KenC's T/R 10 years late

[Lit_1nce]

Ken- great trip report, keep it coming.

I can understand how the "men have needs" offer could be taken as low self esteem.. but I think we all know that if someone makes such a statement they want to hear your response.. which would be ?

A.) Thanks, I'll do that.
B.) Cool, can I do this when we are married too ?
C.) No, no, you can still have other men too !
D.) Don't worry, your the only one I want.

I'm sure there are other responses, but I doubt there are many here who don't know the correct one that would allow you to still have a relationship. (unless the woman really DOES have low self esteem)

Disclaimer: This applies to monogamists.. polygamists ?.. well that's a whole different ball of wax.

[KenC]

Lit_1nce,
Thanks for the explanation.  I think I understand how it could be construed as low self esteem.  However, in knowing Lena then and even better now, I am sure her message was meant to be a sign of commitment to me.  As I told Gator up thread, if Lena was fishing for a response, I sure didn't pick up on it.  I won't say I was commitment phobic, but pretty darn close.

I was a very cautious man at this point in my life.  Many an American woman had tried to corner me into comitments without any luck.  I know there has been some good natured teasing of me falling in love with Lena very early on and that may even be true.  But at this point in my life I was smart enough to understand that love and infatuation appear exactly the same in the beginning of a relationship.  As great as Lena was and as captured as I was by her total package, I was not ready to make any proclamations of love or anything close to a commitment to anything more than to keep pursuing the relationship to see where it would lead us.  In reality, she was a woman that I had just met in person.  There was plenty of time to find out if it was real or if it was Memorex.   I was in no hurry. 
KenC

[Photo Guy]

KenC wrote:
'...Personally my eyes glazed over after the third room of paintings.  I was bored to tears.  As Lena kept explaining the historical significance of this painting and that painting, she finally caught on that I could care less.  I was more intent of looking at her instead of the paintings.  She whispered to me, “I can tell you are not enjoying this and I had better get little Kenny out of here before he starts misbehaving.”  :noidea:

That made me laugh. Good stuff! She's got an interesting sense of humor,
-and for that moment, stepped into a 'parent' mode. Did you mind her
playing your mommy? Did you react with a chuckle or were you analyzing
her in a slightly detached way?

[Jet]

And Jet, I am still waiting for you to start your TRs.  I would love to hear all about your adventures.

I *am* working on it! I wanted to get enough pre-written so that you guys don't have to wait days and days between episodes 

I am some what like you, Ken, in the fact that I am not interested in being led around for 10 days.  Yes, I will observe and take good advice and guidance from the guides, but I will also not be led from one venue to another. 

Sounds like you'll do just fine. Something I've noticed about most of the married guys - they usually ain't the "guided tour" types (not just W/R/T the pursuit, but throughout their lives in general)

[KenC]

KenC wrote:
'...Personally my eyes glazed over after the third room of paintings.  I was bored to tears.  As Lena kept explaining the historical significance of this painting and that painting, she finally caught on that I could care less.  I was more intent of looking at her instead of the paintings.  She whispered to me, “I can tell you are not enjoying this and I had better get little Kenny out of here before he starts misbehaving.”  :noidea:

That made me laugh. Good stuff! She's got an interesting sense of humor,
-and for that moment, stepped into a 'parent' mode. Did you mind her
playing your mommy? Did you react with a chuckle or were you analyzing
her in a slightly detached way?

Photoguy,
I thought it was funny as hell.  Lena still does that occasionally to this day.  I know it sounds comical that a woman 25 years younger would take the "parental" lead, but ours is truly a relationship of equals.  Sometimes I lead and sometimes I follow as does she.  Lena has her strengths and weaknesses as do I.  We try to play off of each others strengths and cover each other for our weaknesses.
KenC

[KenC]

The aftermath
Once I returned home from Russia, all I could think of was going back to be with Lena.  She was the most incredible woman I had ever met.  She was intelligent, personable, of high moral character, of course beautiful and very exotic too.  Exotic not only in that she had a sexy Russian accent, but in a way that she just thought so differently from any woman I had ever met.  Most of the “rules” I had learned in dating American women seemed almost useless with her.  Sure there were some that still applied. Women any where appreciate a man that is a gentleman, has good manners and pays close attention to her, but the differences were astounding to me.  I had never met a woman that was so deep in her thoughts and so cerebral.  In contrast, the women in my past life all seemed so shallow and superficial now.  I had always treated women well, almost putting them on a pedestal.  Lena appreciated that side of me, but also returned the treatment back at me.  I have to say that I had been taken aback by this kind of treatment.  The fact that it came from such a high caliber woman was even more mind blowing to me.

