Nice. Where in Europe in particular? Jealous.
Huss,
Kinda crazy a free luxury vacation/River cruize. I had mentioned that my gal is a fashion blogger with nearly 700K followers. Pretty much she has to do some posting on Instagram, so this is a gig for her, but I get to go as a "Plus-One."
Amsterdam layover at the Pulitzer Amsterdam Legend. The river cruize follows the Rhine River and starts in Cologne (4th most populated city in Germany) and stops at Koblenz, Baden-Baden (Mercedes Benz), Strausbourg (France), and ends in Basel (Switzerland). We have a layover in Basel and will be staying at the Gaia.
Of course the level of luxury is outragious. Flying is Business Class, on the cruise ship there is a "Pillow Menu," and we have our own butler.
Two years ago there was a "Plus-One" trip to Madrid. Business flight, a Mercedes limo from the hotel picked us up from the airport. We basically stayed at a palace (Palace de los Dukes) that was converted into a luxury hotel that was a few blocks from this rediculas palace for the King and Queen that has 375 rooms and is so large it makes anything we have in Washinton D.C. look like a bungalow.
Pretty much a VIP treatment that is so crazy that it is like being Jay-Z and Beyonce.
We were told to go to the Biblioteca Nacional for International Book Day. Security informed us that the place was closed, but then some women chased us down to give us our behind the scenes tour.
The phone rang and we were directed to go to this sister luxury hotel on Mad-Rid's Fifth Avenue for lunch. Pretty much the food was so good and rich that it seemed likely that I should go to the nearest emergency room to get stents installed.
The phone rang again and we were directed to go to a suite in the hotel for a magazine interview, a video shoot, and a photo shoot. Pretty much we used this luxury hotel as a studio. Stylist, hair makeup and crews.
We had a guided walk that included an entourage. We ended up at the Prado which was jammed with lines, but no lines for us. The Limo from the hotel picked us up, because that night was a black tie event.
Kinda crazy how on a Wednesday at work I get this panaced E-mail from my gal that I needed a Tux by Friday before we left for Spain. I hate the world of fashion because this is how they run. Because I'm a skinny and lanky size 38 and men's sizes start at size 40 pretty much I have to spring for either Prada or Paul Smith.
So I scramble to secure a Paul Smith tux. Although there are 4 Paul Smith stores in NYC, only one carries the formal wear, and because Paul Smith is so boutique this one store basically carries one of each size, and when that is sold pretty much it is sold out. I called and luckily they had a size 38 for me, and they put it aside for me.
Then I had to get the tux fitted within two days. It was actually a good thing buying a tux; a week later I had another black tie event held at the Grand Ballroom at the Plaza. "Maggie" at another formal event at the Sony Play Station Theater won a "Shorty Award" in fashion and basically beat Victoria Beckham.
Another funny story is somehow I have to go to Gabriella Hearst's birthday party. This is the heiress from the Rudalph Hearst newspaper empire.
It starts when "Maggie" informs me that she is expecting a courier to drop off some clothes. This happens all the time, but this time is different because the clothing is UBER expensive. When I inquire how expensive, she says, "About $20K."
So when I see the clothes I understand, Perhaps the handbag alone was $5K, then there was this silk cocktail dress that had newspaper headlines and rosebuds to riff off the Hearst newspaper empire. Of course there was a coat. Pretty much these clothes are to dress "Maggie" for an event, and these clothes have to be returned.
The celebration is a grand opening of a store on Madison Avenue, the store is within a luxury hotel, and the birthday party is in a private room within the hotel. A friend of Gabriella's happens to be a Latin Grammy Award winning performer, and he will be be doing a few songs.
I am near center stage, and somehow there is this guy with an IPAD who is the soundman. Pretty much I'm in the sweetspot. Maggie during the performance tells me that Gabriella Hearst is standing right behind me, but I can't really get out of her way.
When the birthday cake came out and we sang Happy Birthday, I tried to get out of all the shots, but basically I was in every shot. LOL. It is really weird getting into the upper strata. If they only knew who I really am...
Cal