I cannot count the number of times I’d sit here in front of the computer and reflect the incredible amount of people I’ve met over the years. Some were good, some were bad… and then there are some who are true gems. London-based fashion designer Mary Katrantzou is one of them. Although we’ve met once a few months back in St. Petersburg, Russia, she made a long-lasting impression thanks to the fun times we shared during our travels.
I checked my mail earlier today and Mary sent a note card as a reminder of those times, along with some snaps she took. What a delightful gesture!
Are you an adventurous eater? I am. There’s more to life than having a ceasar salad or a club
sandwich. I’m not talking about devouring insects or exotic genitalia but hey, no judgment if you’re into that. What I mean is that I’m someone who likes to try things I’ve never had before. Me and my siblings were raised by my parents to try things at least once. On a side note, read this NY Times article.
I have my limits, of course: you won’t see me eat insects, domestic animals and yes, genitalia though I once had sheep testicles in Iceland many years ago. Depending on my mood, I’ll try it. Ostrich meat? Had it in London. Rabbit? Had it in New York. Frogs, snails, duck fetus (balut)? Done, done and done.
Instead of saying “no” when Alexey asked if I’ve tried Caucasian food before, I played devil’s advocate and channeled the Debbie Dumber in me. “Caucasian food? What’s that? White people food?” was my reply.
So after a disappointing and fruitless trip to a Russian flea market (I was hoping to see kitschy Soviet-era things and Russian antiques but I was greeted with Made-in-USA/Made-in-China second-hand cast-offs), we went to Mamaliga for lunch.
Russian fashion designer Dmitry Loginov founded Arsenicum in 2004. Here are some photos that I took during his fall/winter 2010 show at Aurora Fashion Week in St. Petersburg, Russia.
If you have been to St. Petersburg, you’ll know about the bridge
situation. The city is interconnected with many, many bridges and they
shut them down at certain times of the day (or should I say night) to pave way for incoming
ships. What to do after a night out of clubbing while waiting for one of the bridges to open? Well, Alexey, Dima and I popped by the Grand Hotel Europe for tea at 4:30AM. I’ve stayed here many, many years ago and it’s one of St. Petersburg’s oldest and ultra luxurious
hotels.
Have you ever heard of/played the game ‘mafia’? I haven’t. Let fashion designer Mary Katrantzou (who makes some of the most spectacular printed dresses today) explain it to you.
It’s funny how Mary and I met for the first time — inside a lift with a fellow passenger who couldn’t decide whether to go to the third or fourth floor.
Next thing you know we’re having blinis, caviar and vodka shots!
Mary’s here in St. Petersburg for Aurora Fashion Week. Her show is on Sunday night.
After visiting the stunning Balenciaga store here in St. Petersburg where the usual US$300-something sunglasses are being sold at US$1,200++ each, Alexey and I went to the Hermitage for a leisurely evening stroll.
I told him this place reminded me of Place Vendome in Paris where there’s a big thing in the middle of the square with all these beautiful buildings and skateboarders etc then he told me something really, really funny. I wanted to capture that on camera but then he went all shy and wouldn’t repeat.
There are several navy cadet academies here in St. Petersburg so all these budding sailors roam free around the city in their spare time. They’re mostly from other parts of Russia and they all go here to study. Look at who I met yesterday.
I was having a cigarette outside Kolizey where they held the screening of the Marc Jacobs x Louis Vuitton documentary and a few lovely readers came up to me. After a few moments, I'm like, hold on a second.. you guys are taking pics of me, lemme take pics of you LOL!
It's always a pleasure meeting some of my readers. It doesn't matter where they are in the world — Singapore, Malaysia, Russia, Japan, Australia, USA, wherever! I'm always thrilled and happy to see people, especially those who follow my little website. I'm very thankful and consider myself very lucky to be able to travel to places and meet those who read my stories or to see what I'm up to. It's such an honor, really.
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