I had been rather coy to my friends and family regarding my trip to Russia.  For all they knew my main emphasis of the trip was to see Russia.  Very few knew that I was going to meet a woman there too.   This type of privacy was not out of character for me in any way.  It wasn’t that I was ashamed of my actions, it is just I usually do not share such things with anyone either.  I did not feel it necessary to justify my actions to anyone or ever felt the need to have my actions endorsed by anyone.  I am simply a man that goes his own way and will accept the responsibility for his own actions.

There was one person whom I did confide in before my trip; my closest friend Joann.  Joann was in her early 30’s and had worked for me almost since she graduated from high school.  She had worked her way up in my company to the point that she was my “right hand man.”  She was my sounding board in business and in personal matters too.  It was she that stuck by my side through a very nasty divorce.  She was always there when I needed her.  Just for the record, Joann was a happily married woman with two beautiful children of her own.

Joann and her husband had met most of the women I dated after my divorce.  She knew that I was meeting women via the Internet and although at first she thought it was strange, she later accepted it as a reasonable method to meet women.  I remember the day I explained Lena to her.  As was the truth, I explained that I had always wanted to visit Russia but now I had even more of a reason to go.  I explained that Lena and I had become quite good phone friends and now I wanted to visit her.  I shared a photo of Lena with Joann.  As usual in our friendship, it was followed with the question “Am I nuts?”  Joann took an uncomfortable amount of time to answer, processing all the facts as was her style.  Finally, she told me, “Ken, you would have to be nuts NOT to go.”

I also explained to my kids that I had met an amazing woman in Russia.  There really wasn’t much more to say than that really.  My daughter was living out of the area, so our conversations were over the phone.  She didn’t say too much as she knew I would do what I wanted anyway.  My son was living with me during his breaks from college, but he too was mostly away at school.  I did have a chance to share my photos of my trip with him however.  His only comments regarding Lena was “Wow” and “she’s kind of young for you, don’t you think?”  To which I answered “yes and that is the only negative thing about her.”  I really did not get into anything much deeper than that with him.

I made a conscious decision not to get into anything regarding anything to do with dealing with Lifetime Partners.  I just didn’t think it was anyone’s business then and I still feel the same now.  It isn’t relevant to our story.  LTP provided the opportunity for Lena and I to meet and helped me with some travel arraignments, but as far as being a source of guidance in Lena and I developing a relationship, they were a nonfactor.  I have always advocated that men “use” the agencies as a source of introduction and then carry the ball themselves.  Let us be honest here, the term “Mail Order Brides” has a very negative connotation.  Right or wrong, it just does.  I chose not to let those prejudices reflect anything negative toward my budding relationship with Lena.  Exactly how we found each other is immaterial really.  I think this is an issue that most men do not give enough thought to during their pursuit.

When I returned home, my phone conversations with Lena increased.  And the tone of those conversations changed.  There was no more skirting the issue of romance or the fact that we were very attracted to each other.  It was during this time that we really developed a strong bond to each other.  With each passing phone call that bond was growing stronger.  We almost immediately started to plot our next meeting.  I still didn’t know exactly where all this was leading me, but I was determined to find out.

[dneid]

Hey, Guys,
Keep it coming, Ken.  I am really enjoying this.  And, Jet, I know you are working on your TR.  I just bug you because I want to learn from you and the guys like you.  Between Ken, Taz,  and groovlstk I have learned a lot.  Like my grandpappy used to say, find someone who has been successful with what you want to do and learn from them.

OK, Ken, the recipe thread has started in Odds and Ends.  Let's see some of your recipes....

Thanks, guys.  I appreciate all I have read here.  I am still so excited about getting over there.  BTW, had to cut one of the ladies from my plans as she suddenly had too many reasons why she could not meet on this trip.  Hate to be cold hearted, but adios, young lady.  On to other things.  Still have 3 lined up to visit with and 2 more I have started writing in the last month.  I would like to have 3-4 firm meetings set before I leave.

[ionizer]

Ken, thank you for posting your story and enduring all the criticism.  Your earlier comments about
the seriousness of some RW's search, and not wanting to play games with their hearts are exactly
the reasons that I don't want to try the WMVM approach, even if it takes a long time.  On the
other hand I also don't want to jump into any relationship with the expectation that it would lead
directly to marriage, just as I would not do here at home.  I have really enjoyed your story so far,
and am looking forward to the report of your next visit if you choose to oblige us.
Ken

[KenC]

ionizer,
Thank you for the compliments.

