Opera time!
I saw two operas at the San Diego Opera; one being the West Coast premier of a new opera, Moby Dick, by Jake Heggie and the libretto written by Gene Sheer. Having read the book years ago as a teenager, I had a general idea of what went on during the opera. It's obvious that the creators of the opera took some liberties (e.g. Ishmael was known as "Greenhorn" throughout most of the performance). Going to the opera was part of my Christmas present from my mom so we both went to see it and we loved every minute. It was a real treat to see this. For those living in Northern California, Moby Dick will be at the San Francisco Opera in the 2012-2013 season and I encourage you to go see it!
The second opera my mom and I saw was one of Gioachino Rossini's most famous operas (and most pop-culturally referenced), The Barber of Seville. I truly liked this one better than the previous opera that we saw. This opera was based on a play and it is considered the "prequel" to The Marriage of Figaro opera by Wolfgang A. Mozart, which is also based on a play (I had seen Marriage of Figaro five years earlier). Barber of Seville is notorious for the Largo al Factotum aria sung by Figaro, a barber and jack-of-all-trades, including veterinarian, beautician, and matchmaker. Here's a clip of the aria and some might recognize the music:
Yes, it's that piece with "Figaro, Figaro, Figaro" in it. In Largo al Factotum, Figaro sings about how important his job is (Largo al Factotum translates to "make way for the factotum" or "make way for the servant"). This piece is generally a tough one for baritones to sing. The opera itself is about a barber named Figaro in 17th century Seville, Spain. He plays Cupid for Count Almaviva who is smitten with the lovely Rosina who is held captive by her aging guardian, Don Bartolo, who is intent on marrying her solely for her dowry. Hilarity and mistaken identity ensue. If your local opera house is presenting this, I highly encourage you to see it; it's funny and family friendly (well, somewhat).
Next season, Mom and I will go see The Daughter of the Regiment by Gaetano Donizetti, Samson and Delilah by Camille Sant-Saens, Murder in the Cathedral by Ildebrando Pizzetti, and possibly Aida by Giuseppe Verdi (I had already seen a production of it in 2008 but this one has set designs by Zandra Rhodes).
Video games!
I got a Wii a year and a half ago and still didn't do much with it until I finally bought Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. I'm not too much of a gamer but I do like playing video games and two of my favorites are the game series(s): Call of Duty and Sid Meier's Civilization.
I have played a game or two from the Legend of Zelda series, which I have a basic understanding (the game series is now 26 years old), but I've pretty much immersed myself into Twilight Princess. It's been out on the market for six years now but I didn't get around to buying it because I didn't have a Wii six years ago. It's a fantastic game with awesome graphics and a great storyline. It's a little dark for the kiddos but it's a great boredom killer on a rainy day or a sick day or a rainy-sick day. Here's the trailer:
Disneyland!
Yep, I went to the "Happiest Place On Earth" with my mom and a friend of mine who lived nearby (I live in the San Diego, CA area, which is approximately 90 minutes south of Anaheim, where Disneyland is). It was the first time my mom and I ever rode Amtrak (Mom refuses to drive the 90 minutes for fear of getting lost). The trip was supposed to take 2 hours but took almost 3 hours for some apparently weird reason (Mom and I were frustrated about the delay so I sent an email to Amtrak, which probably won't be answered for another several weeks according to a "response" email I got). So we were late getting to the park as was my friend (parking and waiting in line).
We went on almost every ride we could get our hands on. The Matterhorn was closed for repairs, the Tiki Room show wasn't showing and the Monorail was also not working but we went on Splash Mountain twice, rode the Thunder Mountain railroad, enjoyed classic rides such as the Pirates of the Caribbean and the Haunted Mansion, and "drove" cars in Autopia. Since that was a day trip, Mom and I decided to make it a vacation the next time around and stay for a few days to go see Disney's California Adventure.
That's all I've got for today. Till then, stay happy everyone!
Sounds like you've been enjoying a busy but fun life, Shannon. =)
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