Moldovan Fashion Tips for Young Ladies

Do:

• Wear it short
• Wear it tight
• Wear it low-cut
• Feel free to expose your midriff
• Accessorize! (Bonus points for designer labels)

Don’t:

• Worry about looking trashy – it’s not trashy when it’s a cultural norm!
• Fear less-than-perfectly-maintained sidewalks. I don’t know how you do it, but I guess when your 4-inch heels look that good, a few potholes won’t be able to bring you down
• Forget the colors, patterns, ruffles, shimmer, and sparkles! Go all out, girl.
  

Ok, maybe it’s not quite as extreme as I make it sound – there are plenty of women on the street who could easily fit in on any US sidewalk – but check out these samples snapped downtown mid-afternoon:

Yes, those may have been among the more extreme outfits on the street, and yes, I’ve been known to hooch it up even more than that personally on a number of occasions. (Vegas FOAM, anyone?) It just seems scandalous to me here because women go all out in contexts I wouldn’t. Just like I’m sure that when women from some cultures come to the US, they’re shocked by our public exposure of things they’d only show in their own homes. But because this is my blog, my (completely arbitrary) standard of propriety is espoused. The same standard, incidentally, that stared – 50% scandalized by the outfits, 50% envious of the bodies – at women’s get-ups last time I was in South Beach. So it's not just here. But it's also not just me – even Moldovans make fun of the different sense of style....

Moldovan friend: Is that woman Moldovan?
Carolyn: No, she’s American.
(a few hours pass)
Carolyn: That woman sure dresses up, doesn’t she? She looks so fancy.
Friend: She looks like a hooker. (Pauses) That’s why I thought she was Moldovan.