Montgolfiers... I try to speak French

Even though my knee was hurting on Friday, I knew with my new brace I could hit the town. Triana had been dying to hit up a billiards place by the ExtendedStay, so we took off post-show to hit the pool tables.

We grabbed people along the way, and soon a group of us (Janice, Emily, and Greg) were there. Janice and I made friends with the bartenders, and even invented our own drink. Eventually a table opened up and we were playing pool. I've never pretended to be very good, but I do have a lot of fun fooling around on a pool table. Every once in a while I have a stroke of good luck, and I am awesome for about five minutes. Most of the time though, I'm pretty bad, and it's all in good fun. The four of us played for a few hours, but eventually had to call it quits. We had so much fun though, that we decided to make a date for the next week to do the same thing!

We had to go to bed on Friday because the weekend was another rush of shows. It was broken up by some yummy meals, including the introduction of myself to the famous Canadian "Beaver Tails". Beaver Tails are these dessert things that Canadians eat. They basically consist of a pastry like bottom... it's not as fried as a funnel cake, but it's not really bread either. They say that it's wheat dough, "float cooked", which apparently means dropped in oil. Hmmmm. The dough is about ten inches long and five inches wide, which apparently is the shape of a beaver tail. Then you put something on the dough, which in my case was cream cheese icing and heath bar bits - it's called something like 'The Mountainater'. It all leads to something incredibly delicious that will probably make you a little sick. Yum, Canada.


On Sunday night after the show a bunch of us went out for drinks to welcome our newest cast member to the show. If you remember, Sal retired, so Michael Scott Harris has come to take his place! MSH seems great so far, although probably a little stressed out with all his rehearsal. Since he's a swing, he has to learn more than five tracks! Swinging is definitely the hardest thing to do in a show, and he's been acing it so far. We met his lovely girlfriend, and we all got to know him a little better in a relaxed environment with some mojitos. Eventually we all hit the hay, because we had a busy Monday planned!

On Monday Tri, Emily, Janice and I decided to head to Gatineau, Quebec. It's only about 35 minutes from Toronto by bus, but it's a whole different world. There was a fantastic Hot Air Balloon Festival taking place (the Montgolfiers de Gatineau), so we spent hours figuring out the complicated bus schedules (two different bus lines for the two different provinces) and finally decided to take the risk and head into French country! We waited forever for the right bus, not really knowing if it would come. Then when we boarded, we just had to cross our fingers, because everyone on the bus only spoke French! Luckily we eavesdropped, listening for "montgolfiers" and found some people who were going, and we sneakily followed them. We ended up at a bus depot, changed buses, and were there! As we paid our entrance fee (and I spoke only French - merci, oui, etc) we headed up the entrance hill, and heard music playing. We had stumbled into the middle of a dance concert! Since Tri and Janice are dancers, and I love watching middle schoolers dance, we stayed and watched - it was fabulous! It reminded me of when I was little, wearing hilarious costumes and blue eye shadow. We saw a few different age groups, in various lime green costumes, before it was time for the finale. All the girls (and occasional boy) crowded onstage, and imagine our delight when the club remix of Phantom came over the loudspeaker! We doubled over laughing as the kids danced to our theme song! What a small world!


When the show ended, we started to walk around and see what the festival held for us. We grabbed typical snacks that you'd find at any fair, and walked by all the creepy carnival rides that looked like they would break any minute. We debated playing bingo, but none of us knew all the numbers in French! We wandered, and shopped at little stalls that were set up, and even petted some animals in the tiny petting zoo. We got to see the balloons lying on the ground, waiting to be blown up, and we ran into a few groups of friends of ours, all doing the same things. After a few hours we were getting tired, and the balloons were supposed to go up, so we grabbed a picnic table and some snacks, and settled in to people watch. Honestly this was some of the best people watching ever!

