Magnum Opus
AWARD Winner *— **
Fine china Luxury is in the details in Shanghai and Beijing
Rum Punch
The sweet secrets of Barbados
Stargazing
Rediscover the night sky around the globe
Birds of play
Learn falconry in Abu Dhabi
Fairmont Magazine . Yours to enjoy | winter 2012
PROUDLY MADE IN CANADA WWW.CANADA-GOOSE.COM
our par tnerships . yo u r pleas ure.
Choosing Fairmont is just the beginning When you choose Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, you choose a world of premium offerings. We are proud to partner with some of the world’s most respected brands to bring you, our valued guest, exclusive benefits and exciting offers. All of which lead to a heightened travel experience. Right now, you can take advantage of Fairmont’s Ultimate Ski Packages, which include a guest room, lift tickets and more. Surrounded by rugged peaks, knee-deep powder and gravity-defying runs, our spectacular ski destinations have a reputation for being among the best on the planet — both on the slopes and off. Packages are available until April 30, 2012. Call 1 888 298 4929 or visit www.fairmont.com/ultimateski, and book yours today! For more information on our partnerships, please visit www.fairmont.com/globalpartners Our global partners include:
To get the most out of your stay, enroll in Fairmont President’s Club: www.fairmont.com/fpc. For reservations, please contact your travel professional, call 1 800 441 1414 or visit www.fairmont.com
COVER AND THIS PAGE: PHOTOGRAPHER: ANDREW ROWAT; PHOTOGRAPHY ASSISTANTS: FION DAI, SIMONE LEZZI; MODELS: STEFANY AND TOM, ESSEE MODEL MANAGEMENT, SHANGHAI STYLING: JULE & JOSEPHINE; HAIR: NIC CHU; MAKEUP: JUN ZHAO; WARDROBE: SHIATZY CHEN, PERSUE BY JOEL AND CARTIER.
WINTER 2012
DECO DISCOVERIES Delight in China’s Art Deco landmarks on an architectural tour of Shanghai, starting with Fairmont Peace Hotel.
BY KAREN VON HAHN | PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREW ROWAT
PAGE 11
FAIRMONT MAGAZINE
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WINTER 2012
Pagoda at Coal Hill Park, Beijing
30
FEATURES
DEPARTMENTS
30 BALANCE IN BEIJING
9
CONTRIBUTORS
Find your center with traditional wellness techniques in China’s bustling capital.
14
SPA & FITNESS Sport and spa pairings
16
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT London’s Mount Street
BY EVE THOMAS
19
TRAVEL Place-themed products
PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREW ROWAT
22 LEADERSHIP Go green in Hawaii 24 ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Filming at Fairmont
40 SEEING STARS
Seeking out the night skies over Charlevoix, Quebec, and around the world.
26 SPORTS & ADVENTURE Golf tips for kids 28 FOOD & DRINK Shop like a chef 82 CHECKOUT The Savoy’s bartender extraordinaire
BY EMILIE VILLENEUVE 46 SUNSET SIP
A refreshing look at Barbados’ national cocktail.
58 NATURAL FOCUS
The nature-inspired winners of Magenta’s Flash Forward photography contest.
FAIRMONT HOTELS & RESORTS 74
FAIRMONT GOLD At your service around the world
66 BRUNCH Dubai, U.A.E.
75
DIRECTORY Worldwide property listing
70 DESTINATION GUIDE Cairo, Egypt
78
NEWS & VIEWS The scoop on Fairmont
81
THEN & NOW Stars on safari at Fairmont The Norfolk
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PRESIDENT’S LETTER
HERITAGE PLACE Colorado, U.S.A.
FAIRMONT MAGAZINE
PHOTO: ANDREW ROWAT
NEW IN-ROOM AMENITIES Introducing Rose 31, Fairmont's new fragrance by New York perfumer Le Labo. See page 79
BY CHRIS JOHNS
Š2011 Harry Winston, Inc.
TM
President’s Letter
A culture that rewards individuality and teamwork translates into great service and special moments for our guests.
When winners of Fairmont’s annual Ideas Count company awards were announced for 2010, Pittsburgh’s Site Stories program stood out among the winners. The Ideas Count awards have become a valuable tool for sharing smart solutions to common challenges, and an inspiring reminder of the many ways that the Fairmont brand is brought to life at our properties around the world. For 10 years now the program has seen a flood of entries, from the icemaking innovation at The Fairmont Dallas that saved 260,000 gallons of water a year, to the restaurant team at Fairmont Singapore who spotted a local need for halal-certified fine dining.
That’s when our local team went into action, ensuring that artifacts from a toy store, porcelain shop, doctor’s office and tea shop were carefully preserved. When the hotel opened last year, guests were delighted to find displays on every floor and even in individual rooms. Using cell phone apps, they could embark on a selfguided tour throughout the building, taking in a museum-quality collection that includes dolls, bottles, dishes and instruments. Word soon got out, and now the hotel is inundated with requests for public tours – a service that it happily provides, in keeping with Fairmont’s philosophy that its properties should occupy a prominent place, and even iconic status, within all our local communities.
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Obviously, we at Fairmont benefit when our employees pitch in with innovations and improvements, but we think that our guests receive something even more important. Beyond the constant refinement of processes and products, there’s the pleasure of interacting with staff who feel integral and empowered. And proud, too. After all, Fairmont received Hotelier magazine’s inaugural Green Award and was the only hotel brand to make CNBC Europe’s Low Carbon Pioneer Top 100. Meanwhile, no fewer than 25 Fairmont properties were recognized by Condé Nast Traveler magazine’s most recent Readers’ Choice Awards. That’s a huge affirmation, and recognition that a service culture that rewards individuality and teamwork translates into great service and special moments for our guests. At Fairmont, we believe luxury is timeless, and like our employees we encourage you to both treasure the past and grow with us into the future. CHRIS CAHILL President, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts
PHOTO: SUZANNE MERRETT
Our recently opened Fairmont Pittsburgh was one of the first hotels constructed to LEED Gold standards, so we knew there would be some surprises during the construction process. But no one anticipated that they would include finding archeological evidence of several 19thcentury businesses buried on the site.
CONTRIBUTORS
FAIRMONT MAGAZINE WINTER 2012 EDITOR Natasha Mekhail fairmontmagazine@spafax.com
SENIOR EDITOR Jean-François Légaré CONTRIBUTING EDITOR Charlene Rooke ASSISTANT EDITOR Eve Thomas EDITORIAL ASSISTANTS Patricia Lachance Aliyah Shamsher COPY EDITOR Melissa Edwards FACT CHECKER Line Abrahamian ART ART DIRECTOR Aaron Nathaniel Standen ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR Guillaume Brière
London-based KITTY FINSTAD guides us through the city’s most coveted new address in “Marvelous Mount Street” (page 16). In between writing and editing, this Canadian expat does her best to support her adopted city’s economy by eating and drinking her way around London’s buzzing bar and restaurant scene.
Writer and editor KAREN VON HAHN is a trend hunter with international taste who currently works as The Toronto Star’s “Style Czar” columnist and as editor-in-chief of KingWest. In “Deco Discoveries” (page 11) she heads to Shanghai, China, where the Art Deco landscape still reigns supreme.
Award-winning food and travel writer CHRIS JOHNS journeys to Barbados in “Sunset Sip” (page 46) to learn about the island’s colorful history, people and cocktail of choice. The Toronto-based writer’s current project has him penning stories of 140 characters or less. (Follow him on Twitter @chrisandvinegar.)
Photographer ANDREW ROWAT captures the diversity of China throughout this issue of Fairmont, from timeless luxury in Shanghai (cover and page 11) to wellness in the capital city (“Balance in Beijing,” page 30). Find his work in publications such as The New Yorker and Condé Nast Traveler.
TIMOTHY TAYLOR is an award-winning novelist and a contributing editor at more than a dozen publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Food & Wine, National Post and The Walrus. He learns the art of falconry in “Feathered Friends” (page 54). His most recent novel is the thriller The Blue Light Project.
Montreal journalist EMILIE VILLENEUVE reports on just about everything, from fashion trends to social issues. She’s adding astronomy to the list with “Seeing Stars” (page 40), which has her heading to Charlevoix, Quebec, for a crash course in stargazing. Up next: a book about Quebec’s favorite recipes.
PRODUCTION PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Jennifer Blais PRODUCTION MANAGER Rachel Robbie PROOFREADER Jane Pavanel ONLINE ONLINE EDITOR Jasmin Legatos fairmontmagazine.com CONTRIBUTORS Jennifer Allen, Ben Canales, Steven Christenson, Jillian Dickens, Kitty Finstad, Jean-Pierre Huard, Chris Johns, Dennis Mammana, Douglas Mason, Liam Maloney, Adam McCulloch, Barbara Pavone, Amanda Ross, Joanne Sasvari, John Schreiber, Susan Seubert, Mark Slutsky, Shaun Smith, Jim Sutherland, Timothy Taylor, Emilie Villeneuve, Karen Von Hahn © Copyright 2012 by Spafax Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission of the publisher is prohibited. Fairmont is published twice per year by Spafax Inc. Points of view expressed do not necessarily represent those of Fairmont Hotels & Resorts. The publisher reserves the right to accept or reject all advertising matter. The publisher assumes no responsibility for the return or safety of unsolicited art, photographs or manuscripts. Printed in Canada.
FAIRMONT HOTELS & RESORTS CHAIRMAN & CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER
William R. Fatt PRESIDENT
Chris Cahill SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT, HUMAN RESOURCES
Carolyn Clark
VICE PRESIDENT, BRAND MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS
Brian Richardson EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, BRAND DEVELOPMENT & GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS
Alexandra Blum EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, PUBLIC RELATIONS
Lori Holland MANAGER, BRAND DEVELOPMENT & GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS
Diana Wetherly SUPERVISOR, BRAND DEVELOPMENT & GLOBAL PARTNERSHIPS
Bethany Georgas
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts Worldwide RBC Centre, 155 Wellington St. W. Suite 3300 Toronto, ON M5V 0C3 Canada +001 416 874 2600, fairmont.com
SPAFAX EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, MEDIA
Katrin Kopvillem PUBLISHER, SPAFAX CANADA
Lyne Farley CONTENT DIRECTOR
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Nadine Hoffman DIRECTOR, FINANCE & HUMAN RESOURCES
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MANAGING DIRECTOR SPAFAX INTERACTIVE
Patrick Joly
FAIRMONT MAGAZINE
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1 Extraordinary view of the 34th America’s Cup* 9 Sailing teams compete for the best in sport 1 Memory the family will never forget
as you requested
A FRONT ROW SEAT TO THE
3 4 T H A M E R I C A’ S C U P AWAITS YOU. PURCHASE
A FRACTIONAL HOME AT FAIRMONT HERITAGE PLACE, GHIRARDELLI SQUARE BY 12/31/2011 AND LOCK IN A BAYSIDE SEAT TO THE 34 TH AMERICA’S CUP FINALS.
The advantages of fractional home ownership with Fairmont Heritage Place, Ghirardelli Square are compelling. In addition to coming home to your luxurious Fairmont private residence club in San Francisco, enjoy an extensive ownership benefits program that grants you access to the world class benefits and services of Fairmont and Raffles hotels and resorts and residential properties worldwide. Luxury living at Fairmont Heritage Place and around the world, now yours for the taking.
private residence club call 1 800 921 8865 www . F airmon t A t G hirardelli.com
*Certain restrictions apply. This advertising material is being used for the purpose of soliciting the sale of fractional ownership interests. This is neither an offer to sell nor a solicitation to buy to residents in jurisdictions in which registration requirements have not been fulfilled, and your eligibility and the resorts available for purchase will depend upon the state, province or country of residency of the purchaser. Brokers must accompany their client(s) and/or pre-register them on their first contact with the Sales Gallery in order to be eligible for a broker commission. Exclusively represented by The Mark Company. Lic. #01235902.