I really do not see that WMVM would be misleading if you take the time to explain yourself to the ladies prior to meeting them.  I didn't do that before I went to Russia.  It was a mistake on my part.  However, if you use the agencies as a source of introduction and you make the women aware of your plans (to take your time) I see nothing wrong with that at all.  Just be square with the women before hand and warn them that you are not looking for a quick engagement.  Look at it as "Russian speed dating".  I really see nothing wrong with meeting many women if you handle it honestly and make your intentions clear from the beginning.  Best of luck to you.
KenC

[Zmejka]

I do not quite understand how you can come to the conclusion of the low self esteem though.  Care to explain?

I knew it was meant to mean that it would be easy for her to abstain from sex and that she would gladly do so for me.  How could a promise of chastity be tied to low self esteem?
KenC

Ken i referred to Lena's words that "she understood that men have their needs and that she expected me to be with women once I returned home.  That is only human nature". So for me it sounded like she didn't appreciate herself much and expected that she didn't impress you to the level that you don't want to see other women any more. Or she had quite a bad image of men in the head - that they cheat, one can't expect failfulness from them - so better admit and agree on their possible cheating beforehand.

Also her words that if you didn't like her being skinny she could change her body for you. At the same time she didn't ask you if in the situation she didn't like something in you could you change it for her. So she accepted everything in another person but doubted if another person could accept everything in her.
I made my conclusions thinking that you committed to each other before and still she could accept you seeing other women "because men have such needs". And also she couldn't believe you liked her as she was so she worried for her appearance being may be not to your liking. That was for me a sign of low self-esteem.

But now i understand from your explanation that it was not like that.

[KenC]

Zmejka,
Thank you for the explanation.  Now I think I understand and s do you.
KenC

[KenC]

Planning my second trip
As I returned from Russia the first week in January, Valentine’s Day was fast approaching.  There are always numerous travel deals for Paris at that time.  What could be more perfect than to meet a new love interest in Paris?  Lena, like many Russians, had a thing for France and of course Paris especially. 

Unfortunately, I still had a lot to learn regarding visas and such.  I asked Lena to check into obtaining a visa to travel to Paris.  This was my first knowledge of a Schegen visa.  We determined there was not enough time for her to get one in order to make the Paris trip in February.  On to plan “B.”

Lena was going to have a break from the university in mid March, so we used that as our target date to get together again.  I really wanted to take her some exotic warm place but it seemed like this visa business was working against us at every turn.  Thinking back now, I surely could have used a resource like RWD back then!  One post and the guys here would be crawling out of the woodwork with suggestions and how to do it the easy way.  You guys here today need to appreciate the wealth of information available to you!  I got a little frustrated in not being able to find the right combination of visa friendly warm weather locations.  Lena had suggested Egypt or Turkey as possibilities, but I was not too keen on those locations.  As my frustration built, Lena told me to forget about the warm weather and that the most important thing was for us just to be together no matter where it was.  So we decided on Moscow.  I booked my flights and made reservations for the brand new Marriott Hotel Aurora.  Lena would take the train to Moscow to meet me. 

Even though we were both very impatient for our next meeting, our daily phone conversations were wonderful.  Things change dramatically after you actually meet the other person.  At least it did for us.  There was no more dancing around the sensitive subjects or fear of getting too deep into a fantasy relationship as it was now the real deal.  We discussed everything:  Sex, children, lifestyle, family life, politics, and for the first time, the possibility of Lena coming to America. 

Being the naive American, I was shocked that moving to America was not something Lena dreamed of.  The fact that it was not a positive thing to her was bewildering to me.  Wow, I thought, we both have a lot to learn.  I had to learn that there were many positive reasons to live in Russia and she had to learn the same about America.  It was during this period of communication that I also learned to be thick skinned regarding her many negative misconceptions about America.  Some of them were true, but many were based on old wives tales and misinformation being promoted by Russian media.

 During this time I also learned about the concept of the "babushka network” of misinformation passed on to the Russian general public.  It seems that these gossip mongering old women knew much more about America than any real American.  I was flabbergasted that Lena gave them any credibility at all, but such was the truth.  I don’t remember how many misconceptions I killed during this time, but I do know it was quite a few.

The closer the time came to our trip, the more excited we both were.  The last week or so was pure agony in anticipation for both of us.