I don't know if it was just this festival, but Gatineau seemed to be full of crazy people. I guess at any kind of rural state fair you find funny people, but in Quebec it was different. In general people are a little more punky, a little more European. They wear a lot more black than in the US, and they try a lot more trendy fashions than you'd expect... although not exactly successfully. We saw half naked people, people with giant tattoos, people wearing ridiculous heels in the dirt, and much more. We even saw people get reprimanded by the police for wearing skimpy outfits! It was great entertainment. Occasionally we would see a balloon start to inflate, and then deflate a few minutes later. In the end we watched for over an hour, and the balloons never left the ground! Apparently the wind was risky, and everyone was thinking about the big balloon explosion a week before. Since it was dark, and the festival was quickly turning into some kind of alternative rock concert, we decided to call it a night. We headed back to Ottawa, where we happened upon the light show at Parliament again!!

After watching the lights we all headed back to my room, where we ordered up the movie 'Knocked Up' and spent the night in. It was great fun, and an Awesome Monday!

Rain and a Haircut - Half Price!

After my Sal-liscious weekend, I was ready for a sleepy day off. On Monday I rested and cleaned, and then met up with Triana to hang out.

First we found our new favorite place in Ottawa. We had passed by several times over the past few weeks, but had never been inside. It was tempting, but the time just didn't seem right. This time though, we were ready. We headed straight down the street, only a few blocks from our hotel, and landed at paradise... Sugar Mountain. That's the real name! It's basically an amazing candy store filled with goodies. Not only do they have the largest pic-a-mix selection I've ever seen (except that it's called something like 'choose your snackies'), they also specialize in candy from around the world. There are candy bars there that I haven't seen in years! Since it's dangerous to head into someplace like this with no reason, we were only going in with a mission. We were heading to a movie later, so we knew we'd need some snacks. We chose wisely, and a few minutes later I left with two bags, one chocolate and one gummy. Yummy!

Before we could snack, we had to eat dinner, so we headed to our local Mayflower Pub to grab some comfort food. We made friends with some funny locals, and I fulfilled my daily craving for meat before we headed to the movies. We snuck in our snacks with no problem, and totally enjoyed 'Superbad' - highly recommended and really fun. My week continued until Wednesday, when I decided to use my Phantom 50% discount at an Aveda salon to get some work done! I headed to the Saab Salon & Spa downtown for a haircut and a pedicure, and stepped into luxury. It only took 2 1/2 hours to transform me into a much cleaner person, with softer feet and sparkly coral toenails. My bangs are back, and my blow-dry took half an hour. As I emerged from underground I was ready to greet the world looking fabulous. Instead, I found a thunderous rainstorm!

In the morning it had been hot as balls, but by 5pm it was horrendous!! Torrential downpour as far as the eye can see, and me with a new haircut. Not to mention my wet toenails, flip flops, and NO UMBRELLA. I sat and drank tea for a few minutes in hopes that it would stop, and eventually, miraculously, it did. I headed out for the 15 minute walk home but had only gone two blocks when the skies opened up. I ran for an awning and got my bearings while I hoped for it to clear again. Unfortunately this time I was going to have no luck. It rained and rained and was only getting worse. I knew that I had to have dry hair to put up in pin curls, and that if the rain didn't stop soon I wouldn't have time to go home and dry it before I had to get to the theatre, so I got a little nervous. I made some friends under the awning, and we chatted, but eventually I knew I had to go. I took off running and was on my way!

Unfortunately people in Canada get severely pissed off when you jaywalk, so I would run, and then have to stop and wait for a lovely blinking white hand to go. But after about five minutes I stopped running, since I was soaked to the bone. Luckily it was warm, so I started to enjoy the beautiful rain and lovely city. Canadians are so sweet, and I actually had two offers from fellow pedestrians to walk me home. Cute! I eventually arrived, dripping wet, with no idea what my new haircut looked like. I had time to dry before I headed to work though, so my week continued uneventfully.

I couldn't stay out late after the show on Wednesday because I had to get up early Thursday to take a class at the gym! 'Body Jam' had been popular with some of our ballerinas a week earlier, so I was convinced to join them for a "fun and fabulous" work out. Of course I planned to get there early and stretch, but since I ended up jogging to the gym while eating yogurt, I arrived pretty warm anyway. The class also ended up being a lot of fun! Polly, Janice, Triana, and I got to salsa, merengue, club, and jazzercize to our heart's delight! We also ran into some of our fellow cast members, who unfortunately watched us through the windows part of the time. No fair! After I worked out I hit the gym for some more cardio and a little lifting. I'm hardcore! Unfortunately I was probably a little too hardcore, because all that crazy activity re-awoke my bad knee, and it's been in a little brace since then. What a pain! Literally!