TRAVEL
DECO DISCOVERIES Start at Fairmont Peace Hotel for an architectural tour of Shanghai’s Art Deco landmarks. BY KAREN VON HAHN PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREW ROWAT
FAIRMONT MAGAZINE
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Cathay Theatre Fairmont Peace Hotel
Of all the cities in China, Shanghai has always imagined itself the most modern. Once a sleepy fishing and textile town, it was transformed by the brisk trade of silk in the gin- and jazz-infused 1920s to take the title “Paris of the East.” Today, as developers race to transform the skyline with gravitydefying skyscrapers, the city’s iconic Art Deco attractions serve as architectural benchmarks. First introduced in 1925 at the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in Paris, Art Deco design consciously stripped away the embellishments of the past in favor of streamlined forms and repeating motifs that captured the excitement of a new, machine-driven age. Typical of the style are terraced or pyramidal shapes (King Tut’s tomb, discovered in 1922, created a mania for all things Egyptian), geometrical patterns and the liberal use of materials such as stainless steel, aluminum, marble and glass – elements that can still be observed in today’s Shanghai. The first stop on the tour, thanks to the efforts of Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, Jing Jiang Hotel Group and interior design consultants Hirsch Bedner Associates (HBA), is the newly reopened and exquisitely restored Fairmont Peace Hotel on the city’s Bund, built by businessman and hotelier Sir Victor Sassoon. Originally opened to the public in 1929
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as the Cathay Hotel, the lavishly appointed building, with its distinctive tower and pitched pyramidal roof, quickly became known as the “Pearl of the Orient.” This glittering hot spot played host to international dignitaries and celebrities, including Charlie Chaplin, as well as Noel Coward, who completed his play Private Lives while in residence. Luckily for design enthusiasts, the hotel is also a pearl of the Shanghai Deco trend. “The Cathay Hotel was designed in the high architectural style of the moment,” explains HBA’s Connie Puar, who adds that the design “epitomized the industrial future, technology and modernity.” In Puar’s opinion, while the style enjoyed popularity around the world, it differed somewhat from region to region, reflecting nuances of the local culture and climate. “Miami Deco, for example, is typified by bright Caribbean colors and characteristically American futuristic ‘streamliner’ elements,” she says. “Shanghai Deco tends to be more conservative and restrained, with darker tones and some chinoiserie elements.” Indeed, many of Peace Hotel’s Deco details – abundant fixtures and screens of Lalique glass, caged rosewood elevators and scrolled copper hardware – share a uniquely oriental flair, particularly the eternal knot incorporating
Savoy Apartments
Cathay Theatre
Bank of China
the typified scroll motif of the time. In contrast, the glowing glass-roofed octagonal lobby atrium (where a string trio now serenades guests nightly during cocktail hour) is simply transcendent. The Bund is similarly rich in old Shanghai details. The old Bank of China building next door, for instance, with its delicate vertical screen of near-calligraphic ornament and subtle pagoda-style roofline, offers another example of Shanghai’s interpretation of the style. The 1927 Custom House, designed by Palmer & Turner, boasts a very Deco clock tower (affectionately known as “Big Ching”). Still functioning as a playhouse, the old Cathay Theatre, with its vertically thrusting lines resolving into a central spire, was designed in 1932 by one of Shanghai’s great Euro-expat architects, C.H. Gonda. And, happily for style-conscious residents, one can still find some shining examples of local Deco in the old French concession. The graceful 1928 Savoy Apartments, for instance, features charming and well-preserved plasterwork under the eaves, while the Bauhaus-influenced facade of the nearby building once known as Empire Mansions is given the Shanghai treatment with Chinese-style circular windows. Moving forward, as Puar observes, the challenge for Shanghai is in the “delicate balance of preservation with urban renewal to ensure it retains its past glory but also has a clear path to the future.” For today’s visitor, this “delicate balance” is what makes Shanghai truly modern.
Film the hurried streets of Shanghai with a dust- and shock-proof camcorder. Samsung W200 Pocket Cam US$160
This iconic design borrows from the Art Deco style of Hermès’ first address: 24 Faubourg Saint Honoré, Paris. Hermès Mosaique au 24 Collection from US$255
First Commercial Bank
GOLD STAR
Discreet luxury reigns on Fairmont Gold floors at Fairmont Peace Hotel, Fairmont Beijing and Fairmont Yangcheng Lake. Your experience starts with a private check-in and welcome cocktail and continues with a dedicated Fairmont Gold butler ready to take care of your every need. fairmont.com/gold
Antique numbers allude to a traditional past, but the geometric grid points directly toward the future. Cartier Calibre de Cartier Watch US$12,000
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SPA & FITNESS
SPA Rx
SKI A full day of downhill moguls can reveal muscles you forgot you had. Possible Hazard Sore muscles. Pro Cure Heat things up with the Après Ski body experience at Fairmont Le Montreux Palace, Switzerland. A hydro alpine bath is followed by a relaxation massage and foot reflexology. Overtime The Sports Massage enables faster healing time by deep-work stretching and rocking to move lactic acid out of the system.
Combine your sport of choice with a restorative spa treatment that gets you back in the game in record time. BY ALIYAH SHAMSHER & EVE THOMAS
SURF An afternoon of catching waves can wreak havoc on unprotected skin. Possible Hazard Sunburn. Pro Cure The Sun Worshipper Skin Quencher at Fairmont Mayakoba, Riviera Maya, soothes skin and provides the ultimate relief with an aloe vera body wrap followed by a gentle massage and more aloe to keep skin hydrated and cool. Overtime The Great Outdoors Facial features the exclusive Willow Stream Sports Masque, which aims to diminish skin damage caused by the elements.
TOTAL RECOVERY
New on the menu at Willow Stream Spas is the Stay Active Rx program, targeted treatments for sports-related aches and pains. Whether you’re a serious athlete or part-time player, try these heat, water and muscle therapies to heal problem areas. The ultimate in relaxation? A completely customized deep pressure massage, designed specifically for joint and muscle pain. Available at select Willow Stream Spas. willowstream.com
An oversize durable tote can withstand any plane, train or automobile before the real adventure begins. adidas by Stella McCartney Carry-On Bag US$130
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A warp-resistant profile allows for effortless turning, even on the most challenging terrain. Atomic Charter Skis US$750
HIKE Whether you’re taking a nature walk or scaling mountains, your feet are going to feel it. Possible Hazard Aching feet and legs. Pro Cure At The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, Alberta, choose from the Alpine Foot Treatment or Feet Retreat. Both include a mineralinfused foot soak, followed by a massage to improve circulation. Overtime The Hike Hills Foot & Leg Remedy includes a salicylic (aspirin) mud soak, eucalyptus exfoliation and pressure-point foot massage.
Menthol, rosemary, pine and lavender nourish dry heels. K Kerstin Florian Kräuter Fuß Balm US$32
ILLUSTRATION: GUILLAUME BRIÈRE
GOLF Even a leisurely game can take its toll on the lower back, shoulders and elbows. Possible Hazard Sprains and strains. Pro Cure The Golf Performance Treatment Massage at The Fairmont Banff Springs, Alberta, endorsed by pro-golfer Charles Howell III and instructor David Leadbetter, uses acupressure and stretching to avoid injury and help improve balance and swing rotation. Overtime Bring your complexion up to par with the Post-Game Face Treatment a deep cleansing facial that also includes a neck, shoulder, hand and foot massage.
© 2011 Porsche Cars Canada Ltd. Porsche recommends seatbelt usage and observance of all traffic laws at all times.
Asphalt is for amateurs. Porsche’s winter track experience is returning to Canada. For more than 35 years, Porsche has offered some of the most unique and challenging performance driving opportunities on the planet. This winter, the Camp4 winter driving experience returns to Québec, where exclusive snow tracks and skidpads at the Mecaglisse ice driving facility allow you to test Porsche performance and your own driving skill against everything a Canadian winter can muster. Under the expert guidance of Porsche instructors – and behind the wheel of a variety of sports cars including the all-new 911 – you’ll have no trouble staying warm this winter.
January 31 – February 10, 2012 For booking details, visit porsche.ca/camp4
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Purdey fieldcoat
Udeshi
MARVELOUS MOUNT STREET
London is a city of villages, none cozier and more convivial than the newly transformed Mount Street area in upmarket Mayfair. Here’s a guide to a rare London neighborhood that is central, quiet and, best of all, still a bit of a secret.
St. Oxford
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Best for: to-dye-for hair 3- JO HANSFORD
Purdey may have been the real reason Madonna briefly adopted the persona of an English country gentlewoman when she was married to film director Guy Ritchie (whose “neighborhood pub,” the Punchbowl on nearby Farm Street, continues to attract locals and curious tourists). It’s Purdey’s quintessentially British hunting and shooting gear in classic wool and tweeds that epitomizes Mount Street’s traditional retail reputation. purdey.com, 57–58 South
Recognized as an innovative businesswoman and hair-color expert with a prestigious MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire) award in 2010, and dubbed "the best tinter on the planet" by Vogue, Jo Hansford is regularly entrusted to ensure the locks of celebrities such as Elizabeth Hurley, Nigella Lawson, Yasmin Le Bon and HRH The Duchess of Cornwall (aka Camilla Parker Bowles) look their glossy best. Mortals most welcome. johansford
Audley St., +44 20 7499 1801
.com, 19 Mount St., +44 20 7495 7774
Best for: an eyeful 2- GAGOSIAN GALLERY
Best for: a mid-afternoon sharpener 4- THE AUDLEY
Running perpendicular to the east end of Mount Street, Davies Street boasts an impressive roster of retail and commercial tenants, including British fashion iconoclast Vivienne Westwood. One of the most notable recent additions is from the Gagosian global brand, which opened its doors here in 2006 with an exhibition by Picasso. gagosian.com, 17–19
Among the chic shops and ladies who lunch sits the more relaxed Audley pub. Its spacious Victorian decor makes for a warm and friendly atmosphere, and there’s plenty of seating outside for when the weather’s fine. If you love traditional London pub grub, The Audley offers good-value pies, fish and chips and endless pints of English ales. 41–43
Davies St., +44 20 7493 3020
Mount St., +44 20 7499 1843
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Best for: classic British clothing 1 - PURDEY
The Savoy, A Fairmont Managed Hotel
PHOTOS: ISTOCKPHOTOS (FLAG); PURDEY (BOUTIQUE AND COAT); UDESHI; MAP: JASMIN LEGATOS
BY KITTY FINSTAD
Best for: modern men’s tailoring 5- UDESHI
SHOP THE SAVOY
Gentlemen in the market for bespoke suiting could take the safe option and present themselves for measuring at one of Savile Row’s many fine tailors. But one glance into the shop window of Oscar Udeshi’s slick Davies Street store, just around the corner from Mount Street, suggests a slightly more modern experience. Call it elegant rock ’n’ roll.
Get a five-star shopping experience with Shop at The Savoy, an on-site store offering carefully curated collections of ready-to-wear clothing, fine jewelry and accessories. Personal shoppers are also on hand, ready to scour London for the perfect bespoke brogues or vintage collectibles.
udeshi.co.uk, 8 Davies St., +44 20 7495 1333
shopatthesavoy.com
Best for: fashion-forward footwear 6- NICHOLAS KIRKWOOD The darling of the fashion press when he launched his first collection in 2005, young German-born designer Nicholas Kirkwood is known for his bold, ultramodern, almost architectural shoes, including very high heels. His glamorous Mount Street boutique is also home to his design studio. nicholaskirkwood.com, 5 Mount St. +44 20 7499 5781
Best for: red-carpet glamor 7- CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN 8- BALENCIAGA 9- STEPHEN WEBSTER
PHOTOS: NICHOLAS KIRKWOOD; SCOTT'S (RESTAURANT AND SEAFOOD)
With these top fashion brands just steps away from each other, you can be topto-toe chic and barely have to lift a signature-red sole. The Christian Louboutin boutique is a red-carpeted temple of glam (the house even designed an ultra-feminine handbag called Mount), while just a few doors down Balenciaga treats shoppers to a futuristic interior inspired by creative director Nicolas Ghesquière’s cutting-edge collections. Across the street, Stephen Webster’s flagship store is a magnet for jewelry magpies with attitude. christian
Stephen Webster
Nicholas Kirkwood
louboutin.com, 17 Mount St., +44 20 7491 0033 • balenciaga.com, 12 Mount St., +44 20 7317 4400 • stephenwebster.com, 93 Mount St., +44 845 539 1840
Best for: splendid seafood 10- SCOTT’S It’s impossible not to be entranced by the sculptural oyster bar and all its sexy, glistening crustacea on ice. Scott’s impeccable marine pedigree ensures its position at the top of critics’ and diners’ lists of favorite restaurants. The central London institution knows its passing shopping trade – so it’s open all day. scotts-restaurant.com, 20 Mount St., +44 20 7495 7309
Scott's
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BIRKS.COM
1.800.682.2622
AN ENGAGEMENT TO REMEMBER WITH THE AMORIQUE DIAMOND® BY BIRKS PAVÉ DIAMOND ENGAGEMENT RING SET IN PLATINUM
TRAVEL
WISH YOU WERE HERE An iconic trench can evoke London’s venerable past, while a Moroccan-influenced necklace dripping with jewels is as lively as the vibrant souks you will remember forever. Come away with us in travel-inspired clothing and accessories that feel both new and as if they have always been with you. BY ALIYAH SHAMSHER
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Salvatore Ferragamo cosmetic case ($295); 3Lab Super “H” Serum ($350); Hermès Rouge Hermès ($400); Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra ($10,400); Tiffany Elsa Peretti Aegean 18k link necklace ($25,400); Gucci riding boots ($1,265); Guerlain Idylle Eau de Toilette ($75); Louis Vuitton cat-eye sunglasses ($560); Valentino leopard-print bag ($2,595); BCBG Harlow snakeskin clutch ($82) and Leighton Box clutch ($154); Tiffany 18k Notes cuff ($9,100); Lancôme Absolue Ultimate Bx ($145) and Absolue Ultimate Night Bx ($155); YSL Beauty Matt Touch compact SPF 20 ($57) and semi-loose powder ($60); Louis Vuitton vintage gold pump ($945); Alberta Ferretti turtleneck ($495); Chanel necklace ($6,900).
