Fame or Fortune? The Time I Visited The Walk of Fame Alone in 2019 As a Solo Canadian Tourist

Hollywood is a place where you imagine celebrities and glamour. That wasn’t the case so much amongst the stars along the dirty sidewalks of The Walk of Fame. Sure the celebrity hot spots are nice once you get inside. And Runyon Canyon nearby is nice. But when I was on The Walk of Fame as a solo Canadian Woman Tourist, it was DANGEROUS. There was even a red carpet event happening. But what isn’t filmed and shown on TV so much is the amount of poverty that you see literally in front of these venues and events. Often with a line of security and bodyguards.

That day I started chatting with a security guard because I’m Canadian and can befriend strangers easily. I’m pretty sure Brad Pitt walked by and smiled at me because I’m quirky and I stuck out like a clown amongst a sea of goths. I kept running into Daniel Radcliffe that day but he looked like he was super pissed off that whole time. Once at a coffee shop, then passing me on the street and while crossing the street. Finally when I had a drink at The Hard Rock Cafe across from the red carpet event I had a chat with someone at the bar who said, “You don’t know who I am do you?”. I might have even said “Hello” to Penelope Cruz and shook her hand but I don’t know if it was her.

Then nighttime fell. Despite seeing all of these celebrities I also saw a lot of homeless and poor people. I was getting a little nervous. I had trouble finding a spot to get picked up by an Uber. Just outside of the red carpet event there were a group of tough-looking men behind me. They started getting into an argument and I heard one guy threatening to stab the other guy. Luckily there were some cops nearby who looked into the situation.

I crossed the street and met a homeless man with long dark hair tied in a long ponytail, a moustache and a worn-out leather coat. He had a large but skinny black dog. He had 2 lawn chairs and a cardboard sign advertising his tarot card readings. Hell, this man was running a business! I can admire that. I read tarot too and I had a hunch that if I befriended him and hired him that I actually might be a little safer on the dirty streets.

And he was good! I don’t remember if the reading was accurate or not but it was certainly an experience. He even drove away some of the people who were bothering us. So I bought him 2 packs of smokes in addition to payment.

Thanks to his help, I was able to find a spot a street over from The Walk of Fame behind the Jimmy Kimmel building where I found a spot to get picked up by Uber. I had had quite an adventure that day and was incredibly thankful to have gone to bed in my Airbnb in North Hollywood that night.