On Friday I had to take it easy, so in between knee icings, Janice and I headed out to see 'The Nanny Diaries'. Although I hate Scarlett Johanssen, the movie was pretty good. Not nearly as good as the book, but Chris Evans looks hot. Janice and I went for salads for dinner afterwards, because we knew there was a big treat waiting for us at the theatre. It was Friday's bake-a-thon!! Who knew that so many people who spend their lives on the road, living in hotels... love to BAKE! Since we have so many avid bakers onboard, we decided to celebrate their talents with a whole lot of food. After I bought my contribution (milk and silverware - Katherine's the baking talent in my family, and Sloan baked for my in NY!) I headed to the theatre, where a feast awaited.

We're talking three kinds of brownies, five types of cookies, lemon cheesecake, fig bars, blueberry cornbread, jalapeno cornbread, confetti cake, apple pie, chocolate pie, sausage and dill biscuits, caramel bread pudding, almond bread, mexican wedding cookies, banana bread, coconut cupcakes, pecan tartlets, granola cake, and many many more. I was shocked at the choices, amount of food, and how good it all was!! Of course I ate until I could eat no more, and then more desserts showed up, so I was doomed. All it means is that I have to get back to the gym, WITH my knee brace. Sign me up for more Body Jamming!

Oh Sally boy...

What a weekend! What could have been just another busy show weekend transformed into a lot of responsibility and a lot of fun.

Let me start from the beginning. Whenever someone leaves the company, we have a little party for them before their last show. We eat their favorite foods, and there are usually cards signed by everyone for them. We also like to put on a little skit. The skit is usually the highlight of the goodbye, filled with inside jokes, imitations, and lots of silliness. Since I've been here I've seen two, and they've both been awesome. For Katie's goodbye (the girl I replaced) there was a video that had been edited to make her answer questions with funny answers. For Kate's goodbye there was a man in a tutu and a serenade by the Phantom. And that's just the beginning! I've heard tons of stories about fantastic and funny goodbyes, and i know there's more that I can't even imagine.

So, since Sal, one of my favorite cast members, was leaving... a goodbye was in order. Carli, one of our ballerinas, has organized tons of goodbyes over the years. She recruited me to help, and we started brainstorming. All last week we would say... "oh, we really should work on Sal's goodbye", and then we'd go back to doing the show. We would occasionally think of something that should be added, and then later couldn't remember it. We were not making much progress, and the goodbye was getting closer and closer. Finally on Friday we had our first good ideas, and after about five minutes of planning were a bit closer to our goal. Sal has a fierce pop voice, and has auditioned for American Idol in the past (he got to sing for Simon, Paula, and Randy, but Simon told him that his cheeks puffed out too much when he sang). He also is the inventor of the idea (with Katie) of Ghetto Phantom. Ghetto Phantom is the concept of doing Phantom in a ghetto style, with booty dancing, strippers, and Crystal Diamonds (Christine Daae) as a drug addict. Because of all this, Carli and I decided to rock out with a skit centering on these ideas.

Since we had been brainstorming for a few days, we figured we could crank out the script in an hour or so, and since we were so busy during the week, it got pushed back to Saturday between shows. So after our first show on Saturday, Carli, Sean, Emily, and I went to dinner to write the script. We sat down and gabbed and came up with a million great ideas. Unfortunately we realized that since the show was the next day, we were running out of time! After two hours of eating and talking, we finally had an outline and some serious ideas. We planned a rehearsal for after the second show, and cast the show with people who we wanted to play the roles.

Carli and I had eventually decided on on a skit that was the premier episode of a TV show called "Ghetto Phantom". It was the search for the stars of the new Broadway musical 'Ghetto Phantom', featuring as judges our director, choreographer, and music director. It involved a lot of choreographed dancing, bad auditioning, and spanking of asses. It was also in horrible shape after our shoddy rehearsal on Saturday night. Not everyone showed up, and jokes didn't land as well as they should have. Carli and I were pretty nervous, but figured there wasn't a lot we could do. That night we were freaking out a bit, but on the two show days there's not a lot of time to figure things out, so we thought we would just fly by the seat of our pants and figure it out as we went.