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PROP STYLING: SUZANNE CAMPOS All prices in US dollars
GLOBE-TROTTING Clockwise (from top left): Burberry London felted coat ($1,295); Hermès twill scarf; Louis Vuitton textured purse ($3,250) and key chain ($415);
HUNT & GATHER Clockwise (from top left): Brunello Cucinelli gray cashmere sweater ($1,995), brown and green check shirt ($495) and leather lace-ups ($895); Hugo Boss gray tie; Louis Vuitton briefcase ($1,750); Brunello Cucinelli braided belt ($395); Burberry London check trench ($1,795); Hugo Boss gloves; Louis Vuitton luggage ($3,758), travel set ($1,590) and sunglasses ($498); Tiffany Atlas chronograph watch ($8,900) and Notes business card case ($355); John Varvatos Artisan Eau de Toilette ($97); Louis Vuitton Vesuvio boot ($1,150); Pinetti Collezioni briefcase ($95) and iPad case ($65); Lancôme Exfoliating Microdermabrasion ($33); L’Occitane Crème à Raser ($29); Tiffany 1837 compass ($355).
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LEADERSHIP & PHILANTHROPY The Hawaiian turtle tattoo symbolizes being at ease in your own shell.
TRAILBLAZERS
Eco-Learning Apprentice-Trips at The Fairmont Kea Lani, Maui, and The Fairmont Orchid, Hawaii, let you lend a hand in local conservation. Create your own adventure with activities that give back in a big way. BY ALIYAH SHAMSHER
Maui's rugged coastline.
MISSION: Support Local Food Shopping and eating locally can be a feat on the Hawaiian islands, but relying on products shipped across oceans creates a high cost of living for residents. Become part of the solution by helping out as a farmhand for the day at O'o Farm in the Waipoli rainforest of Kula, Maui, where you'll learn about the latest developments in local organic agricultural practices.
MISSION: Turtle Rescue Overfishing, coastal development and pollution damage fragile coral reefs and their inhabitants. Get up close and personal with green sea turtles, stingrays, urchins and monk seals below the tranquil waters of the Kohala Coast, Hawaii, on a snorkeling adventure that is as fun as it is educational. With each dive, a donation goes to a local turtletagging program.
MISSION: Cultural Immersion Indigenous Hawaiian knowledge, language and skills are being rediscovered by a new generation, eager to preserve Hawaiian culture for the islands' descendants. You too can discover these ancient practices by canoeing in a traditional outrigger and welcoming the day with a Hawaiian sun chant. You’ll also learn basic paddling skills in the coastal waters off Wailea, Maui.
MISSION: Natural Habitat Restoration Still lingering from the days of the first European visitors are foreign plants (including lush ferns and fragrant jasmine) that wreak havoc on the local plant life integral to Hawaiian tradition. If you’re not afraid of a little dirt, visit Haleakala National Park, Hosmer’s Grove, Honokowai Valley and Keopuolani Regional Park in Maui to replace these invasive plants with indigenous species.
A classic with a traveler’s twist: a middle zipper opens, giving you six inches of extra space. Longchamp Expandable Folding Travel Bag US$235
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Swim with sea turtles in Hawaii.
CRUISE CONTROL
Get outside with BMW Cruise Bikes available at select Fairmont properties. The bicycle-lending program blends the best of Fairmont Fit while giving guests an eco-minded (not to mention stylish) way to explore their destinations.
A traditional Hawaiian outrigger canoe.
Wild rose oil and desert plant extracts keep skin hydrated and balanced. Korres Wild Rose 24-Hour Moisturizing & Brightening Cream US$35
fairmont.com bmw.ca
Dive deep with rubber straps and a stainless steel case that’s water resistant up to 1,650 ft (500 m). Victorinox Dive Master 500 Gunmetal Chronograph US$995
PHOTOS: ISTOCKPHOTOS (COFFEE, COASTLINE, TURTLE, TATTOO)
Kona coffee beans.
Gc is a registered trademark of GUESS?, Inc. Art Dir. Paul Marciano
Sport Class XXL Blackout Chronograph Matte black ceramic Sapphire crystal Swiss Made Gcwatches.com
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
H I T L I S T
S T A R P O W E R
The Fairmont Royal York
The Plaza, A Fairmont Managed Hotel
Toronto
New York
"We’ve built an igloo on our rooftop and doubled as the White House,” says Kolene Elliott, the property’s film concierge. See the hotel in films, including Chloe and HBO’s Grey Gardens. Spot celebrities such as Jackie Chan (The Tuxedo), Helen Mirren (RED) and Antonio Banderas (Take the Lead) in character in the hotel’s hallways.
This hotel was the backdrop for films as diverse as Arthur and Almost Famous. Since its 2008 reopening, it’s shown up in Sex and the City 2 and episodes of Gossip Girl and The Good Wife..
The star-studded hotel has hosted movie shoots with Al Pacino (Scent of a Woman), Tom Hanks (Sleepless in Seattle) and Robert Pattinson (Remember Me).
Steven Spielberg and Leonardo DiCaprio on the set of Catch Me If You Can.
LIGHTS. CAMERA. CONCIERGE!
It’s not unusual for a hotel to welcome celebrity guests, but sometimes the location itself plays a starring role. We went behind the scenes at screen-worthy Fairmont hotels, where you can recreate your favorite cinematic moments. BY MARK SLUTSKY
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R E A L I T Y B I T E
M A K E A S C E N E
Elliott says that during the filming of RED, John Malkovich stepped outside in a bellman’s uniform and tourists actually asked him for directions.
Take a trip to the 15th floor hallway, where John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale jumped into separate elevators to test fate in Serendipity.
Fans of the Eloise films and Kay Thompson’s books can check into the whimsical Eloise Suite, designed by Betsey Johnson. (It also includes a parent-friendly room.) Have a drink at the famous Oak Bar, but keep your wits about you – that’s where Cary Grant’s character was kidnapped in North by Northwest Northwest.
PHOTOS: PARAMOUNT PICTURES (CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, SARAH JESSICA PARKER, CATHERINE ZETA-JONES); SUMMIT ENTERTAINMENT (HELEN MIRREN, ROBERT PATTINSON); ISTOCKPHOTOS (BELLMAN'S UNIFORM, CUPCAKE, MARTINI, KISS, VINTAGE BOOK, MAGNIFIER); GETTY IMAGES (VERTIGO, CLINT EASTWOOD, HITCHCOCK MEMORABILIA); WILFRIED WITTKOWSKY (ALFRED HITCHCOCK)
L O C A T I O N
The Savoy, A Fairmont Managed Hotel
The Fairmont San Francisco
Fairmont Le Château Frontenac
London
San Francisco
Quebec
The silent movie Kipps was filmed here in 1921, and almost 80 years later, so was the heist movie Entrapment (starring Catherine Zeta-Jones).
The original Fairmont hotel has appeared in films such as Alfred Hitchcock’s Vertigo, the action epic The Towering Inferno and the drama Shoot the Moon, all of which took advantage of its historic glamour.
Nicolas Cage (National Treasure: Book of Secrets), Meryl Streep (The French Lieutenant’s Woman) and Alec Guinness (Smiley’s People) have shot scenes at the Savoy.
Charlie Chaplin promoted his final film (A Countess from Hong Kong) at the hotel, and Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh first met in the Savoy Grill.
Meet the (make-believe) media in the Lancaster Room, where Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant declared their love for each other during a press conference in Notting Hill.
Doris Day (Midnight Lace), Candice Bergen (A Night Full of Rain) and Clint Eastwood (Sudden Impact) filmed here.
When Sean Connery threw an enemy off a hotel balcony in The Rock, locals called the police, unaware that they were seeing a movie shoot in progress.
Head outside and you’ll get the same view of the hotel’s facade as Vertigo’s Madeleine (Kim Novak) had from her apartment building across the street.
Said to be the most photographed hotel in the world, Fairmont Le Château Frontenac was immortalized on film in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1953 thriller I Confess.
Steven Spielberg and Leonardo DiCaprio stayed at the hotel while in Quebec City filming scenes for Catch Me If You Can. Check out the hotel’s Hitchcock Suite, which features original photos from I Confess (taken by the film’s 11-year-old cast member Renée Hudon), as well as other Hitchcock memorabilia.
Play detective in and around the hotel, like Angelina Jolie did in Taking Lives (though the film was actually set in Montreal).
TURN IT UP!
Hear it first with Sounds of Fairmont and EMI’s Artist Discovery Series, featuring concerts by emerging up-and-comers and Artist Showcases headlining music greats. Keep listening with Fairmont’s 500-song MP3 playlist available at the Fairmont Music Store. soundsoffairmont.com fairmontmusicstore.com
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SPORTS & ADVENTURE
TEES FOR TOTS
The Fairmont Acapulco Princess hosts the Ochoa Golf Academy annually at the nearby Turtle Dunes Country Club, which includes a three-day golf camp for juniors. Instructor Christopher Kalloi has these tips for teaching little swingers both the skills and the love of the game. BY ALIYAH SHAMSHER
M INI G OLF
5–7 YEARS OLD Brightly colored clubs, balls and tee mats introduce wee ones to the game with an element of fun. Practice accuracy and positioning by hitting balls into large rings set up in the backyard.
P ITCH ’ N ’ P UTT
8–10 YEARS OLD They're not ready to hit the links, but kids can visualize the shot by aiming at a big target from different distances. Count the number of times they hit it to introduce light competition.
J UNIOR C OURSE
E XECUTIVE C OURSE
11–12 YEARS OLD A miniature golf course with five holes or fewer can be set up using plastic cups or markers to help kids with their short game while improving psychological and emotional preparation.
13–14 YEARS OLD Hit the green! Balance technical skill and course management by chipping and pitching on dedicated holes, so teens don’t get intimidated by a regulationsize course.
PGA PREP
15–19 YEARS OLD It's all about ball direction and distance control at this age. Teach junior pros control with a golf swing analyzer app that creates video comparisons and breaks down their swing.
fairmontgolf.com pgatrickitoutgolf.com
Give your favorite moisturizer an SPF boost. Dermalogica Solar Defense Booster SPF30 US$43
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Let there be (neon) light with a laptop worth showing off. Sony VAIO® Limited Edition C Series Laptop US$880
Small in size but big on tech, each club is made as though for the pros. Callaway XJ Junior Golf Set US$239
PHOTOS: ISTOCKPHOTOS (BALL, TEAS, CLUB, PEN, GRASS); ISWING (APP)
M ASTER C OURSE
Kids can hit the links with Fairmont Hotels & Resorts and PGA Trick It Out Golf. The program, piloting at The Fairmont Scottsdale and The Fairmont Southampton in Bermuda, teaches children aged 7 to 11 the fundamentals of golf through games that put fun first.
FOOD & DRINK
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MARKET VALUE
Get the most out of every local market you visit, at home and around the world, by learning to shop like a chef. BY SHAUN SMITH | PHOTOGRAPHY BY LIAM MALONEY
Whether you’re buying local strawberries or free-range fowl, The Fairmont Royal York chefs, such as executive chef David Garcelon, can show you how to find the very best ingredients. He leads Shop With a Chef tours to nearby St. Lawrence Market in Toronto, as part of an Apprentice-Trip available to guests.
IMPROVISE Arrive early, when stalls are full, advises the chef, and don’t rigorously plan your menu ahead of time. “Stroll through the market,” says Garcelon. “See what fruit and vegetables are in season, what meats look top quality, and build your menu as you go. Good vendors can recommend products that will go well together.”
BUY LOCAL Organic is not always optimal, especially when it comes to meats. “Organic simply means it has been certified by a third party,” Garcelon says, “but it could have been shipped a long distance, which is not best for the environment. Find butchers who deal with local suppliers who follow healthy, sustainable practices for raising beef, pork and chicken.”
SPEAK UP The golden rule for market shopping, according to Garcelon? Ask lots of questions. “The market vendors know their products intimately. Talk to them and find out how fresh their goods are, where they came from and if they are sustainably produced.”
GET FRESH Freshness is paramount, and nowhere more so than with fish. “Fish should be displayed on ice,” says Garcelon. “They shouldn’t have any fishy smell and the whole fish should be shiny, with bright eyes and blood-red gills. Always buy fish whole and have them fillet it for you.”
TRUST YOUR TASTE Sampling is a smart strategy, especially when buying cheese. “Let’s say you love Stilton,” says Garcelon. “Ask a cheese vendor if they have any other blue cheeses you might like. They should offer you samples to taste on the spot. The market is a perfect opportunity to explore.”
CHEF FOR A DAY
Trade in your molecular gastronomy gadgets for classic kitchenware with a legacy. Le Creuset 20-oz. Mortar & Pestle US$38
Expand your culinary savvy with The Fairmont Southampton’s Chef for a Day Apprentice-Trip. Choose one of three menus (seafood, steakhouse or Italian) and later sample your work with a well-deserved dinner for two. fairmont.com/southampton
Alessandro Mendini’s clever design features stainless steel, pear-wood and chrome-plated zamak. Alessi Anna Cheese Grater US$108
Impress gadget-obsessed foodies and brunch guests alike by serving up your very own yogurt. Williams-Sonoma Automatic Yogurt Maker US$60
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BALANCE IN BEIJING
Alive with ancient traditions and modern industry, China’s capital provides the key to the greatest luxury of all: personal wellness. BY EVE THOMAS | PHOTOGRAPHY BY ANDREW ROWAT
THIS PAGE AND OPPOSITE A rare serene spot by the Forbidden City; a bustling street just blocks away.
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Traditional Chinese medicine, while often referred to as alternative,’ is standard practice for most of China’s 1.3 billion people.
ABOVE Fairmont Beijing's resident tai chi master, Link Li, goes through his forms.
