We spent last weekend in Berlin, mostly to celebrate our 7th wedding anniversary on September 28th. It’s hard to believe it’s been seven years, but I couldn’t think of a better city to celebrate in.
The timing of our trip happened to line up perfectly with the Berlin Marathon. On Sunday, we found ourselves near the Brandenburg Gate watching the runners. The energy around the city was pretty contagious. After the crowds got to be a bit much, we spent the rest of the afternoon just wandering around Museum Island. It’s always nice to slow down and take in the architecture there.
The real highlight of the weekend, though, was Saturday night at Bohème Sauvage. It was a great excuse to actually dress up and do something different to celebrate. The whole night felt like stepping back into the 1920s—there was a live swing band, a vintage casino, and even an absinthe bar. It was definitely a night to remember.
Aside from that, we mostly just ate our way through the city. We had some really good pasta in Wilmersdorf on Saturday afternoon before heading to KaDeWe. After an exhausting shopping session trying on new fashion pieces, we stopped by the Moët bar inside to relax with some oysters and wine. On Sunday night, we wrapped things up with dinner at Bless Gourmet Restaurant on Jerusalemer Straße. It’s a spot we love to visit every time we’re in Berlin—the kitchen, atmosphere, and service are always amazing.
It was a great weekend, and definitely a good way to celebrate seven years.
This visit to the State Opera actually took place earlier in the spring, but as life sometimes gets busy, not every story finds its way onto the blog right away. We’ve decided to revisit a few memorable moments and share them retrospectively, and this unforgettable evening certainly deserves its place among them.
We treated ourselves to a special evening out at the State Opera to see Puccini’s La Bohème. The performance itself was wonderful, but we enjoyed the evening even more because, at the last minute, we managed to find a beautiful evening gown for Vlasta.
The dark navy dress turned out to be a perfect choice and was beautifully complemented by the vibrant fuchsia Jimmy Choo pumps that Vlasta received from Míša for Christmas. Once the outfit was complete, it was clear that all the effort had been worth it. Vlasta looked fantastic and, most importantly, felt wonderful, which is what truly matters.
That said, as we often joke, Míša still managed to look even more stunning. 😊 And when you think about it, if we claimed the opposite, there would probably be something a little unusual about that. 😀
As usual, we attracted quite a bit of attention. Some people smiled, others took a second look, but we’re used to that by now. We see it as part of our journey and a reminder that everyone should be free to be themselves and enjoy life’s beautiful moments without unnecessary limitations.
And that is exactly what this evening was about. A magnificent opera, a beautiful setting, elegant outfits, and most importantly, time spent together. What more could we ask for? ✨👠🎭
At the turn of June and July, we spent two weeks sailing along the Croatian coast with friends. Together with Míša, Max, and our crew, we set off from Sukošan and headed south via Murter, Vodice, Rogoznica, Trogir, and all the way to Stari Grad on Hvar before making our way back north. In Trogir, we swapped part of the crew, which gave each week of the trip its own unique atmosphere.
This year brought a heatwave across much of Europe, and Croatia was no exception, so swimming became a daily routine. The end of the trip also delivered a bit of excitement when we were caught in a strong windstorm with gusts reaching around 40 knots. Luckily, everything worked out well, and we returned home with plenty of great memories, photos, and yet another reason to come back next year. ☀️⛵🌊
Sometimes you meet people with whom every moment is fun. People who enrich you and share the same sense of humor. People who entertain you from the first to the last moment.
And that’s exactly what Ingrid and Markus are like. This post is about them and our fun encounters.
It started subtly and slowly. Over the years that Míša and I have been writing our blog and sharing our stories on social media, you realize you’re not alone. People like you are all around. You follow each other, write to each other, like photos. But you rarely meet in real life. And when the opportunity arises, you often hesitate. You don’t know each other, and apart from wearing skirts or dresses, you might not have much in common. There can be awkward silences and clock-watching.
It was the same with Ingrid and Markus, who contacted us via Instagram in June 2022, saying they were in Prague and asking if we wanted to meet. We had been following them for a long time, liked their style, sense of fashion, and the fact that, like Míša and me, they were married. They seemed nice and happy. But even so, we hesitated. In the end, curiosity won, and we decided that meeting for coffee wouldn’t hurt. And thank goodness we did.
We met wonderful, kind, and smart Ingrid & Markus with their beautiful friend Cathy and formed a friendship that we value. We found that we share a joy for traveling, discovering new things, and many other values. We were surprised at how much we had in common.
