Retail shopping…

… is so irritating! I just have to tell you about my four Dubai shopping experiences from today (also to remind myself in the future why I prefer online shopping):

1. At (Yves) Saint Laurent

The cute sales assistant is really attentive and helpful. Unfortunately, she doesn’t have a clue about products and prices. She gives me a different price for that cool bracelet twice until she discovers the correct price (supposedly). I choose a bracelet (and express my choice loud and clear), but the sales assistant just doesn’t get tired of showing me more and more and more bracelets. Then it takes her 15 minutes to wrap my purchase.

2. At Harvey Nichols

The women’s department is rather empty. I’m roaming through the different designer sections carrying a bulk of clothes. I do prefer looking around without the help of a sales assistant, but I’m a little surprised that nobody really seems to even notice me when I’m obviously on the way to the fitting rooms. When I reach the fitting room section, one of the sales assistants crosses my way. I feel like I was caught in the act of sneaking in without having asked for anybody’s help, but when I open my mouth to explain she just gives me a broad smile and keeps walking by. A minute later I  hear her chatting and laughing on the phone. OK.

3. At Celine

I’m trying on sunshades, two different models. I like both and can’t really decide. I go for model a). While it takes the sales assistant ages to wrap my purchase (I even have time to go over to another store, see below at 4.), I change my mind: sunshade model b) it is instead of a) – my bad. The sales assistant looks like she’s in deep distress. Reason: model b) is around EUR 50 cheaper than the one I had bought five minutes before. “OK, I’m sorry, can’t you give me a credit note?” I ask. Sales assistant jumps at her phone explaining nervously: “I have to ask our management for approval. We’re not allowed to write credit notes or give money back.” Eventually, I got my credit note, which will expire after three months…

4. At Marni 

Remember – the sales assistant at Celine needed ages to wrap my sunshades? It took her so long, that I told her I would step out and come back after 5-10 minutes – to run over to the Marni store right across from Celine. Last time I had been to Marni is at least one month ago, and back then I didn’t buy anything. Before that I don’t even remember when I’d been there, let alone bought anything.

So I enter and the sales assistant goes: “Welcome back, Mrs. K!” (He even remembers my full, freaking complicated Japanese name!) “So good to see you, it’s been a long time.” He turns around and shouts for his colleague “Name YX, look who’s here! It’s Mrs. K!” – “Hello Mrs. K, how are you? Have you been on vacation? Were you busy? It’s been such a long time. So good to see you.” I swear, they said all that and more. And don’t get me wrong – that was really nice of them. They also do have a fantastic name-face-memory, for sure. But it all just really irritated me. They were too nice, and I just wanted to kill some time while over at Celine, they were trying to wrap my sunshades.

And before I even know what to say, sales assistant No. 1 brings three items from the storage that “we have not on display” – wink. Huhuuuuu. OK, I agree to try on a (reeeaaaaaally cool and sexy, but way too expensive) jacket. Thank Consuelo, it’s too large and it’s already the smallest size they have. It’s not that I can’t say ‘no’, seriously. But those two sales assistants made it really hard not to buy anything. And because they were sooooo nice, they will probably never see me again.

 

Now, you tell me: Am I too complicated or difficult? Am I too demanding? Not patient enough? Does it seem like no sales assistant can do it right because of all the afore mentioned reasons? Do you also prefer online shopping? Do you want to see my new Celine shades and tell me I should have gone for the other model? Aaaaand – should I go online and search for that sexy cool Marni jacket in a smaller size?