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I’M ABOUT 10 MINUTES INTO MY FIRST TAI CHI CLASS
when I realize I’ve made a classic rookie mistake. At dawn I had watched senior citizens performing the slow-motion stretches in a park by the Forbidden City and assumed it would be easy. I was wrong. But it isn’t my body that’s overtaxed, it’s my brain that’s tiring as I try to remember the next form, dan bian (single whip). Rather than emulating a graceful warrior, I look like a little teapot. Luckily, Link Li has the quality I most admire in a teacher. Patience. As the resident tai chi master at Fairmont Beijing and head of the hotel’s Find Your Inner Chi Apprentice-Trips program, he instructs foreigners who are, as he puts it, “intrigued by local traditions.” Like me, they’re taught that tai chi isn’t just a martial art (tai chi chuan translates as “supreme ultimate fist”), but part of a lifestyle in which the mind, body and spirit are inseparable, and every illness the result of an imbalance between them. I’ve encountered many luxuries at Fairmont Beijing – a rare bottle of Louis XIII Black Pearl Magnum Rémy Martin in the Champagne Bar, a Ming Dynasty bowl under glass in the lobby, even
the building’s rose-gold facade – but to my mind, none can be enjoyed without the greatest luxury of all: wellness. Traditional Chinese medicine (including massage therapy, acupuncture and herbal remedies), while often referred to as “alternative,” is standard practice for most of China’s 1.3 billion people. It’s their holistic view of health that I’m here to discover. “Yin yang,” Li observes, pointing to the traditional black satin outfit I was given for my lesson, then at his identical white one. Like most North Americans, I’m familiar with the black and white symbol, taijitu, but only vaguely aware of its meaning. “Everything in life is connected,” Li explains and I’m reminded of all the health-related headlines in that morning’s China Daily newspaper. I learned that a charity is giving seeds to locals so they can start their own urban vegetable gardens, that a small farmers’ market is being launched in Fengtai District and that the southern city of Hangzhou has a 60,000-bicycle public rental system. In “Why the World Should Eat Chinese,” an article about Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore’s Dilemma, the writer cites qifen bao, the Chinese tradition of only eating until you are 70 percent full (said to lessen the strain on the body’s organs). “Positive space cannot exist without negative,” continues my tai chi instructor. “So, if one foot is up, the other is down.” I nod with fresh understanding and lift the wrong foot. TEA TIME
It’s 9 a.m. and I have a confession to make to Norman Zhang, my Beijing guide from Butterfield & Robinson tours. Before we venture out on foot to explore the city, I tell him that, despite my noble goal of seeking wellness in Beijing, back home my health regime is somewhat lacking. Coffee is a chai latte with extra foam. Exercise is an elliptical machine and an episode of Jeopardy. And cycling is a yearly subscription to my local bike-share program, which allows me to make a dropoff at the bottom of a steep hill. He assures me I’ve got nothing to
worry about, and admits to being “a coffee man” himself, despite the first stop on our urban hike: Maliandao, Beijing’s tea street. “Better to go without food for three days than without tea for one” goes an old Chinese proverb, and after 4,000 or so years the West seems to be catching on to the drink’s health benefits (especially those of green tea, with studies showing that polyphenols may prevent cancer, lower cholesterol and even fight tooth decay). In Maliandao, however, my vague preconceptions are dashed once again as I am met not with a back-alley bazaar thick with oversize bins and loud bargaining, but a brightly lit, modern shopping center, and the biggest tea market in Beijing. The fresh scent of jasmine hangs in the air, and each shop has colorful, carefully stacked displays, clearly marked prices and smiling attendants (though English remains rare). That the market resembles the country’s ornate, apothecary-like pharmacies is no coincidence: the Chinese turn to both for what ails
them, and the cures are often more than the sum of their parts. Locals pay top dollar for ingredients like bird’s nest, ginseng root and royal jelly, gazing on as pharmacists fill their prescriptions via mortar and pestle and pack pills and powders into gilded envelopes. Here, customers get up close and personal with the ingredients they are about to ingest. The filling of prescriptions takes on an elegant transparency, not just for the method of delivery but because, at these pharmaceutical companies, the human trials have been under way for millennia. Similarly, tea, while valued for its health benefits, is also appreciated for its beauty. In one window, objects that I first take for carved rosewood murals turn out to be artworks made of compressed tea leaves, used to decorate the boardrooms and offices of powerful Chinese businesspeople. Behind locked display cabinets I find dark brown nuggets of compressed Puer. They resemble large black truffles, and are just as prized. Once used as currency between Yunnan and
THIS PAGE In China, feeling ill can mean a trip to a pharmacy where natural ingredients are prepared before your eyes, or to a tea merchant for a custom infusion based on your symptoms.
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Experiencing Beijing by bicycle, every moment is fleeting, but real.
ABOVE AND OPPOSITE A cyclist rides by the Tiananmen gate to the Forbidden City; two girls try on traditional royal headgear sold as souvenirs; Beijing's aging population stays fit through fun and games.
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Tibet, people continue to buy disks of the fermented tea as an investment. A piece the size of a bundt cake has its price listed in yuan. I do some quick math: It’s $20,000. “They cost as much as people are willing to pay for them,” marvels Zhang. “A bit like wine.” A merchant motions for us to sit down at her tea table – a massive wooden slab with flowers and fish carved into the edges – and we’re presented with a “wheel” of teas going from mildest to strongest. As she rinses, steeps and serves, we’re told about each tea’s region of origin: the altitude, the type of soil and the affect of each on taste. In the place of canapés, we’re offered spiced black pumpkin seeds and tiny, bone-dry cookies. With each cup, I’m also offered additional wellness claims. This one will leave my face firmer, that one will help circulation. “Chinese believe everything that goes inside shows on the outside,” the attendant tells me. And it works. I leave Maliandao with some loose oolong meant to make my skin glow.
BIKING BEIJING
As a casual cyclist, the appeal of a bicycle tour was somewhat lost on me. Not as quick as a car for getting from point A to point B, and not as convenient as walking for sightseeing and snapping photos. It isn’t until I’m zipping by a lake in the scenic Shichahai area that I finally get it. Unlike driving in a car, you have to be acutely aware of your surroundings at all times. And having two hands on your handlebars helps avoid that modern tourist affliction: experiencing your travels through the viewfinder of a digital camera. This freedom allows me to see market stands overflowing with walnuts, melons and duck eggs; cyclists transporting bamboo scaffolding and rabbit cages; old men playing dominoes by the side of the road. Every moment is fleeting, but real. Lotus flowers are in bloom, and I smell them before I see them, flying through a long stretch shaded by their leafy branches. There’s no A/C out here to curb the dry heat, but the faster I go, the cooler the breeze.
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ABOVE The Shichahai lake area is known for its nightlife, but visit during the day and you'll find locals swimming laps and doing tai chi in the nearby parks.
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Mercifully, the bike lanes are wide, level and paved smooth throughout – there’s not a steep hill or pothole in sight. Perhaps it’s the subtle buzz from my morning green tea, but I’m amazed by my ability to keep up. We turn once and we’re whizzing by the highrise headquarters of a major bank, turn again and we’re weaving through pedestrians in a hutong, a traditional Beijing backstreet. We take a detour through a tree-filled embassy area near Fairmont Beijing. Then we’re back in the mix, wedged between an electric scooter-riding teenager with streaked red hair and a fedora-wearing dandy transporting his wife sidesaddle. His passenger sits primly in a flowered dress and straw hat, barely moving a muscle as the bike lurches forward. When we stop to get some sugarless iced tea, Zhang asks an old man selling souvenirs to guard our things. “They say everyone gets nine bicycles in Beijing,” Zhang tells me. “I’m on number three.” To thank the man, Zhang buys me a small, hollowed-out gourd with a perforated wooden top. “It’s to hold crickets,” the man explains, via Zhang. “Listen to them chirp when it grows cold, and they will remind you of summertime.”
Another round of city cycling, then we stop for lunch at the Bamboo Garden hotel, once the private residence of Sheng Xuanhuai, a powerful minister of the late Qing Dynasty. We leave our bikes in the designated bicycle parking lot and take a seat overlooking the lush courtyard, where the transparent floor reveals a koi pond beneath. I tap twice and the uniformed tea sommelier refills my cup using an antique pourer with an elongated spout, ideal for stretching across large teahouse tables. Luxury is also about the little things, and there’s no beating the serenity of a wide-open space in a city of 20 million people. The crowds and traffic behind us, we dine quietly in our oasis on sticky Kung Pao chicken, steamed broccoli and ragged-cut noodles. I’m truly at peace, and it makes perfect sense, from a holistic point of view. True wellness won’t come in a single cup of tea, healthy meal or afternoon of exercise. It has to be, as tai chi instructor Link Li said, part of your lifestyle. And lifestyle, I realize, isn’t necessarily dictated by culture. It can be built and adapted based on your experiences, what you do, feel, touch and taste at home or halfway around the world.
TOP TO BOTTOM The gleaming rose-gold facade of Fairmont Beijing; the Great Wall of China; a theater inside the National Centre for the Performing Arts.
CONCIERGE STAY Located in the city’s central business district, Fairmont Beijing is a contemporary space with an old-world luxury feel, and must-sees like Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City are all a 20-minute taxi ride away. Experience an urban oasis over three floors, with the Willow Stream Spa, gym and pool spread across the property’s stunning skybridge area, and treatments inspired by the building’s rose-gold facade. Take part in the Find Your Inner Chi Apprentice-Trip package or explore the city with a Fairmont Beijing guide on a hotel-supplied BMW bicycle. fairmont.com/beijing
DO For an unforgettable Great Wall experience, head to Mutianyu. A 60- to 90-minute drive from Beijing, it’s less crowded than the famous Badaling section, and the tiny town at its base is home to The Schoolhouse. Stop there for glass-blowing demonstrations and understated gourmet dining featuring local ingredients. Get a table on the upper terrace and eat with a Great Wall view. theschoolhouseatmutianyu.com
See a show at Beijing's National Centre for the Performing Arts, or simply marvel at the stunning architecture, inside and out. For an alternative half-day trip, try the 798 Art District, a factoryturned-artists’ community featuring cute cafés, art installations and tons of trendy people watching. www.chncpa.org/ens, 798district.com
The Shichahai area is popular with tourists and locals alike for its huge selection of restaurants and the lakes, or “walking” their birds (swinging birdcages gently and placing them in the trees). EAT Try Fairmont Beijing’s range of restaurants: The CUT, Sushi Bar, Champagne Bar and Lunar 8, which is famous for its Peking duck (don’t forget to order ahead). Or take a break between spa treat-
BUTTERFIELD & ROBINSON
Slow down to see the world with biking, hiking and walking tours tailored to your activity level. Expect insider access, expert local guides, fine dining and one-of-akind experiences on every trip, from sipping champagne on the Great Wall of China to horseback riding across a glacial stream in Patagonia.
ments to sample the Willow Stream menu.
butterfield.com, +1 800 678 1147
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PHOTO: EVE THOMAS (GREAT WALL)
nightclubs. Get there early to see people fishing in
WELLNESS ACROSS CHINA Fairmont Beijing
Take a grand tour of China and you’ll never be far from a Fairmont, or its range of health-promoting services.
Fairmont Taiyuan
FAIRMONT PEACE HOTEL, SHANGHAI
Discover the property’s iconic green roof and Art Deco elements (see page 11 for details) or head to the Willow Stream Spa for the Zenspiration full-body treatment, a truly tailored wellness experience.
Fairmont Nanjing Fairmont Yangcheng Lake
Fairmont Peace Hotel
fairmont.com/peacehotel
MAP: JASMIN LEGATOS
To find out more about Fairmont offers in Asia, visit: FAIRMONT.COM/EXPLOREASIA
FAIRMONT NANJING
FAIRMONT TAIYUAN
FAIRMONT YANGCHENG LAKE, KUNSHAN
In development on the south bank of the Yangtze River, Fairmont Nanjing will feature 371 spacious rooms and a Willow Stream Spa. Want to see the benefits of healthy living in action? In August of 2014, the city is hosting the Summer Youth Olympic Games.
The capital of Shanxi province is set to welcome a Fairmont hotel, currently in development. Situated along the Fen River, the hotel will have 330 rooms and suites and a Willow Stream Spa, and a major sports center is currently under construction nearby.