What started as a coffee turned into whole day of exploring Prague, and since then, we have visited each other several times and enjoyed our time together exploring Bavaria and the Czech Republic.
Our Very First Meeting in Prague – June 2022
As we mentioned earlier, our first meeting turned from a planned short coffee into a full day of exploring Prague with Ingrid, Markus, and Cathy. We visited classic tourist spots like the Old Town Square, the Prague Astronomical Clock, and Prague Castle, and eventually ended up in a charming café at the Písek Gate. This gate, built in 1721 by architect Giovanni Battista Alliprandi based on a design by František Vogot, was part of Prague’s baroque fortifications.
In 1741, during the War of Austrian Succession, Charles Albert of Bavaria stormed through this gate into Prague, which was defended by only a handful of untrained townspeople and students.
For Ingrid and Markus, this wasn’t their first visit to Prague – they first came shortly after the Velvet Revolution in 1989. They had plenty of funny stories from that time, reminding us of our communist past. We laughed at them, but also realized that we wouldn’t want to experience those times again.
September 2022 – Bavaria
Regensburg
Regensburg, known as Řezno in Czech, is the only preserved medieval city in Germany and one of the oldest cities in the country. The fourth largest city in the state of Bavaria is located in a bend of the Danube River, where the Naab and Regen rivers flow into it. The river Regen gave the city its name. Its older form is reflected in the name of the Celtic fortress Radasbona, which stood on this site, and around 70 AD in the name of the Roman military camp Castra Regina. This camp was expanded in 179 by Marcus Aurelius, but it was destroyed by the Germans in the 4th century.
On the ruins of the Roman settlement, a city began to grow again, where in 739 Saint Boniface founded a bishopric. For more than two hundred years, this diocese included the Czech lands until the Prague bishopric was established. In 788, Charlemagne made Regensburg a residence of the Carolingians, turning the city into the political heart of the empire and a flourishing trade center. Its peak of prosperity was reached in the 12th century when it became a free imperial city, remaining so until the end of the Holy Roman Empire in the early 19th century. From 1663 to 1802, the Imperial Diet even met here.
More than two thousand years of history are reflected at every step. In the medieval core, listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2006, there are 984 protected buildings. These include the Stone Bridge over the Danube from the 12th century, the old town hall with the Imperial Hall where the Imperial Diet met, the cathedral with its amazing stained glass windows, a museum protecting church treasures, the historic Adler-Apotheke pharmacy, and the only preserved Roman gate north of the Alps called Porta Praetoria, which formed the northern entrance to Castra Regina. Also worth visiting is the museum dedicated to the court astrologer of Rudolf II, Johannes Kepler, who lived and died here.
The Liberation Hall on the Michelsberg near Kelheim is one of the most important buildings of the 19th century. century in Germany. Built by King Ludwig I and designed by Leo von Klenze. It is one of the large, architecturally designed national monuments, in this respect only comparable to the Walhalla near Regensburg, also built by Klenez, the Völkerschlachtdenkmal and the Kyffhäuserdenkmal.
Kloster Weltenburg, Danube river
Weltenburg is truly a special place, one in which the artistic impact, the clerical and intellectual power of the Abbey and its church meet the beauty of the river landscape of the Danube Gorge and the force of nature that is the Danube.
On a culinary level, this matchless beauty is optimally complemented by the oldest abbey brewery of the world, with its premiered beers, and our Klosterschenke restaurant.
Follow Me! On Instagram! 😀Great outfits!What a smile 🙂
June 2023
Kitchen Prelude 😀
We had arranged for Ingrid and Markus to come over on Friday around six in the evening. But we also had some workers coming in the morning to fix our poorly installed kitchen. We asked the workers how long it would take, and they estimated about 2-3 hours. So we thought it would work out perfectly – the kitchen would be done by lunchtime, we’d clean up, and when Ingrid and Markus arrived, we’d be all set.
But as things often go, it didn’t quite turn out that way. When the workers arrived, they realized they couldn’t just fix it; they had to basically dismantle the whole kitchen and then reassemble it correctly. They said they should be done by six. So we hoped for the best. As six o’clock approached and the kitchen was still far from finished, our nerves started to fray. It looked like the installation would be delayed by about half an hour, which would still be okay.
In the meantime, Ingrid and Markus arrived, and we seated them in the living room, where the entire contents of the kitchen were spread out on the floor. Luckily, we have a big living room, so everything fit.
