We don't have a lot of readers.

So when one of them proposes a theme for a post, I take it under consideration.
Sofia suggested that I should write about lists, and here it goes:


This week Moritz came to visit me. Before he arrived, I was freaking out about all the stuff I had to do: emails to answer, illustrations to finish, texts to translate... aaaah!
Last saturday I curled underneath the bed covers in panic...

and wrote a long list of tasks, arranging them by colour ("-draw valentine cards for 14th of february action" was written in pink, but "-buy lentils" was green)  and with little arrows pointing at the most urgent ones("- buy snow boots", "- wash underwear")

I was also worried that Moritz would find nothing to do here, and he would think Vilnius is boring, and hate Lithuania forever.

So I made him a list. And this is kind of a transcription of it:

FUN THINGS TO DO IN VILNIUS

- go to the National Gallery
- KGB Museum - ok, it's not fun. at all. it's sad. but people seem to like it.
- sit reading comics in Mint Vineto.
- have a beer in Bambalyne.
-visit the CAC and its library
- borrow a bike and have a hardcore riding marathon in the snow
- go to the little castle on the hill.
- bring your tupperware food and have lunch with me in the gay league. (we have a microwave.)
- small galleries:
        vartai
        malonojai 6
        akademjia
        there's probably more I dont know.
- steal me a book from coffee inn.  (it's not really stealing, I'll take it back after reading.)
- use my transport card to go as far from the city center as possible.
 - go to each and every church and rate them in a scale 1 to 5.
- walk along the river, Marta says it's very pretty.
- go to the Rasos cemetery and leave a candle to the heart of Marshall Josef Pilduski.
- read the constitution of Uzupis.
- send some postcards to your mum.
- walk Literatu gatvé and choose you're favourite piece. draw or take a picture of it.
- search for the statue of Frank Zappa
- buy a stupid hat/ pair of glasses from Tiger and use them for the rest of the day. (I'm planning to do this myself and it's better if i dont do it alone.)
- find a music shop.
- spend a morning in Trakai. (but don't visit the museum in the castle. it's not worth it)
- learn some lithuanian and try to chat with a local.

Mariana took this picture of me and Joana on the second year of school, I think.
At first glance it looks even a bit romantic, till you realize that actually I'm pointing the camera to my backpack. Sad, but still good friendship moment.

2013

AAAAHH!
It's a new year!


I'm so glad 2012 is over!!
A year ago I was watching the fireworks in Aliados and crying like a baby. Not that I was moved by the beautiful lightshow, but because I KNEW this was going to be hard year.

and it was.
But now I'm doing a little crazy dancing for having survived and welcoming the new year with that productive rush that makes you want to clean all your room and make lists of all the things you want to do.

Anyway,
a few weeks ago I started noticing that all supermakets had this new small shop at the entrance, selling fireworks.
I thought to myself "People here aren't even alowed to drink outside. Are they really going to permit shooting fireworks in the streets?"

Turns out they do.
Unlike Porto, Vilnius doesn't seem to have an official fireshow provided by the municipality. Instead, they have aglomerates of slightly drunk people lighting up fireworks all over the city.
it's so awesome!

Partly because we were so close to the fire and could see things bursting all around the city, and partly because there was a real life danger to it which made it more exciting.
 
Truth is: I like to see things burning up! Any party/celebration/holiday that includes fire or exploding stuff, I'm in. Probably watching it from a distance, rubbing my hands and smiling like the little pyromaniac creep I am.

After the fireworks we went to an undergournd squat and danced amongst very drunk punks.

and that was fun, too.

While dancing I decided on my new years resolutions. Here they are:

1- drink less

2- don't quit the gym

3- be more patient with myself

4- stop being so lazy about shaving my legs

What about you people?
Did you do something special for New Year's? Want to share with me (and the world) your resolutions?

Airport Alone

 this was written yesterday next to the A gates of Malpensa Airport, but I couldn't publish it right away because wifi wasn't for free! ghhnhnh...those damn italians...


