il Giardino Romantico

這個連續假期我來到了中正紀念堂[我不管他改什麼名他在我心中永遠會是這個名]。來到這的目的很簡單：取票。

I came to CKS Memorial Hall with a goal to accomplish: to get my tickets.


一出捷運站就看到這聳動的廣告看板：
The colossal banner at the MRT station:



沒錯！就是整齣歌劇。從頭到尾，全副武裝的歌劇。
That's right!  A full-length opera, with full costume!

其實這次最令人興奮的就是這點。以前和Jason聽的歌劇都是aria演唱。我的頭一次全程歌劇，就即將要獻給Strauss兄了！

I'm extremely excited.  Because so far, I've only been to concerts where the singers would sing arias, but I'm about to give my first full-length opera experience to Mr. Richard Strauss!


最令人矚目的當然除了full costume之外，當然也是這次表演的陣容，來頭不小喔！他們是來自德國萊茵歌劇院的喔！

Other than the full costume aspect, the fact that the opera will be performed by Deutsche Oper am Rhein!






可惜這次我訂票又慢了！俗又大碗的位子都已經被搶購一空了！[原來台灣喜歡欣賞歌劇的人也不少呀！]不過難得有遠方來的表演團隊，怎麼可能選擇整個戲劇院兩旁的座位！？說聽演唱會還好，可是歌劇呀！不只是歌聲及音樂，還有表演及服裝我都想看。只好忍痛購買超過我預算的座位。一個人就應該更加疼惜自己，不是嗎～嘿嘿！

A real pity I hadn't booked the tickets earlier.  The decent seats at affordable prices have all been sold out.  But, there is simply no way I'd allow myself to miss this opportunity. I don't see myself sitting at the sides of the theater.  No, I'd probably hate myself.  So just a few hundred extra, I got a great seat.  I want to be able to enjoy, not just the music and the singing, but the performance and the spectacular visual effects of the props and costumes.  This is the best way to pamper myself.

拿到票之後，跑去音樂店閒晃。原本是想買張該歌劇的aria或什麼的回來先做功課。可惜我只看到整場歌劇的DVD。不過，讓我翻到了一個寶貝：Great Composers 101。

After I got my tickets, I was thinking of buying a CD of the arias from the opera as so I could do a little preparation before my big night.  However, I only spotted a full length opera DVD.  Fortunately, I found another treasure.  At a more than reasonable price!

接著帶著我的戰利品來到二樓大廳門口前的迴廊咖啡點了一杯香草拿鐵。我的連續假期，這才開始呢！

Then, I brought my new CD to the outdoor coffee shop outside the entrance of the concert hall, and ordered a vanilla latte.  My weekend, is just beginning.

光顧咖啡廳的基本配備：
1. 好書一本
2. 隨身帶著的iPod
3. 筆記本＋鉛筆盒

The essentials for coffee shop sittings:
1. A good book
2. iPod
3. A notebook, and my dearly beloved pencil box






這是戰利品的曲目：
The contents of my new CD:



其實最主要是為了認識Wagner而買的。這一張才$198！

I bought this mainly because of Wagner.  $198 seemed like a great deal for a Decca CD.






就這樣，翻翻書，寫寫字，聽聽音樂。就算旁邊有人在怎麼製造噪音，iPod 打開，耳機一帶上也就沒有任何人或任何事能夠破壞我的這個完美的下午囉！

And thus, a flip a few pages, scribble a few words, and listen to a few notes.  However noisy the environment becomes, I'll always have my iPod.  Therefore, nothing and/or no one can ever destroy my perfect afternoon!