a morning at the opera: touring the sydney opera house

When we planned our days in Sydney, there was no question we’d tour the Sydney Opera House, practically upon arrival. I’m a real sucker for iconic buildings and monuments. I tear up pretty much every time I see the Eiffel Tower. The Flatiron was one of my favorite things about my old work neighborhood.

I we ever drive across America, I’ll def want to stop for every giant ball of yarn there is.

So how was I going to miss the ins and outs of this beaut?

We met our guide, Bruce, for the 9:30 AM tour. We stood at the base of the famous Opera House, and stared up at the iconic building that Jørn Utzon designed in 1955. His design was the result of a worldwide competition to find a suitable architect for the project.

Usually, the historical aspect of most tours isn’t my main squeeze. In this case, Bruce’s telling of Utzon’s tragic relationship with the Sydney Opera House was anything but dry. It completely captivated me.

The design itself was polarizing from the beginning. Soon, contractors realized that Utzon’s drawings were so lacking in detail that the construction team had to kind of… wing it. When building began in 1959, most were still unsure whether or not the Opera House could even be built as planned. Obviously, they moved forward, estimating construction would take three years and a seven million dollar budget.

You can guess how that went.

16 years and 102 million dollars later, the opera house was finished. Over these 16 years, payments ceased to Utzon due to major complications. This eventually forced him to resign from the project completely.

In 1973, Queen Elizabeth II finally opened the Opera House, but Utzon never returned to see his building fully erected. The Sydney Opera House is the only site to receive the UNESCO World Heritage Site Award during the lifetime of the creator, and as of 1999–in an attempt for reconciliation–Joran Utzon was invited to join the board. Though he accepted, Jørn Utzon’s health problems ensured that he was never able to see the opera house before his death in 2008.

Utzon’s story was just one of many shared by Bruce during our tour, and I can promise that all weren’t nearly as tragic–in fact, most were completely charming, but impossible to recreate without Bruce himself. The tour gave me a new appreciation for the building each time we passed the harbor, and again as we sipped cocktails from the top floor of the Shangri-La Hotel:

The Sydney Opera House Tour was a perfect start to our time in Australia, and the best way to spend our first morning in Sydney.

Stay tuned for more from Oz!

xo,

the romantic

– Thanks to the Sydney Opera House for inviting us to join the tour. As always, all opinions are my own!