Everything seemed fine, the guys in the kitchen were packing up, and one of them had the bright idea to secure the side panel of the dishwasher with one more screw into the wall. And as he did, he… drilled into a water pipe. 😀
Try finding a plumber on a Friday evening. It all turned out fine in the end, but the kitchen wasn’t finished until ten o’clock at night. 😀
This building that started as a late 13th century Gothic castle belonged over the years to some of the most prominent historical figures. The last owner was the heir to the Austro-Hungarian crown Archduke Franz Ferdinand d´Este who, was, together with his wife Sophia, assassinated in Sarajevo in 1914.
The picturesque Konopiště Castle is located just a short distance from Prague, but most tourists who visit Prague never make it here. This is a great pity because the castle has a rich history and well-preserved interiors and exteriors, including a beautiful botanical garden and a castle park. We were glad to have secured the last three tickets for the second castle tour – the private rooms – in English. So, in the end, Míša had to wait for us in the castle courtyard.
Interestingly, we had prepared a Viennese breakfast at home before our departure in the morning, and then during the castle tour, we came across an almost identically set table.
Follow me! This way, on Instagram! 😀
Prague – Day 1
Fun fact, in case you didn’t notice – Ingrid and Markus swapped clothes during the day. 😉
Prague – Day 2
August 2024 – Bavaria
Walhalla
In a high position, which dominates the surrounding landscape, the Walhalla rises near Regensburg over the Danube. With this classicist building in the form of a temple surrounded by columns, one of the most important German national monuments of the 19th century was created here on behalf of the Bavarian King Ludwig I. (r. 1825-1848).
As you can see in the photos, our tour was a blast, not just for us but also for the other tourists who thought we were an attraction. One lady even asked Markus if we were some kind of “movement.” We laughed and said we definitely were, because we had to move a lot to climb all those steep stairs. But the funniest part was taking photos outside, where Markus’s hat kept flying off because of the strong wind. Míša was holding it from the back, Ingrid from the front, but she had to let go for the photo, and the hat immediately flipped up, making Markus look like Speedy Gonzales. 😀
Nepal Himalaya Park
This visit was really hectic. In one day, we managed to visit the Bavarian Walhalla, the Nepalese Himalayas, and on our way home, we also stopped in Italy (a large Italian store in the center of Regensburg). We don’t have any photos from our visit to Italy, so please enjoy the ones from Nepal instead.
As you can see, it was challenging 😀
Although we just came from our last visit, we are already looking forward to the next one. Sort of… 😀
Over the weekend, after all the vacations we took with and without the kids last month, we stopped by Michaela’s parents in Ústí nad Labem for a visit and Saturday lunch. And since Ústí nad Labem is right on the German border and Dresden is just a stone’s throw away, we usually stop there too. And last weekend was no different.
We love Dresden for its laid-back atmosphere, reconstructed historic center, beautiful villa districts that rise above the Elbe River, friendly people, and the opportunity for a nice romantic walk along the water. And also for the shopping opportunities for fashionable clothing, which can often be found here at great discounts, and there is usually a larger selection than in stores in Prague. But we also like to come here just to stroll around the center, have a coffee or beer, enjoy good food, and then head back home to Prague.
And this time was no different. Since it was a beautiful summer day, we just went for a walk, had dinner, and then headed home.
We usually take photos with our mobile phones, but this time we had our Sony mirrorless camera with us, so we had a bit of a harder time finding someone to take our picture, as the controls are a bit more complicated than on a mobile phone. So I looked around until I saw someone with a DSLR camera whom I could ask. And after a while, I noticed three older gentlemen with DSLRs in their hands passing by. Sometimes you see such groups, which are often part of a photography course, which seemed to be the case here. So I asked them if they could take a few photos of us.
And a funny situation ensued, which you can see from the photos. One of the men took our camera, and the others started giving him instructions – how to compose the shot, to take it vertically, horizontally, in detail, that he was too close, etc. We all had a great laugh. And only after we started talking did we find out that the gentlemen were friends from France, traveling around Europe together and just passing through Dresden. So once again, we thank them for the nice photos and lots of laughs.
And as a special treat, we included another photo from the “staring until our eyes fall out” series as the final image. 😀
Let me as a woman dive little deeper with the second tip mentioned in the post What the girls know, but no one told the boys. 🙂 So, what’s today’s topic? Do you think everyone can dress for the occasion? But is it really that simple?
