OK - August 26, 2010 (translation)
"Zhenya for me is best friend, husband and lover"
(wedding trip to Crete)
Yana Rudkovskaya and Evgeni Plushenko - one of the most romantic couples of Russian show business - spent their honeymoon on Crete. The couple shared with OK! exclusive details of their trip, and we decided to ponder on a honeymoon: it turned out that for some famous couples it is still ongoing, while others ... it started even before the wedding. Star honeymoons - special projects in OK!It is hard to believe in love stories like this one. It seems that all is staged, and these doubts are understandable. Yana really makes any, even the most insane idea, into a successful project. It was the same with "Eurovision", where Rudkovskaya's ward, granted - the second time around, but still won, and with the return of the brilliant Evgeni Plushenko to the sport. Where's Yana, there's a success - there is more truth in that than pathos. Because of this many people do not like Rudkovskaya: they say, too assertive, too demanding, wants too much. If we consider that she is probably the only female producer in the Russian show business, recall how many court hearings she had to go through with her ex-husband, it is clear from where this doll-looking woman - blond hair, carved figure, big eyes - takes her severity, and sometimes bossiness. There's no other way. But we have seen Yana in those moments when a woman forgets about the work: at a wedding, for example. And again we want to show her true self - that Yana, who wakes up in the morning next to a loved one and understands that she does not need to hurry. Phone turned off, no car noise outside the window, and you do not need to call, to make appointments, to "build". At such times, even strong women allow themselves the pleasure to be genuine, homey and talk about the irrational - about feelings.
Yana, Zhenya, tell us, did you plan the honeymoon in advance or all happened spontaneously?
Yana: Usually people go on their honeymoon right after the wedding. But with us it was all different. The next day, after the ceremony, Zhenya went to Novogorsk to train - there were important competitions ahead: Grand Prix, the Russian and European championships and Olympic Games. He won everything except the Olympics. But for me he was also the first in Vancouver. (Laughs.)
Zhenya: Maybe it's better, that I did not win. Instead, there's still a dream. Now I actively train, prepare for the Olympics in Sochi. There's still a gunpowder in the powderbox, so I will fight.
Y: Because of regular training, we were able to escape on vacation only for a week. Immediately after the Olympics there were shows, then we spent two whole weeks in Germany, where Zhenya was examined and treated ...
Z: Generally, we only dreamed about a rest. (Laughs.) But we are glad that we had at least a week. To complain about it would be a sin - everything was wonderful.
Why did you choose Crete?
Y: We got few trips as wedding gifts, including the one to Crete, to our favorite hotel OUT OF THE BLUE, Capsis Elite Resort. It's owner, Diya Kapsis, could not come to the celebration, but as a wedding gift offered that we spend a honeymoon at the Villa Black Pearl. We've been in this hotel before - gaining strength before the "Eurovision-2008". I remember that we were so pleased that we promised each other to come back here, if we won. And we came back. And even before the honeymoon, I managed to take my friends here: Philip Kirkorov and Dima Bilan with Lena Kuletskaya. Zhenya was still training back then...
Z: But mentally, of course, I was next to you. (Laughs) But seriously, I envied you, because I've been in different countries, but never even seen such beauty and splendor.
Y: This place is an oasis for lovers' hearts. Nothing is comparable to the stay in Black Pearl: a separate private beach in a rocky ravine, SPA-zone directly in the villa, breakfasts prepared by the restaurant's chef in our own kitchen ... And he served them to the terrace with stunning sea views.
Z: And what a swimming pool, remember? Part of it was in the room and partl in the nature. You dive into an ordinary pool and emerge among tropical trees ... It was great! And a gym, a tennis court ... Well, the bed was fantastically soft. Confirm! (Looks at Yana.)
Y: That's true (Laughs.) It was just us and no people around to be seen. We lived in our little world.
Have you ever went out for entertainment?
Z: Of course we went there to spend time with each other. But since we both prefer outdoor activities, we didn't sit in one place. Yana kept staying in the sea for hours - she loves observing the underwater world, she goes snorkeling, and I was hooked too. And in the evenings, the hotel manager, at my request, gathered men, who came to rest, and we played football. Guests versus the hotel management. We always won. (Laughs.)
