I have another Hits no Olimpo holographic polish for you (I posted about Hits Apolo awhile ago), and this one is just as fantastic. Dionisio is a deep, vibrant purple, with one of the strongest linear holographic effects I've ever seen. Behold!
The next picture is in the shade, but it's still noticeably holographic.
Like Hits Apolo, Dionisio has a glassy, slightly jelly-like quality to it that is absolutely gorgeous.
Now, on an unrelated note, I blogged about "Hero Shade" Nails Inc Porchester Square last week, and I also mentioned my visit to "Hero City" Odessa, and shared a few pictures. I realize that Odessa wasn't the only Hero City I visisted- I'd neglected Kyiv! So now I'm feeling a little sorry for not showing Ukraine's capital city a little love. Here are a few pictures of Kyiv.
The main passenger train station in Kyiv; very grand!
Just outside the train station; I've never seen a "McFoxy" before, so I had to take a picture. I wondered if it was a subsidiary of McDonald's, but it turns out it's a Ukrainian version of McDonald's (and the subject of some copyright infringement kerfuffle according to this article in the Kyiv Post).
Independence Square (Maidan Nezalezhnosti) in Kyiv:
Near the Maidan, I saw this cute heart-shaped "tree"/statue beside a fountain... I thought it made for a rather sweet picture, seeing the girls posing for pictures with it.
St. Sofia Cathedral, which dates back to 1037:
Near St. Sofia Cathedral, a rather heroic statue of Bohdan Khmelnytsky, a kind of cossack military hero.
A few pictures of St. Michael's Monastery (iconic and beautiful golden domes):
The gigantic "Friendship of Nations Arch", dedicated to the unification of Russia and Ukraine (built in 1982); of course, not long after that the breakup of the Soviet Union transpired.
What do you think of this brief look at Hero City Kyiv? And Hits Dionisio, for that matter? ;)
Today I have a Nails Inc polish to share with you: Porchester Square. This is a putty-ish taupe/grey creme, and I love it. Perfect formula, easy to apply, and shades like these are so easy to wear- definitely a good shade to have on hand for those days when you need something effortlessly elegant and beautifully neutral.
Now, as you might have noticed, this particular bottle of Porchester Square sports a sticker heralding it as a "Hero Shade". I have no idea what that means in the nail lacquer context, but it did make me think of the "Hero City" designation bestowed upon several cities in Russia and the former USSR. The "Hero City" title was awarded to cities that displayed outstanding heroism during the Great Patriotic War (World War II). It's quite interesting stuff, and if you want to know more I recommend checking out the Wikipedia article on Hero Cities.
I was lucky enough to visit one of the Hero Cities while I was in Ukraine- so here are a few pictures of Hero City Odessa!
The (rather grand) train station:
Beautiful Odessa Opera and Ballet Theatre (gorgeous neo-baroque architecture!):
Slightly frightening architectural details:
The lovely interior of the Opera and Ballet Theatre. For the record, the performances I saw here were top-notch, which is remarkable considering tickets only cost about $15.
Odessa has a lot of fantastic cafes and restaurants! Below you can see the Cafe Fanconi...
...and my favourite cafe, компот (Compote). The pastries here were delicious!
A view of the harbour, as seen from the top of the Potemkin steps (the tall structure is a huge hotel).
Looking up at the Potemkin steps (easier to climb down that to climb up...).
Well, what did you think of Hero Shade Porchester Square? Does it deserve its Hero Shade honorific?
After a day of wearing Essie Forever Yummy, a gorgeous red creme, I decided to layer a favourite glitter of mine overtop. This is one of my Ukrainian polishes, and while the brand name appears to be "maX maR", it doesn't seem to have a colour name. Have a look:
My best guess is that this is maX maR #21. It is a mixture of fine red glitter along with larger red and shiny gold glitters. I'm quite fond of it- it's a good layering glitter, and has a very glossy finish. It makes me think of little glowing embers.
I'm always a little self-conscious while wearing red nails, let alone glittery red ember nails... does anyone else feel that way? I never feel the slightest bit self-conscious over blue nails, or purple nails, or any other colour for that matter. Just red.
