One thing I really did enjoy about London was the Fringe Festival. Not counting Rachelle s show, she

On Monday Rachelle and I drove from London, Ontario, to Toronto. We re currently staying orlando florida hotels in a house in the downtown Toronto area, within walking distance of the University of Toronto. We arrived the day after G20 ended, so we didn t have any issues with that.
It seems that regardless of how many times I spell out London, orlando florida hotels Ontario , I still get messages from people saying, orlando florida hotels Oh wow I m in the UK too we should meet up while you re in town. I guess some people don t realize that Ontario is a province in Canada. Sorry to disappoint orlando florida hotels some of my UK readers. orlando florida hotels I m sure I ll visit UK s London at some point, but for now it s Canada.
For starters, London is a city that definitely sleeps. I m used to 24/7 cities like L.A. and Las Vegas, where there s always something to do at all times of day. Rachelle and I sometimes wanted to stay out late and do fun stuff, but aside from bars, most places orlando florida hotels closed on the early side. This was in stark contrast to all the nighttime activity in Montreal.
One evening orlando florida hotels Rachelle wanted to buy a bottle of tequila as a gift for her show technician. Apparently it s a Fringe tradition to gift your tech with a bottle of booze. However, this turned out to be more difficult and annoying than we expected.
First, in Ontario you can t just buy liquor at any corner market or grocery store like you can in the USA. I m a bit out of my element in explaining this, so if you re more knowledgeable about this area, and I m not quite getting it, feel free to share more details in the forum discussion. But from what I ve seen, it appears that other than in licensed bars and restaurants, you can only buy liquor for home consumption at certain government-run stores called LCBOs. LCBO = Liquor Control Board of Ontario. I m guessing there may be some exceptions though.
Rachelle already knew about the LCBOs, so when we were in downtown London, I used my Droid phone to locate orlando florida hotels the nearest LCBO. We walked there in a few minutes and found out they were closed. It was 7:30pm on a Saturday, and they closed at 6pm. A downtown liquor store that closes at 6pm on a Saturday? Wow! Those are some pretty conservative hours.
Finally we returned to the first LCBO later on Sunday, and it was open. That was the first time I ve been to an LCBO. It seemed to be well-stocked with many varieties of beer, wine, and liquor. Rachelle bought some tequila and gave it to her tech later that night. He thanked her, took a swig, and we all hugged goodbye.
orlando florida hotels Another frustration I had with London was the parking. Seriously, I think it s the worst of any city I ve visited, perhaps aside from Manhattan. A city as small as London doesn t seem like it would merit such bad parking. This looks like the result of questionable legislation combined orlando florida hotels with poor urban planning.
First, there s apparently some law in London that says that no one can park on the streets between 3am and 5am anywhere in the city. This includes residential streets, so we had to try to squish 3 cars in Karen Bell s driveway at night or risk getting a parking ticket. Personally I think that s a bit crazy, and apparently the residents aren t too fond of this law either. It seems like more of a tax than a law in my view. It might make sense in the winter if the snow plows have to run often, but in the summer? No overnight parking on the streets at all? This law creates orlando florida hotels problems for residents and visitors alike. What s the justification for it? Extra money for the city perhaps?
Also, it was sometimes difficult to find parking during the daytime, especially at peak times. London is filled with thin streets that are overcrowded with cars. Parking is often limited to one side only, and there are lots of no-parking orlando florida hotels zones that seem overly restrictive without good cause.
Eventually orlando florida hotels I figured out some good places to park, both in the downtown area and just north of it, but more than once we had to hunt for a spot. Also, the 2-hour orlando florida hotels time limits during business hours were a bit annoying. The crappy parking in London made me feel nostalgic for Vegas, where ample free parking is available city-wide, orlando florida hotels even in the busiest areas and at peak times. I also have a lot more respect for the Vegas city planners.
I wish I could say, London is a nice place to visit, but I wouldn t want to live there. But I really can t make that leap. Although Karen Bell was an incredible host during our stay, I found the city of London itself to be rather tourist-unfriendly.
One thing I really did enjoy about London was the Fringe Festival. Not counting Rachelle s show, she and I saw 5 other Fringe plays, including: Long Time Passing, Fishbowl, Gunpowder, Monster, and 39. All of these shows were unique and interesting, and for an average price of about $8 per person per show (we bought the buddy pass ), it was well worth it. Of these 5 shows, I would say that Gunpowder was my personal favorite. It was a hilarious play about a Clouseau-like detective.