 

It’s true. La Mer is the sh**

I’ve been using La Mer’s (unbelievably expensive) lip balm for years – it’s a miracle in a pot. So when I came back from Tokyo last year and my skin was totally messed up (wasn’t used to dry cold climate anymore) and my Shiseido cremes and lotions suddenly did not work anymore (shock) I got a call from Bloomingdales at Dubai Mall – just in time: “We would like to invite you to a complimentary La Mer mini facial.” OH NO! I knew this could end up in a financial disaster. But: I went to the facial (who wouldn’t? It’s for free!) – it was heavenly. The sales assistant gave me a couple of those super rare La Mer samples. I’ve tried them and from one day to the next my skin was smooth, healthy, hydrated and spotless. And that’s it. From that day on I’ve been using it. I only discovered – after a couple of weeks – that La Mer’s creme is too rich for my skin so I’ve tried the lotion and the gel. Perfect. Now I’m using the lotion at night and the gel at day. Before I put gel/lotion I take two drops of La Mer’s Regenerating Serum. And at night I also use their eye balm (still have a sample). My skin has never been better. Yes, La Mer is expensive, but the difference it makes is dramatic.

Remember? Snapshots.

Remember little Watson, who we adopted last year?

Here he is a couple of months old with big Atze.

And this is him now. Relaxing in his signature relaxation pose. He’s become enormously big (as his paws had always indicated).

Smile, it’s the family portrait: Atze, Feia and Watson.

 

Printed matter.

You hopefully appreciate the fact that I didn’t use “Prints charming” as a headline for this post. I swear I’m going to kill if I have to read it one more time in any magazine or blog. Scratch that as I’m sure I will come across that line again.

As we’re sweating at 28 degrees Celsius with AC inside (it is so hot and humid outside that our AC can’t cope – 28 is the best we can get right now) I’m looking at the winter collections wondering what I would wear if I were to choose. And there they are – prints and embroideries. I like them especially on pants. Do you believe that small people shouldn’t wear (big) prints?

Seen on LN-CC. My favourite.

Kenzo

Proenza Schouler

Sacai

Prada

Actually, I’m glad I don’t even have to think of buying winter wear – yes, I’m going to save a lot of money. We’ll talk again after the season. Latest.

 

 

Recently on the boat.

We had been planning and organizing our first “employee only” agency event (our boss always used to invite clients, too – so bad) for weeks, than we had to postpone it, since it was too windy outside and we were all too busy. But then, finally, last Thursday, we made it onto the catamaran. Not all of us though, since many were too busy at work.

This was one of those days that remind me of how good life in Dubai can be. (Just in case you’re wondering – little me is the one in the grey jumper.)

Consuelo @ Marni.

No, this is not about the corporation of Marni and H&M, which has just been announced today (makes me really excited). This is about a little event at the newly opened Marni store in Mall of the Emirates – featuring the designer herself, the adorable Consuelo Castiglioni. Damn, I was so shy (because I really, really love her and everything Marni) that I didn’t even had a picture taken with her. But she smiled at me when she saw me in my Marni outfit (I didn’t even wear it for the occasion, it was really a coincidence). Gosh, this woman is just so charming – and look at her shoes (and that amazing skirt)… I think I love her.

 

Tokyo mon amour.

It’s been two weeks already, since Alex and I were in Japan. And I’ve got so much to tell and so many photos to show – what I don’t have is time to prepare everything and blog. To make a long (and beautiful) story short: We enjoyed every single minute and had so much fun. I’ve been to all ‘my’ shops and cafes and restaurants and hairdresser and… Hopefully I’ll blog some more Japan (and especially Tokyo) experiences (and purchases) soon. We’ve visited my grandmother and grand uncle, and I discovered some hidden (and little) Japanese in the last corner of my brain. It was lovely. Oh, but my grandmother cried so hard when Alex and I had to leave. Unfortunately my sister Michiko called her in exactly that moment, and she was really worried since she couldn’t understand a word our sobbing grandma tried to say – so hard did she cry. So naturally, we’re going to visit her soon again. Hopefully very soon. Cherry blossom time? This time it’s gonna be Michiko, Fabian, Alex and I – all together. I can’t wait. Counting the days already…

Alex got ‘interviewed’ by some cute school kids – of course a photo had to be taken, too.

When madness rules craziness.

A long weekend finally gives me the chance to leave a little update here on my blog. It’s been a crazy past three months, in which I had no time for anything. Partially, I have to blame myself, because in the middle of chaos at work and everything I’d decided it would be the right time to adopt a third cat. Until then I didn’t have a clue of how easy-going Atze and Feia had actually been when we adopted them back then. Naive as I am I thought a third cat would probably need a week to settle in and then we would all live together in peace and harmony until the end of days. So wrong.

