Fashion Celebrates Michelle Obama from WWD June 19, 2008

For her first official meet-and-greet with New York's fashion industry, Michelle Obama adhered to the cardinal rule of style — she wore all black.
At a fund-raiser in her honor Tuesday night, Obama chose to wear a black ensemble by Isabel Toledo, accented with a striking costume necklace by Tom Binns. The potential first lady arrived promptly to the reception at the Sikkema Jenkins & Co. gallery in Chelsea, minutes after hosts André
Leon Talley, Anna Wintour and Shelby Bryan. (The other co-host, Calvin Klein, who opened his Perry Street home for a private dinner afterward, arrived later on the arm of his daughter, Marci.) Once inside Talley introduced her to the crowd, which included Catherine Malandrino, Erin Fetherston, Cynthia Rowley, Lisa Airan, Thakoon Panichgul, Ralph Rucci, Julie Gilhart, Amanda Brooks, Iman, Chris Benz and Yigal Azrouël, who had paid either $1,000 or $2,300 to attend. And, according to one source, the crowd was "pumped" by Obama's presence, in spite of the soaring temperatures inside the venue.

"I'm excited for Obama becoming president," said Zac Posen, who was wearing a "Yes, we can" T-shirt emblazoned with Barack Obama's face under his suit. "I think it's always great for someone who represents our country to look good, but most important is for the values of our country to be in place."



Peter Som echoed those sentiments. "I think she's amazing," he said. "Michelle and Barack are hopefully the light at the end of a very dark tunnel. And she's fabulously styled. She seems that she has an amazing sense of self. She has impeccable taste, so she is not going to need any help from anybody else."

Tory Burch, in preparing for the event, had been reading up on her. "I have a lot of questions, but I'm just excited to meet her," Burch said, adding of her style: "She has a great figure and is so easy to dress."

At the reception, Obama spoke for an estimated 20 minutes about meeting and falling for her husband while working at a law firm in Chicago. They were the only two African-Americans at the firm, and he was a summer associate and she was the lawyer to whom he was assigned. According to sources, Obama spoke of how she was initially less than impressed with her husband's background, odd name and ears, even as he kept asking her for a date. Eventually they went out for a sandwich and then to a church she always visited, where he sat with people in the basement and explained how they needed to change things. She praised her husband's ability to connect with people at all levels. She talked about how there is a choice in this country between "the way things are" and "the way things should be," said one observer.

Croatia Online - Getting Around

Of course, one of the best ways of getting around Croatia is by boat and our

Croatia Cruising Companion will help you make the most of your trip. For those that aren't chartering their own boats, a ferry trip is a good substitute. Nowhere on the mainland coast is far from a ferry port to one or more of the islands and, in many cases, the journey is at least as pleasurable as the arrival. The main state owned ferry line, Jadrolinija, has good English pages and you can search the schedule on the map. Click on the various districts and you will get the local, rather than the international ferry services. A number of other companies run smaller local services, normally just in the high season, so check at the local tourist offices to find out what's on offer.

If you've hired a car then an up to date map is your best friend. The motorway is still being worked on to the south of Split towards Dubrovnik, but from both Istria and Zagreb to Split, the work has long since been completed. You may prefer the scenic views of the coast road but the motorway can save a great deal of time for long trips or to get to places like the Krka National Park and its spectacular waterfalls.

For online help, link to the Hrvatski Autoclub site which also has English pages and plenty of road information, including maps.

Thanks to Blue Yachts for today's photo of a couple of their charter boats going through their paces.

Croatia Online - Cost of Living Update

We last reported on the cost of living in Croatia nearly a year ago. The major change since then is the exchange rate. Whereas, last year, we used to use 10 kunas to the pound as a rough guide and get a pleasant surprise, now it's not so pleasant. Today's exchange rate is 9.16 which is slightly better than it has been but still no where near the 10.5 we had got used to over quite a long period.

Apart from that, so far, hotel prices seem to have remained fairly static and just a few restaurants, so far, have put up their prices. We can still buy a 30 cl beer at our local cafe for 9 kunas but one of our favourite good value restaurants in Trogir has put their beers up to 15 kunas. Other than that, food and drink prices in the supermarket still remain relatively static, a packet of cigarettes is still about 15 kunas and we eat out for about 250 kunas a head - main course, bottle of wine and coffee. Petrol of course has gone up as elsewhere though it's still quite a bit cheaper than in the UK.

Apart from that, most of what we wrote last year still stands - link to http://croatiaonline.blogspot.com/2007/07/our-earlier-posting-on-cost-of-living.html for a full report.

Croatia Online - Primošten

Primošten is one of our favourite Dalmatian mainland coast towns. Not only is it picture postcard pretty - from a distance as well as up close - but it has pretty well everything you need from a seaside holiday. Hotel Zora, set apart from the town, provides 3 and 4 star luxury, a separate beach, swimming pool and entertainment. In the compact town itself there are some quality apartments to let, oodles of restaurants, including two or three with spectacular views, and cafes and ice cream parlours galore. The pebble beaches are child friendly and a walk around the compact peninsula reveals some secluded beaches, mostly concreted, and some lovely old houses. With all that, Primošten retains its unspoilt charms, and the magnificent cemetery at the top exemplifies the cared for feel that embraces the whole of the town.

