Taiwan was typhooning all day today so I didn’t get to hang out with Vivian at Taipei 101. I’ll probably be seeing everyone in like, less than a week anyway, so whatever.

I still have like, 40ish more pictures to download from my camera, but I did manage to get these resized and ready for posting. They include the Bella Beauty Awards, my first outdoor photoshoot, another dinner with the Director, and a photoshoot with a beauty editor. (She ended up giving me a bottle of Benefit’s “You Clean Up Nice” facial wash and a compact with eyeshadow that is TOTALLY my palette. It was so nice of her to do so too… she really didn’t have any obligation to give me anything.)

Me looking foxy for the Bella Beauty Awards. As you can see, my hair is starting to straighten out.

The Bella Beauty Awards was held at a place called “Bando 8.” Sounds kind of ethnic, no? Maybe it’s just because it reminds me of banjo…

The award-winning make-ups and skincares.

The giftbags that I had to assemble. In the back, you have the giftbags for journalists. On the left, the giftbags for visitors/guests. They got different kinds of swag. The lucky journalists got my favorite Calvin Klein perfume.

Me at the podium!

They had little like, vanities for people to try the make-up. I didn’t get a chance to.

Booze. No wonder rich kids who go to a lot of functions get wasted young–it’s so accessible!

The display that showed all the winners.

I had to help set up the welcome table. Notice the business cards oriented in an artistic, staircase manner.

Everyone was starving by noon, and our caterer was late so someone else went down to buy food. Unfortunately, all the editors came in around that time and they were ravenous. Upon seeing numerous paper bags of food, skinny Asian girls pounced. It was kind of scary but really funny, as you can imagine. Luckily, I got a bowl of noodles before the frenzy began.

Schmoozing post-awards show.

Me and one of the beauty editors. She usually has really heavy eye make-up on. She recommended me a facial place.

The girl who sits next to me with the decked out desk. Her name is Nana.

Strawberry KitKat. It’s really not that good–in fact, it tastes kind of medicinal.

First outdoor photoshoot with Fashion Editor. It was RIDICULOUSLY hot and humid. I know it looks like a beautiful summer’s day, but it was probably like, 98 degrees.

The photographer, Armani. Hehe, his name really is Armani.

The model trying to balance on the giant birdcage housing a tree. In Taiwan, you only have to be really thin to model. There really are no other qualifications.

AIN’T SHE FIERCE?!

SO FIERCE.

After each change in outfit, the Fashion Editor looks at an uber-high quality polaroid that shows what the final pictures will look like.

My destiny as everyone’s bitch was fulfilled when I was instructed to haul bags of beverages from multiple locations to the photo studio. The only bright side was I got to pick what everyone drank. So everyone was stuck with water, orange juice/soda in really cute bottles, lemonade in really cute bottles, or tea.

There was a really gnarly photoshoot about shoes and there were boxes EVERYWHERE. EVERYWHERE. There was this really adorable pair of Marc Jacobs flats that I was sure I a took a picture of, but I guess not.

The EIC got a shipment of Fendi stuff, including shoes, boots, and bags. We got to walk around the studio holding the bags and I liked this one. The picture is kind of blurry but yeah. LOVE Fendi. Though sometimes they get a little crazy with the leopard print…

The Director took us to this weird place for lunch. It was very arty, as indicated by the building.

Mom and me and the crazy interior. It was kind of… cave-y.

They had weird statues with HUGE ginormous tatas.

Another day, another photoshoot. The model was tiny, but of course, she was thin.

She was getting her hair curled whilst on her cell phone. The make-up artist was this Japanese woman who lived in Taiwan. It was kind of weird hearing her speak Mandarin–she definitely had an accent, but it wasn’t necessarily “Japanese-sounding.” I have no idea how to describe it…

Photographer with his interns adjusting the lights and setting up for the next group of pictures.

The owner of this photo studio had the most adorable dog ever called Nono. I pet him once and he liked me so much he came up to me and hopped up on my leg. He was sooo cute and quiet and wasn’t scary. Awww…

Anyway, the last two weeks of my internship have been really fantastic and busy. I think the last time I updated was some time before I went to the Bella Beauty Awards, which is this ceremony/show that honors the best brands in various make-up/skincare categories. There are awards for like, best mascara (Maybelline VolumeExpress or something like that) and which “whitening” product is the best (I believe it was something by Clarins). It was fun kind of seeing the whole event go down, I had to go there early to set up and stay a little while after to help clean up. The journalists got the awesome giftbags! They were given like, large bottles of Calvin Klein’s Eternity Moment (which is one of my most FAVORITE scents ever) as well as a Cittá Bella bag, Olay moisturizing facial mask, free copy of the magazine, and some other stuff I really can’t recall. Nonetheless, I REALLY wanted a bottle of perfume. The whole event wasn’t huuuge but the host was someone pretty famous from Taiwan… her name is Tian Xing (literally Sky Star) and she was really thin and quite pretty. The event also honored a model (I think it was a model) who got the annual Bella Beauty Award or something along those lines.

The event has LOTS of wine and cute finger food, as is commonplace for these kinds of events, but nothing as cute as the finger food from Chloé! I didn’t drink, again, but it’s all good.

I know this is out of order, but in order for me to go to this event, I had to buy a black dress. Everyone from the magazine had to wear black and since it was kind of formal, I definitely didn’t bring anything to suit the occasion. Fortunately, I found a dress somewhere at Zhongxiao Dunhua and I matched it with my patent leather plum Lacoste flats. Not the best ensemble, but it worked. I got my mom to curl my hair the morning of, but my extremely straight (and sometimes frustrating) hair was only mildly wavy by the time I got back to the office which was like, 4:00 PM or something.