When I got into the world of “Men in Dresses” thanks to Vlasta, I noticed one mistake guys sometimes make. They don’t consider the occasion and, in their excitement to wear what they want, they end up wearing everything they like, even if it’s not suitable for the occasion. You wouldn’t wear the same thing for a mountain trek as you would for brunch with friends, right? You wear different clothes to the theater and different ones for a trip and different ones for a rock concert. For official & business events, there’s usually a dress code you can easily find online, which makes it easier to decide what to wear, but what about other situations?
To explain, I’ll use specific example.
You’re going for a walk in the city on a beautiful autumn day. You put on heels, a short skirt, fishnet stockings, and a silk blouse. You might think, what’s wrong with that? Essentially, nothing—it’s nice clothing. But it’s not ideal for a walk. And how does it end? Your feet are burning from rubbing against the fishnets, your calves are cramping, and your blouse is sweaty. Basically, a disaster and your confidence is shot.
My advice? Save this outfit for an informal dinner, drinks with friends, or brunch. You’ll look great and stay elegant the whole time. Well, depending on how many drinks you have, but that’s another story, right?
And for a walk? Choose comfortable shoes with a smaller heel that you’ve already tried out. If you want to wear fishnet stockings, go ahead, but choose a skirt that reaches your knees or mid-calves. An elegant top or bodysuit will look great and you won’t have sweat stains under your arms.
So let’s look at a few examples
Nice comfortable flats & dress for a long walk in the parkComfortable clothes for walking around ViennaSailing time in CroatiaParty wear for the Carmen opera at the Arena di VeronaLet’s rock out to a punk concertVernissage of young artists in Prague
And my summary at the end
I hope we’ve conveyed our idea how to Dress for the Occasion to you. Even though it’s not entirely simple, fashion and clothing are about each person’s individuality. Remember, less is sometimes more, and every outfit has its occasion. You have it tougher than women, but it’s not impossible.
Here’s a tip to help you navigate this better. Always imagine what you would choose from a men’s wardrobe and what the woman by your side would usually wear.
Hope it helps and feel free to express your thoughts in comments bellow.
Good luck and don’t forget to subscribe if you haven’t already done so, so you don’t miss our articles!
Our first social event of the new season – the opera Don Pasquale at the Vienna State Opera. The performances and the opera were, as always, a wonderful experience. So far, the Vienna Opera has never disappointed us. Despite its age, the message of this play is still relevant, and any mature man who desires a young wife should definitely give this work a try. 😀 Thank you very much for the invitation and for the tickets to the Vienna Opera team that invited us.
It was quite hectic for us as we were getting up at 3am for the train to Vienna. And the very next day we were up again at 3 in the morning to go to the airport to Amsterdam. But it was definitely worth it! 😀
But we still managed to go to our favorite places. Before the opera, we went to lunch at Figlmuller’s for a steak as big as an elephant’s ear :-D. If you haven’t been here yet, it’s like not being in Vienna. 😀 We definitely recommend it, and we also recommend having one portion and splitting it with your partner. Otherwise you are unable to eat it. After all, it can be seen from the photos. 😀 Then we had coffee and cake at Gerstner’s in the early evening. For the first time, we had an old classic cake called Dobostorte, which is not at all easy to make. And the cake was delicious as always. And finally, after the opera, we went to the Black Camel for sandwiches and a glass of wine. We really like going here, because of the atmosphere that this very traditional restaurant with a lot of history has.
We decided to add some events that have already taken place in the distant past, but still could be interesting and inspiring for someone.
In March 4th 2020, I was as a CIO of the General University Hospital in Prague, one of the speakers at the IDC Security Forum conference at the Czech National Bank. I gave a presentation in one of the parallel sessions on the topic of healthcare users security, who have the impression that they are not “Amazon workers” (I apologize to the Amazon workers), and that they are so intelligent that they cannot fall for any computer attack. Which was completely wrong, of course. 😀
In the fall, an interview with us was published in the British online magazine Injection. We were interviewed by Carola Kolbeck, and it was one of the best and most enjoyable we’ve ever had. It stretched from the original hour to three, and we would certainly have talked longer if we didn’t have other obligations. We hope you enjoy the article as much as we enjoyed the interview. We’d love to read your thoughts in the comments.
Women wear men’s clothes and get hailed for their masculine style. But what happens when the high heel is literally on a male foot?
INJECTION spoke to married couple Vlasta and Michaela, who embrace fashion freedom and celebrate Vlasta’s love for what society labels ‘women’s’ clothes and shoes.
The first thing I notice about Vlastimil and his wife Michaela when I meet them virtually for our interview is their smiles. I have rarely come across an expression so full of light and power, warmth and welcoming. We talk about Prague Pride which just concluded, and its rainbow parade, which took part the previous day. Both Vlasta and Michaela were taking part, with Vlasta organising IBM’s involvement, and Michaela baking cakes for participants.
