I've been to the show on September 19th, which was the last show of the tour. Every skater was putting their extra energy into the performances and you could clearly see it. It was nice to feel that kind of positive energy going on.

Elena & Anton's first performance was "The kid". I had tears in my eyes watching Anton walking out with his handkerchief when the music started to play. "The kid" is my favorite exhibition program, and to see them actually perform it right before my eyes was so much more than what I can possibly describe. You could feel such freedom when they ran and glided across the ice at the beginning of the program, Elena was simply a kid herself, and Anton was completely in his character. Although I have only seen video tapes of the kid to this date, I have seen at least 4 different performances aside from this one. Every time Elena & Anton skate to this program, it is a completely different performance from the other. Every subtle movement has a variation and gives the program a whole new look, such as Elena squirming on the chair, yawning on Anton's back, Anton waking Elena, the footwork they do across the ice, and so on. I remember Katia once said that "Vocalise" was a new program every time they skated to it. I truly agree with her. And for me, "The kid" had the same kind of magic.

Anton and Elena were perfectly precise on their moves, nailing the throw triple loop. Their speed was unbelievable and their lifts had wonderful qualities. I went to the show with my friends and we had our signs for Elena & Anton. It was my second time at the show but my friends had been there like 3 to 5 times already and Elena & Anton immediately recognized my friends and the signs for them. They were doing a lift, and Anton started smiling and winked away, and Elena was surprised we were there again that her eyes became even larger I could watch them skate forever but alas! It ended way to soon.

Their second program was the mixed dance - "Do ya think I'm sexy" was what was on the program list. It was the same program as the one they skated at the 2004 World Team Challenge LP. Anton ran by the first row seats, and gave us a high-five. Elena was smiling so beautifully and Anton was so into his dance that soon everyone was clapping to the music. Anton surely has the ability to draw the audience in. When Elena stopped skating and walked away from Anton, she came to the audience and sat on one man's lap. He was so surprised! This performance recieved the loudest applause of the night.

At the finale, the skaters came to the rinkside to collect the flowers. We had brought 6 bouquets of flowers, each for Elena, Anton, Maria, Alexei, Natalia and Andrei. I had the chance to give it to Anton (blush) and thanked him for the beautiful skating and their coming to Korea. He said thank you and kissed me on the cheek. My heart was flying! He smiled straight at us as they skated away with his both thumbs up and then waved good-bye.

We quickly ran to the skaters entrance where the bus was waiting outside. We were not allowed to go backstage, but we knew that they would be leaving the building through that entrance. About 10 of us were waiting there and Elena was the first one to come out! Her hands were full with flowers and her luggage but she stopped and signed autographs. It was my first time meeting her personally, and at first I couldn't say a word. I had brought a present for her - a pair of earrings that I made for her, a little mirror made of "Jogakbo" which is the name of the Korean traditional quilts. I also put in a book of Korean traditional handcrafts which included some pictures and explanation of the "Jogakbo". She didn't rush a thing and smiling so gorgeously we couldn't take our eyes off her. She didn't say good-bye as she left, but "See you soon". Ah~! She is such a darling and was so sweet.

Anton came out a little after Alexei and Maria. He looked a little tired, but still made little jokes. He recognized my friends and even said that they were going to tour in Russia and we should come to St.Petersburg! He seemed surprised that we already knew that they were going to tour in St. Petersburg. After taking pictures with him, I was completely awe-struck that I almost forgot to give him his present! It was a cell phone charm that I made for him, and bookmarks also made in "Jogakbo". The bookmarks were in various colors but I chose the one I gave him just beacause it matched their "Meditation" costumes. I was planning to explain it to him but forgot to say a word about it. Oh, well.

Igor Bobrin was the last to come out, and when I asked him for an autograph, he seemed a bit surprised. I told him that I loved his work with Elena & Anton, and "The kid" and "The Lady Caliph" are my favorite programs. He said thank you with a big smile.

Somebody backstage said that Elena, Anton, and Alexei were leaving tommorrow. I had to go to school (sigh) , but some of us agreed to give a send-off at the airport.

They did meet them at the airport. It took some time for them to check-in, and after it was over Anton waved at them to come closer. They gave some gifts to all of them, and the three of them appreciated the gifts and thanked my friends for their support. Alexei had some problems with his visa so Anton went with him, so there they were - my friends chatting with Elena at the airport.

My friends asked them about their stay at Korea and about Elena's cafe near her hometown. She answered that they didn't have much time off the ice so she couldn't go sightseeing but had been to downtown once. She liked the gifts that we gave her, and mentioned that the earrings were pretty! The last 3 days on tour had been holidays - the Korean thanksgiving day. We have "songpyeon" on thanksgiving. It's made of rice and has various sweet seasonings inside. Mina had taken some "songpyeon" with her and left it for Elena & Anton at the front desk of the hotel where they stayed. Elena said she recieved it and shared it with all the skaters on tour. She also said her cafe near her hometown was not there anymore. KKowka speaks a little Russian and when Elena saw her a bit nervous she told her to relax She is soooooo sweet.

Anton and Alexei soon came back, and the three of them thanked them for their support, said good-byes once again, and left to the boarding gate.

So that was the end of our wonderful month with Elena & Anton. We had such a good time watching them skate, and talking about it later, exchanging photos with one another! We do hope that they had a nice time just as we did.

Author:Soyoung (st9747)

Photo:Ttasia,Mina,Jiyoung and Vinah

Click on the photos to view large

Russian version (Русская версия)