WOW

So much has happened since I last wrote! I'm going to try to get it all in! So since I last wrote I've seen four plays and two concerts (holy crap, I know!), been out to celebrate two birthdays, welcomed two of my best friends to London and done a bunch of schoolwork. (Look Martin, I'm talking about school!) I saw two productions of The Merchant of Venice, one at The Globe (which was such a fun experience!) and a fringe production at a theatre in London's east end called The Arcola. The first one was really good because they really tried to take your back to what it would have been like seeing a show during Shakespeare's time. So we stood in the yard, and they simulated daylight, and it was generally a raucous good time. The other production wasn't as good. I liked some of the concepts that were introduced but on the whole I was frustrated by it because they opened a lot of doors and set up a lot of themes and bigger questions and then stopped addressing them. It just felt half-baked.

The other show I saw was Cabaret on the west end, it was really fun too! I don't really like Cabaret but I liked the dancing and the set design, and it was still a show on the west end (in Picadilly Circus!) and the cherry on top was having one of the characters come to our class the next day to talk with us a little about the show and about being an actor in London. He was really nice and it was a great treat to talk to someone in the business.

The latest play I saw was another one at the National Theatre called Rafta Rafta. It's set around an immigrant Indian family and is basically a family comedy-drama. It was a good slice of life for a family like that, and was pretty funny. I think our class liked it.

The two conerts were also good. I saw a lack-lustre concert on tango music (the music was good but the singing and dancing were corny and lame), and a concert by the London Philharmonia on Brahms and Strauss which was really great! The music was so well done and the pieces were moving, I only wished the piano soloist had had more emotion in his playing. But overall it was a great concert.

Last week was Steph's birthday and we went out last Wednesday (though her birthday was Friday) to ISH bar, which was a great time. Jerrrard (our prof) and his wife Diana came out, which was hilarious, and I was really glad that the group just all (or mostly all) came out and was in good spirits. We all had a good time chatting and all that. And then last night Steph, Dianne, Cara, Evan and I went out kind of for Dianne's birthday, which is on Thursday. We wanted to go to the Ice Bar but got there too late (we might try to go back later in the week, even though it had a £15 cover - eek!) and then ended up at a bar in Picadilly Circus called On Anon, which was pretty good. We stayed for a couple pints and then headed home.

Saturday marked the beginning of Cara's & Evan's visit to London! They got here around noon and we've been doing things non-stop since then, with the exception of class. We've been to Regent's Park (duh, it's basically our backyard), Harrod's, Primark, out to dinner, and Cara and Evan have also been to Fortnum and Mason's (a high end dept store like Harrod's), Hamley's Toy Store, and the London Eye. I think theyre having a good time, and it's really great having them here, even with having to share my tiny single bed. Oh, and we've been trading all sorts of gossip and drama, us telling about random things that happen here and them filling Dianne and I in on the drama happening in our group of friends right now.

So I suppose now you're (mostly) all caught up! Tonight we're seeing Carmen for music class (yay!) and this weekend Dianne and I are going to Brighton, and Dianne, Cara, Evan and I might go to Stratford-Upon-Avon to visit Cara's friend from high school. And Steph's off to Amsterdam this weekend for lots of fun and debauchery. We're always busy, now I just need to find time to do work!

in which the homesickness sets in...

Highlights from last weekend:
- Staying in British suburia, despite making me miss my own surburban home.
- Trying out punting. I wasn't very good, and actually got a little frustrated, but I liked sitting in the boat and spending time with the roomies.
- Our B&B. Very comfortable with an ensuite bathroom (that doesn't feel like you're on a barge) and a tv in the room. I got to watch British talk shows!
- Going up a church tower to see the whole of Oxford, and even into the countryside a little. Very pretty.
- This cafe called Puccino's with a very quirky menu and decor. My kind of place.

Things I'm looking forward to:
- Evan and Cara coming to visit for an entire week! Eeeee!
- Getting more and more used to London things like the Tube, the streets, and the general layout of the city. I still get frustrated with how easily I lose my sense of direction here, but I'm getting better.
- The drama class' backstage tour of the British National Theatre scheduled for next week.
- Going out tomorrow for Steph's (roomate's) birthday.

Things I miss:
- My privacy. Being in a triple is definitely worse than the double in Artz I remember. I've been here a month, and been alone twice since I drove to the airport in Toronto. Ugh.
- My computer. It's my window home. I go stir-crazy when I can't interact with different people on a regular basis, and even moreso when I can't connect with my family and best friends when I want to, or read my blog, or do random research on things that interest me, not to mention actual research I need to do for classes. This is what I'm having the hardest time with. I knew it would be an adjustment, but I didn't expect the guilt I would feel always borrowing time on my roomates' computers. If there is any way to get one right now, I'd get it. But I keep coming up dry.
- Television, especially since Private Practice and Grey's have started. Plus, sometimes it feels so good to relax and veg in front of the boob tube. Some people listen to music, some people have a glass of wine, I watch tv.
- Peanut butter, solely because someone mentioned it at dinner tonight and now I have a craving.

I don't want you to think I'm not having a good time. I am. I'm enjoying myself. I'm meeting new people and doing new things, and loving being here. I just miss those things.