Let’s see… somewhere in between the Bella Beauty Awards and today, I went to five or so photoshoots.

The first one had a model that was born in Japan and spoke with a honey-sweet lisp. She was reeeeally petite (maybe a bit shorter than I am) and of course, much much tinier in frame. I went with a Beauty Editor that day, her name is Tina and we were mainly taking pictures of skincare, I believe. I felt the make-up artist was a little unfriendly but it’s possible that my first ever photoshoot with a model was more awesome than the average photoshoot… in the first photoshoot, both the model and the make-up artist were really talkative and really nice. Eh. I really can’t remember anything particularly amazing about that day but I remember at one point the model had to lie on the ground and look up while maintaining a kind of… loungey pose. The photographer (who is like, over 6 feet tall) then climbed an industrial ladder to take the pictures. That moment really reminded me of ANTM.

The third model photoshoot I went to was was with Sophia (Fashion Editor) and it was also my first ever photoshoot where some shots required outdoor scenes. We went to a really pretty part of Taipei where there were some trees that shaded both sides of this sidewalk. The model was a little… I dunno. I kind of felt like she was wooden or something. Not very… expressive? I guess being a judge on ANTM is harder than it looks, I can’t even describe this model’s on-cameraness. >..< The EIC also borrowed some Fendi bags and shoes which were so delicious. The Fendi boots were very very nice as were the bags. Kind of heavy, but a lot better than some of Fendi’s remixed Spy Bags which are plain fugly.

Yesterday, I went to a photoshoot with a different Beauty Editor, her name is Nesha. I think she’s SO pretty. She has a really short haircuit and really pretty eyes. (She later told me that her eyelashes are actually permanently glued to her real eyelashes, giving her this really lush doe-eyed look.) Anyway, we went to a different photo studio to shoot her stuff, which was bright/candy-colored make-up. I thought the model was kind of ehh for this photoshoot, but she was marginally funny and kind of outgoing so I guess I can accept her. (Yes, that’s right, every model wants to be accepted by me!) I thought her face was a little weirdly shaped and the only reason why she’s a model is because she’s THIN. She’s not even tall (my height) or strikingly beautiful. The worst part of photoshoots I think, is waiting. So much time is spent in between make-up/wardrobe/light adjustments! It’s pretty aggravating, but not much can be done about the whole process. Random anecdote, but on the way to this photoshoot, I had to take a taxi and my driver was soo sketchy. His car was old and smelled weird, plus his license picture made him look like a pedophile. I guess I’m being rude, but he REALLY sketched me out. I made him stop like, a block early because I couldn’t wait to haul ass out of his creepmobile. :/ By the end of the day, it was POURING and so I took a taxi back to the office and whipped out my umbrella, which I now carry everyday. I have also picked up the really Asian habit of using an umbrella to block sunlight.

AND. TODAY. I WENT WITH SEAN ON A FULL DAY PHOTOSHOOT.

IT WAS AMAZING.

He is soooo adorable. Like, now that I’ve spent more time on the job with him, my crush has lessened somewhat, but I still think he’s sooo cute. He’s really like a big kid. The great thing about going on a photoshoot with Sean is that he ONLY deals with designers. And if he doesn’t the stuff is still decently high-end. Today’s photoshoot was a great experience. He took me, the photographer (whose name is Armani, by the way…), the photographer’s helper, the model (named Liv, she’s half-Asian), and the make-up artist/hairdresser to this boat on Danshui River for about 4 hours to take pictures of 7 different outfits. I got to handle fabulous stuff from YSL (clothes and shoes), Gucci (clothes, shoes… more like boots, belts), Louis Vuitton (shoes and clothes only, unfortunately), Prada (shoes, bags, clothes), Miu Miu (shoes, bags, clothes), and Dolce & Gabbana (shoes and clothes). There were SO many Prada/Miu Miu bags. I was in heaven. The bags are glorious. There was this one greyish-brown Miu Miu tote that is SO heavenly. And Prada’s shoes. My god. I’m so in love with the stuff. Anyway, it was pretty awesome how there were just bags and bags of this stuff, it was like… coming home from Costco. It sucked that I had to help move these huge and extremely heavy bags from the van/Sean’s car to the boat (the walk took like, 7 minutes too and back seriously) but it was worth it just to pretend that I had all these fabulous bags for a few hours. Being a model DEFINITELY sucks though. Because publishing magazine-stuff is always a month ahead, we had to take pictures of Fall fashion… which is usually heavy on the wool, knits, and leather. At one point, the model had to wear a cotton long-sleeved blouse (Gucci), wool capris (Gucci), a heavy knit sweater (Gucci, and this sweater was GIGANTIC), stockings, and knee-high leather boots. Sean also wanted her to wear two knit scarves (for color, of course) and one of the scarves had a little hat. His theme for that particular page was “knits.” Lucky model. The humidity was definitely at 100% today (if not more) and it was REALLY hot. She had to wear a lot of knits/wools and knee-high boots as well as stockings. I guess I would feel bad for her, but I was the one that had to fetch bags, shoes, clothing, pick up after her, and help Sean choose what to wear for the next set. The great thing about working with him is that he’s always positive and really happy. He’s definitely kind of disorganized and indecisive, but I’m pretty much the opposite so we worked well together. I even got to pick which outfits to take pictures of, which shoes to match, and best of all, WHICH BAGS went with WHICH OUTFITS. It was lots of fun. It was like playing a really deluxe version of Barbie. The polaroids of the shoot came out really really nicely. I can’t wait to see them in the magazine! It was pretty funny because at one point, Sean needed me to move his car (he was parked somewhere illegally) and after freaking out about his request 20 minutes prior, I agreed and moved his car for him. I was SOOO nervous, since I haven’t actually sat behind a wheel in like, 2 months now. I even have pictures of his car and the steering wheel. After the four hours or so on the boat and frantic cleaning up/loading the bags onto the car, we headed back to the photo studio to take pictures of just outfits/clothes. Again, Sean and I worked very speedily. He is seriously the best person to be an intern with. The whole day, I felt busy and needed and it was just so amazing touching all that yummy designer stuff. We actually managed to finish before 6 (which is the time I’m supposed to go home) and I have a feeling that I’m going to have an amazing night’s sleep.

