Travel Leisure Southeast Asia

WA N D E R made 50 centuries before the birth of are the island’s main assets today, and elements. (On Santorini, the couple own
Christ: a Neolithic figure of a woman, many stretches of the shoreline are and run several celebrated hotels,
not much more than five centimeters scattered with marble pebbles. Páros including Mystique and Vedema, part of
tall. And there are churches. For a occupies about 120 square kilometers, Marriott’s Luxury Collection.)
permanent population of fewer than so you need a car to sample its full
16,000 people, Páros has 450 of them— buffet of beaches. There are dozens, to Clustered like the whitewashed
including one, Panagia Ekatontapiliani suit any mood. If you can find no beach buildings of a Cycladic village, Parilio’s
(the Church of the Hundred Gates), that to love on Páros, you are past helping. structures gently descend from terrace
dates back to the fourth century. to terrace. Each of the hotel’s 33 suites
The one I like best is Kalogeros, a has its own patio, and three infinity-
The yin and yang of sensation and secluded cove where Kalia and I scoop edged reflecting pools keep the sound
tradition that drew Kalia to Páros is out thick veins of gray clay to slather on of falling water always faintly in the air.
evoked by its geography. The island’s our skin. While the clay dries, before we “For me, the strongest piece of Páros is
shape is approximately round. Hills rinse it off, she says, “On Páros, nature the sun,” the hotel’s Athens-based
ripple into plains and shores. The core is a spa.” We make one more stop, at designer, Stamos Hondrodimos, tells
of Páros is flawless white marble that Kolympithres, named for its me. “You feel like the white color of the
has been prized since antiquity. Many of picturesque, eroded rock formations buildings is going to make you blind.”
Greek civilization’s greatest treasures that resemble surreal baptismal fonts. Calm interiors give shelter from the
were fashioned from it: the Winged brightness. Bedding, upholstery, and
Victory of Samothrace, the Venus de’ A pair of similar boulders slink tile floors in earth tones set off the
Medici, the façade of the Temple of stylishly, half-submerged, in the glass-fronted dark-wood dressers.
Apollo at Delphi. Quarrying the marble swimming pool at Kalia’s hotel, Parilio
is now illegal, but if you are steady on (pariliohotelparos; doubles from €250). Granite boulders in
your feet, you can still hike down into “We wanted to bring a touch of the pool at Parilio
the shafts where it was mined. Kolympithres here,” she explains.
Throughout the property, she and her evoke nearby
Better to see the marble glow in husband, Antonis Eliopoulos, took care Kolympithres Beach.
sunlight, though. Beaches, not quarries, to incorporate such local design

50 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

Athens

Mykonos GETTING THERE
Páros Fly to Athens. From there,
Olympic Air (olympicair.com)
Santorini runs regular nonstop flights
from Athens to Páros National
AEGEAN SEA Airport, in Aliki. Ferries to
Páros are available from
Greece Athens, Mykonos and
Santorini.
Crete TRAVEL PLANNER
“Páros offers the feel of
Parilio draws from the island’s the first of many rounds of souma, a Mykonos twenty years ago,”
church architecture, too. Guests pass clear, lilting spirit distilled from says Mina Agnos
through arches inspired by Páros fermented grapes. Small talk is as ([email protected];
monasteries on their way to meals, each strange as dreams. “I run a shipping 1-561/300-7436), a member of
of which could be a holy feast. Breakfast company,” says a man in gray linen. “My T+L’s A-List of the world’s best
at the restaurant, Mr. E., is a sublime luggage is on Santorini, but I think I will travel advisors. Agnos and her
spread: cheeses made on the island, go to Mykonos tomorrow, and I have team at Travelive can
sweet tsoureki bread with mastic and meetings in Munich the day after that. incorporate Páros into an
anise, scrambled eggs with fresh tomato What will I do?” wonders a woman in extended itinerary of the
and oregano, and Kalia’s favorite coffee, leopard print. Tsachpinis, pouring, Greek islands, including local
the traditional frapé that Greeks drank grinning, responds, “Yamas!” experiences and private boat
before espresso conquered the world. trips to neighboring islands.
ILLUSTRAT ION BY MAY PARSE Y
The dinner menu reinvents Greek Naoussa, a fishing
classics—rich moussaka croquettes, village on the
bream baked in lemon leaves with a
Párian chickpea stew. Fortified, Kalia northern coast
and I and a half dozen of her friends pile of Páros.
into cars for the 10-minute drive to old-
town Naoussa, a maze of shops, cafés 5 1T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M
and bars that sprouts from two squares
along the water.