They say they’re tired from the weekend but appear in good spirits. Just a normal couple chatting to INJECTION Mag on a Sunday night. The only thing is, Vlasta is wearing a women’s dress and has bright pink nails.
The couple are somewhat famous on social media for their open and affirming attitude towards non-binary and gender fluid fashion. Vlasta wears what society normally classifies as ‘women’s clothes and shoes,’ and the nearly 10,000 followers of their Instagram account @genderblender1 are here for it.
The couple met in 2018 and married a year later. Their blog champions fashion freedom and shares details of their journey, as well as tips for anyone looking for advice. Men wearing what’s categorised as women’s clothing is nothing new, looking at celebrities such as actor Billy Porter, fashion designer Marc Jacobs and singer and actor Harry Styles prove. Seeing this reproduced in everyday life, however, is still a rarity. INJECTION Mag spoke to Vlasta and Michaela about their story, issues and triumphs with being authentically themselves, as well as inclusivity and acceptance in the workplace and society.
Michaela, in one of your first blog posts you write about your reaction to meeting Vlasta for the first time in real life. You are very open about your initial thoughts. Can you describe these initial feelings and how they developed?
Michaela: We met on Tinder; his profile was a little bit different than the others because he described what he was looking for and he had also asked a question, wondering if somebody was able to find the answer and I found that interesting. So, I wrote to him and said that, although I’m not the one he’s looking for, I was wondering if the answer to his question was right. And because I had given him the correct answer, we subsequently started exchanging messages. Because I wasn’t the one he was looking for, there was no pressure. It was just fun exchanging messages and having a laugh.
We had this kind of contact via Tinder for a couple of months. Eventually, Vlasta asked me for breakfast, and I said yes. During our conversations, Vlasta didn’t mention that he liked painting his nails and dressing in women’s clothes, but occasionally he would mention that he wasn’t normal, not a regular guy. And I said, that’s OK, nobody is normal. Finally, when we met for breakfast, I was a little bit late and Vlasta was already sitting there, in a T-shirt and jeans. But he had bright orange nails! And I panicked. I thought: ‘It’s impossible this is happening,’ and my second thought was that there must be hidden cameras. But then I remembered our messages and that they always made me laugh. So, I took all the courage I had, and I thought ‘OK, I will sit, and we’ll see.’ We had breakfast, and apart from the initial shock, it was lovely, but I was still thinking: Why?
I had never before met a guy who liked to have his nails painted and at the time I didn’t know that he also liked to dress in skirts and dresses. I couldn’t imagine that there might be a guy who likes that and still wants to meet a woman.
Vlasta, tell us a little about yourself and your journey to defying gender conformed dressing.
Vlasta: Well, one of my reasons is: They are just clothes! So why shouldn’t I be wearing them? I’ve been feeling like this for as long as I can remember. However, it used to be difficult because we were born deep into the communist era so there wasn’t any freedom. Then we went through a revolution and times were changing, not only in the former Eastern bloc, but everywhere around the world. I often say that my brain is divided into two sections: One is highly analytical and the other one is much more creative. I’ve also been playing drums from the age of 16; I have a punk band and we’re still playing. As you go through life you have to think about what’s important to you. Of course, there’s always the question of why I dress in women’s clothes and I say: I just like it, so why not?
Do you remember the first time stepping out wearing what you wanted to wear, Vlasta? How did that feel?
Vlasta: I was scared to death. I thought that, if someone sees me, the world will collapse. And then I found out that this wasn’t the case. Nothing happened. But yes, I was scared but at the same time I felt excited, I liked it. It’s just like a drug. It felt good and I wanted to feel that feeling again. Of course, it wasn’t from zero to hero. At first, I was really scared to go out in the evenings or even just to open the front door. But I had to find the courage to open the door and to walk outside.
And Michaela, how did you feel the first time stepping out with Vlasta wearing whatever he wants?
Michaela: I didn’t care. But what did surprise me was, and this will probably never change, that I’m invisible when I’m with Vlasta. As a woman, you are used to people looking at you. They want to talk to you or compliment your outfit and when I’m with Vlasta, none of that happens. People want to talk to him and all the attention is on him. At the beginning, this was really exhausting for me, all this attention whilst we were just trying to do regular stuff, like buying milk.