A popular destination for the Shanghainese, this waterfront resort offers activities like fishing and rock climbing at its water park. Relax in the Willow Stream Spa, or explore the area on the bicycles available for rent. Try the hairy crab, a local delicacy!
nanjingsalesinquiries@fairmont.com
taiyuansalesinquiries@fairmont.com
fairmont.com/yangchenglake
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Roosevelt's Dream by Ben Canales
40 FAIRMONT magazine
Join a new generation of global travelers and turn your gaze to the night sky. From our writer’s viewpoint in Quebec, Canada, to the Big Island of Hawaii, U.S.A., make like Galileo and look up. BY EMILIE VILLENEUVE
I’M TOUCHING THE SUN WITH THE TIP OF
my fingers. Inches away, Mercury looks like it’s the size of a blueberry. I take a few steps toward Venus in the growing dusk, then settle on Earth. From this privileged vantage point in Quebec, Canada, it’s easy to be both metaphysical and literal all at once. My guide to this cosmic excursion is Jean-Michel Gastonguay, a professor of physics and astronomy at the nearby Centre d’études collégiales en Charlevoix (CECC), and also creator of the poetically named Balade à la vitesse de la lumière, or Promenade at the Speed of Light, which we’re exploring tonight. In 2009, in honor of the 400th anniversary of Galileo’s first telescopic observations, Gastonguay sought to design an experience “that would enable people to feel both the grandeur and the smallness of our world.” And so he built a walkable scale model of the solar system, spanning the site of Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu and the Casino de Charlevoix in this region of Quebec known as La Malbaie. Gastonguay gestures for me to follow him, and those few steps represent the millions of kilometers that separate the Earth and Mars. However, reality (or, should I say relativity?) kicks in when I discover that reaching Neptune requires a three-kilometer hike up the side of a cliff on the edge of the St. Lawrence River. By the time we arrive at the eighth planet, it’s pitch black, the sky swathed in a thick blanket of cloud. ›
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The darkness means postponing our planned visit to the Astronomical Observatory of Charlevoix. That’s where I’d hoped to gain another perspective on the night’s sky, whose beauty has, inspired poetry, art, music and science throughout history. Perhaps it’s a longing to reconnect to that source of wonder and inspiration that draws modern city dwellers (their views dimmed by tall buildings and ambient light pollution) to relatively dark, remote destinations like this for the simple pleasure of seeing distant pinpricks of light. Around the world, stargazing has emerged as a passion driving travelers to starry-skied destinations, from the Scottish Highlands to Chile’s Elqui Valley to the serenity of La Malbaie. Gastonguay and I make a plan to reconvene tomorrow: 11 p.m. at Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu’s Le Vieux Club House, home of the Astronomical Observatory of Charlevoix and the CECC’s telescope. On a clear night, visitors to this observatory can spot some 3,000 celestial bodies above La Malbaie, as opposed to the 20 or 30 generally visible from the city. So while I look forward to tomorrow’s astronomical initiation, I turn instead to counting sheep. Otherworldly Wonders My traveling partners are my husband and our twoyear-old son, whose sleep patterns have us up day and night as it is. This morning I’m not complaining, though, since the family “alarm clock” has given me a front-row seat for a sunrise that blends the sky’s rich periwinkle with the river’s aqua. It bodes well for a day of celestial appreciation. As we follow Route 138 toward Baie-Saint-Paul, we explore local farms: one that raises emus and another, the Maison Maurice Dufour, where we sample the appropriately named Ciel de Charlevoix (Sky of Charlevoix), a creamy, unctuous blue cheese. Back on the road, we see a rocky summit, the Mont des Éboulements. Some 350 million years ago, a meteorite weighing 15 billion tons slammed down right here, sculpting the entire landscape. That prehistoric cosmic collision led to this area’s modern-day designation as an international UNESCO biosphere reserve, a particularly rare honor for a populated area. Under the Stars A fresh breeze blows through the spaces in the tent above our heads. We’re still under the spell of our dinner at Le Charlevoix, the four-diamond restaurant at Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu. Our little monster is asleep, dreaming of emus under the guard of the hotel’s babysitter, whom he declared his third grandmother the moment he met her. For us adults it’s 11 p.m., our date with the stars. Something (maybe the rich venison steaks or the smoked foie gras) is playing tricks on me, because I find myself suddenly lightheaded on the patio of Le Vieux Club House. It may just be because we’re on the edge of the most elevated hole of the neighboring golf course,
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A longing to reconnect with the night sky draws modern city dwellers to relatively dark, remote destinations.
though the rolling greens and water features are barely perceptible in the dark. There’s something eerie about looking out toward nothingness – or, rather, a nothingness speckled with millions of shimmering points. The wine from dinner is helping to channel my inner Ptolemy. I wish I could go back in time to gaze at the sky alongside this ancient Greek astronomer, to be among the first to trace constellations like Centaur and Pegasus, to put a bit of order to this vast, beautiful chaos. I reconnect with my old friend the Big Dipper, such a familiar sight growing up in rural Canada, but so much less so now that I live under a canopy of city lights. It’s an important point of reference for neophytes who seek to orient themselves in the starry night, says Gastonguay. The CECC telescope allows him to enter specific coordinates, and he positions it so we can see a curiously named constellation: the Hunting Dogs. By the evening’s end, we’ve gazed at so many stars – not to mention asteroids and Saturn’s rings – I’ve lost count. I think back to yesterday’s promenade among the planets and muse about the infinite distance that separates me from these heavenly objects. We are so small, and yet part of something so immense. Struck by the dizzying plenitude of our universe, I feel a sudden compulsion to rouse my little one from sleep and show him this extraordinary piece of waking life.
BEAM ME APP Zoom light years away with the solar system simulator of Distant Suns 3, an iPhone app that allows you to explore the geospatial stats of more than 300,000 stars. Google Sky Map, meanwhile, teaches you about heavenly bodies with its interactive plot of the sky; all you need to do is sweep your Android phone in the air to watch the stars appear on the screen in augmented reality. Download Star Walk on your iPhone and discover which constellations and satellites are floating above your head in real time. This pocket atlas also holds a huge gallery of photos taken by astronomy pros. It’s a small world, indeed. distantsuns.com google.com/mobile/skymap vitotechnology.com
CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, California, U.S.A., by Dennis Mammana; Esmeralda County, Nevada, U.S.A., by Steven Christenson; Western Australia by John Schreiber.
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CONCIERGE CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Le Charlevoix restaurant; the storied Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu by night; the Manoir’s terrace, with its view, of the night sky and the majestic St. Lawrence River.
SPACE ODYSSEYS Experience stargazing at Fairmont properties across North America. Your trek begins in Charlevoix, Canada.
STAY Midway between the water and the mountains, Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu, Charlevoix, has presided over the St. Lawrence River for more than a century. With its four-diamond CAA/AAA distinction, the property is a playground for all ages. Among its most memorable attractions are direct access to the Casino de Charlevoix, a 27-hole golf course, a spa, indoor and outdoor pools and, of course, the stargazing program. fairmont.com/richelieu
DO In Saint-Urbain, just a 45-minute drive away, the Centre de l’émeu de Charlevoix introduces visitors to emu products, including meat, which is very high in protein, and oil, which has incredible reparative and protective properties. emeucharlevoix.com
Le parc national des HautesGorges-de-la-Rivière-Malbaie is
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home to the highest peaks east of the Rockies. The park has 30 kilometers of hiking trails, including the Riverain, a newly marked hike specially designed for family outings. sepaq.com/pq/hgo
EAT Le Charlevoix, a gastronomic option at Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu, pays homage to the area’s farmers, cheesemakers and artisans with a menu that focuses on the best of the terroir. That philosophy guarantees both incredible freshness and gourmet indulgence, particularly if you se-
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lect the Discovery menu, which offers four or five courses and wine pairings. fairmont.com/richelieu
Quebec City Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu
St. Lawrence River MAP: JASMIN LEGATOS
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts offers a universe of stargazing activities. In the summer months, Le Vieux Club House, the outdoor restaurant at Fairmont Le Manoir Richelieu, Quebec, Canada, is home to the Astronomical Observatory of Charlevoix, resulting in a menu that’s both gastronomic and astronomic. Before admiring the Milky Way with the guidance of a pro, indulge in mussels à la Copernicus, or better yet, à la Hubble, made with a whole other sort of dairy delight: Ciel de Charlevoix (Sky of Charlevoix) cheese. In Western Canada, the protected area surrounding The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, Jasper National Park, Canada, offers some of the best stargazing in the world. In the park’s exceptional darkness, you’ll see some of the nebulas dotting our galaxy. Meanwhile, every Friday at The Fairmont Orchid in Hawaii, U.S.A., point a powerful telescope at Cassiopeia or Orion while the brilliant astronomer Wayne Fukunaga and his Star Gaze Hawaii team explain how Polynesian sailors used to navigate by the stars – and how you can too.
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Sunset Sip Rum punch is the unofficial beverage of Barbados, and the very essence of island life. We get the recipe for the perfect potion and an ideal vacation.
THE SUN SINKS INTO THE HORIZON AND THE CARIBBEAN
Sea glows a fiery orange, its light edging the tall clouds in bright pink. A few surfers, silhouetted against this backdrop, carve smooth lines down the face of curling waves. A waiter hands me a rum punch the same color as the sky and my vacation officially begins. I’m at Taboras Restaurant in The Fairmont Royal Pavilion on the Platinum Coast of Barbados and I’ve earned this drink. I got in a few rounds of tennis before breakfast this morning and, after repeated dunkings, mastered paddleboarding by noon. Admittedly, the afternoon spent napping on the beach between bouts of crossword challenges wasn’t exactly high-performance sport, but I did swim 20 laps before heading to the bar for my favorite Caribbean drink. Rum punch is the loftiest destiny to which any rum can aspire. The alchemic result of blending the spirit with lime juice, simple syrup, nutmeg and ice turns these basic ingredients into liquid gold. In fact, “one of sour, two of sweet, three of strong and four of weak” is the classic incantation for creating it. I’ve sampled versions all over Barbados – from roadside shacks to five-star resorts – and have developed a personal list of favorites that covers just about all of these bases. I know what I like, but I wanted to learn more about this definitive Bajan beverage. So, on my latest trip to the island, I paid a visit to the distillery of Mount Gay, home of the oldest rum brand in existence. As I wait for the tour to begin, dreadlocked bartender Christopher fields urgent calls for frothy pink drinks, running two blenders simultaneously. I ask him which Mount Gay rum he prefers in punch. “Most people go
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with the Eclipse,” he says, referring to the gold-standard dark rum. “But if you’ve never had it with the white Eclipse Silver, you should try it like that.” He’s right: the clear flavor of the white rum softens the sweetness of the drink and sharpens the taste, though it lacks some of the complexity of a dark-rum version. Our tour guide, despite looking like a teenager with her complex and sculptural arrangement of braids, soon whips a motley brigade of sunburned tourists into line and through the in-house museum. She explains that Barbadians have been making rum since 1703 and, while the equipment has changed, much of the process remains the same. Sugar cane is juiced and boiled into molasses before being diluted with water. Yeast is added to this mixture to start the fermentation. After a few days the liquid is heated and the alcohol (which boils at a lower temperature) is separated from the water. This process results in rum, but the aging process in whiskey barrels gives dark rum its distinct character. “Go ahead and put your nose in the barrel,” she suggests. The heady smell of ripe bananas, sweet almonds and vanilla reminds me it’s time for a drink. Fortunately, one of my favorite spots is just up the road. I enter Daphne’s, the Caribbean outpost of the posh London restaurant that captures the proper British vibe that still thrives in pockets on this island. It’s the kind of dining room where I’m not surprised to see a six-year-old with blond ringlets, wearing a ruffled pink ball gown, order the duck breast (“Rare, thank you very much”) as she sips San Pellegrino from a wine glass. I’ll stick to the more laid-back, grown-up
PHOTOS: JENNIFER ALLEN (RUM PUNCH); SUSAN SEUBERT (SURFER)
BY CHRIS JOHNS
OPPOSITE AND THIS PAGE Rum punch evokes the colors of a Barbadian sunset; a surfer takes to the waves on the south coast of Barbados.
Rum punch is the loftiest destiny to which any rum can aspire.
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bar, where the rum punch comes in a tulip glass so perfectly chilled that beads of condensation immediately form on the outside. Where Daphne’s represents the chic Caribbean playground of the rich and beautiful, my next stop encapsulates the island’s more, shall we say, rustic side. Although you’d never mistake it for fancy, the sleepy fishing village of Oistins is transformed on Friday nights into the best party on the island. Experience tells me to abandon my taxi several blocks before the market, as traffic has ground to a halt. The carnivorous smell of dozens of barbecues and the low thud of bass notes is all the map I need to find my way there. There’s a dance battle going on, with half a dozen limber young dancers throwing moves to an irresistible Rihanna remix (a nearly ubiquitous choice here, on her home island). I grab a rum punch from the nearest vendor. Poured from a plastic bottle, it isn’t a glamorous version, but it’s mighty powerful and has an honest, unpretentious flavor that is very Bajan. I head back for a second and a third. Before the night is through, I’ll pick up a few new dance moves of my own. The next afternoon, headache slowly dissipating, I cross over to the northern part of the island and seemingly go back in time. The narrow road is lined on both sides with the thick stems of towering sugar cane. In the distance the heavy coral tower of an ancient windmill, now shorn of its blades, comes into focus. I turn up a long driveway onto the grounds of St. Nicholas Abbey, lush with large philodendrons, mottled orchids and ancient mahogany trees. This Jacobean mansion, one of only three in the Western Hemisphere, has been turned into a living museum that provides a snapshot of how life was lived here in the 17th century. I’m here to see how rum used to be made. The Abbey recently started to make its own rum in a new distillery in an almost historical way, which contrasts with the state-of-the-art production facility at Mount Gay. When it comes to rum, it doesn’t get much more old school than a working steam mill, which is exactly what I find on the grounds behind the house. The Rube Goldberg-esque arrangement of gears and cogs is used to extract juice from sugar cane. The syrup-thick liquid flows directly into fermentation pots where it rests until it’s ready to be distilled in customized copper pots so polished and shiny they reflect the palm
PHOTOS: SUSAN SEUBERT (OISTINS, ST. NICHOLAS ABBEY); JILLIAN DICKENS (BARMAN, RUM PUNCH RECIPE)
CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT A Friday night fish fry at the colorful night market in Oistins; a bartender mixes punch at the Mount Gay distillery; rum ages in former bourbon barrels at St. Nicholas Abbey.
trees outside. After about 10 years in former bourbon barrels the rum gets bottled. The finished spirit tastes of pineapple, vanilla and brown butter. Maybe it’s the surroundings, but I think I even pick up some hibiscus. A fine sipping rum like this is probably too special to mix into a rum punch, but Barbadians do it anyway and it works: complex, gently sweet and spicy with bitters. I hold the empty glass up to my ear and imagine I can hear the ocean. While history and distillation science are all fine and good, this is Barbados, after all, and the ocean calls. Crane Beach, with its pink sand and playful waves, is regularly listed as one of the best in the world. I rent a lounge chair and umbrella from one of the local vendors and try my luck at body surfing before being persuaded to climb up a nearby cliff for a thrilling leap into the heaving water. Having survived the plunge, I’ve earned another rum punch. At a small wooden hut erected at the edge of the sand, where it gives way to jungle, I find Junior, a gray-haired Rasta with the physique of an Olympic sprinter. “I make the best rum punch on the island,” he drawls, and I challenge him to prove it. Drink in hand, I take a long stroll down the beach, up and over some coral rocks and around a dusty outcropping, eventually discovering an abandoned stretch of sand. Raising my cup to the sky, I toast this moment and drain the last drop.