On Sunday between shows, I had a goodbye dinner with Sal where he reminisced about all his time with the tour, and what he'll miss the most. Then I ran back to the theatre and we all got to work. We banged out another quick rehearsal, and things went much better. We tweaked the skit some more and added some specifically Sal jokes. We added costumes and attitude, and we were on our way. Suddenly things happened very fast, and before we knew it, it was time to perform! I had run out of time, but I quickly changed into my outfit (heels, booty shorts, a hat, earrings, bra, and cropped jacket) and we got the party started. And even with all the drama that happened putting the show together, it went very smoothly. Everyone performed amazingly, and the audience loved it! Sal and his boyfriend Adam were front and center, and they laughed so hard that they cried. Overall it was the perfect goodbye for Sal... funny, inappropriate, goofy, and pretty fierce.

I'm attaching a picture but don't look at it too long or your eyes may fall out of your head.

Week two in canada, and I'm full!

After my crazy Ottawa Monday, I was done being productive for a while. I've settled in nicely! The rest of the week was full of cleaning, grocery shopping, and other mundane things.

Triana and I have been shopping together frequently, hitting up the wonderful huge Hartman's grocery, as well as our favorite 24-hour convenience store. Unfortunately in my first few days here, my friend Sarah and I discovered these tiny carrot cakes at the convenience store. They looked funny, and claimed to contain "real carrots", so I knew I had to get them. Unfortunately they also happen to be delicious, which sucks. Now I want to eat them all the time! Of course the store's open 24-hours, and it's right next to McDonald's, so the carrot cakes always look like the healthier decision. Reeeally healthy, right?

This is another problem with Ottawa. Too many late-night eating options. I never thought I'd complain about that, since usually I'm desperately hungry post-show. Here though, within one block of my hotel are a MickeyD's, Wendy's, Pizza Pizza, the convenience store, Mayflower Pub, and Dunn's (the 24-hour deli/diner). They are all open when I walk home at night! Luckily when i walk home with someone else I can usually resist, although you know that as soon as you've locked your door someone texts that they're hungry and you meet for food. In a normal city like DC, where things are closed at night, I do much better. I eat popcorn, or some fruit, or occasionally some grilled cheese or mac'n'cheese. Here, the options are endless, from bacon cheeseburgers to milkshakes to waffles to pizza. Damn! You can really feel it when your costumes get too tight!

They were also tight for a day or two also thanks to an amazing meal I had with my friend Michael. We went to The Ritz (the restaurant, not the hotel) on Elgin, a block or two from the hotel. In honor of this being my first production contract, he treated, and we went all out! I had an amazing spinach salad with goat cheese, figs, and pine nuts, and then a homemade pasta with prosciutto and mushrooms. For dessert I had a chocolate sabayon that was to die for! A lot of people on the road become addicted to good meals, and I can see how it can happen. Especially in Canada, where we try not to shop because of the horrible exchange rate and slew of taxes. There's not much to do daily except enjoy a stellar meal! This one was amahhhhzing.


On Wednesday night we had a company event, the pre-going-away party of cast member Sal. Sal's been in the show for a year and a half now, and he's ready to move on. He was a friend of my friend Matt's when I joined the show, and was super sweet to me from the get-go. We've become good friends in the few months I've known him and his boyfriend Adam, and they will be very much missed! So on Wednesday after the show a while bunch of us headed to Friday's to party. Friday's is not TGI Friday's (although I wouldn't have been too upset) but is actually a famous roast beef house in an adorable historic French house. The top floor is also an old fashioned piano bar! When we first arrived there were about ten reeeally old people (we're talking 70s and 80s) sitting around the piano while the funny Asian pianist sang quietly. We rolled our eyes and all swore we'd stay for "just one drink".