Vlasta: Sometimes, when we’re out and about, and I am standing somewhere, maybe waiting, and I’m looking around, I see that people are staring and I’m wondering: ‘What’s the reason, why are they staring?’ And then I realise: Oh, yes, it’s me. [laughs]
In one of your social media posts you highlight the prejudices Vlasta faced looking for work. What can be done to make the world of business more inclusive?
Vlasta: That’s a difficult question. Usually, it’s not the policy of the company but the people that are the problem. So even in companies which are very open to diversity and inclusion, you can find that people internally aren’t so in sync with the company values and policies. Of course, they don’t say that being different is a reason they won’t hire you and sometimes it really just isn’t the right fit.
What I’ve experienced, however, is that if you have really happy employees who don’t have to hide something, then they’re much better employees than if you have employees who can’t be themselves, who live in constant fear that their true identity might be a problem in their workplace. That would be my message to these companies: You have no idea what kind of power you have, to help those people and to help them find their way in life, and to be themselves.
What are your biggest triumphs so far in being truly yourself?
Vlasta: I think the biggest triumph is that feeling of freedom and that’s something you don’t even realise before you reach that stage. When I was in my 40s, I still had really bad acne. Then I met Michaela and she helped me with my confidence. And like a miracle, because of this internal freedom, I don’t have acne anymore. I have only one life, so why should I care what these people in the streets, who I’ll probably never meet again, think about me and what I’m doing? I’m not hurting them or anyone else.
You got married in 2019, just before Covid, and your wedding dresses are beautiful. Did you go wedding dress shopping together?
Vlasta: Well, around this time in 2019, was the Prague Pride Parade. On the Friday before we were having some beers in a restaurant and afterwards we were passing some wedding studios and so we stopped and went in. There was a young girl working and we told her that we’d like to try some wedding dresses. And she just said: ‘Yeah, OK.’
Michaela asked her to start with me as it will be much more difficult for me to find a dress which will fit. When we found my dress, we asked if they had the same dress in Michaela’s size, and they did. Afterwards, we were talking about our wedding and that it would probably take a year or so to plan. And I asked her why we should wait for another year because we won’t be any younger or any prettier! That Sunday, we had lunch with Michaela’s parents and I asked them for permission to marry their daughter. After that, we bought our wedding rings, spoke to a priest and booked a restaurant. So, within three days, we had everything arranged for our wedding.
Michaela and Vlasta, finally, what advice would you like to give to a society that is still so full of prejudices, loves to categorise people and defines people as normal or abnormal?
Michaela: People should try to imagine how it would be if it was their children. Some people think that they and everyone around them is ‘normal,’ but that is just not the case. So what would you do if one of your children was homosexual, or liked to dress differently? Would you say ‘we don’t like you anymore’?
Also, it’s really about something much bigger here. One question we get a lot on our blog and social media is if I like men wearing women’s clothes. And I say: ‘No. I don’t specifically like men wearing women’s clothes. I like Vlasta.’ And that’s it. It doesn’t matter if you wear a dress or jeans. You like the person.
Vlasta: Social prejudices will always be there. It depends what we, in society, do with them. For example, lots of men write to us, saying how lucky I am that Michaela allows or tolerates me wearing dresses and high heels. Or that it should be “normal and allowed by society” to dress the way we want, and they point out that women wear trousers or men’s wear.
We try to explain to them that this is a completely wrong mindset. Because Michaela doesn’t “allow” me to do anything. She rather tells me that she can’t imagine that someone would tell her what she can and can’t wear. And she is not “tolerating” anything either. It’s about our freedom and happiness. You can’t wait for someone to “allow” you to wear a skirt or a dress. After all, no one forbids men. If men want to wear what they want, they have to fight for it themselves, just like women fought for it. No one told women “Okay, and from now on you can wear trousers, you’re allowed.” They had to go their own way and overcome social prejudices. And it wasn’t just about trousers, but about the overall emancipation of women.
Michaela: A lot of our followers on social media ask us for our advice to help them and we always say it’s difficult for us to give advice if we don’t know their lives, families and environment. There are still places in this world where our advice, to just go out and wear what you want, might get them killed, attacked or seriously injured. Our life we see through our lenses, but the circumstances may be completely different a couple of hundred of kilometres down the road. Sometimes, when people are shouting something at us, I just say that this is the price we pay for the freedom to do what we like, to be who we want to be, because, fifteen, twenty years ago, they would probably have just locked you up in a psychiatric hospital. So we’re grateful for freedom and for what we have achieved so far.
