MY MOST BEAUTIFUL MEMORY

TO ELLE GIRL

On June 9, 2005, I received an email that had me bouncing through life for at least a month. It was a message from Maria de Wit, then beauty and web editor at ELLE Girl (who still works for ELLE.nl) asking if I wanted to go to Madrid for two days to interview Enrique Iglesias and Elke week word ik ingedeeld om twee you understand, I could hardly breathe from excitement.

Earlier that year, I did a week-long internship at ELLE Girl for school. It was the coolest thing I had ever done, and I was certain then that this was what I wanted to become later: working for a magazine. Maria's email came after a contest that had been on the site. When all this was happening, I couldn't tell anyone, but I think it's safe now, ten years later. The thing is, the prize for the contest was that interview and a weekend in Madrid, but among the entries, there wasn't anyone who had the right age, spoke a bit of English, and could go on those dates – in short, hassle. So I got that email, on the condition that I acted and spoke as if I had participated in that contest.

At the Spanish airport, we were picked up in a large shiny Mercedes that drove us to the super sleek hotel.

A condition I could totally agree with, of course. So off we went, on June 23 and back on June 24. I think I didn't sleep or eat between the 9th and the 23rd, I was that nervous. At the Spanish airport, we were picked up in a large shiny Mercedes that drove us to the super sleek hotel. There we could quickly freshen up before heading to the interview with the guys. I had neatly written my questions on a piece of paper, and as the meters to the hotel decreased, so did my lung capacity.

We wait in a large suite with the other journalists until it's our turn. Then the nerves get the better of me, and I start stuttering to Maria that maybe it would be better if she did the interview. Thank God she manages to calm me down somewhat, and just as I am starting to get a grip on reality again, we walk into the suite to see a table full of other press and PR people. They are ALL going to listen in on my interview, and that idea makes me hyperventilate again.

They are ALL going to listen in on my interview, and that idea makes me hyperventilate again.

My memories then become a bit vague. The door opened, and Tommy and Enrique walked in. I remember Tommy as very relaxed, in Allstars, and Enrique as very tall and handsome, in Timberlands. I went through my list, Maria recorded everything and took notes, and even though the half hour we had was long gone, we were still chatting a bit. One of my questions was whether Tommy has a muse, to which his answer, being the politically correct media person that he is, was, “you could be my muse.” It was a dream.

That evening it was time for part two of the program. The whole reason for this weekend was that Tommy Hilfiger had launched a new fragrance, for which Enrique was the face, and that fragrance was grandly launched in Madrid that evening. Maria and I put on our best outfits and shuffled along the red carpet into the grand party hall, where we joined the crowd.

And then, the two gentlemen come in. Everyone really rushes towards them, and Maria and I decide to keep our cool and not push ourselves into the mix. And it works, because when they are near us and we are eagerly making eye contact, we catch each other's gaze and say hello. Again, of course, with shaking knees, our cool was hopelessly lost.

Later in the evening, Maria and I decide to smoke a cigarette outside the door. Hate me all you want for that, but it was then that Tommy and Enrique walked by with their entourage, saw us standing there, and asked, “did you girls have dinner yet?” Well, we hadn't, and even if we had, we still wouldn't have. So off we went, in a taxi, following them to a mega-luxurious big and expensive restaurant. We were taken to the top floor where a private dining room was waiting for us.

Okay, okay, there were about ten other people from their posse between us and them, but still, we were there.

So there we were. I had just turned 17 three weeks ago and knew nothing about anything, but I was sitting at the table with Enrique and Tommy. Okay, okay, there were about ten other people from their posse between us and them, but still, we were there. After this unbelievable evening, Maria and I got back in the taxi. When we lay in bed that night, we still couldn't put into words how cool this was and decided with, ’it was ultimate.“ And it really was.

Since yesterday, ELLE Girl is back on the shelves for one time only, so hurry to the stores because ELLE Girl was and is one of the coolest magazines in the world.