In other news… my role as the resident Ugly Betty has officially been fulfilled with the Fashion Editor and Director both asking me to buy beverages/food for everyone while shooting. I was given company money to buy lunch and drinks from Seven-Eleven and some coffee place on two occasions. I had to haul like, 20 bottles back as well as a few boxes of food to feed everyone. I’m so proud!

Anyway. I know this is a long update and chances are you won’t read all of it, but I need to get it all down so I don’t forget say… a year from now.

Pictures will come eventually and boy do I have a lot of them!

Remember how I was complaining about packaging make-up and skin-care products into their right bags? Here is a little sample of all the packaging/sorting I had to do.

When we went to agnès b press conference, they had this woman do Henna on guests. This is the EIC of Cittá Bella getting her hand done. I didn’t because I don’t think my mom would’ve been too happy…

agnès b is a luxury travel brand. Here is some of the stuff you can buy when you go and brave hot sub-Saharan Africa.

And after your long trek, you can set up your own tent and pretend that you are Aladdin/Ali Baba and lounge on silken cushions drinking from decorated copper and bronze vessels that truly indicate your familiarity with foreign culture.

They also had two hookahs there, but I felt too sketched out to try a puff or two.

Here are the lights you are supposed to set up in the ceiling of your expansive teal tent.

Me listening to the sounds of Morocco on this cool vertical wall-mounted stereo with really comfy headphones.

Awkwardly enough, they had Taiwanese girls dancing like, Arabian dances (is that PC?) complete with swords and Aladdin-esque costumes. They also did a lot of ululating.

The hostess of the event asking them about their extraordinary dancing. (It was rather mediocre, in my opinion.)

On the weekend, we visited my uncle’s apartment a little bit outside of Taipei. His place is really pretty and they have an exercise room and an indoor pool as well as a movie theater all on the property.

That’s right, you heard them. NO BIRDS ALLOWED ON THE BUSES.

I went to the opening for Folli Follie’s new store near Taipei 101. Folli Follie specializes in watches and jewelery, but I think their clothes look really cheap. :/

British VIP talking about how awesome Folli Follie is.

Lots of people like Folli Follie apparently.

Folli Follie had REALLY cute waiters. One of them insisted that everyone take champagne because the photographers wanted a photo op of everyone raising their glasses to toast Folli Follie. 

Outside, they had this ice cream cart that gave out free ice cream. It was REALLY good ice cream. In the background, you can see a YSL bag that I LOVE. It’s the Fashion Editor’s and I have a smaller version of the same bag that is all pink. I’m totally saving up for the polka dotted version though.

Afterwards, we went to Taipei 101 to borrow clothes. Kookaï!

In my opinion, their clothes are very… prairie girl meets Ann Taylor.

The awesome Chloé finger food!

Blurry picture of people waiting for the show to start with their orange Chloé bags. *jealous*

I love their shoes this fall.

Except this pair. This model is wearing hooker/dominatrix shoes. :/

THESE shoes are cute. But probably ridiculously painful to walk in.

The Ballys show. They were seriously lacking places to sit which is POOR event planning.

Model.

All the models they used. The men are old. I feel like they are like, past-their-prime models.

The make-up artist’s gear at my first photoshoot with a model.

Some of the clothes I ironed.

Shoes. I actually didn’t set these up–the photographer’s interns did.

Model (on the left), make-up artist (background), and Senior Fashion Editor (right) discussing the metaphysics of the which handbag best suits the model’s outfit. These discussions last SO much longer than you can imagine.

Testing the light on the model. I’m a little shorter than the girl who’s testing the light, who is standing next to the model. Gives you some idea of scale.

Me and the EIC of Cittá Bella.

Me and the Designer

Me and the Fashion Director. Yes, this is Sean. He’s making a weird face, but I have some ninja photos that I *may* share discreetly that truly show his girlcrushworthiness.

Me with the Fashion Editor, also owner of fabulous Fendi and YSL bags.

Me with the Senior Fashion Editor.

And that concludes my picture post! My last day of work will be next Friday. I’m actually pretty sad about that…

Yesterday I attended press conferences/fashion shows for Chloé and Ballys. It was totally amazing. At the Chloé show, they gave out tiny desserts with Chloé kind of printed on the chocolate. They also gave out orange plastic Chloé bags to go with the press info, but apparently, there weren’t enough bags to go around, so I didn’t get one. I TOTALLY wanted one too, I could use it for school since apparently, orange is SO in this fall. It also says “I ♥ Chloé” on it, which definitely ups its value by like $200. It’s really just a cheap plastic bag though.

The Ballys show wasn’t as cool as the Chloé one, but still pretty nice. I got a gorgeous leather photo album from this show. It’s soft and smells like nice leather. I felt like the models at the Ballys show were kind of old-looking… especially the male ones. So far, none of the male models can compare with the male model from the Prada press conference. YUM.

