Innocently, I look up at the immigration officer with my hands in the air, “It’s a surprise,” I explain sweetly, my IQ deteriorating on the spot.

“Well, do you have a contact number?” he asks, slightly amused.

“It’s a surprise,” I repeat, smiling the brightest grin I can muster after an eight hour flight on Continental.

Nodding his head and chuckling to himself, the immigration officer kindly lets me enter Portugal. This is my start to Lisbon Fashion Week.

Metres from the pristine shores of Portugal, where European royalty once summered, Lisbon celebrated 30 years of fashion, the obligatory white tent erected outside Europe’s largest Casino.

Once granted entry into this Mediterranean paradise, I breathed a huge sigh of relief following my guide/driver closely (she was the only one that knew the location of my hotel) as we headed to Estoril, 30 minutes out of the country’s capital.

DAY ONE

Although jet lagged and linguistically challenged, I did my best to soak up the atmosphere of downtown Lisbon after viewing a show from conceptual fashion designer, Lara Torres. PS. That’s my new favourite job title.

Heading back to the tents in Estoril, I had my first glimpse of Portuguese fashion.

It would be a lie to say that my pre-conceived notions were on the money. From conversations with my new best friend Tiago from the ModaLisboa Press Office (that covered the gamut of weather, beaches and coffee in Portugal), I envisaged collections abundant with sarongs and swimwear, a sort of Monaco-chic meets Mediterranean-Goddess vibe.

What I discovered was a design aesthetic that embraces the country’s traditions of tailoring while continuing to search for a contemporary aesthetic. At times experimental, others conservative, its rich history and close geography to the fashion capitals of the world combine to create garments any fashionista would be happy to have in their wardrobe.  

Day’s Highlights: Designer Katty Xiomara

Note: The day finished, as all good days should, around 1 am with a red carpet dinner at a nearby Palace. 

DAY TWO

Feeling slightly like I’d been hit by a truck, I did my best to look ‘fashion’ catching a full day of shows.

Highlights: Add.Up - Osvaldo Martins - possibly the best fashion show I’ve seen in a long time. Sitting us all in a movie theatre, models popped up from various seats (at one stage undressing to their underwear) while others presented amazing creations that transformed before our eyes. One piece begun as a hat and was converted into a gorgeous corset!
 
Menswear designer, Pedro Mourao topped off a great day with a fantastic menswear collection inspired by the 1940’s.

DAY THREE

Definitely in the swing of things now and of course, it’s all coming to an end. It’s more of a Lisbon Fashion Long Weekend than Fashion Week. No matter, there was enough good coffee, great designers and mouth watering accessories to contemplate economy air travel once more…..

Highlight: Designer Nuno Gama  

THE LAST SAY…

Very little sleep and an abundance of visual stimulation is typical of any fashion week, however, there was something special about ModaLisboa/Estoril. Perhaps it was the scent of leather wafting through the air as the last, to-die-for handbag departed the runway, or maybe it was the slender cut of a pair of Pedro Mourao pants on a handsome Mediterranean model -- either way, I’m forever indebted to that understanding immigration official who saw fit to accept my flaky explanation and grant me entry.

PS: I would like to say thank-you but I still can’t speak Portuguese.   
_______

About Angela

Angela Gilltrap is a proud resident of the People’s Republic of Harlem where she still finds the occasional drive-by amusing. A published author, writer, television presenter and radio personality, her latest book Sunshine on Sugar Hill, a comedic tale of life in the hood, is set to be released through ABC Books late 2008. Her life aims include being an extra on The Love Boat – The Next Wave, performing the role of a fork in Beauty and the Beast The Musical and being rich enough to always afford good champagne and a driver – “It’s hard to look glamorous on the subway.”