The Boy Wizard and Build-A-Bear

I finally made it to London! As I stepped out into Waterloo station, I felt at ease. I was back in my favorite city! I let a sigh of relief slip and I made my way to the Tube. I emerged in South Kensington, where I would be spending my final week in Europe. Pushing thoughts of leaving from my mind, I made my way to my temporary home and settled in. I was exhausted, the the evening was spent relaxing and running mild errands before I collapsed into bed.

The next morning, I was up and out early. I walked from South Kensington over to Regent's St. on a quest to find Build-A-Bear. It was attached to the famous Hamley's Toy store! Wow! That is a cool toy store! I made my way upstairs to the Workshop and set about finding the perfect outfits for my niece and nephew! I seriously considered buying them the UK Bear, but decided against it - though I may return before I leave! After about an hour of hemming and hawing, I had decided on a Palace Guard outfit for my nephew and a Queen Victoria outfit for my Niece. Of course, no British bear is complete without a Union Jack flag strapped to their arm!! The manager loved my "enthusiasm" - really guarded sarcasm - and offered me a job! When I get back to London, I'm to see her straight away! Hey, if I'm ever hard up, at least I know I can get something! She gave me 2 notebooks and 2 pins for the kids as a bonus! They will love it!

So, £26 lighter, I headed out and shopped my way down Regent's St. I stopped into Virgin to see if they had any new Jamie Cullum releases, but apparently there has been a snag with his new album. Damn. It was worth a try. I made my way back out to Knightsbridge and walked back towards Kensington. I stopped at Piccadilly Market and had a wonderful conversation with a woman about Immigration, tea, and London! I love walking in London. The smell of Jasmine seems to follow me. I thought about returning to Kew Gardens before I leave. Before long, I was standing in front of Harrod's. I decided to pop in and pick up some tea. I was hung up in cosmetics, testing new products and chatting with the girls. I eventually made it the teas and spent a ridiculous amount of time deciding what I wanted. I finally settled on 3 boxes of various blends. In case you are wondering, Harrod's is renowned for their tea. By the time I left Harrod's, it was getting late. I stopped and had a late dinner then caught up with some friends and email.

The next morning, I headed over to the Victoria & Albert Museum. It was fascinating! My favorite areas were the cast courts and the photography! The Indian Textiles were incredible! My next stop was the Museum of Natural History. Set in an amazing Gothic building, the museum is interesting. Though it is more family oriented, so I only stayed about an hour. I had a quick lunch and went about gathering information regarding immigration. After getting what I needed, I spent the rest of the afternoon exploring South Kensington! I popped into every store that caught my fancy, wandered down narrow side streets, and thoroughly enjoyed people watching! As I was on my way back, I came across this restaurant called Nando's. I decided it looked interesting and had a nice dinner! It was just a casual place that served Portuguese chicken pitas and such! It was hot and spicy and I loved it! I will definitely go back! With my belly full, I tucked in for an early bedtime.

Saturday brought a cool and cloudy day, which I actually didn't mind. I did some silly little chores, then I headed out to Leicester Square. My goal was to do everything possible to get tickets for Equus - the one play that I really wanted to see while I am in London. So, after standing in several lines for the better part of an hour, I did walk away with Orchestra Stall center seats - 10th row! I paid £37 for them, but at least I get to see the show!! All other tickets were sold out. The show starts in less than an hour and I can't wait! Even if this is the only show I see while I'm here, it's worth it. This is a Bank Holiday weekend, so everything is a bit crowded and Londoners have jumped ship for the beaches of Brighton and Cornwall. Monday will be a pain in the ass, since everything will be closed. But, perhaps that will be the day I go to Kew Gardens. I'll remember to bring a loaf of bread for the ducks and birds.

I suppose you are wondering what I found out regarding UK Immigration. Well, I need to get my Artist's Visa first. That gives me the right to work for 2 years as an actor in the UK. Once I have the visa, I need to go to British Actor's Equity with my visa, my US Union Cards, and my contracts and they will process my membership ASAP since I'm already eligible. Once I have all of that, I need to contact the agencies who are interested in signing me. So far, only 3 are interested and 1 is American. They all require a visa and BAE membership before they can proceed. So, once I get set up as an actor, then I can go out and find a regular job to tide me over. This is obviously the condensed version, but you should have a general idea.

Well, I'm off to the show! I'll write my thoughts on the show tomorrow! And no worries, I'll let you know what Harry Potter's penis looked like! I'll be close enough! I love London's TheatreLand!