While in Prague over Thanksgiving, Martha emailed and asked if we would be interested in attending a performance of the "Three Tenors". Now, that's an offer; I knew of the Three Tenors, Carreras, Domingo and Pavarotti; couldn't be the same group as Pavarotti had passed away. Intriguing opportunity, so a quick email back that we would enjoy a classical concert of opera arias.
The night of the concert was December 7, and it was to be presented in the Palace of Congress, starting at 7 PM. The Palace of Congress is a structure from the Communist era and is in need of some substantial upgrading to host a concert of this nature. Rather than belabor the point, suffice it to say that the acoustics/microphones were not kind to the excellent performance we would attend. So, I am part of a TWIG (Tirana International Women's Group) outing; Madlyn, Martha, Anna, Wendy and me; too much fun!
There were in fact Three Tenors; one from Albania (Adrian Xhema); one from Italy (Francesco Zingariello) and one from Spain (Sebastian Ferrada); supported by an excellent Orchestra; guest pianist; guest Tenor and a superb guest Soprano by the name of Ramona Tullumani. She was in my opinion, the best surprise of the evening; except for the Italian who was so passionate in his singing and his appeal to the audience and the other singers. I would have liked the Soprano to have been able to sing with the three featured Tenors Con Te Partiro (Time to Say Goodbye); I believe she would have been able to carry her part alone; it would have been a lovely finale, showcasing her talent opposite the Three Tenors.
It was a very nice evening and the seats were fantastic; second level, direct line with the positions of the Three Tenors. Oh, and the price, 1000 Lek or just under $10.00; thanks Martha, great idea for a winter evening in Tirana.
I have included several photographs from Tirana with actual accumulation of snow. This happened on Friday, December 17, 2010 and apparently this is a fairly rare weather phenomenon in this part of Albania. I observed police officers and staff at the General Headquarters having their pictures taken with the snow falling all around.
Leading up to the snowfall on the 17th, it had been very cold with temperatures well below freezing at night. Madlyn missed the snow by one day, having left for home on Thursday morning; good planning on her part!
One last photograph of my neighbors across the street without the snow and with the lights lit up. A surprising amount of not necessarily Christmas lights, more "holiday" lights as the really big celebration is a two day New Years event, with a tremendous amount of fireworks!