Vlasta: The world is changing and within our generation dressing as you please might be difficult for some to digest. However, for our kids it’s less of a problem. Prague Pride Parade was attended by 60,000 people and the majority of them were young. They are open minded, driving change. To give you a last example, in the Czech Republic, 16 to 17 year olds who go to school also learn ball dancing in the evening. Once their course is finished, they celebrate by having a formal evening ball, where they invite their parents to dance. Michaela spoke with her son to ask if he felt comfortable with me wearing a dress. If not, she’d told him, I’d be happy to wear a suit and tie. Her son’s response was: “Mum, everyone knows. He can wear a dress.”
As we come to the end of the interview, I want to stay online and keep talking to Michaela and Vlasta. There is an incredible force of determination and conviction which radiates from them, that living life on our own terms and setting an example by being truthful to ourselves is a priceless way to contribute positively to society and give courage and strength to others during their own struggles with adversity.
Although they are in no way delusional about the problems and prejudices in a modern society and the differences in cultures across the world, they are hopeful and excited for the future, one that allows everyone to overcome gender-biased stereotypes and find confidence in dressing whichever way they want.
From the beginning, more and more people turn to us and tell us their personal stories. Sometimes longer, sometimes shorter, sometimes with pictures, sometimes more open, but always kind and moving, and we are very pleased by them. Now we have received one story that we would like to share with you.
We are very happy that we give other people the courage to be who they are and not to live a life of hypocrisy and to worry about it. There is no reason for that.
When we were thinking about starting our Blog, we had exactly this in our mind. We just wanted to show other people, that there is nothing wrong on loving high heels, dress, skirts or any other parts of the “traditional” women’s wardrobe, and mainly, that they are not alone. That it is perfectly fine, if you like it & wear it, and that you don’t have to be gay or bisexual (we are fine with any sexual orientation), and that you don’t have to be ashamed of it.
So enjoy moving story from this beautiful couple 🙂
Name: Leo
Message: WOW!,
That was my first thought, once a saw for the first time a post on your Instagram account, and it was a soundly one. After that, I shared the address of this blog with my girlfriend. And she had a soundly WOW reaction too.
Let me explain myself. Since younger age, I’m turning almost 30, I love high heels shoes. I grew up in Brazil, Rio de Janeiro, to be exact, a not so friendly neck of the woods in regards of men wearing « women » shoes. Also I come from a French, modest, traditional and Lutheran religious family, that older generations looked with judgement eyes people that are « different ».
I studied in a French school in Brazil (thanks god!), there I learn that high heels had been on men and both sides of the closet before the Revolution. After that, heels flipped to the women side only. Knowing that matter had been someone’s decision in the XVIII century, than been written on stone in the Bible.
After Brazil, I went to attend university in Paris and to live alone. At that time my love of heels just grew stronger. I started to work in one of the fashion houses there, in an admin-boring position, I’m not a creative person, and start to date a Belgian lady that grew up in Rio as well. She come also from a traditional and Jewish religious family, so I did not had an open window to share this secret with her.
I open myself with, at that time, my assistant and nowadays my best and closest friend about my high heels passion and she was very supportive. So supportive that she figure it out a way for me to wear them when in office.
After this and subsequent other relationships with girls coming from equally traditional backgrounds came and passed by cyclically and the question of sharing this detail of me banged my head cyclically as well. Meanwhile my hidden high heels collection grew substantially.
But, everything changed when I start to date my actual girlfriend. I knew her from at least 4 years before I moved the coast, closer to majority of my friends. Recently she helped me in organising a huge post-wedding party for one of my friends and at that point I learn that she did not have a boyfriend anymore.
Few months later when the construction of the building I live in was over, the architect finished to decorate my apartment and my closest friend placed everything in place. I was overseas, working and I decided to throw a small thank you party for them and other close friends. When she learned about it she jumped to organise everything for me.
At the party, the place was full, (remember when humanity was able to socialise in packed places?) I took her to my suite upstairs, a quieter place. When at the stairs, I praised her shoes, quite extensively.
Once at my bedroom, I hugged her for the amazing job she perform in such short notice and we kissed. After, she asked about the praise that I made to her shoes. She told that no one never complimented her shoes before (quite difficult, but, I knew through several friends in common, that her previous boyfriend was an asshole).
By impulse I took her hands and showed her a hidden part where my collection was kept. She was surprised, very surprised! But at the same moment she held my hand stronger wrapping her arms in my arm. Since then she is very supportive and sometimes annoying encouraging. She loves to see me in heels and I love her for accept me as I’m in full.
