Vancouver

The weekend before last I went to Vancouver with a group of friends to go to Pride and perform in the Dyke March. We'd been preparing for this trip for months - we had practices twice a week which were both intense and hilarious.

It was an awesome trip. We drove out there, most of us leaving at around four in the morning on the Thursday, and driving all day. Sunrise in the mountains is a wonderful thing, although I'd have gladly missed it for a couple hours more sleep that day. But it was nice to get out of Calgary for once, and to experience the breath-taking beauty of the mountains and forests that still fills me with joy. I spent most of the weekend with my best friend, whom I haven't seen since June, wandering around Vancouver and just generally hanging out. I like Vancouver. I could live there, I think, if I decide to leave Calgary after I've finished getting my degree. I wouldn't mind getting to live right by the ocean.

I find it quite ironic that both my best friends live in supposedly rainy cities, and yet Calgary has been getting more rain this summer than London and Vancouver combined. Vancouver was sunny, humid and hot. We performed our number on Saturday afternoon under the blazing sun. It went amazingly well, although that's not really a surprise. Our choreographer is a genius, and we practiced cursed hard to get everything as close to perfect as humanly possible. The video can be found here. I also got to see the Black Parade Kings perform for the first time. They're one of Van's drag king troupes, and there was a friendly rivalry going on between us since we were all performing at the same venue. They did really well, although, naturally, we did better.

*laughs* Kidding. Mostly.

The Pride Parade was long and impressive. I arrived late with some friends, and we still didn't manage to stay to the very end. And the crowds were even more impressive. I don't know that I'd be able to manage Pride in Toronto or New York or places where they must get even more people out. That might be a little bit much.

I came home on the second, which was another really long drive. Spent a couple days recovering (sadly I caught a really bad cold in Vancouver), and now I'm back into my summer schedule of working and relaxing. School starts in a month. I'll be a third year, which is super exciting. I may even get my own studio space for once!