At the Chloé show, I was sitting next to the Fashion Editor who was sitting next to the Editor in Chief of Cittá Bella. A few seats down was the totally adorable Fashion Director, Sean. I looked over briefly and saw him waving at me in like the cutest, child-like, enthusiastic wave ever. I didn’t realize at first that he was waving at me so I looked him kind of oddly and slowly waved back, just in case he was really waving at someone behind me. (I hate it when that happens–especially at school!) But he WAS waving at me and thank god for dim lights because my ears/cheeks were probably pink.

Today I went to a full-day photoshoot with a model. I know it doesn’t sound like a big deal, but this was my first photoshoot with a live person–all the other ones have just been clothes laid out. The model was pretty cool and SO FREAKING THIN. She wasn’t anorexic or anything though, like she came in with this giant Taiwanese sandwich thing and for lunch she had this unagi don with hella rice. She’s so thin that when she wears a belt, the hole for the smallest size still fits loosely around her. :/ Nothing else really happened for the rest of the day, but it was A LOT of picking clothes for her to wear, trying out different accessories and shoes, ironing/steaming clothes, folding clothes, looking at pictures, etc. etc. The whole process began at around 9:30 AM and I left the photoshoot place at like, 7:30 PM. I’m becoming more and more like Ugly Betty… it’s kind of weird. And like, I know I’m not “ugly” like American Ferrera is supposed to be on the show, but I’m definitely more heavy-set than those tiny Asian girls that inhabit this country. We shot a total of 10 different outfits with like, 4 hair changes for a 6 page spread in the September issue.

Tomorrow I’m starting at around 9ish too. I’m not sure if tomorrow will be as stressful/tiring as today was because the person I’m going to be hanging out with only does make-up/beauty so we’re going to be primarily doing faceshots and like, no full body shots. Should be pretty fun though…

I do have pictures to share of the Chloé show, the Bally show, and today’s photoshoot. But I have a headache and I have to wake up early tomorrow…

It’s going to be sooo exciting next week–on Tuesday, Cittá Bella is having some HUGE event that only occurs once a year. I’m supposed to go there really early with the rest of the advertising staff to help set up. Hopefully I can score some more awesome swag!

Anyway. As you can tell, I’m enjoying my internship a lot more and I’m more excited to go to the office every day.

I can’t wait to see all you guys on the 22nd though. (My mom didn’t realize our flight was on the 22nd instead of the 20th… >.<) Senior year is going to be AMAZING!

Anyway, I’ve come back from Hong Kong, as most of you know and I’m continuing my internship at Marie Claire and Cittá Bella. So far, it’s been a lot more interesting than the first couple of weeks. I’ve been going to a lot more press conferences and photoshoots. I forgot to bring my camera yesterday so I didn’t get to take pictures of the awesome VIP Presentation of a Taiwanese designer named Shiatzy Chen’s Fall/Winter ’07 collection. I do have the press kit that they gave out at the presentation, so I’ll take pictures of that (and the Prada/Miu Miu ones I got) when I’m not so lazy. The Shiatzy Chen thing was pretty cool. His store is in between Gucci and Louis Vuitton, so it’s definitely rather well-known and high-end. He’s not a big deal in the US (he only has boutiques in Paris, Shanghai, and Taipei) but apparently, a lot of Asian politicians’ wives and important businesspeople like to wear his stuff because it’s largely Asian-inspired and has some great detailing in both the embroidery and the fabrics. I got to watch a fashion show with around 14-15 models wearing Shiatzy Chen’s stuff and it was quite an experience. Going to all these fashion thingies makes me really not want to be a model. (Not that I could be one of course, my body type is entirely insufficient.) One of the models was wearing high heeled shoes that were much too small for her. Not only are heels inherently painful, when they don’t fit right, you are basically setting yourself up for a really attractive faceplant. Before the show though, I got to go with the Editor in Chief of Cittá Bella, who took me to this whole thing, to the VIP room. The VIP room has black painted walls, dimmed lights with several dark-toned candles throughout the room. There are Zen-like black stone of various sizes to give you that ambiance of luxury, inner peace, and like, perfect chi or something. There was also the very excessive sprinkling of tiny Swarvoski crystals all around the candles and and rocks. (They made it clear that the crystals were Swarvoski because they had little signs that told you who put together the interior and with what materials.) On the black tables, they had square ceramic plates (also in dark colors) with perfect little desserts. There was this tiny crème brûlée that I wanted to try, but I didn’t get the chance. There was some other stuff, but I didn’t get a good look… I’m sure I saw tiny crackers with caviar though. These little desserts were like, less than an inch in diameter and arranged in perfect 4×4 squares on the square plates. In the center of the room, there was a big wooden birdcage with 4 fat and tiny fluttering birds that were SO CUTE. People sat around in clusters on rather low dark wood benches that were backed in poofy dark green or purple pillows. Every other person had a Louis Vuitton bag. It was kind of revolting. Anyway, I got a tiny bottle of mineral water (everything’s tiny at these functions, it’s kind of lame… but I guess that’s why everyone in the industry is waifish. They serve food to satisfy Tom Thumb…) before we had to go to the fashion show.

Okay, onto the pictures.

LeSportsac’s tokidoki Fall/Winter ’07 Bag/Anniversary Party

Apparently, the beach pattern is “new” this year. Last season was notable for the heaven/hell pattern.

Some of the less flamboyant bags… but they are clearly still quite flamboyant.

LeSportsac tokidoki schmoozing action.

