Metropolitan and Not-so-Metropolitan Operas

The Metropolitan Opera was not the first opera house in New York. There was a smaller, more exclusive one, the Academy of Music, but it catered exclusively to the old-money families and excluded the new rich, such as the Vanderbilts, the Roosevelts, and the Morgans. There were two-short-lived opera houses before the Academy of Music too, the Italian Opera House and the Astor House. When the Metropolitan Opera House opened at 1411 Broadway in 1883, it quickly became the opera house, and the new rich were able to see and be seen.  Here is the Met in a pre-1907 view:

It nearly burned down in 1892, but was rebuilt and reopened in 1893. The Met remained at its original location until the opera company moved to Lincoln Center in 1966. The building was demolished in 1967. I have never been to the Met, but I have been to a few of the live in HD performances at a local movie theater.  I'm sure it doesn't compare to being there in person, but I recommend it anyway.

So, while New York City was building itself an opera house in 1883, what was happening up in the  Amazon rainforest? It turns out that they were finalizing plans to build an opera house there too. While they started construction at about the same time, the process in Manaus, Brazil was a lot slower. Building materials, including marble for the stairs, columns and statues, were imported from Europe. The first performance, Ponchielli's La Giaconde, took place in 1897. No expense was spared though, resulting in a lavish building with electric lights, all funded by riches from the rubber industry. My friend Karin visited the place and sent me this picture of the Teatro Amazones.

Karin also mentions that: The pavement in the plaza in front of the Teatro is by Roberto Burle Marx, a famous landscape architect.  It represents the ‘meeting of the waters’ where the black Rio Negro and the latte-colored Rio Solimoes meet, just outside of Manaus.

Here is a gallery of photos from the Teatro Amazones.

And here's the back of the first card.

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Do you think people park their cars in the middle of the street along the Copacabana in Rio today? No way! There are now three lanes in each direction, but they have also preserved and upgraded the center median (I love center medians!) Not surprisingly, there are also a lot more buildings now.

The Church of Our Lady of the Rock was built in 1635 and is famous for the 382 steps of the main staircase. Never mind the church or the stairs; there's something very appealing about men wearing white suits with hats.

Streetcar Sunday -Rio de Janeiro

The contrast of this postcard is not very good, but with any luck you can make out the dark streetcar in the foreground and the other one on top of the Los Arcos De Lapa aquaduct.  And guess what? The Santa Teresa streetcar is still operational, so if you're going to Rio for the Olympics or for some other reason, this is a great opportunity to ride it yourself.  It's the oldest remaining tram in South America, and it's been running continuously since its inception. What a great opportunity! Who cares about the Olympics? When your spouse is watching the games, you can go ride the streetcar.  I will be very envious. It may not be fast or a smooth ride, but it's cheap, the equivalent of about $0.35. If you go, please send me some pictures.

The City of Rio started horse-drawn streetcar service in 1859. In the following years, they went back and forth between horse-drawn and steam-powered streetcars, and even tried a battery-powered streetcar for a very short period of time. In 1892, they began converting from horse-drawn to electric streetcars. By 1897, they had created the first fully electric streetcar system in South America. Although the routes have been cut back, much of the rolling stock is original, generally 100 years old, with no doors and wooden cross benches. It makes for an exciting ride, and apparently you do have to watch for pickpockets.