A few minutes later we were all chatting and having fun, and moving on to drink number two. Then Sarah took the lead and sang! After that it was an avalanche of us taking over the mic. Sal sang an unbelievable 'Unchained Melody' that even Simon Cowell would have loved. The accompanist actually stood up to shake his hand! I brought the house down in my own way with 'Bewitched, bothered and Bewildered", and everyone was sufficiently surprised by my voice. It's funny to think that most of the cast thought I could only sing like an opera singer - and it's very nice to surprise them with some mixing and belting! We all sang and eventually our assistant conductor David even took over the piano. A few hours later we were all sung out, but it was a fabulous time!

On Friday our head honcho Peter was coming out to check up on some new Phantom possibilities, so for the rest of the weekdays we were on our best behavior. Our regular Phantom, John, is going on vacation for the rest of Ottawa, so we've got a revolving door of guys filling in. Greg, who plays Raoul, is going on for the first time this weekend, so Peter's probably here to mainly see him. Tewks, another understudy, has done the role before and is Awesome, so that will be fun to see too. David G, yet another old understudy, has done the role on the B'way, so I am excited to see him too. Although our review was wary of our understudies, I think this company is always totally prepared. The understudies keep the show fresh, and it's great to see all the small choices that an actor can make to make a character different. I like it, and I know all these guys will rock this weekend!

The end of DC

Since I always get caught up in the end of a city, travel days, and beginning the next one, I neglected to finish out the end of my DC stay. Here goes!

On my last Thursday in DC I met Kyle, Joelle, Triana, and Joelle's friend Shane at Cafe Mozu in the Mandarin Oriental, for yet another restaurant week meal. Shane is a childhood friend of Joelle's who now hosts an HGTV show called 'Designed to Sell'. It was great to have someone new around to spice up our talk and keep us from obsessing about the show. Cafe Mozu specialized in Japanese-American fusion, so we all had some amahhhhzing sushi, along with some Asian ribs, tuna soup, bread, and tempura lychees to end. Yummy!

After lunch I needed to finally hit up my long awaited museum, the Holocaust Museum. I spent three and a half hours there, and could have stayed longer. To anyone who's visiting DC, I highly recommend it. It's fantastically done in a way that makes it both shocking and resonating, accessible and educational. I was very moved, and will definitely go back the next time I'm in town. Unfortunately I eventually ran out of time because I had to head to the theatre. Thursday's show was a hit, and as soon as it was over I had a great treat waiting for me at the stage door - my bestie Marti! Marti is an old best friend from high school, who took the train in to hang out.


After the show coincidentally people were heading back to my old favorite, Old Ebbitt, so Marti and I headed along so she could meet people. With a table for 13 we were eating a feast of seafood and drinking vino for a few hours before we finally headed home. Marti and I caught up on all our gossip, and eventually hit the sheets. Then on Friday she and I hung out all day, until the two of us met our friend Mark (also from high school) for dinner! The three of us have been friends practically forever... we met and were friends in sixth or seventh grade, which puts it at about 13 or so years. That's ridiculous! I don't have many friends who have been around longer, so they're very special to me. We ate and gabbed and they of course made fun of me, which completed the scenes that we always share. Eventually I had a job to go to, but they got to hang out all night. No fair!


On Saturday I had two shows, so I left Marti on her own to hang out with Mark and have dinner with a good friend of hers from college. The shows went well, and I actually squeezed YET ANOTHER restaurant week dinner into my day. Kyle, Jen, Carli, Triana, and I headed to Notti Bianche, a fantastic restaurant just a block from the Kennedy Center. We'd walked past is several times, but it wasn't until our perusing the food reviews that we realized what a find it was. Of course when we called for reservations they claimed to be booked, but when Kyle stopped by and dropped the P-word (we Phantom-ites don't like to do it, but occasionally...) we were in! We ate the most amazing meal ever, with some fantastic bonuses.


From the start the manager was sending us tastings, which was a great sign. We thanked him profusely, and enjoyed the food the the best possible extent. Then it got even better. When we asked for the check, the manager told us that the bill was on him! We protested for a bit, but he told us that is was the least that he could do. Phantom had brought him a lot of business, and it was one way of showing his appreciation. We were stoked! It was definitely one of the greatest meals, and it was FREE!