[KenC]

Moscow Marriott
My trip to Moscow went without a hitch, including the taxi to the hotel.  Jet lag wasn’t as bad as the first trip maybe because I was so pumped up to be with Lena?  This trip was completely different from the first.  This trip was about the two of us becoming a romantic couple.  Or should I say, testing the boundaries of our budding romantic relationship.  No more pretenses of being “just friends”, we were about to find out how we fit together as a couple.

The hotel itself was beautiful.  The lobby was grand and the side bars open and classy.  The check in clerk was an attractive woman that spoke very good English.  I made no bones about it, that there would be two guests staying in the room and that I was expecting Yelena ******* to arrive shortly.  The clerk assured me that they would take good care of Lena once she arrived.  I guess it was good that I had not heard the horror stories about hallway babushkas keeping the RW from the hotel rooms or any other such stories.  There were no “hallway babushkas” at the Marriott, only a first class cosmopolitan hotel.

The room was a little strange to me.  Nice, but strange.  It was huge in size, but a little stark in its furnishings.  Almost too big for what they had in it, I guess.  There was a king size bed and a desk on one side and a sitting area with a couch, chairs and coffee table on the other.  A big armoire with a TV and mini bar was near the sitting area.  The bathroom was beautifully done in marble, with a Jacuzzi tub and shower.

I had a few hours before Lena would arrive, so I organized my clothes in the armoire, took a shower and changed from my travel clothes.  I also had time to check out the in room literature for the hotel.  I found they had a beautiful restaurant called the Polo Lounge.  I made reservations for us to dine there later in the evening.

I have to say that I felt much better prepared for this trip than the first one.  I had researched Moscow a bit and found some things I wanted to see and places I wanted to share with Lena.  Over all, I felt more in control this time and not such a naïve lost soul as I was the first trip.

As Lena’s expected arrival time drew near, I decided to go to the hotel lobby and wait for her.  I took up a position in the lobby bar where I could see the entrance and the check in area.  I communicated to the bartender that I wanted coffee without too much of a problem.  And there I sat, smoking my cigarettes, drinking coffee and waiting for my sweetie.  As I enjoy “people watching” the time didn’t pass as slowly as it could have.  It was interesting to watch the people coming and going.  There was a loud table of Russian businessmen a few tables away from me that were enjoying a good amount of drinks and animated conversation.  Except for the language difference, it was like any good hotel lobby bar anywhere in America.

When Lena arrived, my heart skipped a few beats and I quickly signed my tab to my room.  She was carrying a medium sized duffel bag and I thought, boy does this girl travel light.  I wondered if she would think badly of me for all the luggage I brought?  I met her at the check in desk and only gave her a peck on the cheek and a short hug, keeping in mind her shyness about public affection.  I whisked her up to our room, carrying her bag with no need for a bellman.  Once inside the room, I gave her a more fitting kiss of welcome.  Her response was every bit of what I had dreamed of over the last few months of us being apart.  Yeah, this was going to work out just fine.  Of course we still had a few other bridges to cross, but I was confident that there would be no problems with them either.

Lena settled into the room, unpacking her clothes and freshening up a bit.  She absolutely loved the luxurious bathroom and couldn’t wait to use the Jacuzzi tub (but somehow did wait).  I told her that we would have to find some bubble bath for her so she could be pampered to the max.  She liked that idea a lot.  I shared with her the dinner plans and explained that I thought we should explore the hotel facilities and then maybe go for a walk in the Arbat before dinner.  I showed her how to use the mini bar (big mistake) and shared the room service menu with her.

In exploring the hotel, we found that they had an indoor pool, a full workout room, a first class hair salon and a beautiful atrium restaurant where they served a breakfast buffet every morning.  The hotel had everything that there room rates suggested they should.  The daily rate during the week was close to $300 and jumped up to $400 for the weekend.  What I did not realize at the time was that the rate did not include the AVT tax which was 25%.  More on that later.

We caught a taxi to take us to the Arbat, but were surprised by just how close it was to our hotel.  Oh well, we could always walk back.  We enjoyed looking at the odds and ends for sale, but really were just happy to be together again, finally.  I remember there was a table selling the Russian nesting dolls with Bill Clinton’s caricature on the outside.  Inside was Hillary,  Breshneff (sp), Gorbachev, and finally Monica Lewinsky. TFF!  It was very cold for March and we decided to head back to the Marriott.

