Woman In Black

Every hear of the infamous "Black American Express" card? You know, the one that supposedly comes in its own chaffeured (sp?) limousine and in a black box and is only for the people that spend on their original Amex's over $250,000 a year?

You do get your own personal concierge with direct email and phone in addition to other perks that I have no use of. I just look foward to the day when I can go to J.Crew and maybe buy a sweater without having to wait for a sale. However, I know that even if that day comes, I will still wait for the sale.

I wonder, how someone in Japan could get such a card especially when alot of the retailers don't accept credit cards and when they do, it's not usually American Express. Then again, those kinds of people shop at Gucci, Apple Store, Prada, Louis Vuitton (biggest market for the company outside of France is Japan), Hermes, etc. etc. without batting an eye.

The Black one has always remained elusive. That is, until yesterday:

I met up with Mayuko at the Apple Store in Osaka's Shinsaibashi area and proceeded to decide upon the orange iPod shuffle (more burnt orange than citrusy orange) after multiple incidents with triggering the alarm on those things. We then ate ramen (YUMMY, kimchi!) and walked around the arcades. Shinsaibashi is my new favorite shopping area and probably one of the very few places that I like in Osaka.

We ended up at Zara - I always knew that they had sales going on and I just wanted to see what they had on offer since that was one of the very few stores in Japan (the second being the Gap and the third maybe Uniqlo) that would have stuff in my size. Lo and behold, they list the American sizes in addition to the Japanese. I found the perfect spring coat that fulfilled my "Audrey Hepburn" requirements: short, interesting buttons and 3/4 sleeves. I will wait on it though and see what there is to offer in Korea.

I did find a pair of capri leggings on sale - I needed a new pair - and this long, light airy scarf that feels like a cotton-silk blend. Original price: 6200 yen. I paid: 945 yen. Awesome. I am starting to like Zara very much - it has changed alot from when I first stepped into one of the many Zara's in Athens back in 2002.

While I was looking for a register, I saw something in the little tray that they use here to put the money:

the black American Express. The Centurion American Express. In retrospect, I wonder if its the titanium version, since they only introduced those last year.

The amount shown charged on the cash register?

61,000yen. That is about 600 dollars.

The person who owned the card and charged all that money?

A middle-aged woman dressed all in black. complete with the Chanel earrings, fake Hermes Kelly bag, real Louis Vuitton wallet, hot-pink pimped out cellphone, fake hair scrunchie, and the hideous Japanese manicure (where they glue on rhinestones in addition to the glitter nailpolish). Even Mayuko remarked that she was too old to be pulling stuff off like that, and shopping at Zara to boot.

Then again, Japan is the home of Princess Tenko, nee TMariko Itakura - the illusionist whose passport Kim Jong-Il once siezed during a visit to Korth Korea because he obsesses over her - who is obligated to "look like 24 forever," as per her contract with Mattel (yeah the same ones who own Barbie). She started performing in 1977 as a teenager, and was born in 1959. It's now 2007. Do the math and you see another example of Japan's youth obsessed culture.