After the second show Marti and I hung out, and made plans for her upcoming wedding. I'm so excited for her - she has a fantastic fiancee, and I love it when people I love marry other people I love. Perfect! We stayed up late, and then on Sunday she headed out with me to head home. It was such a fun visit. Sunday's shows went well, and on Sunday between shows I had another unexpected treat! Sarah Ford, Emily and I randomly decided to have dinner, and then we all decided to hit up Ethiopian! I've never eaten Ethiopian food before, and the first Ethiopian restaurant in the US was actually in DC. The Ethiopian there is supposedly great, and the whole time I'd wanted to try it out. It worked out perfectly. We headed to Zeke's, which also coincidentally had a... Restaurant Week Menu. I had some yummy peppered beef called something like Beef Zulikuli, and it was great. The spongy Ethiopian bread, plus a potato salad (not what you're thinking), and a chocolate caramel pyramid left me very satisfied.


I did the last show on Sunday and said goodbye to my dressers, and was on my way. It really was a great way to say goodbye to DC.... if you don't count what happened afterwards. Oh well!

I love you, Ottawa

Thursday was another two show day, with some yummy seafood on my dinner break with Kyle and Janice, and then it was Friday, our official opening! It went pretty well, and then afterwards we had a party at the Metropolitan, a restaurant nearby. Tons of free flowing food and liquor made for a very happy cast, and spirits were high. Cool weather, lots of parties, good hotels... these things combined to put everyone in a very good mood.



Then on Saturday our review came out. Not that it was bad, it actually complemented everyone heavily, especially the Phantom. That was the problem. The columnist also noticed the fine print in the program saying that John, our Phantom, was going on vacation after a week. Then she wrote the whole review about how the show was good now, but who knew what would happen when we had a Phantom understudy on. She said that people should have been warned, and basically accused the show of being smarmy. It stirred up a whole lot of drama, especially since the same columnist had interviewed John earlier in the week for a press-release and had criticized him then for being "too careful" with his words, and not giving up any good gossip. DUH! We can get fired for gossiping in the press! Anyway, the whole thing made the company a little wary, since now we were hearing rumors that people were trying to return tickets, and we were wondering if quieter audiences were just part of Ottawa or if they hated us.



Luckily we shook it off pretty quickly, thanks to some city lovin' that seems to be contagious. Saturday and Sunday's shows went well, with great groups of us heading to the fantastic ByWard Market area (ten minute walk from the theatre). It's a whole area filled with restaurants, shops, and a great outdoor market that's fun and kind of hippie-ish. It's the perfect place to kill time between shows. With the amazing weather we all just walk and talk and eat outside, and it's wonderful how it keeps your spirits up. The only real additional drama was when one of the pyro effects didn't work during Saturday's matinee, but if that's the worst that happens, we're ok. I ended the week exhausted, but optimistic. Then on Monday, I clinched it!



My friends Emily, Jen, and Triana and I decided to do something uniquely Ottawa, so we met up in the early morning (11:30 am - can you believe they made me get up that early?!) and rented bikes! Ottawa has a giant canal, called the Rideau Canal, that runs down the middle of the city, which I believe was originally built to transport military equipment, aid in defense, and then later to move goods, without having to involve the US. There's a fantastic 8km bike trail starting near the Parliament building and heading South past some of the famous locks that are still in use today. The weather when we arrived at Parliament was unbelievable, so we headed down to rent bikes.



Emily works for company management, Jen is our concertmaster (first violinist), and Triana is a ballerina. Jen is also about 4'11, and hadn't ridden a bike in about 15 years. When we first arrived, I pointed out a kid's bike to Jen, and suggested that she try it out. I was quickly shot down by an actual little girl who said, "it's MY bike!" Luckily there were more bikes, and soon we were all outfitted, including a helmet for the trepidatious Jen. We took off at a pretty slow pace, and the ride was great. Riding along the Eastern side of the canal we could see adorable apartment buildings and houses, with the cutest architecture. There were neat bridges, and lots of greenery. BUT - about fifteen minutes in Jen took a tumble. Luckily we were at a section of the bike path where there was a railing between us and the canal, and she fell into that instead of the water. However, as she's a violinist, we were a little nervous about her bumped elbow and shin. But she was such a trooper that after a break we continued on.



