L & L Australian Adventures: Jimmy Buffett Concert at the Opera House Jan. 24

You might remember several weeks ago when I informed you all that we found out Jimmy was coming to Sydney and then we were able to get 4 tickets. That special day finally came last night! (actually it was January 24th but I finally got to post this) After several days of traveling I was busy trying to get caught up around here and Luke was doing the same at work, though I know he was preoccupied with his excitement.

This Buffett concert would be very different for many reasons; the Opera House concert hall only holds about 2000 people, this was an indoor concert, Aussie’s don’t really tailgate for games, concerts, etc., and I was Luke’s “group.” In the many, many years Luke has attended Buffett concerts, he has gone alone or always with a big group of friends so I was hoping he would have just as much fun with all of these changes. He did!! J Our friends Kyra and Sam came with us. It was Sam’s birthday so that gave us another reason to celebrate!

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Luke’s love of Jimmy Buffett and his sincerity in being a Parrothead, please see the pictures below! I found this parrot costume at a Halloween store 5 or 6 years ago. It has been worn on a plane, in a taxi, in a golf cart, in a van, and numerous other vehicles, and has now attended its 6^thor 7^th Jimmy Buffett concert. This costume not only brings joy to Luke, but also fellow Parrotheads who insist on having their picture taken with him.

We had planned on taking the ferry over but we walked up to a little store to buy a couple of beach balls, leis, and glow stick bracelets first. So we ended up just taking a taxi down to Circular Quay. I have to say that some people didn’t even seem to notice as we walked around while others looked a little confused. Very few Australians seem to know who Jimmy Buffett is but the ones who do are just as big of fans as we have in the US.

The first best part was when we got to Circular Quay, a highly touristy area that you have to walk through to get to the Opera House. Luke stopped to have his picture taken with the 2 street performers playing the didgeridoo. Then as we walked along I heard a child shout out, “Look! A PENGUIN!!” Really???? I mean, they HAVE parrots in Australia and you called him a penguin?? Anyway, another child asked Luke for a balloon. Some touristy people even just took his picture and they probably had no idea why. Good stuff!

Once we got to the Opera Bar (where we were for New Year’s Eve), we started seeing other excited Buffett fans. Then the pictures immediately began! If you’ve been to one of these concerts with Luke you know what I mean. It is so funny how many people get their picture taken with him but many just want his picture by himself. I really could have made thousands of dollars last night if I would have charged for photos! I like to become the photographer and encourage them to get into the picture, too. A man with a professional looking video camera came over to film Luke and then had us stand up to be with him. The guy had Sam say something since he was the only Australian with us. If you make it to the show in April, watch the video if he has one rolling because we might be in it!

We made friends with several new people within minutes of arriving and we saw them throughout the evening and at the concert. A guy with an Oklahoma State University shirt was wandering around so we invited him to hang out with us. We thought our good OSU friends would approve of that decision! We met a man who was there with his whole family. His 79 year old father came over and showed us his t shirt from the 1988 concert when Buffett was last there. He also showed us an article from then and was very excited to be there again. They said they had 3 ½ generations of Parrotheads with them…the man’s daughter is 6 months pregnant and she had a shirt that said, “Future Parrothead inside!” With the limited amount of people in the Opera House, we probably talked to or saw the majority of them ahead of time. It was a memorable part of the evening! Buffett hasn’t performed here for over 20 years and many of these people either saw him then or have made the trips over to the US to catch a show.

Once we all went inside, more people spotted Luke and requested pictures. Luke’s new name became, “Hey, Parrot!” A woman with a professional looking camera came over to us and said she was taking pictures for Jimmy himself. We’ll see if they show up anywhere!!! The Opera House allowed everyone to take their beverages from the bar to their seats which isn’t usually common. Jimmy even announced to the audience to have a “designated drink go getter!” for the night. I’m sure this was a unique concert that the Opera House had never laid eyes on before!!!

Our seats were 12 rows back in the center. No complaints about this view! Sam and Kyra were in the upper box close to the stage so they also had a great view. My new friend, Emily, was able to get a ticket right before the show so everyone was loving life. With the venue being so small, there really wasn’t a bad seat in the place!

Another major difference is that not many people were standing up. If they did stand up they only did for a short time. This created a small issue for us because we were singing and dancing the entire time as we like to do at all concerts we attend. The people behind us only asked us to sit down once. The man and woman next to me were probably in their early 40’s and were all dressed up…as in dressed up for the REAL opera! If the beach ball came to them they wouldn’t touch it or they would push it over to us to hit. I asked him numerous times to stand up and dance with us and he looked appalled each time…I might have asked a few times too many. J Then when “Cheeseburger in Paradise” came on they stood up and sang and looked happy but immediately sat back down after. Weird! I guess if they only came for that song they got much more than they bargained for! Luke and I also just stood in the aisle a few times so we could enjoy without worrying about it.

All in all, it was a memory that we are so glad to have. Buffett mentioned that he will be making the trip back next year. YAH for us! J Here’s the article from one of the papers. http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/entertainment/music/jimmy-buffett-performs-live-at-sydney-opera-house/story-e6frexl9-1225993678047

Pretty much sums things up, huh?

It’s these changes in latitudes, changes in attitudes.

Nothing remains quite the same

With all of our running and all of our cunning

If we couldn’t laugh we would all go insane

***I typed this up Tuesday morning. Last night (Wednesday) was Jimmy's final show in Sydney for Australia Day but it was at a different venue- the Horden Pavilion. It was reported that during the finale at the end of one of his songs he fell off the stage and hit his head leaving him unconcious for 5-10 minutes. He is in the hospital in stable condition. The news is being very vague but they are saying it might have been from the lights on stage. I'm sure you are hearing the same info. Scary! We wish him a speedy recovery.

My parrot!