Nautical tourists can find out more about overnighting in Primošten on our sister site Croatia Cruising Companion

Croatia Online - Split's Deserted Riva

Only a couple of years ago, you'd be queuing for a seat at any one of the several cafes on Split's seaside promenade on a sunny summer afternoon. Now you'll feel very lonely drinking your coffee in the clinical ambience after the expensive makeover. A couple of the cafes, like the one in the foreground, have rebelled against the dictat that says all the chairs must be uncomfortable, uniform, metallic, space-age-type designs. However they can't do much about the concrete slabs which reflect too much heat and light, or the ugly metal lights and awning machinery. So the result is that locals, and tourists in the know, head inside the Diocletian Palace for their coffees and the Riva has become something of a ghost town. Split residents have voiced their views vociferously and indeed may well get some concessions. Most people just want a return to how it was, where the cafes had scope for taseteful and individual terraces, coffees were a reasonable price and the beautiful facades of the old buildings weren't obliterated by ugly metal poles.

Latest nautical news - Croatia Cruising Companion

There's no better accessory than a smile

courtesy of Copenhagen Street Style

This picture is a perfect example of how much better someone looks when they are comfortable in their clothes. Too often women are concerned with being trendy and forget that fashion is actually supposed to make you look better! This girl is wearing a simple outfit, but that smile makes her look amazing.

Also, be sure to check out Copenhagen Street Style For the next three months it will be featuring street fashion shots from around New York City. It will be interesting to see an outside perspective of the best-dressed New Yorkers.

YSL, vous nous manquerez

Croatia Online - Where To Go

Where NOT to go in Croatia might be a better title for today's posting. And the answer is Dubrovnik. Yes it's a jewel of a town but the locals are getting sick and tired of the small alleyways of the old town being jammed to capacity by the the passing cruisieliners, and it's only June!

On Friday three cruiseliners arrived at the same time and poured out 12,000 passengers into Dubrovnik's lovely but tiny medieval core and the city's indignant inhabitants were urged by the local press to stay at home. There have been as many as 5 at the same time and one, exclusively gay, cruiseliner caused a bit of a shockwave last year amongst the conservative catholic dalmatian community when its passengers continued their cruise onshore. Apart from the berthing fees (which are sizeable and very dear to the heart of the port authority) the passengers spend very little onshore so it's easy to understand why Dubrovnik's citizens have had enough. They'd much rather look after the land based tourists who don't seem to baulk at the fact that Dubrovnik's prices, along with those in Hvar town, are at least 50% higher than elsewhere on a like for like basis.

It's a shame to miss Dubrovnik's city walls but is it worth it under these conditions? Likewise it's a shame to miss Hvar Town but similar questions apply. Other destinations that get crowded in the summer are Korčula Town, Trogir, Istria's main coastal towns and just about everywhere in August but there are still some great escapes. Those seeking tranquility should try the islands of Mljet, Lastovo, Ugljan and Dugo Otok. For complete respite, chartering a boat, with or without a skipper is the answer - just check out our Croatia Cruising Companion for the best out of the way places.

Today's photo is of one of the offending "vehicles" guarding the bridge over the River that leads to Dubrovnik's ACI Marina. Keep on heading past the river and the ship and you'll find the old town and Dubrovnik's port of Gruz.

Croatia Online - Superyacht Owners' Guide

Never let it be said that Croatia Online doesn't cover all ends of the spectrum when it comes to reporting on tourism news in Croatia. In a week when Czech tourists are extremely unhappy about Croatia's decision to ban the import of foodstuffs by travellers on a budget, Boat International has published a Superyacht Owners' Guide:the best of Croatia. Croatia Online's editor, Jane Cody, was fortunate enough to be asked to write the guide which is packaged with the July 2008 edition of the Boat International magazine.

The guide, although requiring extensive research, was a joy to write. Particularly revealing was just how much Croatia's appeal to superyacht owners had changed in the three years since an earlier feature for Boat International. Yes, the rules and regulations for foreign flagged yachts are still less than ideal, albeit getting easier to work with, however Croatia's 5 star offering has improved dramatically and it's still difficult to beat the vast wealth of natural and cultural splendour which makes Croatia one of the best cruising grounds in the world.

This book is the third in Boat International's series of Superyacht Owners Guides: the best of... and follows on from Valencia and the Carribean. Though it's obviously primarily aimed at megayacht visitors, it has plenty to offer to other tourists to Croatia, nautical or land based. Contents include culture and background, food and drink, entertainment, UNESCO in Croatia, superyacht facilities, area highlights, special destinations, itineraries and captain's notes, all beautifully illustrated in a glossy A5 book produced with Boat International's normal regard for first class quality.

Space and format constraints didn't allow us to mention the many people who helped us in the research for the book but a special thanks to Alen Maslov, a captain for Magnum Yacht Charter, who was generous with his time and expertise in assisting to pinpoint the best destinations for superyachts, and to John Nash, of Marina Facility Solutions, who was similarly generous in helping to identify, in detail, superyacht facilities available in Croatian marinas and elsewhere. The superyacht owners' guide was produced in association with Nautical Center Prgin (NCP) who are leading the field in superyacht facilities for Croatia and planning the first ever dedicated Superyacht Marina in the Mandalina area of Šibenik, in association with IGY.

Many thanks also to Boat International for offering the opportunity to report on Croatia from a different, timely and fascinating angle, for being a pleasure to work with, and for producing such a quality end product. The July magazine, with the book supplement, is out now in the UK, and available imminently from good international bookstores in Croatia, such as the International Book Shop on Split's Riva. Otherwise you can get hold of a copy via the website.

Finally, note that the Superyacht Owners' Guide is not intended to replace a conventional pilot or navigational guide, simply to highlight the best of what Croatia has to offer to superyacht owners. Dare we say it makes the perfect partner to our Croatia Cruising Companion?!

Lovely Lady from Stockholm

courtesy of facehunter