More of the display…

Thin, tan, and sparkly model numero uno.

The really tan male model who shows you that men can proudly carry tokidoki bags too!

Models showing how cool you can be with a tokidoki bag!

OMG LOOK HOW CLOSE I AM TO THE MALE MODEL. *swoon*

The flower in her hand was later given rather flirtatiously to some old European guys who showed up and were probably VIPs/important donor or Board of Directors people…

Male model expounding the merits of LeSportsac and tokidoki.

Prada and Miu Miu Fall/Winter ’07 Press Conference

The male model at this thing was CUTE. I wish I had the audacity to take a picture but he looked kind of angsty and I wasn’t sure if cameras were allowed. I’m posting the pictures now because some of this stuff is already in stores, so it’s not like I’m leaking information. I must say though, Prada’s shoes for men are quite sexy. If you guys have like, 600 dollars to spend on a pair of patent leather shoes, definitely go the Prada route.

Miu Miu’s bags this year. Apparently, the theme is “the new old bag.” So basically, they were last season’s bags only they went through considerable hand damage. As in, there were people actually paid to mar and stain the leather and beat it soft. So, if you have any dilapidated-looking leather bags, they’re in this fall.

The Prada fashion show that was played on a loop.

Miscellaneous Pictures from Magazine Outings and Hong Kong

This is where the first photoshoot I went to took place.

The shoes I had to take out of the boxes and set out in rows. I also had to make sure there was one shoe that was clearly visible in each box. Doesn’t sound too hard, but I was pretty freaked out that I would do something wrong. This was my first task of that day.

Testing the light…

The second time I went to pick up clothes, I went to Mango. This is apparently their Fall/Winter stuff…

Some of the clothes that the Senior Fashion Editor picked…

We went to pick up some hats…

… and I spotted a Lacoste!

Afterwards, we had some cold desserts. Pictured is boba + do hua (which is tofu + sugar water with a faint almond taste). It tastes a lot better than it sounds. (This is a recurring pattern in Chinese food, I think.)

This is the second photoshoot I went to. Some of the clothes I had to iron and lay out for the photographer.

Testing the light again. Apparently, this needs to be done a lot.

Chinky desensitizing toothpaste. Beats Colgate, I bet.

Food we ate in Hong Kong. It was pretty good, but I’ve had better.

Mom and me at Hong Kong International Airport. We are kneeling because I don’t have a tripod and we were being skilled with the digital camera timer. We put it on a trashcan and it wasn’t tall enough…

Me in front of the Dior store on Canton Street. My mom bought a pretty cute handbag per my recommendation. It’s this classic pink and has the signature Dior Cannage pattern only in perforation. Totally new for the Fall but also totally timeless. I’m getting to be quite the bag expert.

Mom and me in front of Chanel. We were also using a timer but we got to stand because the street was lined with these metal poles that were a good height and my mom’s camera has an adjustable lens thingy that can tilt up.

If you are this height and below, you can ride the subway for free.

Really good typical Hong Kong/Cantonese cuisine. The braised pork with rice is divine.

Me holding my Lacoste and Burberry shopping bags standing in front of a rather large ad campaign featuring the awesome Elyse Sewell from ANTM Cycle 1.

I thought this was funny.

This entire post took 45 minutes to type. I don’t know how long it took to upload the pictures though… Internet here isn’t as speedy as my Internet at home. It’s not ridiculously slow, but yeah…

Anyway. Hope you enjoyed that. I come back on the 20th of August.

Day Before Yesterday…
The Fashion Editor has decided to take me on as her little intern and let me follow her around as she does her errands, which mainly comprise of photoshoots, picking up clothes, going to press conferences about new lines, etc.

First, we went to a Japanese-influenced clothing store called 2Percent (2%) to pick up clothes. The clothing there has a kind of punk/grungy feel. Not exactly what I like, but it was definitely interesting. We picked up a lot of tank tops (that was the theme of the photoshoot we were doing) and things to match them with–pants, jackets, cardigans, etc. We spent around an hour and half there.

Then, we went to LeSportsac to attend a press event to mark the brand’s anniversay and to celebrate tokidoki’s Fall/Winter ’07 line. It was amazing. Upon entering, the Fashion Editor was given a small giftbag, which contained an special tokidoki stuffed pig, a voucher for free ice cream, and a packet that explained the line’s history. While in the store, we could admire the supreme cuteness of all the bags from the tokidoki ones that Asian girls go completely nuts for, to the marginally more practical ones that have normal (definitely using that word loosely) patterns like paisley on crack, stamps (?), and like, Austin Powersesque Shagadelic hearts. Then, models came out wearing beachwear and carrying several tokidoki bags each. The models were gorgeous. There were two girls and one guy. The girls definitely didn’t look like a lot of the famous celebrities in Taiwan/other Asian countries. They were really tall, really tan, really peppy. They were also like, doused in glitter, but they definitely can make you feel short and stubby. The guy was the same, except not particularly tall. Definitely really tan and really peppy. He definitely sold the entire concept of men carrying tokidoki, but honestly, I don’t know any guys that would. I have pictures from this event that I will definitely post.