RUM PUNCH Courtesy of The Fairmont Royal Pavilion bar supervisor Margaret Forde. Follow these proportions to make two drinks (using ounces) or a larger batch (using cups). 3 PARTS › Mount Gay Eclipse rum 2 PARTS › simple syrup* 1 PART › fresh lime juice TO TASTE › Bitters (such as Angostura) SPRINKLE › Ground nutmeg Stir ingredients together and serve over ice. * To make simple syrup, boil two parts water and add one part sugar, stirring to dissolve. Cool completely before using. Keeps for six months, refrigerated.
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PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES
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While history and distillation science are all fine and good, this is Barbados, after all, and the ocean calls.
CONCIERGE STAY Newly renovated beachfront junior suites at the plantation-style The Fairmont Royal Pavilion feature dedicated private butlers who will serve you afternoon tea and canapés on your private terrace overlooking the ocean. Deluxe rooms are also recently refreshed and have beautiful glasspaneled balconies with ocean views. The hotel features in-room spa services. fairmont.com/royalpavilion
DO As friendly as they are fit, the staff at the hotel can arrange everything from paddleboarding lessons and snorkeling to catamaran sailing and deep-sea fishing. For a conservation-conscious stay, book a package to tour the nearby nesting grounds of the rare hawksbill sea turtle, where you’ll collaborate with the Barbados Sea Turtle Project group to collect hatching data. fairmont.com/royalpavilion/hotelpackages
The first rum tour of the day at Mount Gay starts at 9:30 a.m., but there’s copious “tasting” involved, so ask the concierge to book you an afternoon excursion. Afterwards, visit the outdoor patio for a taste of authentic Bajan cuisine paired with the island’s most famous beverage. Contrast that with a stop at St. Nicholas Abbey's traditional distillery. St. Nicholas Abbey, +1 246 422 8725, stnicholasabbey.com CLOCKWISE FROM TOP Beachfront junior suites at The Fairmont Royal Pavilion; the hotel’s shaded front entrance; spaghetti with lobster at Daphne’s; in-room dining.
Mount Gay, mountgay.com
When most people think of Barbados it’s the turquoise ocean and pink sand beaches that come to mind, but there’s a whole world underneath the island that’s equally breathtaking. Harrison’s Cave is a vast crystallized limestone cavern carved out by the clear water of flowing underground streams. this is considered one of the wonders of the world. harrisonscave.com
EAT Some of the best gourmet cuisine on the island is Atlantic Ocean
found not only at Daphne’s but at the legendary The Cliff restaurant where the Caribbean shrimp with a Thai green curry coconut sauce is surpassed
The Fairmont Royal Pavilion
only by the beachside setting. The island’s best pizza and cutters (traditional Bajan sandwiches; try the flying fish version) are found, appropriately enough, at Cutters of Barbados. For a quick lunch, the broasted (broiled and roasted) chicken at the local chain Chefette puts other fast food joints to shame.
Bridgetown
Daphne’s, +1 246 432 2731, daphnesbarbados.com The Cliff, +1 246 432 1922, thecliffbarbados.com Cutters of Barbados, +1 246 423 0611, cutters.bb
Caribbean Sea
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Chefette, chefette.com
PHOTOS: MOUNT GAY RUM VISITOR CENTRE; DAPHNE'S (LOBSTER); MAP: JASMIN LEGATOS
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Fairmont President’s Club, our complimentary guest-recognition program, is designed around your passions and our desire to make them real. Whether you’re traveling for business or pleasure, our goal is to create a personalized experience, always with your unique preferences and interests in mind. Every time you visit us, you’ll encounter a world of exciting benefits and an extraordinary hotel stay—one that’s all about you. To enroll or update your profile, visit www.fairmont.com/fpc
FEATHERED FRIENDS
Experience one of the fascinating skills of the Middle East in an exclusive Abu Dhabi adventure that lets curious travelers try their hand at falconry. BY TIMOTHY TAYLOR FALCONS MIGHT NOT BE YOUR FIRST CHOICE OF A
companion animal. Weighing up to four and a half pounds (two kilograms) each, these are big birds of prey known for extraordinary strength and aggressiveness. They can be a little intimidating, to be candid. But, as I discovered on a trip into the desert near Abu Dhabi with master falconer Peter Bergh and three of his birds, the bond between humans and falcons can also be strong. The excursion, called Heritage Takes Flight, was arranged for me through Fairmont Hotel & Resorts’ unique Apprentice-Trips program, which provides guests with authentic local experiences in destinations around the world. In this program offered by Fairmont Bab Al Bahr, guests receive a one-on-one introduction to local culture while engaging in a thrilling personal adventure. ›
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ABOVE Master falconer Peter Bergh displays a training technique using a lure.
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Falcons are more than just popular here. They are the national bird of the U.A.E., found on statues and crests throughout the Emirates. That identification is based on a deep history. The local people have been hunting with falcons for centuries. And falcons are often considered the companion animal of choice, not just for sheikhs but for the nomadic Bedouin culture too. Part of that long relationship is practical. Falcons are territorial and solitary creatures, Bergh says. But they’re fearless, making them a very useful hunting tool. Train them correctly, and they’ll bring you dinner, maybe a nice four-pound Houbara Bustard that could feed an entire family. Bergh tells me about the birds as we drive about an hour outside of Abu Dhabi and then go off-road, deep into the desert: There’s Marley the Saker, Speedy the Gyrfalcon-Merlin hybrid and Mojo the Peregrine. When there is finally nothing in sight but sand dunes and some scrubby grass, Bergh unloads the falcons on the metal rack where they sit while traveling. Still hooded, they are absolutely still and calm. To train these birds requires great patience and a strong will. First you have to desensitize the falcon to human presence by carrying it tethered to your arm for up to a week. The traditional Bedouin were especially good at this, taking their birds wherever they went, even to meals. Once the bird is calm in your presence, you can teach it to associate your glove with a lure. Only at that point do you attempt open flight, coaxing it to return with the
lure, a feathered bird decoy swung on the end of a leather strap. Even understanding a little of the history, I can’t fully appreciate the sport until we actually see the falcons in flight. We un-hood Speedy first. Bergh has me stand some 20 or 30 yards (18 to 27 meters) off and call him to my glove with a gesture indicating I’m holding a treat, in this case a morsel of quail meat. When Speedy takes to the air off Bergh’s glove, the sight is remarkable. With almost a 30-inch (76-centimeter) wingspan, his approach is majestic. I’m so absorbed in watching the beauty of the bird, I forget to flinch as he opens his wings wide, talons extended, and settles onto my raised hand. All at once this enormous, regal creature is perched there, nibbling quail and regarding me as if to say: who are you? I’m eye-to-eye with nature in its very-close-to-wild form. It’s exhilarating. We fly Marley next, the prize Saker. He’s a big bird, weighing almost seven pounds (three kilograms). His weight on my raised arm is noticeable, and when he takes flight I can feel the back draft from his massive wings. After his flight, when I reward him with dinner – a full leg of quail – I can feel his power as he tears the meat from my glove, gripping my thumb with his enormous talons. But it’s Mojo that really provides the highlight. Peregrines are blindingly fast, reaching speeds of 199 miles (320 kilometers) per hour in their dives. Bergh has shown me how to twirl the lure, pivoting to keep the bird in sight.
PHOTOS: COURTESY OF SHAHEEN XTREME FALCONRY
Falcons are territorial and solitary creatures, but they’re fearless, making them a very useful hunting tool.
CONCIERGE STAY Fairmont Bab Al Bahr is ideally located at the mainland gateway to the city of Abu Dhabi. Soak up spectacular views of Abu Dhabi Creek from one of two outdoor swimming pools or take in the white domes of the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque from the 11,500-sq-ft (1,070-sq-m) ballroom, perfect for any grand occasion or business function. fairmont.com/babalbahr DO Visit the Al Bateen Shipyard on the west side of Al Bateen Island, one of Abu Dhabi’s oldest inhabited areas, to witness the ancient art of Arab shipbuilding. These traditional sailing boats, called dhows, are made from huge planks of wood and are handcrafted by skilled carpenters without the use of modern tools or blueprints. To catch these vessels in action, head to Dhow Harbor, near Port Zayed, for regular sailing races. For a different kind of race, test your skills behind the wheel at the family-friendly Ferrari World. Located on Yas Island, this indoor theme park is home to more than 20 Ferrari-inspired rides and attractions, such as Formula Rossa, the world’s fastest roller coaster, which reaches speeds of up to 150 mph (240 km/hr), and the Junior GT, a driving school for future Michael Schumachers. ferrariworldabudhabi.com ABOVE AND LEFT Bergh rewards The Machine, a black shaheen/African Peregrine hybrid with a piece of meat; Titus, a one-year-old male Peregrine.
EAT Settle into a tan leather armchair by the flame-lit back wall of the cozy Marco Pierre White Steakhouse & Grill for a culinary experience made for meat lovers. Located on the ground floor of Fairmont Bab Al Bahr, the celebrity-chef-branded restaurant offers a mix of
We want Mojo to make several passes, so as she wheels around us high in the sky, I watch for her to jerk her head toward me, a sign that she has the spinning lure in sight. When I see that, I let the lure fall flat on the sand, offering it to her. Mojo seems to pause in space, weightless. And then I see her dip one wing toward earth and turn in my direction, drawing her wings in and tightening aerodynamically as she approaches. (Here I have a flash image of what it would be like to be a field mouse in the crosshairs.) By the time she’s in her final approach, Mojo is a blur. And just the instant she’s about to strike the lure, I pull it away and Mojo shrieks by, a bullet of feathers and talons and one hard black eye that seems to stare at me as she passes. Then she streaks off over the desert like a rocket, carving a long arc high into the sky. After I feed Mojo, who is panting from her workout, she lets me slip the hood back over her head and I put her on the perch next to Marley and Speedy. Then we head back into Abu Dhabi as the sun sets. It’s my last day in the Middle East. But I feel like I’ve made real contact with at least one part of what’s local here: I’ve sensed the way desert dwellers forge a connection with this endlessly powerful, strong-willed bird, and take it on as an emblem of what it means to thrive in these environs. As a bonus, I’m taking home an experience I won’t soon forget.
innovative grill cuisine and classic English fare. An extensive wine list serves as the perfect complement to dishes like seared foie gras with apple butter and cuts of Wagyu beef. Steak connoisseurs can enjoy a fourcourse tasting menu featuring special cuts and preparations, which are introduced and explained by the restaurant’s Chef de Cuisine. fairmont.com/babalbahr If you’re still in the mood for something sweet, stop by Bloomsbury’s, the first international franchise of the London-based cake shop Bea’s of Bloomsbury. Opened in June on the ground floor of Al Wahda Mall, this outpost features a rotating cupcake menu (flavors include strawberries and cream, pistachio and double chocolate), Jing tea (suppliers of London’s The Savoy, A Fairmont Managed Hotel) and java from Square Mile Coffee Roasters, the only establishment outside of London serving the award-winning beans. beasofbloomsbury.com
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Natural focus
The wonders of nature inspired these winners of the 2011 Flash Forward competition to new creative heights. Now in its seventh year, the contest, presented by philanthropic arts publishing house The Magenta Foundation, helps emerging photographers from Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom find a global audience with a biennial showcasing of their work, an annual coffee-table book featuring the winning shots and Eye Buy Art, a website selling limited-edition prints of select photographs.