We rode for two and a half hours, covering the 8km trail down the East side and back up the West side of the canal. We ran into one of our crew guys, Dean, along the way, and we took a few short breaks. I rode almost the whole second half standing up, since my butt was majorly sore. The views were great, the flowers were bright and stunning, and we even got some fun photos out of the day. As we slowly pedaled back to return the bikes, we had big smiles on our faces. Just as we were almost there, we ran into our Raoul, Greg. He had just come back from the gym and was on his way to lunch. We were about to eat our hands, so we made plans to meet at the Fairmont Chateau Laurier and get some eating done.



The FCL is a gorgeous hotel that looks like a Disney castle. It's right across from Parliament, and it's very fancy. After we returned our bikes (and got a great discount because the guy "was so glad that we had a good time" - can you believe the niceness of Canadians?) we met up at the Fairmont's outdoor restaurant and had a delicious meal while we overlooked Parliament and the Canal. Originally the day had possibly included facials, but when we called and they were booked, we made new plans. After lunch we headed to Rue Sparks (rue being French for street), a great pedestrian mall with junky shops, restaurants, and eventually a mall. The five of us walked and laughed and stopped to rest our aching feet in Starbucks and wait for our second wind. It came in the idea of hitting up the hot tub at the Extended Stay (my hotel), so we all booked to grab bathing suits, and met up there.



Dean joined us, and we ran into Edgar and Scarlett, two more crew members who had the same idea. It was great on our sore muscles, and after an hour of hot water we were laughed out, tired, and hungry again. We all showered and met back in the lobby around 8:30, before setting out to get some dinner. Jen, Emily, Triana, Greg, Dean and I enjoyed some great pub food before setting out on yet another adventure. This time, we caught a ten o'clock screening of the show on the side of Parliament. It's a laser light show, that basically puts giant projections on the front side of the building. It plays music and tells the story of Canada. It was a little funny, but very educational. Jen and Triana and I were freezing, so we stood in the back and danced around and had a generally great time.



As we walked home, we decided to make it a full 12 hours of hang-out time, so we all stopped at Dunn's, the 24-hour deli between hotels, where we dined on desserts and hot chocolate. Then I stumbled home, full and exhausted, and loooooving this great city!

Am I In Canada? Read On!

A few hours after I wrote my last blog, a plan was in place. At 7 am I was on the phone with my mom, who LUCKILY had my birth certificate locked up in the family safe. By nine she had taken it to FedEx and it was on its way to me in DC. By nine I had reserved a rental car and finally calmed down, so I decided to finally go to bed for the night. I set my alarm for 1pm, so I could clean and pack some more, and then tucked in to sleep.

At 4pm my mom called, waking me out of my deep sleep. DAMN! Of course I had to then take a super-fast shower, run some errands, and then hop on public transportation (metro and then a bus) to get out to the airport to pick up my car. I missed my first bus, but by 7:30pm I had a white Buick Lacrosse under my butt, and I was heading back to my apartment. The rest of my Monday was spent cleaning, packing, and trying to be as ready as possible, so that on Tuesday morning at 10 I could walk downstairs, grab my FedEx package, and be on the road. By 2am I was in bed, with an alarm for 8am set.

On Tuesday at 10am, my mom called. I WAS ASLEEP AGAIN! I jumped out of bed, and immediately had to start a load of laundry so that I could wash the sheets I had slept on. This is the problem when you're living in someone else's apartment. As the laundry churned, I packed up every last piece of anything, and vacuumed, leaving absolutely no trace that I had even ever lived in the apartment. I went to grab the car and parked it downstairs, and then slowly wheeled my enormous suitcases downstairs. When everything was shiny and clean, I locked up and prepared to hit the road. With a fruit smoothie in hand, I headed out to face the wilds on my way to Canada.