I have to admit, I don't think I would survive in the world of Ukrainian fashion for very long if I'm shy about red nail polish. The fashion in Ukraine is... well... it's BOLD. I'm not sure how else to explain it. Sometimes that's a good thing, other times a bad thing. At universities in North America I've seen people come to class in pyjama bottoms, or more commonly the ubiquitous yoga pant (thanks for that, lululemon). This would be unheard of in Ukrainian universities. Instead nearly everyone wears sky high stilettos, and what I would generally consider club wear is common every-day wear. The most intense fashion choice I witnessed from a female student was an electric blue furry vest, paired with skin-tight shiny black pleather pants- with requisite stilettos, of course. On an icy day I could hardly navigate the sidewalks in my winter boots, let alone stilettos!
Here are a couple fun pictures of mannequins I saw at a shopping mall during my time in Ukraine:
I think there's only one way to adequately sum up Ukrainian fashion, and that's with a photo of this window display I saw in Odessa:
Today I have yet another indie polish to share with you. Candy Coated is a lacquer created by Pretty and Polished; you can purchase her polishes from her Etsy shop. Candy Coated consists of small round purple and pink glitter in a cool pink base. It covers nicely in three coats, and gives the appearance of a "jelly sandwich", without the extra layering that kind of manicure usually entails.
I actually kind of dislike taking manicure pictures while holding the tiny miniature sized bottles... so instead, you'll get this:
Yep, that's a mace. A Ukrainian "bulawa", to be precise. I got it during my first trip to Ukraine; I couldn't resist it, because honestly, how cool is that?! Don't worry, I didn't attempt to bring it home in my carry on luggage. I think that might have raised a few eyebrows.
Early on in the lifetime of this blog, I wrote a post about some of my experiences travelling in Ukraine; I think I'd like to tell you a little more about my first impressions of life in Ukraine. The second time I visited Ukraine, it was to spend a semester teaching at a university. When people ask me what the biggest adjustments to life in Ukraine were, I often talk about the apartment I was living in.
Okay, so admittedly the trees weren't at their most photogenic, and the pavement was pretty ripped up, but after awhile I began to realize this was a pretty good area of town. Very close to the city centre, and a lot of the buildings were lovely old relics of the Austro-Hungarian era, but unfortunately in a state of disrepair.
Arriving at my apartment very late at night, and after a long couple days of travel, I wasn't exactly heartened by my first view of the interior of the building. Nor was the natural gas I could smell in the entryway very reassuring (especially in the older areas of the city, natural gas is the main way of heating buildings- with gas lines running everywhere, there is often a small leak here or there).
The shower was another big adjustment for me, coming from the land of instantly available hot water from every tap. In order to have hot water for showering, one manually lights a gas fire under that metal cylinder of water, and then waits for it to heat up. After about 45 minutes, the water will be hot, and you'll have about 10 minutes for a shower. Additionally, when it comes to water, drinking from the tap is a no-no; only drink bottled water in Ukraine.
These gas burning furnaces were the method by which I could heat my apartment (apparently this style of heating is very common in the older areas of the city, but they do have more modern features in newer areas). They were quite inadequate for heating my apartment during the colder parts of winter, but once it turned into spring, it wasn't such a problem. It was a huge adjustment for me, to learn how to manually turn on the gas and light it safely. I was so worried about not doing it quickly enough and letting too much gas out! My elderly landlady laughed at my squeamishness, and I did get the hang out it eventually, but on my first night in the apartment it was a lot to take in. I was very careful to listen for the sound of the flames while I had the gas on during a windy day, because sometimes the flame would blow out, and then gas would just be running... not an ideal situation!
These were the bigger challenges I experienced initially while adapting to Ukrainian life. Eventually I did adjust to the differences, and I'm very glad I spent time there! I met a lot of kind people, and it was very interesting to immerse myself in a different way of life.
I'll leave you with a quirky picture I took while in Ukraine; I often saw these teapots-on-a-fence-post around town, and I'm not sure what the deal is with them. If you know, please tell me!
In an attempt to spice up yesterday's manicure, I layered a purple glitter over top. I like the effect; the glitter is quite fine and sparse, which gives a kind of speckled robin's egg appearance.
The brand is "Jerden", but other than that, I can't tell you much about the polish. The label is in cyrillic, and I purchased this while on my first visit to Ukraine. If anyone understands Ukrainian/Russian, here's the label:
At most, I can make out what looks like "Lak Manicure" at the top, but I don't have any clues as to a name for this polish. I was in Ukraine for an academic conference, and while travelling through the city of L'viv I couldn't resist popping into a drugstore to scope out some foreign polishes. I came across this pretty, and it came home with me. I did find it a bit funny to explain to an older, male professor why I simply HAD to see what Ukraine could offer in the way of nail polish. I told him that it was my "thing".