After that, we went to a Prada/Miu Miu to preview their Fall/Winter ’07 lines for men and women. (Well, Miu Miu doesn’t have stuff for men.) Anyway. God, the place is so chic. We walk in, and the receptionist room is all white. On the back wall, in huge letters it says P R A D A. Two women, in identical short black bobs wearing fitted black suits ask us which magazines we’re from and give us offical Prada and Miu Miu folders with packets (containing pictures, in-depth descriptions, and of course, brand history). We walk through a short and narrow hallway into a main area actually has all of the products. A runway show is playing on a mounted plasma and on the walls, you have the clothing on racks. I have to say, this particular experience made me see fashion, at least high fashion, in a totally different light. Like, maybe this is intuitive and obvious, but I really always thought about fashion in terms of whether or not I would wear it, not for it’s artistic significance. The stuff they showed was more or less unwearable by the public, but when I saw the pieces with the attitude of me being in an art gallery with a museum curator explaining the works (yeah, Prada’s PR and Advertising Manager was there the whole time to explain each piece–including designer’s intent, materials, and construction), I definitely gained an appreciation for this batshit crazy fashion stuff that comes out every season. They served orange juice and club soda with lime as well as tiny bite sized desserts that were absolutely delicious. You all know what a dessert freak I am. I had a little kiwi tart and it was fantastic. I also have pictures of some of the stuff, but I’m apprehensive about posting them… I don’t think this stuff has even been published in magazines yet and I don’t want to get in trouble. They also had two models at this press conference. The girl was typically Asian, but of course, really tall. She had a really cute like, baby doll look about her and she made the sometimes weird Miu Miu clothes really appealing. (At one point, there was this skirt suit set that was made of see-through water-proof material…) Anyways, the bags this season for both Prada and Miu Miu are really gorgeous (I personally have my sights on this one Miu Miu bag) and the men’s line is quite nice in terms of shoes and bags. I’m not sure about the clothing… there’s some weird stuff going on with mohair and skinny dress pants with the elastic bands at the bottom (yes, like women’s exercise pants…). The mens shoes are really sexy. They have this hi-tech, metallic thing about them and they kind of shine like a new car. Prada and Miu Miu have some reeeally nice shoes too. The heels of Prada’s new shoes are very very nicely curved and Miu Miu added some great feminine touches to their shoes. Overall, I’m excited once this line actually gets more public… I think Prada is kind of underappreciated in the US. Everyone seems to be about the LV. And granted, Louis Vuitton is nice sometimes, designer stuff really doesn’t have to be just about the tell-tale monogram.

After the Prada thing we went to a place called Joseph to pick up more clothes. Joseph is like a mix of Banana Republic/Express/J. Crew. Maybe a more formal/professional version of the Asian-famous brand Giordano.

I went home with dead feet. Seriously. I wore my Lacoste flip-flops that have a tiny heel and it made trekking around the city extremely tiring. There was also a gnarly thunderstorm in the afternoon (like really loud thunder and torrents of rain) and I didn’t have an umbrella. My flip-flips got a little wet, but I’m confident that like, I dunno, Lacoste’s quality craftsmenship can triumph the damaging forces of raw Mother Nature.

Today, I spent around 6 hours photographing all the clothes we picked up (and then a lot that got shipped) and then some shoes and handbags (nothing high end though, unfortunately). My task the whole time was “steaming,” which is basically fancy-pants ironing of nice clothes. However, steaming mountains of clothes is not that fun when you’re in a room with no air-conditioning and only a fan that is not pointed in your direction for circulation. However, an upstairs photographer somehow lost some of his shots so I did get my fingers on some really nice menswear. I got to steam some really nice wool slacks from Louis Vuitton and a heavy wool jacket from Yves Saint Laurent. (The jacket wasn’t too attractive frankly speaking, but it was definitely appealing when compared to the black leather poncho that they were also photographing…) What kind of a man wears a leather poncho? I already question the rare instances when women wear ponchos…

Hopefully I’ll be able to do more of this kind of stuff. It’s kind of menial labor (especially the steaming) but it has to be done and I want her (the Fashion Editor) to feel that I’m helping her out and being useful, since the first day I hung out with her, she told me that the magazine really hates receiving interns because they’re always lazy and don’t follow directions and just lounge around instead of finding things to do. I don’t want to be like that! Especially since I got this amazing fashion internship as a result of luck.

Good thing the weekend is finally here… I’m still missing San Diego (mostly the weather) but I miss hanging out with friends… (the few times I’m allowed to that is!!)

Picture post is definitely coming soon… I also have a weird surprise soon. You’ll see.

Every picture had commentary and it was awesomeeeee.

Well anyway. I’m now going to try again. I have pictures of my office, funny things from my trip to the grocery store, and my apartment.

Some of the magazines that I’ve been reading.

The Burberry Boba I’ve mentioned. The guy who owns the store is cute. He’s also in his mid-30s I think (like the Fashion Director). :/ I think he’s why I go to his store instead of the 24839482309 boba places nearby. That, and I love Burberry plaid. The entire store has Burberry accents.

Some models that are really really excited to be Città Bella covergirls.

Even the clocks on the wall are Swatch!

The girl who sits next to me has a really decked out desk. Note the computer monitor wearing some sort of stuffed sheep.

You can kind of see my desk.

The fashion posters on a cubicle wall nearby. This cubicle is the Fashion Director’s cubicle. Kate Moss for Calvin Klein and a Dior ad campaign.

The desk of the girl behind me. I don’t even know what her computer monitor is wearing.

This isn’t in the office, but I took it at the vegetarian buffet place from the dinner with the Director. I think we should use plz more on official labels. The SVP is quite chic.

Household items!

I’m not sure what a washtank is, but based on the Mandarin, they are probably referring to a washing machine. I think a bathtub can be considered a washtank though….

Yes, that’s right. Sopp.

One of the best things about Asian countries is the pre-scooped ice cream. Ice cream is better in Japan though.