Y: And of course, we took a boat and sailed out into the sea, where they caught fish, big and small. And then our cook prepared it for us for dinner. Fish caught with own hands, as it turns out, is much tastier! Zhenya liked it so much that he decided to catch fish directly from the cliffs that surrounded our villa. In the first five minutes he managed to catch a little red fishie, and then he vainly spent 3 hours with a fishing rod. Do you remember what you asked me to do? (Laughs.)
Z: I asked Yana to dive in and see why the fish are not biting. Yana swam with a mask and regularly informed me about the situation.
Y: And as if to spite as, there were no fish around our rock.
Z: Maybe you scared them when you showed up in a mask, with a snorkel and flippers? (Laughs.)
Y: Sure! You better tell them how you wanted me to stick a fish on a hook, like Anatoli Papanov's character in "The Diamond Arm"!
What is your impression of Crete?
Z: We were very lucky with the weather, and the island itself is simply amazing: very clear sea, sand, no waves, that's why the hotel is located in the bay. We enjoyed every day and dreamt the days were at least few hours longer.
Y: Local residents knew Zhenya as if he skated not for Russia, but for Greece. Almost everyone asked for his autograph and wanted to take pictures. And in the taverns they brought us free sweets and local delicacies. All Cretan restaurant owners considered it their duty to invite us into their restaurant!
And what was the most romantic moment
Z: Of course, a trip on the yacht and swimming in the open sea, and then a barbecue on one of the uninhabited islands.
Y: And I liked the romantic dinner from this fish that we caught. It was all decorated with rose petals! And that fabulous dessert in little bowls with our names ... Zhenya, do you remember? I had never eaten anything this delicious in my life!
Did you switch off your phones when you arrived?
Z: To fight about the phone and the Internet is useless. No matter how I tried, Yana could not be persuaded. I understand - it's work. But I won one thing: she stopped jumping out of bed at seven in the morning to immediately open a laptop and clatter on it with her fingers. Now she wakes up even later than I do - at least some progress!
Were there moments on this trip, when you got to know each other better?
Y: I think that each day we get closer to each other. Zhenya is my husband, my best friend and my lover, and I am happy. I trust him with all my secrets. And you trust me with yours, right? (Zhenya nods.)
Z: I am eternally grateful that Yana brought me back into sports, never missed one of my trainings, spent the nights with me in the car, ate in the canteen of the Palace of Sports, went to training camps and competitions... For her faith and dreams.
Y: I actually have only two dreams. One is to see my children. Fortunately, my relations with the ex-spouse are improving, we found a compromise on this issue. And the second dream - that Zhenya skates in Sochi. It does not even matter what medal he gets, although I am sure he is able to win the gold, it will be his fourth Olympics, and in any case he will make history.
Z: What can I say? We will work.
We are used to seeing you as a successful producer and a strong woman. And what are you like when you're alone with your loved one? Yana, as seen every day by Evgeni Plushenko?
Y: I think Zhenya sees me as an ordinary woman who laughs and cries, and is enjoying every single day. I am an optimist by nature.
Z: We have with Yana affectionate nicknames. I call her "ostrich-woman-child". ["страусенок-женщина-ребенок", страусенок = an ostrich chick] With me she's exactly like that, and the stringency is just a mask behind which she hides. Because her work is not feminine.
But do you find time for romance in everyday life?
Z: Romance - is when people love each other and want to be together, and no one can stand in their way.
Y: Romance - is when we are together, when Zhenya welcomes me with flowers at the airport, and Pulkovo staff sees our eyes and says that we are the most romantic couple in the world.
Z: And they also see my sad eyes, when I see you off somewhere!
Y: Do you think they see just your sad eyes, not mine? (Smiles ironically.)
Z: Actually, we are happy people, because, despite everything, we are together!
Do you want to repeat your honeymoon?
Y: Yes, we had already decided on the trips to Maldives, Seychelles, Monaco. Now we are trying to find the time to continue our honeymoon.
Z: In my opinion it won't end at all. Our honeymoon will last a lifetime.
translation by Eve
