4 Euro! So - I went to the matinee the next day to see Otello. Standing room for 4 Euro again! And it was just as rewarding as the first night, if not more so because I had studied the opera in Music History and knew all the musical themes and plot details.
I can tell you now that the opera is a place I will be frequenting during my stay in Vienna! To finish this post, here are some pictures that I got when I went to see Otello.