From DC starting around noon, I drove due North, passing through Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York, and eventually Canada. The sights were generally very pretty... lots of hills, trees, and green pastures. I had packed some of my favorite long-distance snacks, including carrot sticks, goldfish, and diet coke, and so I didn't stop until dinner time. After gas and a McDonald's drive-thru, I was back on the road. I spent most of the time listening to the radio, or to the three CDs I had randomly on hand (Joni Mitchell's Ladies of the Canyon, Mika's Life in Cartoon Motion, and a mix that my bestie Flann had made me) which was awesome. I sang as loud as I could and made friends with other drivers as we took turns following each other. By about 8:30 I had just crossed over the 1000 Islands, and was heading into Canada.

Driving into Canada, the first thing you encounter is a man in a booth, who looks harmless, but immediately starts firing questions at you. I must have hesitated, because after he asked me questions like, "where do you live, where are you coming from, what are you doing here, how long are you staying, is this your car?" He commented that I spent time in lots of metropolitan areas, and then told me to pull over and go into the customs building. YUCK. Of course I did, and as I walked in I knew this was going to be an adventure. There were about two people really working, and five other customs officers just wandering around doing who-knows-what. There were six people sitting on chairs at the side of the room, and ten in line in front of me. As I waited I listened to their stories.

On the chair to my left was a woman with two children, who was a Mexican illegal immigrant into the States. She was trying to get into Canada, but since she was already illegally in the States, they wouldn't let her in. Directly in front of me was a British man who was coming to Canada for business. Apparently he worked for some architecture company that was coming to give a proposal, that would hopefully get him work. This was also not cool with Canada. Another couple was from Iran, and they were trying to come into Canada only to take a flight to go to Belgium. But, they didn't have passports. The agent tried to explain that they couldn't fly without passports, and that they couldn't come in only to fly, because then when they tried to fly back into Canada the country would have to spend money deporting them.

My favorite people were the three men from Georgia. They had the thickest Southern accents I've ever heard, and one kept on taking off his shoes. They were being held because all of them had serious felonies on their records, including one of them having a conviction for murder! He kept saying, "I ain't tryin' to come in an' murder nobody! I jes' wanna work." This was not really working for the sweet lady customs officer. She replied, "I'm sorry, we just don't need any more convicted felons in our country who are looking for work." Sassy!

Eventually it was time for me to get to the front of the line, where I spoke to her. I gave her my driver's license and birth certificate (all the ID I had, mind you) and a letter that we all carry when traveling. It explains that we are working for an American company, and on the back it has a letter from the theatrical producers that we partner with in Canada, explaining that we were working jointly with them. Basically, that we weren't stealing jobs from Canadians, or selling something they hadn't already bought. After reading it and asking about a bijillion questions (including what I did in the show -- and when I told her, saying that she didn't remember my part) she took my paperwork and went in the back. Forty-five minutes later she was back.

The ordeal dragged on and on, with more questions and then a hasty search of my person for firearms. WHAT? If I even had a gun, wouldn't I have left it in the car? About an hour and a half after I 'd arrived, I was finally on my way, still having not much idea about why I was considered such a threat. As I crossed into Canada, I whooped joyfully and began the math to constantly convert km/hr into miles/hr. Otherwise I would have been speeding for days!

By 11pm I was at the National Car Rental counter returning a car, and catching a cab to my fabulous Extended Stay Deluxe. At midnight I finally checked in, dragged all my stuff upstairs, and unpacked for an hour before crashing. I HAD FINALLY MADE IT!!! Of course I never got my down time, because on Wednesday I had to wake up early and head to our first day rehearsal. On my ten minute walk to the theatre I got to see a little bit of Ottawa, and I love it! My hotel, and the theatre, are right by an adorable little canal that runs right through the middle of the city. A lot of the architecture is french, and Parliament even looks like a castle! There are tons of restaurants in the area, and a cute little park. I haven't gotten to see it all though, because we had rehearsal all Wednesday, and then our first preview Wednesday night!

Wednesday's preview went really well (although audiences are a little quieter here) and it was also a really special night. It was the night of the 6000th show of the tour!! This is a really big deal, since most shows never even dream of making 1000. This is 15 years of touring. WOW. We celebrated with hors d'oeuvres and a champagne toast, which led to some late night cast bonding that I won't go into. Regardless, I'm SO excited to be here, in this beautiful city with the amazing weather, and I am just glad that I finally made it.