On the boat headed to our private island
Hi Modelinia!
Had an event-filled afternoon after landing in Aruba’s Queen Beatrix International Airport yesterday. The ever sweet Miss Mickey (our sharp-witted and hilarious local driver/mom/gossip columnist) was waiting in arrivals for the NYC flight and the four of us on it: Greg from Wilhelmina Men, Kwok from Marilyn’s NY, Matthew from A/X, and yours truly. After getting the checked luggage (I am always an over-packer—one never knows what fashion has in store) we were off to the beautiful Renaissance Aruba Resort to get checked in and settled. After a quick unpack, all the agents met to head to the beach to catch a moment of sun. The amazing thing about this hotel is it’s located on its own private island, accessible only from the hotel via private boat! When we got to the island we had a quick moment to decompress from the long flight from New York before changing for our welcome reception.
My trek look
As we got off the van we were greeted by a candle-lit entrance, an entire staff in black and white tuxedos, and Ronchi de Cuba—our host (and the mastermind behind AMS) for the weekend—welcoming us…and a 15-foot-tall opera singer! Seriously! Dressed in an amazing red gown that billowed below her while standing on a stage suspended above the crowd, she performed a beautiful piece the moment we walked in. Ronchi’s adorable cousin Fernando graciously offered his home for our initial introduction to the models this season. He has one killer design sense and his house reflects it (check out those Japanese-inspired chairs in the dining room). All the agents had a chance to mingle and meet the 20 women and 20 men competing for the winning spot. Ronchi and Fernando hosted an elegant courtyard open-air reception. With the Caribbean sky starting to sparkle above us, a DJ entertained the international agents, contestants, and local luminaries.
After meeting the girls and guys, I am excited for the next couple to days to start to gauge who might be runway-ready!
Stay tuned!
View from the hotel
Our opera singer extraordinaire!
The party gets started with dancing under the stars
Our gracious host for the evening, Fernando, and myself
A quick photo op arises on the dance floor for the contestants!
Any good soiree has fancy finger foods
Two of our wonderful hosts in Aruba - Andrew and Miss Mickey
A fun break from the competition
My two favorite local PR gals about town Maria and Gwen. These two know the who, what, when and where of Aruba!
One of the contestants commandeers a press photographer camera and captures her own images of the evening!
Elizabeth from Agency 301, Ronchi our host for AMS, Greg, Andrew, Kwok & myself get a few photos taken
The Japanese inspired chairs I mentioned - LOVE THESE!
See Part 1.
