MY ITALIAN OPERA TRIP - October 2005

OCTOBER 20, 2005
Flew out of JFK to Leonardo da Vinci (Fiumicino) airport in Rome to start my Italian Opera Trip which I arranged myself, thanks to the different websites of the opera houses where I will be attending performances of four operas.

OCTOBER 21, 2005
First stop was Rome. Took the train to the city's main railway station, Stazione Termini, walked to the opera house, found out the performance that night was cancelled due to a strike and was told to come back the next day and they'll have a ticket for me. I checked in at Hotel Lirico which is almost next door to the opera house. That night I went to see some sights: walked to the Fontana di Trevi and to the Spanish Steps; had dinner and then went to a church concert after which I went to a bar near the Colosseo.

OCTOBER 22, 2005
Woke up early, had breakfast at the hotel then looked for another hotel since I do not have a reservation for the second night, found a room at Hotel Atlantico nearby. Took the bus to St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, found out the Sistine Chapel was closed that day. Took the bus back to Rome and got off near Piazza Navona, had lunch at Ristorante Ditirambo which was excellent, thanks to a recommendation by a friend. Walked to the Pantheon which was originally a "temple of the gods" but is now a Christian Church since the 7th century. From there I went to nearby Piazza Navona and looked at the three fountains, the middle one is the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi by Bernini. The lively piazza was full of tourist and street vendors and lined up with souvenir shops and so I did some shopping.












Went back to the hotel and got ready for Wagner's Das Rheingold at the Teatro dell'Opera which turned out to have great singers and therefore a very nice performance. After the opera I had some aperitivos nearby and ate some Italian tapas and dessert. Back in the hotel to change for more casual outfit and on to the bars.

OCTOBER 23, 2005
Next morning I took the train to Florence, the capital city of Tuscany, and checked in at the very chic Anglo American Hotel. I had a very nice room and after a quick rest, I headed to the center of town.





walked along the Arno, window-shopped along the way and at the shops on the Ponte Vecchio.





The opera was Rossini's Tancredi at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. It was a good reading of Rossini's early work that established his international fame. It has the famous aria "Di tanti palpiti" which is a magnificent example of "bel canto."




After the opera I once again went to town and sat at one of the outdoor cafes in Firenze's Piazza della Signoria, sipping Campari e soda till the wee hours.


OCTOBER 24, 2005
Had a leisurely bath at my luxurious bathroom before I went down for a sumptuous breakfast at the hotel's restaurant. Took a stroll along the Arno, then went back to the hotel to pack. Hopped on a train to take me to my next city, Genoa, Christopher Columbus' hometown, a seaport in the region of Liguria. I stayed at a small hotel pensione, had dinner at a very nice seafood restaurant, strolled the center of town.

OCTOBER 25, 2005
I spent the morning doing touristy things in Genoa and spent a lot of time at the Acquario di Genova in the Porto Antico area of the city. The aquarium is quite impressive and I consider it one of the best in the world. From there I had another nice seafood lunch in the port area and then went shopping for gifts and souvenir.

The performance of Mozart's Don Giovanni at the Teatro Carlo Felice was very entertaining and the singers were in top voice. The opera house is in the Piazza De Ferrari, right next to the statue of Garibaldi on horseback. It opened on April 7, 1828 with Vincenzo Bellini's Bianca e Fernando.

OCTOBER 26, 2007
This morning after a quick breakfast, I took the train to Torino, a major industrial city and the capital of the Piedmont region. The city which is on the west bank of the Po river is being prepared for the 20th Olympic Winter Games in February 2006.

After checking in at the Albergo Bologna, I proceeded to walk towards the Teatro Regio which is in the Piazza Castelo to pick up my ticket for tonight's performance. On the way back to the hotel I passed by several restaurants and cafes serving tapas so I stopped at one and had a couple of campari e soda and some of the Italian hors d'oeuvres.

The performance of Guiseppe Verdi's Aida at the Teatro Regio was spectacular, a magnificent finale to my Italian Opera trip. The opera was commissioned by Ismail Pasha, Khedive of Egypt, and had its premier in December 1871 at the Khedivial Opera House (Royal Opera House) in Cairo.

OCTOBER 27, 2007
Spent the day walking around the city, shopping at the Galleria Mazzini, eating gelato, before picking up my luggage from the hotel to go to the train station for the overnight train to Rome. I was supposed to pick up my connecting train in Bologna but it was late and it was so crowded when it finally came that even the aisles were eventually filled. I luckily had a window seat.

OCTOBER 28, 2007
When we finally arrived in Rome I had to make a mad dash to another train to go to the Fiumicino airport. I barely made my flight to Paris where I also barely made my connecting flight to Amsterdam where I planned on spending the weekend. As expected my luggage didn't make it to Amsterdam so I waited at the airport for a few hours to see if my luggage would arrive on the next flights from Paris. No such luck so I took the train to the city and walked to a B&B that I stayed at the last time I was in Amsterdam but they were fully booked. I tried several hotels and there wasn't a room to be had. I went to a few bars and had a few drinks and I found out there was a huge convention in the city. I decided to spend the night at an all night spa and in the morning I went back to the airport where I found my luggage and decided to change my flight back to New York that day.

To check my other travel blogs, please click on any trip listed on the uppermost right hand box above. Thank you for viewing my travel blog.