As we enter the bustling square
called Little Venice, the lights go dark.
Everyone takes a breath—for a quiet
instant, you can hear the sky-blue-and-
white Greek flag whip in the midnight
wind—and then, all at once, the crowd
cheers. In the blackout, nightclubs
crank up generators, dance music
bounces through open doors and
windows, and Mario Tsachpinis, the
ebullient owner of Mario Restaurant
(mariorestaurantparos; mains €13–€28),
shows us to a table in the square.

“Yamas!” he cries—a drinking
cheer—and from a glass flask he pours

MY OWN PARADISE SOCIETY SHORES S EVERAL YEARS AGO, my Chilean cousin Andrea
and I were descending a steep path leading to
With its glorious sands and million-dollar the horseshoe-shaped, white-sand beach in
vacation homes, Zapallar is Chile’s most Zapallar, a couple of hours northwest of
exclusive coastal retreat. But it’s the Santiago. We paused at a tiny stucco house
breezy, laid-back way of life that keeps with exposed timber and a thatched roof
families coming back, year after year. about halfway down that, thanks to a
microclimate that shields the area from coastal winds, was
BY PILAR GUZMÁN. embowered by an exuberant mix of palm, eucalyptus,
cypress and pine trees. It looked just like the family
PHOTOGRAPHS BY CRISTÓBAL PALMA compound at the foot of the Andes my late father grew up
on. Though my aunts, cousins and their kids still live in that
idyllic place, Andrea and I fantasize about creating a separate
retirement compound for ourselves and a handful of friends.

The ultimate
people-watching
scene: Zapallar’s
main beach in
high season.

52 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0





PERU

Seafood and pisco BOLIVIA
sours for lunch at
PACIFIC OCEAN
El Chiringuito
restaurant.

ARGENTINA

Zapallar
Santiago

Zapallar’s mountain-ringed bay, 56-33/274-1024; mains US$18–$25), Chile
protected from overdevelopment by where you can wash down gratinéed
the government, seemed at that scallops, a local specialty, with a couple GETTING THERE
moment as good a place as any to of frothy pisco sours. Fly from Asia to New York or
grow old. L.A., then take a non-stop
If you’re staying more than a couple flight on Latam Airlines
Often referred to as the Hamptons of of days, there are villas with ocean (latam.com) to Santiago;
Chile, Zapallar offers travelers a chance views available on Airbnb—both in from there, it’s a two-hour
to observe the most affluent segments Zapallar and the neighboring town of drive to Zapallar.
of Chilean society—and their kids—at Cachagua, which has an equally lovely TRAVEL ADVISOR
play. The village traces its roots as an but bigger beach that’s also filled T+L A-List member and Latin
exclusive vacation-home enclave to the with families during the January and American specialist
late 19th century, when Santiago’s elite February high season. Jeaninne Sanz Bernay (jean@
began etching their aeries into the jsbjourneys.com; 1-415/230-
mountain to capitalize on the Zapallar is the kind of place where 0261) can create Chilean
breathtaking ocean views. These days, everyone seems to have eyes on one itineraries that include
there’s a growing number of handsome another’s kids. Maybe that’s why no one Zapallar.
new wood, glass and steel homes panicked when my five-year-old niece,
blanketing the hillside, many of which Manuela, ran ahead to the beach from 5 3T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M
have more in common with Austrian my aunt’s house one afternoon. I have
and Swiss modernism than with the always admired my niece’s fearlessness
typical white-stucco coastal look. and social fluidity—traits that seem to
There are also stylish—and surprisingly be as much of a national birthright as
affordable—hotels, like the boutique the Chileno aversion to planning,
Hotel Casa Zapallar (casazapallar.com; booking, or scheduling of any kind.
doubles from US$160). Yet enough of
the old village still remains, like the red We found Manuela on the beach,
and blue fishing boats, to remind me of laughing along with a group of eight or
the more remote Greek islands and so family friends while biting into an
make the place feel caught in time. empanada in the midst of a picnic lunch.
The scene typified the free-range
For road-trippers en route to parenting that, as in most of South
northern Chile, or anyone wanting to America, is rooted in a social contract
spend a couple of days at the beach that puts family—and especially
before flying out of Santiago, Zapallar children—first. I was reminded of that
is the perfect place to swim, hike, or trait on our way home that evening.
pop just-caught sea urchins into your Somewhere along the path, my cousin
mouth right off the dock. For a sit-down lifted a little boy she didn’t know who
seafood lunch, go to the oceanfront had stumbled, kissed his neck loudly,
El Chiringuito (Caleta de Zapallar; then set him back on his feet so he could
catch up with his older siblings.