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Maiko Sunrise, Japan Kerry Shaw, Canada
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Picnic Table, Colorado Annie Collinge, United Kingdom
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36.561127, -118.7674 Emma Jane Spain, United Kingdom
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The Weekend #5 Isabel M. Martinez, Canada
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Birthday Yuji Hamada, United Kingdom
Untitled 4 David Vintiner, United Kingdom
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Sloy Dam Toby Smith, United Kingdom
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Tecumseh St. Danny Custodio, Canada
6.59 Acres, Highway Commercial, East Windsor, NJ Justin James Reed, U.S.A.
PHOTO OP
Fairmont Hotels & Resorts is a proud sponsor of the Flash Forward Festival in Toronto and its satellite festival launched in 2011 at Fairmont Battery Wharf, Boston. The events expand on The Magenta Foundation’s annual Flash Forward competition and include guest speakers, lectures, workshops and exhibitions open to the public. flashforward.com magentafoundation.org eyebuyart.com
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Brunch Brunch Destination Guide 70 Fairmont Heritage Place 71 Fairmont Gold 74 Directory 75 News & Views 78 Then & Now 81
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Midday Banquet
Forget everything you thought you knew about brunch. At Fairmont Dubai, this weekend tradition takes on staggering dimensions. BY NATASHA MEKHAIL
There are meals and then there are feasts. But at Fairmont Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, the weekend brunch is a culinary experience whose epic proportions deserve a category all their own. Spectrum on One, the hotel’s venue for the lavish buffet held weekly on Friday offers an atmosphere that can only be described as buzzing. From the moment you step into this grand dining room, you’re struck by the sheer scale and coordination of activity. The restaurant’s eight interactive kitchens reveal 25 chefs working in high gear: Over here, one shucks oysters with dazzling speed, over there another tosses sautéed vegetables that sizzle in a tower of flames. ›
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THIS PAGE AND OPPOSITE A look at the large-scale productions and minute details that go into orchestrating the Friday brunch week after week.
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Every available surface is piled high with sumptuous fare of the highest order. Great stacks of lobster tails, king prawns and crab legs are fanned artistically around ice sculptures. Tiers of delectable tarts, flans, parfaits and puddings are carefully assembled in transparent glass cases, seeming to float in the air. Made-to-order omelets come steaming off the skillet. The restaurant’s wine cellar is transformed temporarily to house a vast selection of cheeses and freshly baked breads. In Dubai, Friday brunch is a tradition one does not take lightly. It is a half-day activity that ranks with guidebook must-dos alongside desert 4-by-4ing and a trip to the top of the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest tower. And while there are many places around the city to take in the experience, Fairmont’s brunch in the heart of downtown remains one of the originals. In Spectrum on One, there is an almost militaristic precision to the orderliness its professionals bring to this epicurean free-for-all. Perhaps that’s why the 65 staff who have pulled off this affair week
after week for the last eight years are not called a team, but a brigade. In the walk from the entrance to your table, you’ll find yourself spanning the gastronomic globe. As the name Spectrum implies, each of the kitchen stations specializes in an ethnic culinary style (India, Thailand, Japan, China, Europe and the Middle East), where you may spot everything from Peking duck to Yorkshire pudding. Interestingly, while the brunch phenomenon has caught on quickly throughout the U.A.E., the concept is actually less than a decade old. It’s popular at any time of year (meaning reservations are always recommended), but the event provides an additional escape during the summer months, when the temperature can soar to 50°C. In those hot, humid days, Friday brunch is a time to catch up with friends and family, while keeping cool indoors. There are no rules for the enjoyment of this U.A.E. tradition, but if there were, they would be these: sleep in late, dress elegantly but comfortably, invite the people you love, pace yourself, enjoy. Happy brunching!
BRUNCH BY THE NUMBERS A taste of the impressive volume of tempting offerings served at Fairmont Dubai during a single Friday meal. 1,000 slices of sashimi 400 mini cupcakes 211 lbs (96 kg) of roast beef 159 lbs (72 kg) of prawns 99 lbs (45 kg) of lobster tails 84 lbs (38 kg) of turkey 44 lbs (20 kg) of chocolate in the cascading fountain
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Destination Guide
Cairo, Egypt
Christoph Ganster, general manager of Fairmont Heliopolis & Towers in Cairo, Egypt, shares the best of local culture. The revolution in January 2011 was a significant milestone for Egypt. Having traveled the world for 15 years, I have never seen such friendly, outgoing people. It is a fantastic feeling to be witnessing the rebuilding of Egypt. – Christoph Ganster, G.M., Fairmont Heliopolis & Towers
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GRAND BAZAAR Dating back to 1382 and perhaps the most famous medieval bazaar in the Arab world, Khan el-Khalili has hundreds of shops, restaurants and street food vendors along its narrow pathways. Avoid the tourist trinkets and head deep within to sharpen your bargaining skills. Stop for a traditional coffee at al-Fishawy, one of the city’s oldest cafés.
CULTURE CLUB With its Bedouin-style couches and tables, locals and vistors alike can’t get enough of Nomad. Relax over late afternoon drinks, shisha and the best people-watching around as you gaze at the 360-degree view of the capital.
STITCH IN TIME Dedicated to preserving the ageold craft of weaving, The Ramses Wissa Wassef Art Centre was first established in 1952 to help cultivate worldwide interest in tapestry. Visit the center’s gallery to view these beautiful and intricate creations.
King Hotel, 20 Abdel Rehim Sabri St. (behind Cinema Tahrir), +20 2 3335 0869
Saqqara Rd., Harrania Village, El Haram, Giza, +20 2 3381 5746 wissa-wassef-arts.com
BLAST FROM THE PAST The modern-day Cairo suburb of Heliopolis is where ancient Egyptians chose to celebrate life, creation and the sun. Fairmont Heliopolis & Towers is perfectly located, close to Cairo International Airport as well as legendary attractions like the Egyptian Museum, home to the golden treasures of Tutankhamun. fairmont.com/towersheliopolis
Fairmont Heritage Place
The Snowball Effect
Day 1 – Striking Gold
In the star-studded alpine ski destination of Telluride, Colorado, residents of Fairmont Heritage Place, Franz Klammer Lodge, discover that ownership has its privileges.
PHOTO: ISTOCKPHOTOS
By Adam McCulloch
ABOVE Ajax Peak presides over Telluride Main Street.
“We had electric streetlights before Paris,” boasts my driver as we wind our way beside the San Miguel River toward Telluride. His claim may well be true, but since that first glow of modernity in 1881, little else has changed. This gold-and-silver mining town turned celebrity hideaway has remained stubbornly untouched, and that’s precisely its appeal. The snow on Palmyra Peak blushes pink in the soft afternoon light as we pull into Fairmont Heritage Place, Franz Klammer Lodge. The all-suite residential property allows owners and renters a slice of alpine paradise, beginning at a one-twentieth share. Situated in a wooded estate, just steps from an 18-hole championship golf course, the Lodge lobby has a decidedly Austrian feel: a natural stone fireplace, split logs and a giant elk head to greet the owners. My 1,800-square-foot, three-bedroom suite (of which I am a new, fractional owner) is so large I stake out just one wing and settle in by the fire. This is the part I love: experiencing all the comforts of home, but with the service and hospitality of a luxury hotel. A week earlier, I’d filled out my pre-arrival form with my food preferences, and now I find the fridge stocked with groceries, fresh berries, wine, cheese and artisanal chocolate. The Lodge also organized my airport pickup, restaurant reservations and activities for the weekend, along with a massage. All I had to do was turn up. ›
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Fairmont Heritage Place
Telluride’s uncrowded slopes are a dream. A ski valet shuttles my ungainly planks to the lift. Day 2 – Fame and Fortitude
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wild salmon with spinach, bacon, leek and corn polenta. As I unwind back in the Lodge’s Jacuzzi, I catch a glimpse of one more famous face: the Coors mountain I was too lazy to climb.
Day 3 – Casting Call
After an unearned Lomi-Lomi massage at the Lodge spa and an altitude-acclimatizing stint in its oxygen bar, I head to BootDoctors and Paragon Outdoors to learn the fine art of fly-fishing, another Lodge recommendation. My guide, Adam Cuthreil, greets me with a firm angler’s handshake and explains apologetically that, because of the recent snow, the rivers are ideal for whitewater rafting but not so good for fishing. He takes me instead over the mountain to a private pond. In the past I’d spent many weary hours forging streams and decorating trees with fishing tackle. This time, Cuthreil promises, would be different. We could see fish jumping before we arrived at the pond. Nestled in a valley out of the stiff breeze, I soon learn to roll cast and bow-and-arrow cast, along with a few other techniques I had no idea I was capable of. We catch so many fish that, for more of a challenge, I find myself casting my Woolly Bugger into the flattest water. It’s pure magic. As we drive back into town we chat like old friends about the idyllic bends we could fish, if only I was in town an extra day. Forget Paris: We’ll always have Telluride.
HOMEWARD BOUND
Fairmont Heritage Place ownership means an extensive benefit program, providing VIP treatment at all Fairmont Hotels & Resorts as well as exchange opportunities with other Fairmont and Raffles properties worldwide.
fairmontheritageplace.com
PHOTOS: ADAM M C CULLOCH (HORSES, WATERFALLS); ISTOCKPHOTOS (AUTUMN, SKIER)
It’s early but already the practice green below is bustling with golfers, putting on a manicured stretch of lawn that will transform into a heliskiing launch pad later in the season. Downhill daredevils can choose from more than 200 square miles (518 square kilometers) of the most perfect powder. I’ll do it some day. But for the time being I’m content to hone my skills on the intermediate Misty Maiden ski run situated right across the plaza from the Lodge. Telluride’s uncrowded slopes are a dream and I never worry about lugging cumbersome skis: a ski valet shuttles my ungainly planks to the lift of my choice. It’s late autumn so I drink in the cool mountain air and gaze out across the spruce-and-pine-covered slopes to the very familiar-looking mountain beyond. It is, in fact, the same one that inspired the packaging for Coors beer. In summer, more adventurous souls than I make the 12-hour ascent of that iconic Wilson Peak for the most magnificent views of the San Miguel Mountains. For a less strenuous view, I head to the gondola, waving en route at a new owner couple preparing for a day hike. Mountain Village, home of Franz Klammer Lodge, is connected to the old town of Telluride in an adjacent valley by a gondola that runs entirely on wind energy. Reaching the town, I leap from my pod and weave among the neat rows of Victorian houses toward Main Street, which is currently filled with stagecoaches, blacksmiths and glossy brown horses. This is no time warp: it’s a street fair – something at which the town excels. The blacksmith enlists eager children to pound lumps of metal until they resemble… well, pounded lumps of metal. Judging by the smiles, the end result hardly matters. I carry on to adventure outfitter Telluride Outside and meet Richard Thorpe, who hustles me to his brutish-looking 4x4. The off-road adventure was a concierge recommendation and the experience does not disappoint. Soon Thorpe and I are climbing a precipitous, rocky trail high above the town while he schools me in how this alpine settlement came to be. It turns out Telluride wasn’t always so lush. “During the gold rush, steam-powered machines ate every tree in sight,” says Thorpe. This led the mine owner, L.L. Nunn, to seek out an alternative power source. He approached Nikola Tesla about trialing his newfangled alternating current. “Where the heck is Telluride?” came Tesla’s response. Nunn explained that the town’s obscurity was exactly the point: If his experiment failed, no one would know. Installed in 1891, the Ames Hydroelectric Generating Plant produces power to this day. Tesla was not the town’s only brush with fame. Ever since Butch Cassidy robbed his first bank here, Telluride has seen more than its fair share of famous faces. Today’s names, however, are more likely to prop up the local economy than deplete it. Tom Cruise, Jerry Seinfeld, Oprah Winfrey and Ralph Lauren are just some of the town’s repeat visitors. I’m getting peckish so, following my tour of the canyon, I head to Cosmopolitan, the finest restaurant in town. Reservations are needed as much as a month in advance but the Lodge concierge has enough clout to secure a table on short notice. The meal is sublime: barbequed
CHOOSE YOUR OWN ADVENTURE From the peaks of Colorado’s San Juan Mountains to South Africa’s Dolphin Coast, Fairmont Heritage Place is authentic, unique and always a home away from home. BEACH RETREAT Fall off the radar at Fairmont Heritage Place, Acapulco Diamante, in Acapulco, Mexico, and Fairmont Heritage Place, Inspiration, in Miramar Beach, Florida, U.S.A. At these truly secluded retreats, enjoy private beach access and the option to book all amenities prior to arrival. ALPINE ASCENT Ski-in and ski-out at Fairmont Heritage Place, At Nature’s Door, in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, located alongside the World Cup Dave Murray downhill run, and Fairmont Heritage Place, Franz Klammer Lodge, in Telluride, Colorado, U.S.A., set in bustling Mountain Village. URBAN IMMERSION Fairmont Heritage Place, Ghirardelli Square, is located in the heart of San Francisco, U.S.A.’s bustling northern waterfront district, while Fairmont’s newest residential property, Fairmont Heritage Place, El Corazon de Santa Fe, U.S.A., takes advantage of the cultural and culinary scene for which the city is famous.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP A historic fair on Telluride’s Main Street; fall color for hiking coexists with snow-covered peaks for skiing; adventurous riders can access 200 square miles of pristine powder by helicopter; the welcoming lobby at Fairmont Heritage Place, Franz Klammer Lodge; spectacular vistas provide eye candy for visitors.
WILD WANDER One of Fairmont’s most environmentally conscious residential locations, Fairmont Heritage Place, Zimbali, in South Africa, is nestled between KwaZulu-Natal’s Dolphin Coast and a forest reserve. Guests also have access to an 18-hole Tom Weiskopfdesigned course.
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3:00pm
1:00pm
The opera is sold out, but your dedicated Fairmont Gold team still arranges tickets, along with a table for two at one of the city’s most soughtafter restaurants.