Little Watson, an only two-months old rescued street-kitten (we thought a kitten would be better for our two oldies) moved in and took over the house. This little guy was ALL OVER the place, like you have no idea. He played like crazy and for at least one week the rest of us – meaning Atze, Feia, Alex and myself – were on the run or trying to hide from him. And there was nothing that would slow Watson down. We told him “no”, we shouted, we used our water pistol… it left him totally unimpressed – you know, like you could see on his tiny face that the message just hadn’t reached him. At all.

When Watson didn’t riot around he wanted to be hugged, cuddled and carried around. I’ve never seen a cat so desperately in need for a human hug. He would climb up to my head and start licking my ears or biting my nose. And if I’d put him down he’d scream like a parrot – seriously. At night he would sleep so close to me that I’d wake up sweating because of him. Then the next problem: We were not allowed to close any door in front of him. Bathroom visits or just getting dressed while opening and closing the wardrobe caused pure desperation in our little fella. He would get so scared of being excluded and alone that he started to pee and poo – not in his litter, that is.

Friends asked me: “So why don’t you just leave the bathroom door open?” Because Watson would climb between my legs into the toilet bowl. Seriously, it’s a cat, and you suggest me just to let him do whatever he wants so we have our peace? So, once I had finished “my things” in the bathroom I would have to clean up Watson’s “things” in front of the bathroom. Thank god we have no carpet. And you can imagine that this “routine” is a bit stressful if you have to work full days, being totally overloaded with jobs at the office.

Next: After two weeks or so, we noticed a little eczema on Watson’s white fur. We took him to the vet and – oh no: He’d got a street-kitten fungus, which is highly infectious and – if not medicated – can seriously damage organs, too. At that time I’d been only worried about Atze and Feia being infected, too. But when I noticed a really disgusting looking eczema on my face and arms I knew that I had another problem. I went to the doctor and got some hammer medication. Then Alex noticed an eczema on his skin, too. So now we’re still all three under medication (but at least not infectious anymore). THANK god Atze and Feia didn’t get it.

The only good thing about that sickening and disgusting cat fungus: Watson has become a lot more calmer with his medication. So most of the time he can accept that doors close – and open up again. He uses his litter (also because I’ve bought two additional litter boxes), and he has also accepted that not every cat in this household wants to play in his wild ways. (Oh thank you, Atze and Feia, for being so patient with him!) His affection is still annoying sometimes and he eats like a pig (I really can’t get enough cat food to satisfy the beast’s cravings) – but at last he’s one of us.

Now – the test: Alex and I are flying to Tokyo next week. Finally! So we’ve got Claire from HomelyPetz, who already knows Atze and Feia, taking care of the cats. Please cross your fingers that Watson’s gonna be a good boy! And when we’re back, he’s going to the vet to get his balls cut. Yes, those tiny balls that seem to give him the power and energy of at least three horses (or 10 Red Bulls).

I’ll be back after Tokyo with loads of pictures – promise! So long… xoxoxo

We used to live a quiet life…

Thank god, even the devil sleeps sometimes.

 

Recently through my phone’s camera.

Life in Dubai is rather boring these days. At 45 degrees Celsius (which is around 113.0 F), it has slowed down to an ‘almost dead’ level. Even with the AC constantly running you can feel the heat everywhere. And the humidity… It’s my fifth summer in Dubai, the most exhausting summer so far. If I didn’t put my alarm clock, I’d easily sleep more than 10 hours per night (on the weekends I do allow myself 10 hours of sleep). But my friends and colleagues say the same: this summer is like hell. My energy level: -10. Alex is on another business trip this week. Turkmenistan. So the kittens and I try to entertain ourselves as good as possible.

A couple of random photos…

Sleepy Atze.

Sleepy Feia.

And instead of posting a photo of sleepy me, I give you – the Marni shoes my sister ordered for me (since Marni don’t ship to the United Arab Emirates. Thank you:/ ) a while ago. They are so comfortable.