A little while ago, Jessica C (from Germany) posted that she was visiting a small town in Canada, near London, Ontario and asked if anyone wanted to get together. I corresponded with her and since I live near Detroit, MI, and London is only about a two and one half hour drive. We agreed to get together. There is a small town called Stratford that is also near London and is famous for their Stratford Festival during the summer where they put on first-class plays. I made arrangements and we agreed to get together and see Shakespeare's 'Much Ado About Nothing'.

I have never been out dressed up in a public setting like this since I started transitioning about 2 years ago at the ripe old age of 66. But I thought it would be fun and I have never met up with someone else from BC before either. But I must say, I had quite a bit of trepidation as this day approach.

After getting up early and dressed and makeup on, I had a drive of about an hour to cross the border to Canada across the Blue Water Bridge. I was praying that I didn't get stopped because my Passport and Drivers License both show me a male. But after waiting in the car queue for about a half hour, I got asked where I was going (Stratford Festival), how long I was staying (driving there and then back) and he sent me on my way. I was a more than a little pleasantly surprised, but was happily on my way to pick up Jessica.

We stopped for lunch at a quaint little restaurant called the Morrissey House in London. I have never been out to a restaurant dressed before but the hostess and our waitress were very friendly and we had a nice meal. Another hurdle passed for me!

We had an hour's drive to the Festival and found a place to park and walked to the Theatre. There were about 1600 people there for the show and this was another first for me. It was also the first time I have ever seen a Shakespearean play. The play was exceptional and I highly recommend both 'Much Ado' and the Stratford Festival to anyone.

The play was three hours long and had a 20 minute intermission halfway through. Jessica said she needed to use powder room, so I accompanied her as any good girlfriend would. When we were halfway there she asked me what bathroom we should use. We were both wearing dresses, so I told her I the ladies and to 'lead on McDuff'! This was another first for me, going to a ladies public restroom. There was a line of about 15 women in front of us, so we queued up for our turn. The line went astonishingly fast, we did our business and met outside the restroom with nary a comment or disproving look! We finished watching the play and joined in on the standing ovation at the end and then took a stroll through their magnificent gardens after the play.

We found a nearby upscale restaurant and decided to stop in for coffee and dessert. The young man who greeted us was charming and asked if we had reservations. I said no, but could we sit at the bar for a cup of coffee. An older woman looked at us and asked the young man if there was something wrong. I said we didn't have reservations but wondered if we could sit at the bar. I was expecting that this lady (who looked like perhaps an owner) was going to tell us there was no room, but to my joy, she said they just had a cancellation and they had a table for two. Amazing!

We were seated next to a 20 something young lady who was having dinner with her dad. When the dad got up to go to the bathroom, she leaned over and told me that she loved the color of my dress (sort of a yellow mustard color), I thanked her and told I had just got it this week to go the theatre. The three of us started talking about the Festival and the play and she said she goes to one each season with her dad.

I know there is a lot of unpleasantness going on all around us related to being trans. But I just wanted to share this with my friends here at BC as a positive end to the day. I really didn't know what to expect and although I am a naturally positive person, I was extremely happy for today. A special thank you to Jessica for reaching out and sharing a wonderful day with me. :DD