Even though I indulged in some heavier foods on this trip, the busyness of helping Rachelle with her show and doing the Fringe thing caused me to skip at least one meal per day. That helps compensate for consuming a few kilos worth of Karen s home-baked vegan cookies.
The Toronto Fringe is even bigger than the London Fringe, so I m hoping orlando florida hotels to catch at least a few more shows before leaving Canada next week. London s Fringe has about 50 shows spread across 7 venues. Toronto s Fringe has 150 shows across 27 venues.
I didn t like the humidity in London (or in Toronto for that matter). Even though it was 70-80 degrees most days (when it wasn t raining), it felt less comfortable to me than 100+ degree days in Vegas. Vegas summers are hot, but the dryness makes a big difference.
Aside from the Fringe, I found London to be on the dull side. Again, I liked the people, but the city itself orlando florida hotels was underwhelming. Since I grew up in L.A. and now live in Vegas, I m used to cities with lots of stimulation. In London there just wasn t much to do, especially at night. Perhaps my most interesting find in London was when I stumbled upon a WWII Sherman tank in a park.
London simply wasn t big enough to be exciting nor small enough to be quaint. It was somewhere in the murky middle, leaving me feeling that it lacked a strong identity as a city. Even some residents would refer to London as a city 2 hours outside Toronto, so it s possible that London draws upon a wider area for much of its identity, such as the province of Ontario.
On the other hand, London s nature had me reflecting on my own preference for a highly stimulating environment. After I processed my initial impressions, I opted to look for the good in it and to do my best to embrace it while I was there.
London seems to be a very family-centric place. Many yards don t have much in the way of fences, or the fences were practically see-through, so I d imagine this fosters stronger connections with neighbors. One day I accompanied some people to the park to fly a kite with a couple of little kids on a breezy day. Other times I lingered over a meal to savor the experience and enjoy good conversation with friends. After a while, I began to see the appeal of that slower orlando florida hotels pacing. I doubt I could handle that on a daily basis, but every once in a while, orlando florida hotels it s nice to slow down and savor life s experiences. I think if I lived in London, however, it would have a demotivating effect on me. It seems like an easy place to become complacent.
This trip got me thinking that I should take more time to slow down and savor some of the simpler experiences in life, as opposed to trying to pack lots of activity (work or play) into each day. But at the same time, I wouldn t enjoy that sort of pacing orlando florida hotels as my daily default.
On Friday afternoon, Karen Bell, Rachelle, and I took a trip to Stratford, orlando florida hotels a quaint city 30 minutes north of London that s known for its Shakespearean Festivals. orlando florida hotels We walked around and did some shopping for a few hours. It was really beautiful there and very green especially by the river. I quite enjoyed that trip.
I ve seen Rachelle s play,  unADULTeRATED me, seven times now. I never grow tired of it. Her show relies heavily on audience participation, so she has to do a lot of improvisation, orlando florida hotels which keeps it fresh. Even though the overall story arc is the same, the show turns out differently every time. I ve recognized a few repeat attendees in her audiences; orlando florida hotels it s neat to see people coming orlando florida hotels back for more.
Obviously due to my connection with Rachelle, it s fair to say that I m biased, but now there are plenty of others who can confirm how frakkin talented she is. During her week in London, two of her shows received standing ovations, which is impressive for a Fringe show. Also, at the awards night following the 2010 London Fringe, Rachelle s show won the Best of the Fest Most Daring Show award, out of about 50 shows total. It didn t surprise me that her show won that particular award. When I first saw her show in Montreal, I told her afterwards, Wow you really take a lot of risks with your show, risks that most performers would never go near, but somehow you re able to make it work. This is definitely not a scripted show where the actors recite memorized lines.
In her play Rachelle plays a clown character named Fizzy Tiff, and her play takes you through a mock rehearsal of a date with her lover. The part of her lover, however, is played by an audience volunteer. It s a real volunteer too, not a shill, so the show turns out differently each time. IMO one of her best shows was when her lover was played by a woman that was a pretty wild one. Another extremely funny show was when her lover was played by a guy who was older than her dad.
I don t want to spoil any surprises for you, but I ll mention that since Rachelle plays a character who s a bit neurotic, her date blends story, humor, orlando florida hotels and sexiness in some unusual combos. Even though I ve seen it multiple times and in two different cities, I find myself laughing anew each time because it s never quite the same. Rachelle i