They sell scented trashbags!! Brilliant. From left to right, we have lavender scented, rose scented, and orange scented.

I’ve always wanted a whitening shower.

YES, see, the crocodile is an emblem of quality. Lacoste for the win!!!

For emo people who suffer from dry air, here is your Emo Dehumidifying Cylinder.

Black people toothpaste. Hehe.

My Apartment:

The office area where I do my stuff.

The bathroom. :/ I’m not a huge fan of the bathroom because it’s ugly and like, I dunno. I miss my bathroom…

The Living Room.

Hello Kitty magnets on the kitchen fridge. So cute!!

The little stand where my mom and I hang some of our clothes and bags. No, I don’t have a closet. It sucks.

Sleeping area. It kind of looks like it’s on the ground, but it’s actually on a raised platform… think of Japanese tatami beds and futons…

This is what you see when you are sitting on my bed. I drink way too much boba here….

Sorry if the commentary was rather lackluster and uninspired. You have no idea how awesome my post (that is now lost somewhere in cyberspace) was.

More pictures coming of an anniversary event for LeSportsac celebrating the tokidoki Fall/Winter ’07 line and my preview of Prada’s Fall/Winter ’07 Line.

My least favorite part is sharing an elevator with 15 other people and having it stop at practically every single floor and being the last person to get off because my desk is on the highest floor. On the way down, it’s the same exact story.

What exactly do I do from 10:30 to 6:00? I read magazines. So far, I’ve flipped through about 20 thick magazines ranging from those intended for financially dependent preteens (this particular magazine is actually called ViVi, haha) and the really high-fashion stuff like Marie Claire that can’t get past a page without using the words Louis, Vuitton, Prada, Bottega, Veneta, Balenciaga, or Chloé. I freaking love this designer stuff… it’s almost like shopping. Fuck, I’ve decided that I love fashion. But I hate how I like this kind of atmosphere but like at the same time, I feel that the industry is so… volatile, competitive, not-rewarding, etc. etc. And sometimes kind of lame. You who are actually reading this most likely have heard my reservations about this already.

I work under the Managing Editor and Editorial Director. She has given me some kind of “research project” (as she calls it) that consists of (from what I gather from her really ambiguous instructions): market analysis, competition analysis, and (she emphasized this several times) interviews with the internal distributor and the distributor. I don’t know if those two things are one and the same or if there’s something called external distributor…? Regardless, I’m instructed to make some kind of “map” that places all the magazines versus their markets. I also could be completely wrong because her ambiguous directions were written in decent English, but her verbal instructions were in Mandarin and she was both intimidating and awe-inspiring and used like, educated Mandarin. So far, I’ve emailed her what I’ve done and she has emailed me back saying “We must meet so that I can explain more clearly” which certainly does not bode well for me. I’m not sure if I care though… like, I’m clearly insignificant, whatever “work” I’m doing sounds like it could be important, but like, what I want to know is, isn’t this market analysis stuff important and if so, shouldn’t they have a paid someone who actually has like, a degree in Marketing to organize all this?

I’m enjoying myself, more or less though. It’s great sitting in an air-conditioned room with my own little space and have a huge stack of magazines to kind of work through. I don’t know what I’m going to do once I’m done with the stack. (Which should be soon, since I only have 2 Marie Claires left and like, one Mina.) I’m hoping that I can just ask the secretary for more older magazines, but I can’t really provide a reason why since I’ve already used the reason of “research” and she has already given me some. I think I will have to talk to the distribution people evenutally, which is rather daunting… Why can’t she just email them or something and ask them what’s up? I think that’s basically what I’m supposed to do, but again, I’m not sure.

Another downside is lunch. We have really long lunches (actually, I don’t even know if there’s a lunch limit) but basically what happens is everyone leaves at 12:30 PM and we go to like a really busy area that is just full of restaurants, convenience stores, and drink stands. It’s kind of like the Highlands, only not so organized in a shopping center, and the only things that are corporatized are the convenience stores that literally occupy every corner here (and in the rest of the city, essentially). The first day, I was taken to lunch by the Director’s personal secretary and yesterday (day 2) I was taken by the Managing Editor’s personal secretary and her friends. I felt awfully intrusive and like, totally inadequate because when they inquired about how I got my internship it totally made it apparent that I competely relied on connections and that in a real sense, I’m not supposed to be there anyway because interns at magazines like these are usually in college. I know I did get this internship because of like my uncle and it’s annoying because this situation is pretty similar to the whole college and legacy thing. I want to feel like I earned something!

In other news, as I’m sure you have all heard my gushing, yesterday, a guy came over and asked me if I was a new coworker. I said no, that I was just a random intern and he gave me his business card and a copy of the latest Cittá Bella which is a pretty popular Taiwan-only magazine. If you didn’t know, Marie Claire comprises of their international division, seeing as it’s really a French magazine. Cittá Bella is kind of the pet of the Director (she started it) and it’s also quite thick. In terms of thickness of these magazines, you can imagine like, a wedding magazine. Anyway, back to the guy. He’s pretty cute but I kind of just assumed that he was a mid-level employee, since I couldn’t read his business card. It turns out, he is the Fashion Managing Editor.

I’ve been too lazy to upload pictures, but I do have a few, mostly of my office surroundings, but I have one last little anecdote to share.

I bought boba at this place that is decorated in Burberry plaid. It’s so pretty. The cups are Burberry, the menu is Burberry and the straws there are all black, to match the cups. It felt very chic.

Oh, and yesterday, instead of getting Burberry Boba, I got some green tea mixed with some of that yogurt drink with a red foil lid on the plastic bottle. You know what I’m talking about?