Our dinner in the Polo Lounge was magnificent!  We had 3 or 4 waiters hovering over our every desire.  To be honest, they all were a little inexperienced, but what they lacked in experience, they more than made up for with the motivation to please us.  I took the lead here as the menu was provided in English.  I didn’t know if Lena had ever experienced a restaurant of this level before and I certainly didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable.  Later I did find out that Lena had experienced places equal to the Polo Lounge.  Regardless, she was not the least bit rattled or intimidated by her surroundings.  That is one of the more endearing qualities I have found in her, she is able to fit into any level she chooses.  She is quite amazing to me, really.

I ordered a fillet for my entrée and a full lobster for hers.  Appetizers, salads and of course a bottle of champagne were ordered by me.  For desert I had them prepare cherries jubilee at the table.  Lena was quite impressed and had no troubles with my selections at all.  I wanted this to be a very special dinner and it turned out perfect.  The ambiance, the food, even the less than polished service and of course the company could not have been more perfect to me.

We retired to our room after dinner.   I wanted this night to be like a fairy tale for her, because it certainly was a fairy tale for me.  I know I succeeded on all counts as did she too.  Now it was a full blown love story with no turning back, no excuses and no reservations.

[KenC]

Is anyone interested in reading more?
KenC

[catzenmouse]

Is anyone interested in reading more?
KenC

Well Duh! Yes, of course we do! Silly KenC...

[pitbull]

Ken,

Please continue your story...
I  also have a question: Did Lena finish her degree in Russia before she came to the US to be with you?

[myrddin]

Is anyone interested in reading more?
KenC

Definitely!

[KenC]

Ken,

Please continue your story...
I  also have a question: Did Lena finish her degree in Russia before she came to the US to be with you?

Pitbull,
No, she didn't finish her degree and it is one of the things we both regret now.  Lena had one more year to go and she should have finished it.  She has had to take many of the same classes over again here as her credits did not transfer.  That last year cost her at least two or three more years of study here.

I guess I like the questions and comments and incourage them from the members here.  I did not want to be writing a blog that no one read.
KenC

[AnastassiaAsh]

hehe, you thought we forgot about this, no way! We are here, crawling around the board.  I propose you write everything that happened till these days, till Lena got her Citizenship and beyond! 

[tim 360]

Yeah Ken, keep the fairy tale coming, Cheerio, tim360

[Faux Pas]

I've been fat, dumb and happy waiting on the next installment

[UTRO]

I've enjoyed reading your experiences. Please continue, Thanks!

[KenC]

More of Moscow
We both slept well into the afternoon.  The sleep was well appreciated by my jet lagged old butt too.  We didn’t really have any specific plans for the day and mutually decided to take a leisurely approach to the day.  I knew Lena wanted to use the pool and enjoy the hotel’s facilities. 

We ordered some breakfast from room service and I offered her to help herself to the snacks in the mini bar.  Introducing Lena to room service and mini bars was a life changing moment in her life as I look back on things!  LOL.  During the course of our stay at the Marriott, I think Lena ate the entire assortment of the mini bar snacks two or three times!  She was so funny as she could not resist the assorted nuts, chocolates and cookies.  To this day, her eyes light up when our hotel room has a mini bar full of snacks!  Lena is also a huge fan of room service meals.  She was a little shy about ordering at first, but she overcame her shyness rather quickly.

I had brought a few little gifts for Lena.  A box of Godiva chocolate, a silk robe with matching teddy and some matching slippers were all warmly welcomed by her.  Lena had also not come empty handed either.  She had given me a bottle of European cologne called Uomo by Sergio Tacchini.  I remember this because I still have a half a bottle left to this day.  I only use this for special occasions and the fragrance never fails to transport us both back to our Moscow time together.  One spray of that cologne and we both are full of love and affection for each other.

The other thing I brought that turned out to be pretty cool was a Victoria’s Secrete catalog.  This was their spring catalog that had many clothes in it not just sleepwear and bras and panties.  I threw it in my suitcase as almost an afterthought.  Lena and I had a great time going through the catalog page by page together.  I found out what she liked and what she disliked in clothing.   I would circle the things she liked and thought that I would maybe send her some items later.  Of course measuring her (for fitting purposes only ) was great fun in itself!  When Lena gave me her measurements in metric scale, I laughed out loud.  I still have the Marriott note pad that we wrote the measurements on.

Later when I returned home, I put an order in with VC and bought Lena some of the items she liked and sent them to her.  Wow, was that ever appreciated!  Lena was always careful not to flaunt her relationship with me to her friends for fear of jealousy, but she would proudly wear a top or a pair of jeans that I had sent to her as a gift.  (This is just a suggestion to the guys to plan ahead.)

