THE AMAZING FACE
Aurelia has always been a very adventurous girl, which is why she absolutely could not miss the opportunity to temporarily swap posing in front of the camera for representing Hong Kong in The Amazing Race Asia (AXN). "When I received the call saying that I was selected, it felt so unreal that I asked them to repeat it three times - I just couldn't believe it."
Aurelia Chenat, 25 is not afraid of a challenge, "The intensity of reality TV means that you feel so many strong emotions, and that I could do so many things that I had never even dreamed of." It was also a chance for her to use some of the acting skills that she gained from studying in Paris. She knew that she wanted to become an actress from the very first time that she went to the theatre with her mother in France. However, the acting world has yet to see Aurelia's talents as she was swooped as a teenager by a leading Paris modeling agency who became intrigued by her chameleon looks, with the unusual appearance of being both French and Asian.
Indeed, when our paths first crossed in 1998, we were both fashion models working in Tokyo in the haze of the Japanese fashion boom. From a distance she immediately struck me as being quite different to the other beautiful faces. Whilst having their makeup fixed at the back of smoky studios many models would struggle with reading Cosmopolitan Magazine, while Aurelia would be ploughing through 19th century French literature and the work of Russian writers such as Dostoevsky. "At school I was always fascinated by mythology, antiquities and Latin and I was totally allergic to numbers, including mathematics or physics!"
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Her career has seen her pass from growing up in Provence, southern France, "I didn't realise how lucky I was growing up in such a charming place until I moved," to appearing on the most prestigious catwalks of the world. Aurelia then developed a "huge crush on Asia" which led to her arrival in Hong Kong, "an amazing city, which I now call home."
She is usually busy striking poses for glossy magazines, strutting in international fashion shows and most recently doing exciting tasks on The Amazing Race. However on her days off she goes to Tai Tam Bay for a spot of wakeboarding or visits City Hall for her favourite dim sum.
To get fit for the race of a lifetime, Aurelia trained in kickboxing and the Japanese martial art Kyokunshinkai. On arrival at her secret destinations she used her positive mindset to get through the challenges that were presented by the producers. In normal life, (although infact the word 'normal' is wholly unsuitable for Aurelia) she makes a point to only spend time with people with, "lots of energy, who like to have fun and live life to the fullest."
When asked where she see's herself in five years time Aurelia has absolutely no idea,
"God, I wish I knew." However, two things are clear: this girl absolutely loves life and she is totally crazy about Hong Kong. Aurelia doesn't realise it yet but both are wild about her.
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