I shouldn't be allowed in airports alone.
I always mess it up. And now poor Elena has to pick up my suitcase from the airport because turns out I couldn't take it with me.
Filling the papers to leave my luggage there for her, I had this wonderfull conversation with the man at the counter:

-so.. Elena what?
-oh... I don't know her surname..
-well, I don't know it either.
(This made me kind of confused. It was 7 am and that's too early for me to understand sarcasm.)
-I can give you the name of the association she works for. Its LGL, the Lithuanian Gay League.
-Oh, it's a sports league!
-...not exactly..- I mumble while he writes "sports" after Elena's name.

ahahahah

Anyway, this will not be a post about my luggage frustrations, and how I had to change airports in Milan, and couldn't bring anything home like it was my plan.. i'm such an idiot! gah! ok! let's not think of that!
Let's talk about the weather..

It got pretty cold in Vilnius this last weeks and I started obcessing a little about it.
During a week I dreamt EVERY NIGHT about buying wool socks. It didn't stop until I had time to go to Maxima and get myself some of this snowflake beauties:

(this was a photo added later to the post. I didn't really photograph my socks in the airport. 
I could have, though, I was sitting alone next to the gates for about 3 hours. No one there. I could have danced naked around the chairs and no one would have seen it. And maybe I did.)

Lithuanians have a weird pride in their cold weather. I think it makes them feel very tough.
I've been asked by everyone I meet if I think it's cold. And EVERYTIME I SAY YES, they are delighted to answer, in a paternalistic tone, that oooh but it's not THAT cold yet, just you wait until it's february and it reaches -30º.
 I've been hearing this so much, I had to come up with some comebacks.  I'll share them with you:

 #1 Spreading some southern smugness in their faces

"But you see, I'm from the south. I'm just not used to it. As you can imagine my people are now in the beach drinking pina-coladas and soaking in the sun." (Not true at all, my mum is now probably wrapped up in a blanket roasting chestnuts by the fire, but it seems that pointing out that  I'm from a magic land of sun and exotic fruits kind of wins the converstion and everyone is secretly jealous.)

rank of effectiveness: **
Usefull but doesnt work with everyone. Some people know that Portugal is not a tropical paradise.


#2 The bony body excuse

When I explain people that I'm very skinny, and say "I feel the cold more because I don't have as much fat in my body- point to the person I'm talking too- as other people have" - This is partly true, but also a delicate argument since not everyone is ok with being called fat.
rank of effectiveness:***
Doesn't work on equally skinny people.

and, for last, the most extreme one:



#3 The Leonardo DiCaprio

Never admit I'm cold. I may be frosted and holding to a chunk of floating ice while Titanic is going down. But I wont give it away!! I may even say I'm kind of sweaty.

rank of effectiveness:****

Regardless of the cold to come I still have two weeks for Christmas holidays in Porto and will only worry about it later. And it's only 1 hour and half for my flight to depart! ah! I'm so excited to go home!!

Joana just came back to Portugal and tomorrow we'll meet for a special Christmas dinner with friends that we call Secret Santa. I'm looking forward to meet her and everybody! On behalf of the 'Tonicha Couple' we wish our readers a nice and cozy holiday season :) Try on your best socks!

Naprons Square

I'd like to start this post with the story of how I wanted to take a scottish kilt to school on my third year of faculty. Back in the day I was finding a lot of street style pictures online of men that could really pull them off — men that you could still take seriously, they didn't seem to be wearing a skirt, they were just cool and masculine.

My girl friends and I didn't share the same opinion. They though they wouldn't take me seriously and probably they were right, nobody takes me seriously anyway, a skirt would just contribute to it. BUT, I still wanted to try. Either it could be just another fail in my miserable life, or I could turn out to be supercool and named The Guy of the Kilt.

So everybody was like 'oh no you won't do it' and 'but, WITH or WITHOUT underwear?' so I just made a deal: if my friend Sara sewed me a quilt, I'd wear it at school. The sad part of the story is that she never did it and now I just finished school, so sorry if I made you loose your time hopping to ear something exciting as my most embarrassing day ever — it never happened.

The reason why I'm telling you about this story is because something surprising and unexpected happened on my last birthday while me and Jakob were crossing the Naprons Square in Porto. Naprons Square is not the original name of this square located behind the city hall, it was named like this by me and my friend Mariana because the stone patterns on the floor reminds us of extra size table center naprons knitted by old ladies.