We read « How do you meet guy like this? » together. After read it, she kissed me, a deep loving/caring kiss. I felt that she just figure it out that, she and we are not alone. I told her that I want to share this private part of our life with you two. She gave me a soundly « Yes! Please do it! And send my regards ».
In today’s light, it seems as if it was 10 years ago, but it was only last year. We went on a week-long trip around Italy in the spring and one of the stops was Milan. And one evening we went to the opera house Teatro alla Scala. It was an amazing experience, and we look forward to another visit.
From today’s point of view, when I look at those photos, I would probably wear a longer dress. It is interesting how fast women’s fashion changes. 😊
The photos are from a mobile phone, so it’s not a great quality, but they captured the atmosphere anyway. Enjoy them. ❤
After the performance, we went to a nearby world-famous shopping gallery Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II to a restaurant for a glass of wine, and we took advantage of the fact that at that time the gallery was already completely empty, and we danced a walz under the dome. 💃💃
Taking advantage of the fact that the global situation with the corona virus pandemic did not add to much travel during the summer, we visited Vienna twice and once Venice to see and experience these iconic places without hordes of tourists. We have already written about a trip to Venice here, and this is an article from the first trip.
As always, enjoy, comment, share, and if you don’t want to miss something, sign up. 📧 😘
Because we lived in a hotel across the street, we went to the amazing Café Central for breakfast everyday. Be sure to try Klassisches Wiener Frühstück with Wiener Melange Kaffe („Viennese style coffee“, espresso infused with hot water and frothed milk), and enjoy its amazing atmosphere packed with history.
The café was opened in 1876, and in the late 19th century it became a key meeting place of the Viennese intellectual scene. Key regulars included: Peter Altenberg, Theodor Herzl, Alfred Adler, Egon Friedell, Hugo von Hofmannsthal, Anton Kuh, Adolf Loos, Leo Perutz, Robert Musil, Stefan Zweig, Alfred Polgar, Adolf Hitler, and Leon Trotsky. In January 1913 alone, Josip Broz Tito, Sigmund Freud, and Trotsky (the latter being regular) were patrons of the establishment.
The Secession Building is an exhibition hall in Vienna, Austria. It was completed in 1898 by Joseph Maria Olbrich as an architectural manifesto for the Vienna Secession, a group of rebel artists that seceded from the long-established fine art institution.
Originally only half the size the square was expanded when a row of houses separating it from Stock-im-Eisen-Platz, today the two areas are considered one. Outside the original city walls the platz became part of the city in around 1200 but it wasn’t until 1978 with the opening of the U-Bahn station that the square became central to the city.
The Hundertwasserhaus in Vienna is a building designed by the artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser and located in the 3rd Viennese district. The extraordinary building was constructed between 1983 and 1985. It was architecturally realized with the collaboration of architect Josef Krawina as co-creator and the implementing architect Peter Pelikan.
Unfortunately, the traditionally renowned Figlmüller restaurant was closed due to a pandemic, but its Viennese schnitzel was served in the LUGECK restaurant a few meters away. And as usual, Michaela and I had one serving in half. Be sure not to miss this experience when visiting Vienna.
Long before opening Lugeck, brothers Hans and Thomas Figlmüller took an active interest in Viennese tavern culture. They dusted off and studied their grandmother’s old cookbooks and heavily researched the traditions of Austrian cuisine, as well as the countless taverns, which plated such dishes. With the research done came the idea—revive traditional Viennese cuisine and classic tavern culture at Lugeck.
The Volksgarten (English: People’s Garden) is a public park in the Innere Stadt first district of Vienna, Austria. The garden, which is part of the Hofburg Palace, was laid out by Ludwig Remy in 1821. The park was built over the city fortifications that were destroyed by Napoleon in 1809. The Volksgarten was opened to the public in 1823.
The Hofburg is the official residence and workplace of the President of Austria and was formerly the principal imperial palace of the Habsburg dynasty. It is located in the center of Vienna and was built in the 13th century and expanded several times afterwards. It also served as the imperial winter residence, as Schönbrunn Palace was the summer residence.
Pleasure on three levels is on offer at Gerstner K. u. K. Hofzuckerbäcker – the Imperial and Royal Court Confectioner – with shop, bar and café-restaurant in the magnificent Palais Todesco near the Vienna State Opera.
We never miss the opportunity to have their walnut cake here. 🍰
Evening walk
And finally a few more photos from the evening walk in Vienna. We went to the LUGECK restaurant again, but this time only for a beer. 🍺
