Pandora`s Box: Bvlgari

Sunday, 31 July 2011

The Journey Of Discovery

I have always been intrigued by Marco Polo's (1254-1324) travels. Even before I learned to read, I used to sit by the window and look at the pictures from an old book my father had, called "The Travels of Marco Polo".I used to dream of sailing off to faraway lands for hours on the end. Marco Polo played a very important part in the prosperous East-West contact and some journeys took years yes, YEARS to complete.

He documented these journeys in the most famous travelogue of the middle ages. I loved looking at his sketches of mysterious lands and people. I particularly remember being fascinated by an island inhibited by dog-headed people. Imagine the excitement and allure of undiscovered lands, and coming back with strange flora, fauna and spices that nobody had heard of, or tasted before. So you can understand my excitement when I read that Omnia by Bvlgari was inspired by the spices that Marco polo found on his various famous voyages.

The bad news was that the particular perfume had already been discontinued, but I got lucky and found a small bottle in an even smaller shop.

My precious little bottle

When I sniffed it for the first time I was transported into the past. Old Spice bazaars of the East I swear I could even hear the sellers calling out their wares.You know how I get carried away.

Google image

This perfume is a soft oriental. The color of the bottle matches the scent perfectly. Amber brown reminiscent of the spices in it. Even though with swirls of spices, it's still light and translucent maybe because of the lotus note and has an airy, creamy quality to it. Like a cup of delicate black tea served with a splash of creamy milk and cardamom. Very well blended. None of the notes stand out alone. I can smell white chocolate,a hint of coffee,chai, spices, nuts and the dusty scent of jute sacks that holds the spices. The silage is quite weak making it a skin scent but I don't really mind. It stays on my skin for 5 hours or so. It's unique and delicious for the colder months. I paid Rs.2000 for my small 40ml bottle.