No lie here, as we were crossing the square we saw a group of about fifteen guys dressing kilts and singing in choir next to the fountain. Not only it was my birthday and a super cool surprise, it also made me wonder about who those guys were. Was there something like a Scottish Male Club in Porto? Were they making a bet to someone? Were they trying to impress girls? Did they come out from the William Lawson's add? I'll probably never now, but one thing is right, weird, embarrassing and fascinating things happen at Naprons Square and this one is the top one of the list.

Things that happened at Naprons Square:

— I saw a group of fifteen guys dressing kilts, singing in choir.

— Elsa lost a gold ring and made everybody search for it with mobile phone lights. I found it.

— Paulo trew up in Halloween after drinking too much Porto Wine.

— Telmo interpreted Manolo.

— I danced folk with Mariana.
— I peed on the wall of the city hall and wet my shoes.

on travelling alone:

I recently realised that I had never travelled by myself.
Everywhere I went, every city I've visited, I was with friends and/or loved ones.

I always had someone to be lost with, 

 

to share the excitments

 and to lean on, in the bus/train/plane.

I'm the opposite of forever alone.
I'm NEVER ALONE.

That had to change.
So, I packed my stuff and went to Riga on my own.
Ok, it's just a 4 hours ride. And I only went for 2 nights...but I have to start small, ok?

A few years ago, I was in Lisbon, and remember seeing a lady taking a picture of herself in some turistic spot. 

At that time I pitied her. I thought: "This is a portrait of solitude. Taking pictures of oneself must be the loneliest thing ever." But now, I want to be her!  That lady was travelling alone, she was adventurous and independent and so self-suficient that she even took her own pictures!
With that in mind, on the last day I gained courage, reached for the camera and pointed at myself.
Unfortunatly, I didn't manage to get my face or the St. Peter church in the photo.

but it's fine, it's the thought that counts.
Regarding the weekend:
I managed to find a hostel and survive a very unplanned trip. Didn't visit any museums but walked insanely around the whole city to see EVERY SINGLE ART NOUVEAU BUILDING.
Travelling alone, I didn't have to make continuous pauses for someone to look for a toilet, or eat where the majority wanted to eat or go to the exhibition most people wanted to see.
I did only what I wanted, for the time I wanted, whenever I wanted! And discored how good it is to be a selfish brat!




It's fair to say that I didn't just go to Riga in a spree of independence. I wanted to check the Comics Artventures, and go to a workshop lead by Maria Ines Gul and Renata Gasiorowska.
I got there the day before, for their exhibition opening and, after that, a comic fight and concert.

So, let me put this straight: 
I went to an opening,
of an exhibition, 
in a different country, 
where I knew no one.

I have to mention that openings can be one of the most unconfortable social gatherings for me.
Sometimes galleries get so crowded I can hardly see the artworks. Or, when I do, and I don't get it and feel like there's some logic I must be missing out entirely, and I feel awkward about the whole idea of mingling with the artists and being there acting sociable and clever and everything seems so superficial that I start to freak out and may or may not trip in one of the scultures on my way out of the gallery...
So, that night, in Riga, as I went to Kaņepes Kultūras centrs, I passed a cabaret with burlesque shows and imediatly made a plan B for the night.
"I don't want to be standing in the corner of the exhibition drinking wine by myself - If I can't talk to anyone I'll just leave and go to a Burlesque show. "
 I came to Riga on my own, I can see ladies wearing corsets and dancing on my own, too, god damnit! 

(i just googled for burlesque dancers and emma watson appeared in the search. i'm as susprised as you are.)

But happily it all went well and I can save the plan B for another time. People were really nice and aproachable and I had fun!

Anyway, what about you? Am I the only freakishly dependent person who wouldn't go anywhere by herself?
Did you ever do something that left you with this feeling of independence that my friend Sofia describes like "the moment you realise the world is your oyster".

Because I feel like I'm in a sort of aging sweet spot: I still want to do childish stupid things, and now I actually have the age to do them on my own!
There's this article in Rookie that describes it well:
"not everything is better if you share it with another person. All those fries are yours. And you get to explore whatever you want on your own time, go into your dream world, sit in the bookstore and scheme up random correlations between subjects, dress up for the special occasion of bonding with your favorite pinball game…it’s like being five again, only you know how to cross the street by yourself and not get hit by a car."

do you know what I mean?