During the course of the day, Lena and I did shop for a workout outfit and bathing suit for her, so that she could maximize her use of the hotel facilities.  I bought these things at my insistence as Lena was very careful not to ask for anything.  It was my first real experience in just how picky a shopper she really is.  I remember that she was really drawn to the Nike brand as she had worked in a Nike store for a short period of time in Tver.  She quit the job because the owner would deduct any shrinkage (thefts) from the employees paychecks no matter whose shift the theft occurred.

Later that day we ate at a Tex/Mex restaurant that I had found in my research of Moscow.  I guess I was looking for a semi-American flavor to our time together.  The food was actually pretty good, all things considered.  Lena had her first quesadilla and loved it.  And I loved her sense of adventure; her willingness to try different things.

We caught a cab from the Tex/Mex restaurant to another place I had found in my research.  It was a club called “The Jazz club.”  I had other suggestions, but Lena nixed them as too dangerous because they were known Mafia hangouts.  Even though I had the address, this driver had no clue as to where this club was located.  He drove around for what seemed like hours and even stopped at a store to ask for direction and couldn’t find it.  Lena explained to me that he had just started to drive for the taxi company and didn’t know where anything was.  Lena made the guy pull over and let us out.  I did give him some money for his troubles as the poor guy did try.  As we got out of the taxi, I wondered what our next move was going to be.  No sweat, because Lena hailed the next oncoming car and negotiated a fee for the driver to take us to where we wanted to go.  I was amazed at this custom but the driver did deliver us to the club as promised. 

The Jazz Club was in a very out of the way area and I could understand how the first driver would not know where it was.  The area was all residential and there was only a small sign designating the club was around the rear of the building.  We walked around to the entrance only to be met by two rather imposing bouncers who were deciding who was going to get in and who was going to be turned away.  I noticed more than a few security cameras around and they checked both of our ID’s.  (I didn’t know that this club was that exclusive)  Lena later said that we probably would not have been let in without my blue passport.

Once we passed the security, we walked down some steps and around the corner as the club was in a basement of the building.  We were both more than a little confused at first.  Here were tables all around with people drinking coffee and soft background music playing.  Huh?  This is a hot club?  The only thing I could relate the ambiance to would be a hippy coffee house from the late 60’s.  I had hoped for some jazz music as it was the name of the place but this was ridiculously laid back and borderline boring.  What the hell, we thought, and we grabbed a table and ordered some coffee.  As we enjoyed each other’s company, I noticed more than a few Americans sprinkled throughout the crowd.  Maybe they had read the same misinformation as I did?  As the time passed, we noticed a change in the crowd.  There were more and more young people coming in.  You know the type that were out for some real partying.  Also as people left their tables, the staff would remove the table and chairs to another room.  We decided to stay and see where this was going to lead as the night was still young.  We switched to cocktails from coffee as more and more tables disappeared and the place began to fill up.

At a certain hour, there was an announcement made and the place transformed into a complete other venue altogether.  We are talking hard pounding European dance music, laser lights, strobe lights and even smoke machines.  The metamorphous was unbelievable. The place was rocking to the max!  What a riot we had.  We danced and drank until Lena could not dance any more.

[SANDRO43]

She had given me a bottle of European cologne called Uomo by Sergi Tacchini.

FYI, it's Sergio Tacchini (which translates to Serge Turkeys ):

Sergio Tacchini became a professional tennis player at age 17. In 1960 he won the title of the Italian Champion over fellow countryman Nicola Pietrangeli. He was considered to be a talent on clay courts and also competed in the Davis Cup, counting five victories in singles and one in doubles in a total of fifteen games. He took another two Italian titles in doubles, with Pietrangeli as his partner in 1967 and 1968. In 1966, Sergio Tacchini founded Sandys S.p.A. which was to be renamed after him a few years later. The initial idea was to experiment with colours and fabrics in order to create elegant and stylish tenniswear, at a time white dominated the players' clothes. However the project expanded to other sports such as ski, fitness, golf and sailing, but leisure wear as well. Many great athletes have joined the Sergio Tacchini brand over the years. Most of them are well-known tennis players from the 1970s and 1980s such as Jimmy Connors, Vitas Gerulaitis, Ilie Nastase, Mats Wilander, John McEnroe, Martina Navratilova, Sergi Bruguera, Pat Cash, Gabriela Sabatini, Pete Sampras, Martina Hingis and Goran Ivanisevic

[KenC]

Sandro,
Thanks for pointing out my typo!  Interesting information too.
KenC