Settle into your ocean-view Fairmont Gold room. Your personal butler notes any items you’ve forgotten (later delivered on a silver tray), unpacks your luggage and lines your closets with potpourri.
– The Fairmont Royal York, Toronto, Canada
– Fairmont Pacific Rim, Vancouver, Canada
2:00pm
12:00pm
Check in privately on the Fairmont Gold floors, where you are greeted with a Legend 29. In this twist on the classic champagne cocktail, an added splash of cranberry juice symbolizes the prosperity of Chinese culture.
It’s business as usual – and more – with a private boardroom at your disposal stocked with your favorite amenities. The Fairmont Gold team ensures the room is to your liking each and every day of your stay.
– Fairmont Peace Hotel, Shanghai, China
– The Fairmont Hamilton Princess, Bermuda
Gold Standard
Check into a Fairmont Gold Room anywhere in the world and you’ll find a hotel within a hotel. Nothing is overlooked, and your personalized itinerary becomes the last word in luxury. By Aliyah Shamsher
8:00pm Tuck in the kids with the
storybook Make Way for Ducklings and a treat of warm milk and duck-shaped sugar cookies. A plush duckling toy is the final surprise as they drift into sleep. – The Fairmont Copley Plaza, Boston, U.S.A.
4:00pm
Afternoon tea is a tranquil time, perfect for browsing through a collection of vintage classics in the Fairmont Gold library. Anna Karenina, Don Quixote, Oliver Twist and Madame Bovary are just some of the famous faces you’ll encounter. – The Fairmont Empress, Victoria, Canada
“I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” –Maya Angelou
10:00pm
A silver tray of playing cards, espresso and confections arrives to cap off the evening in style. – Fairmont Nile City, Cairo, Egypt
11:00pm
Just before bedtime, a perfectly drawn bath awaits, featuring a selection of bath salts and warm teas to prepare you for another day of unparalleled luxury. – Fairmont Yangcheng Lake, Kunshan, China
Directory
Fairmont Worldwide Locations n Fairmont Gold Floor property
Fairmont Hotels UNITED STATES Boston at Battery Wharf Boston at Copley Plaza Chicago Dallas Newport Beach New York Pittsburgh San Francisco San Francisco at Ghirardelli Square San Jose Santa Monica Seattle Telluride Washington, D.C. CANADA Calgary Edmonton Montréal Ottawa Toronto Vancouver at Hotel Vancouver Vancouver at Pacific Rim Vancouver at Vancouver Airport Vancouver at Waterfront Winnipeg EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA Abu Dhabi (opening 2013) Abu Dhabi at Bab Al Bahr Baku (opening 2012) Cairo at Heliopolis & Towers Cairo at Nile City Dubai
Hamburg Kyiv (opening 2012) London Makkah Nairobi Riyadh (opening 2013) ASIA Beijing Hyderabad (opening 2014) Jaipur (opening 2011) Jakarta (opening 2014) Manila (opening 2012) Nanjing (opening 2012) Shanghai Singapore
Fairmont Resorts UNITED STATES Hawaii Maui Miami Scottsdale Sonoma CANADA Banff Charlevoix Jasper Lake Louise Montebello Montebello at Kenauk Mont-Tremblant Québec City Victoria Whistler
BERMUDA, CARIBBEAN & MEXICO Acapulco at Acapulco Princess Acapulco at Pierre Marques Barbados Bermuda at Hamilton Princess Bermuda at Southampton Riviera Maya EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA Dubai (opening 2012) Fujairah (opening 2013) Kenya at Mara Safari Club Kenya at Mount Kenya Safari Club Monte Carlo Montreux Muscat (opening 2014) St Andrews Zimbali at Zimbali Lodge Zimbali at Zimbali Resort ASIA Kunshan
For reservations, please call 1 800 441 1414 in the United States and Canada, and 1 506 863 6310 internationally, or visit us at fairmont.com.
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An undeniable allure Le Labo fragrances possess an irresistible mystique. The New York–based perfume house has been handcrafting head-turning, made-to-order concoctions since 2006, garnering prestigious awards and the devotion of discerning noses. Le Labo’s crowning achievement, Rose 31 eau de parfum—featuring 31 ingredients around the legendary rose of Grasse, France, and punctuated with notes of cumin, cedar and amber—is already regarded as a cult classic within the perfume world. Fairmont is delighted to introduce an exclusive line of in-room amenities that showcase this exquisite fragrance. Rose 31’s magnificent blend of classicism and modernity aligns perfectly with the character of Fairmont, and its rare, pure ingredients reflect our own impeccable standards. Undoubtedly, the evocative scent will elevate every moment of your stay, leaving a captivating, indelible memory—the kind for which Fairmont is known. To learn more about Le Labo, and to order a personalized bottle of Rose 31, visit www.lelabofragrances.com
News & Views
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INTERNATIONAL AMENITIES
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Cairo
Vancouver
Worldwide
1 DESERT OASIS Re-energize, rejuvenate and experience a holistic blend of traditional treatments, from Hamman Heaven, a classic steambath ritual, to Egypt Energy, a rich bath of milk, honey and Dead Sea salts, at Fairmont Nile City’s Willow Stream Spa, an urban sanctuary in downtown Cairo.
2 WEST-COAST WONDER The Fairmont Vancouver Airport recently won Best Airport Hotel in North America at the World Airport Awards 2011. Amenities include a Quiet Zone floor for long layovers, hypoallergenic floors and 8,800 square feet (820 square meters) of meeting facilities.
3 CUSTOM CUISINE Eating healthy on the go has never been easier. Whether you are looking for a gluten-free dish at The Fairmont Southampton, Bermuda, or a low-sodium meal at Fairmont Beijing, the Lifestyle Cuisine Plus program has it all for travelers with specific dietary needs at every property in the Fairmont family. Look for the green Lifestyle Cuisine symbol on menus and request Plus selections from your server to suit your particular needs.
fairmont.com/nilecity willowstream.com
fairmont.com/vancouverairport
fairmont.com
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PHOTO: ISTOCKPHOTOS (MAP)
Take time, connect and indulge this year at Fairmont Hotels & Resorts. Whether at far-off destinations or in your own backyard, experience, learn and create new memories with us.
Worldwide
Newport Beach
FLINGS BEFORE THE RING Pop the question with the Romance Package at The Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge, where Marilyn Monroe filmed River of No Return. Afterwards, stage a Ski Bunnies bachelorette at The Fairmont Chateau Whistler, or a Beer in Boston bachelor party at The Fairmont Copley Plaza.
8 GREEN LIGHT Reduce your carbon footprint at Fairmont Newport Beach. The hotel is committed to eco-friendly and sustainable practices, and offers free parking to overnight guests driving hybrid vehicles.
fairmont.com
fairmont.com/newportbeach
Worldwide
Arizona
GO EAST Fairmont properties will soon be opening their doors to travelers in coveted destinations, including Hyderabad, India; Nanjing, China, and Manila, Philippines; Baku, Azerbaijan, and Kyiv, Ukraine; plus Fujairah, U.A.E.; The Palm, Dubai, U.A.E.; Muscat, Oman; and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
10 TEQUILA GODDESS With over 10,000 tequila brands on the market, how do you pick the right one? At La Hacienda in the Fairmont Scottsdale Princess, master tequila expert Danielle Griffin shares tips on which of the 200-plus tequilas behind the bar to sip, which to mix and which to pair with Mexican cuisine.
fairmont.com/development
fairmont.com/scottsdale
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Worldwide 4 NOSE FOR ROSE Fairmont has teamed with New York boutique perfumer Le Labo to create an exclusive line of in-room amenities, fragranced with the best-selling Rose 31. The unisex fragrance caused a sensation when it debuted in 2006. Its secret: Grasse rose, a subtle, less fruity alternative to the bloom’s Egyptian and Bulgarian counterparts. Now the scent will be part of your every stay at Fairmont Hotels & Resorts.
lelabofragrances.com
PHOTOS: ISTOCKPHOTOS (WEDDING, CRAYON, SKI)
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5 BIRD’S-EYE EUROPE Check into The Kingdom of Fife Suite at Fairmont St Andrews, Scotland, with the only private balcony overlooking the North Sea. At Fairmont Le Montreux Palace in Switzerland, the Bellevue Suites feature large balconies with uninterrupted views of the famously beautiful Lake Geneva.
6 FAMILY TREE Take root with Fairmont and celebrate UNESCO’s International Year of the Forest. The Fairmont Washington, D.C., in partnership with the American Forestry Association, will give young guests an educational coloring book, crayons and a certificate that a sapling will be planted in their name.
fairmont.com
fairmont.com/washington
For more news, log on to Fairmont Magazine online FAIRMONTMAGAZINE.COM
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Find us on Facebook
Enhancing your social life With over 60 properties on four continents, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts boasts a remarkable global presence. And we’ve built an online presence to match. Social media has provided us with more ways than ever to connect with you, our valued guest; by joining us online, you’ll gain access to up-to-the-minute Fairmont news, behind-the-scenes photos, exclusive offers and more. So stop by one of our sites, where you’ll be met with the same friendly welcome for which we’re known, the world over. To learn more about Fairmont, visit www.fairmont.com Join our Facebook community at www.facebook.com/ fairmonthotels
Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ fairmonthotels
Share your favorite Fairmont memories at www.everyonesanoriginal.com
And, in China, check out our blogs at www.weibo.com/fairmonthotels and www.blog.sina.com.cn/fairmonthotels
Then & Now
CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Ernest Hemingway on safari; Winston Churchill atop a mobile “observation ladder”; The Lord Delamere Terrace as it looks today.
Birth of a Capital
An early gathering place for big-game hunters, nobles and literary stars alike, Fairmont The Norfolk put Nairobi on the map. By Douglas Mason Winston Churchill was probably weary when he stepped off the train in Nairobi in 1907, having journeyed up from the coast. Kenya’s capital was then a dusty town of 6,000 souls and few comforts, an improbable settlement established on the East African savannah where lions roamed the outskirts. Then, as now, Fairmont The Norfolk was an outpost of charm and elegance for the traveler, the adventurer and the local residents who helped build a country. U.S. president Teddy Roosevelt followed in 1909 as, eventually, did fellow big-game hunter Ernest Hemingway, who gathered writing material from tales told on the hotel’s Lord Delamere Terrace. Today, whether a traveler arrives at Fairmont The Norfolk from the Congo or the urban jungles of New York and London, they will know they have stepped into a world that is timeless.
LOCAL LEGENDS Nearby must-sees: the Karen Blixen Museum, once home to the author of Out of Africa; Sheldrick Orphanage, a rehabilitation center for baby elephants; and the Giraffe Centre, founded to preserve the endangered Rothschild giraffe. fairmont.com/norfolkhotel
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CHECKOUT
MOVER AND SHAKER The new head bartender at The Savoy’s American Bar, Erik Lorincz, joins an iconic list of master mixologists. BY JOANNE SASVARI
Erik Lorincz
Try mixing up your own Hanky Panky and other American Bar cocktails with recipes from Everyone’s An Original. EVERYONESANORIGINAL.COM
The Savoy’s American Bar today.
Experience Fairmont’s signature sips at home with The Savoy Cocktail Book (available at bookstores) and at properties worldwide with the Classic Cocktails menu.
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With his swept-back hair and dapper white dinner jacket, Erik Lorincz looks as if he just stepped, cocktail shaker in hand, straight from The Savoy’s 1920s heyday. But the head bartender at London’s legendary American Bar is a thoroughly modern mixologist. And, at only 31, he has become something of a legend himself. After mixing drinks for three years in his native Slovakia, Lorincz came to London to shake up the city’s already lively cocktail scene. In 2010, he beat 9,000 other competitors to become the winner of the Diageo Reserve World Class, one of the most prestigious titles in the bartending world. That same year, The Savoy, A Fairmont Managed Hotel, was coming to the end of a massive threeyear renovation and was looking for a talented bartender to follow in the footsteps of such giants as Ada Coleman, Harry Craddock (author of The Savoy Cocktail Book) and Peter Dorelli. Lorincz was a natural fit. “I am just a part of the history,” Lorincz says in his soft Slovakian accent, “and I feel very pleased to have been involved from the reopening.” Needless to say, Lorincz mixes a terrific drink. His barrel-aged take on the Hanky Panky, made with four kinds of gin, four vermouths and two bitters, then “left to sleep” in a Limousin oak cask, might just be the best cocktail on the planet right now. “It’s one of my favorites,” he admits. “It’s a beautiful drink.” Lorincz is also a historian and storyteller who loves to regale guests with tales of his predecessors and their cocktails, including Craddock’s White Lady and Joe Gilmore’s Moonwalk (created for the 1969 moon landing). Of course, many of the guests already know these Savoy stories. In fact, that’s probably why they’re drinking in its history, and not out at a flashy London nightclub. “They are all fascinated by our bar,” Lorincz says. “It’s such a nice feeling to see how people can appreciate its history.”
Sapphire and diamond ringS and Brooch in 18-karat gold
HoTEL wALDorF-AsTorIA 301 PArK AVENUE 212-751-9824
800-CELLINI www.CELLINIJEwELErs.Com NEw YorK, NY 10022
509 mADIsoN AVENUE AT 53rD sTrEET 212-888-0505