Today, I managed to avoid inconveniencing other people and went out to lunch myself. I bought myself a tall bottle of iced tea (Jasmine Honey Tea) and had a green onion pancake. It was very yummy but I think I burned my fingers the slightest because it was so hot.

I guess that was more like 4 anecdotes, but my life right now is pretty much pages and pages of magazines with maybe a random interesting thing.

The girl sitting next to me has a pretty decorated desk, as I will show you at some point.

I’m missing San Diego weather and I am craving In ‘N Out.

So freaking sophisticated.

That’s the best word to describe her. She told my uncle that she was waiting for us downstairs. When we got down to the front of the building, she was in a really shiny green Jaguar and she was driving with white gloves. Geez, right?

Anyway, that was probably the most interesting part of the evening.

We went to a restaurant (she said that the place had a valet–clearly nothing else is important when choosing restaurants) and it was vegetarian because she is vegetarian. The food is decent, nothing to right home about (and certainly not as good as anything I can get off the streets for like 1/20th of the price). The four of us chat about everything from magazine work, to yoga, to me.

Things I know about The Director:
:: She lived in India for a month, studying Indian spirituality or something. (Maybe this is the polite way of saying she whored it out studying the Kama Sutra?)
:: She lives in a REALLY nice part of Taipei. My dad’s oldest brother lives there, but they don’t really interact much. He used to run the Taipei Newspaper.
:: She speaks really slowly and deliberately.
:: She lived in Vancouver for four years.
:: Her college major was Interior Design.
:: She says her “hobby” is buying houses, fixing them up, and selling them. (What a cheap hobby!)
:: When my mom brought her gift to Lisa (a bottle of Chanel No. 5 perfume) Lisa looked down, smiled, and said, “Oh, Chanel. Thanks.” I’m not quite sure if it was a look of disdain or a look of measured appreciation. I have problems evaluating her tone in the same way I have problems answering tone questions on the SAT.
:: She LOVES yoga/taichi/meditation.
:: She has really good diction. Listening to her speak Mandarin, I’m sometimes like “Oh, damn,” when she explains the merits of Future Problem Solving on the critical thinking capacities of children so much better than I can.

This was the highlight of my evening.
:: On my clothing: I was wearing a grey A&F top with an…embroidered front and dark green capris. When we got to the topic of my internship, she said, with a hint of half-heartedness, “Oh, usually people dress more stylishly in the office…” BURN.

It’s like almost 11:00 PM here and I’m SO tired from my first day. I’ll write about it tomorrow at the office. I also have pictures!

Hopefully, this post is more enjoyable than the last, which was mostly text.

Allons!

The [in]famous Rosemary Tang, mother of Kelly Tang standing next to a sign that says that my office will be on the 11th floor. The building is pretty awesome, it has a bookstore at the main level and reeeeally nice air-conditioning.

On the way to dinner, we sat in a taxi that had a TV. The clarity of the photo is certainly undeniable. But there was a TV!!! *gesticulates*

The spread. It was very very delicious. You can see the sausages on the far left (almost as good as German sausage… well maybe comparable. Good in a different way!), some leafy green vegetables stir-fried with garlic, and noodles with this REALLY good kind of meat sauce. I know meat sauce sounds kind of… bloody. But it’s yummy. Think of like, sloppy joes or something, only not so stringy.

My mom, per my dad’s recommendation, orded some kind of bamboo dish. This is what we got. It is bamboo, but it’s like, not what we’re used to eating. This is the equivalent of ordering pineapple in a restaurant they give the whole thing to you, so you have to cut it yourself. Something like that.

My mom met up with some of her college friends. These are the daughters of one them and they live in the LA area. The taller one goes to UCSD. I am now incredibly short even by Asian standards. Go me!! I also have sausage arms. But these sausages are not the good German kind. I’m not sure what kind of obsession I have with sausages.

Me taking pictures while my mom finds the meaning of life in the form of bus stop signs. Her shoulder can be seen in the lower left. This genre photo (I don’t think that exists, but wtfever) alludes to the punishment God unleashed upon the earth while Noah was on his very large boat through the overcast and sombre sky. The photo is punctuated by the jovial, dandelion accents of the background buildings and the taxi in the mid-ground. The Trinity is represented by the woman’s triangular rear.

Can you spot Rosemary Tang?

Across the street of the bus stop. In Taiwan, many bus stops are in the middle of the road. It’s true! I’ll take a picture of that next time.

On the subway.

Life in [Cartoon] Motion. I really like their aqua seats.

Oooh ok, food. On the left, they’re kind of like, noodles made of tofu. The noodles are mixed with sesame oil, some salt, carrots, and celery. Very good and light. On the left, you have cucumbers with pepper and garlic. Also really good. Each of these dishes cost NT $25. The exchange rate is around NT $34 to $1 US. So yeah. Hella cheap!

Me in the wonton place looking kind of bloated/tired.

Asian countries have the awesomest bakeries ever. Here is the cookie display. In Asian bakeries, upon entering, you get a tray and a pair of… pincers? What the hell do you call those snappy things? You go around the store pincing (pincering?) whatever you want and then you pay.

The bread/roll display. I personally recommend the pineapple roll and the green onion roll. VERY GOOD.

An excellent example of some skilled pincer action.

Ok, three words: Louis Vuitton Cookies?

And now I conclude with this picture that was on my camera for some reason. I’m in the apartment that I’ve stayed in for the past 10 days or so. I may give you a little tour of that later.

I’m surprised my hand actually looks proportional to my body. Ya’ll know I have tiny hands…