Labor Day blues, I'd rather be in London

I have a lot of time to kill on this Labor Day Monday and I am feeling a bit low so I figure I'll try to finish up writing about the London leg...

Sunday- Kara was taking Bjorn for his birthday surprise which was a mime show. I can't remember the title but with them heading off it left me with a free morning and afternoon to myself.

I decided to go to Harrod's for a bit of window shopping.
I entered the store as it opened with the throng of other tourists and Sunday shoppers. You were only allowed to browse for the first half hour. After that, the shopping was allowed to begin. I truly though I would purchase some gifts while I was there but I was a bit overwhelmed by the sheer size of things. The store is lovely and The Harrod's specific merchandise was enticing but mostly it felt like Bloomingdale's. I tired myself out with fantasizing about the designer gowns and one of a kind shoes. I needed sustenance so I had a quiet lunch at Cafe Harrod's, even allowing myself an afternoon glass of wine. The food was not stellar but it did the job and I moved on out of the store.

Next I went to the Tate modern. Kara had said I would probably only need about an hour and a half to get a feel for the museum but I could have stayed all day. The museum is stunning and as you are walking around you almost feel a sense of anticipation verging on a feeling of danger. You literally never know what might be around the next corner. I saw a lot of Warhol, there were some really interesting video exhibits, something called "Ghost, no shell" where a few artists created a fully explored identity for a minor anime character. They actually purchased the copyright for the character in the character's name so now there is no actual ownership of the image. it was an interesting and trippy thing. I found myself wishing I could spend the whole day in the museum, alone, disappearing into the anonymity of the crowd.

After the Tate I met up with Kara and Bjorn. We had a pitcher at Pimm's outside of Doggett's and then walked down the south bank towards the London eye. We crossed the Thames and saw Big Ben and headed out for a cheap and tasty Mexican dinner near Rada. We weren't quite ready to call it a night so we decided to see "Inglorious Basterds" in Leicester Square. Going to the cinema in London was different. They were only showing one film at this very large theater, the seats were assigned as though you were seeing a play, they serve salty and sweet popcorn (I like them mixed together) and they charge a ridiculously high ticket price. The movie was typical Tarantino, gleeful in it's violence but I found myself surprised by how much I enjoyed it.
We were all pretty drained after the film so we headed home.

Kara and I went into Mark's room to make sure the plans for the next day were still on. Kara had gotten her and I ticket's to go see "The Drunks" at the RSC in Stratford upon Avon. It turned out that she was no longer able to go because there were no trains back to London until the next day and she had work early in the morning. So, Mark, sweet as always agreed to move some stuff around and go with me. But, when we got home we found out that our dear friend and flat mate Tiphaine had gotten some upsetting news about her most recent film. It was decided that she would come to Stratford upon Avon with me instead. Kara went to sleep but Tiphaine and I stayed in Mark's room with him for a chat. We stayed there until about 4 in the morning. it was a really special night for me. We talked about a lot of things. A lot of them very difficult. There were tears and laughter and signing and everything in between. I bonded with Tiphaine and Mark in a way that I hadn't before and I am very grateful for it. During that evening it was also decided that Mark and I would work on some music together. He wanted to sample my voice and maybe I would try and come up with some lyrics for some tracks he was working on.

Monday/Tuesday- Tiphaine and I headed out on the train to Stratford upon Avon. It was a two and a half hour ride and it just flew by. We talked, talked, talked. She has a lot of ideas and projects she wants to work on in the theater world over there so she picked my brain about The Vagabonds. It felt good to talk to someone who was really enthusiastic about their art and their goals. It helped to reinvigorate me. To remind me of what I really want out of my life and my career.

We arrived in SuA a few hours before the show. We checked into The Avon Hotel. Our room was in the basement but it was fine. A place to lay our heads. We walked to the theater and I was amazed at how small and quiet the town was. I am always either in the city or the suburbs. I like the idea of a small quiet place. I wonder if I could live somewhere like that or if the smallness would drive me mad at some point?

We arrived at the courtyard theater with time to spare so we grabbed some dinner. Soup and a jacket potato. Very British. Because the show was still in previews they weren't clod out and we got our seats upgraded. The show was amazing. It is a modern play written by to Russian playwrights who are brothers, I think? The RSC is stupendous. Obviously, they are world renowned but I can't even begin to describe how they made me feel. I have seen so much theater, so many wonderful actors and beautiful plays but this transcended all of it. The company was so seamlessly entwined, the energy was so consistent. I was drawn in the entire time and the hour and a half flew by. It was very cinematic and very real and grounded. I left the show feeling like I was on some sort of mood elevating drug. It has been my dream to see a show in SuA performed by The RSC and not only did it not disappoint, it exceeded all of my expectations.

Tiphaine and I went to sleep and woke up early the next day. We had a big breakfast at the hotel and went out to do some sight seeing. We went to Shakespeare's birthplace. I got very excited when I found out Thomas Jefferson and John Adams visited the site together in 1788 (I think that was the year...). After seeing the house we went out into the garden and started talking to these guys who were in costume. It turns out they were actors (big surprise) and they were out there to do scenes and monologues. We also found out that they had been at the performance of "The Drunks" the night before. The younger of the two gentlemen informed us that he had seen us at the show, that as a matter of fact he had seen us earlier that evening walking from the train station to the hotel and again this particular morning looking at our map and seeming lost. There goes my theory that we are really fairly anonymous in the world and that ti probably doesn't matter what we look like because no one is paying attention. Tiphaine and I went to a few other historic spots, including Shakespeare's grave.I wish we had more time in SuA because the massive Shakespeare nerd in me was so excited to be there. I will definitely be going back next time I am in jolly, olde, England.

After getting back to London Kara, Tiphaine and I had a long talk about upcoming projects in London that Kara and Tiphaine are planning together. I acted as advisor and facilitator and it made me want to stay in London to keep working with them. After our chat the ladies headed out to Notting Hill for some shoe shopping and dinner. I bought the most amazing pair of open toes, spike heeled, faux snake skin booties. We had dinner at a place called The Castle. then, we went to meet up with Kara's friend Ash at Market Place Bar. he is this really cool Australian guy who works for the BBC. It was his last night in London for a year. He is travelling around the world and I am really impressed with his plans. he is much better about roughing it and living on a budget than I am. If I could learnt o alter my travelling style I'd probably be ale to jaunt for longer than a month at a time. Ash was very appealing, funny and charming and down to earth. he is sort of a Johnny Depp type, slender, tall, long hair that is going gray at the temples and is pulled back in a top knot. I liked his energy a lot and I am glad I got to meet him.


To be continued...