I also wanted to include the above picture of one of my very favourite necklaces. I bought it during my second, longer stay in Ukraine; I had the chance to do some travelling, and while in Odessa I saw it and became quite enamoured with it. It reminds me of some very happy memories of a beautiful city. Odessa is definitely my favourite place that I visited while in Ukraine. Fascinating harbour on the black sea, the Potemkin Stairs, beautiful city centre with great shopping and restaurants, and some truly stunning architecture. For example, check out the Odessa Opera House! Gorgeous.
I have wonderful memories of my time in Odessa; however, I have to admit that getting there was a challenge. Travel in Ukraine isn't always the easiest, and certainly it isn't a terribly accessible country for a foreigner who doesn't speak Ukrainian or Russian.
The first leg of the journey was by bus, which my lovely Ukrainian friend assured me would be "very comfortable". In fact, it was incredibly cramped, stuffy, and kind of... smelly. Ukrainian roads aren't the smoothest ride.
Another challenge was changing from bus to train in a small town around midnight. There was all of one cab available at the bus station around 9pm when the bus arrived, and negotiating a fare to the only reputable hotel in town (a safe place to kill time and grab a meal before heading to the train station at midnight) was a process. One thing (well, one of many things, really...) that you should know about Ukrainian taxis is to agree on a fare before getting into the taxi. Chances are that there won't be a meter (and there almost definitely won't be seat belts, fyi); if you don't agree on a price before getting into the taxi, you'll get totally screwed when you arrive at your destination. If you're a foreigner from the West and an anglophone, avoiding speaking English.
After successfully navigating the taxi ride to the hotel, the next three hours were spent eating borsch and vareniki at what appeared to be a mostly deserted (with the exception of the staff) hotel, and watching a movie on a small TV in the corner of the restaurant. Which happened to be a Russian-dubbed version of the late 90's sci-fi horror flick "Virus" starring Donald Sutherland and Jamie Lee Curtis. If you've never seen Virus, here's what you missed out on (caution for strong language and mild gore):
Ahh, Donald Sutherland. Yeah, I have no idea what accent he was supposed to be approximating there. Any guesses?
So it was like that, but with Russian dubbing over the English. It was an intriguing three hours spent watching this with the hotel staff. This was followed by a mile and a half long walk in the dark (street lights are sporadic in a lot of areas) to reach the train station.
The train station was very atmospheric. It was a good Soviet-era structure; blocky and grey, but with a certain imposing splendour. The train was another matter. Ukrainian trains are an experience all on their own. Four people to a compartment: two bunks on the top, two on the bottom. Train trips in Ukraine tend to be lengthy, so people get to know each other. All the main rail lines were built heading towards Moscow, so depending on where you're situated, and where you want to go, you may end up heading away from your destination before you head towards it. This means a journey which you might expect to take 5 or 6 hours to drive by car, could take 18 hours by train (they're not the swiftest trains). There is a certain camaraderie among the car occupants- it's a genuinely shared experience, and usually people are curious to know you, talk to you, find out what you're doing/where you're going. I really liked that about Ukraine. English speakers are a rarity, so people tend to be curious and welcoming, unlike more touristy countries where the influx of English speaking tourists is met with a cooler reception.
However, if you think you're going to see the countryside from your train compartment, no dice. The windows are long fogged over from decades of travel, and they are bolted shut. With brings me to my major problem with train travel in Ukraine. Ventilation and temperature control. On all my train trips, the train has been unbearably hot. The heat being pumped through the train car was oppressive. It was a sauna. And it wasn't just me sweating away and gasping for fresh air- it was everyone. Everyone was just simmering away in their compartments in the sweltering heat. Sure, there was a slight chill to early Spring air outside the train, but inside was unbearably, unnecessarily hot. I thought it was strange that no one complained to the train car attendant. Finally, after working up my courage and looking up the translation for "very hot", I went and knocked on the train attendant's door.
After relating the story to a Ukrainian friend of mine, she told me a Ukrainian proverb, by way of explanation: "The steam won't break the bones". More or less, it's better to be too hot than too cold. In my opinion, it's better to be neither too hot, nor too cold.
Anyways, to make what turned out to be a very long story short, I loved Odessa, and Ukrainian people can be wonderful, but sometimes the getting there can be an ordeal. Not one that I would have changed, but just one I'll be mindful of in the future.
I hope you enjoyed my story of Ukrainian nail polish and Ukrainian travel,