JOURNEY PERSONAL BEST
GWEN KIDERA/COURTESY OF DUVINE CYCLING + ADVENTURE CO.
Outside Bodrum, Turkey, a hesitant cyclist leaves his
comfort zone and discovers ancient temples,

unparalleled hospitality, and—with the help of his
companions—a newfound sense of self-reliance.

BY CHANEY KWAK

Riding near Bodrum
Castle on a cycling

trip organized by the
operator DuVine.

54 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

FROM TOP : GWEN K IDERA/COURTESY OF DUV INE CYCL ING + ADVENTURE CO.; HE ATHER PERRY  T HE FIRST THING you need to know is The six-cabin Around mid-afternoon, we’d plunge into the
that I’m not a cyclist. My occasional DuVine sailing Mediterranean before climbing aboard our six-
rides are by bike share, a few yacht, or gulet, cabin vessel. Salty air tousling our hair, we’d sail
kilometers to the office or maybe to a heading into port onward through the waters surrounding the Datça
restaurant near my home. I don’t wear in Bodrum. Peninsula, including the Gulf of Gökova, a narrow,
spandex, least of all out in public. Yet yacht-dotted bay that stretches about 96
there I was, wiping the sweat from my Swimming off the kilometers along the southwestern corner of
face while standing on top of a Byzantine coast of Kaş, east of Turkey. Wherever the captain happened to drop
aqueduct not far from Bodrum, Turkey, with nine Marmaris, the site anchor, we’d tuck in to dinners of local staples like
people I’d met only a few days before. Ahead of us of a Bronze Age smoky eggplant and grilled fish. Most nights, I
was the steep hill that we’d have to conquer shipwreck. swam under the stars, marveling at how the same
before reaching a lookout in the village of water that had felt so cool during the day could feel
Alatepe, from where the Aegean would unfurl like like a warm bath at night.
a vast azure carpet.
The pre-trip fears I’d had about being a
We were loving it—not least because our small sometime cyclist joining a bunch of experts
band was one of the first groups to make this proved to be unwarranted. I was solidly in the
particular trip. We’d come to Turkey with the middle of the pack in terms of endurance. (For
luxury bike-tour operator DuVine, which has been those who wanted an extra boost, e-bikes were
around since 1996 but only recently launched this available, which one Kiwi was happy to take
itinerary. The plan was to cover lots of ground by advantage of to speed past her husband.) But,
bike during our seven-night visit but return every from the start, it was a judgment-free zone, where
evening to the same gulet, or wooden Turkish a fast camaraderie motivated all of us to pedal
yacht, fitted with creature comforts like hot harder than we ever had.
showers and Wi-Fi.
Before we rode a single kilometer, we’d spent
Each day, we’d set out for three to five hours our first night anchored a couple hundred meters
of riding, making stops for snacks like gözeleme, off Marmaris, a popular resort town where neon
flatbread stuffed with spinach or cheese. One greens and reds from nightclubs mix with the pale
afternoon, we had lunch at a seaside restaurant orange glow of streetlights along the crescent-
serving marinated shrimp, charred octopus and shaped waterfront. Early the next morning, the
koruk, a seagrass unique to this corner of Turkey. cove resonated with a more tranquil sound—an
Another day, we visited the home of a Kurdish imam’s call to prayer. The rising sun changed the
filmmaker named Savaş Baykal and his wife, Gamze, distant mountain silhouettes into muscular bluffs
who’d left behind their harried city lives in Ankara and sculpted hills.
for the quiet village of Yaziköy, where they now
raise chickens and were happy to share a pile of After the ship’s steward took us to shore in a
lentil köfte, pan-fried lamb and stuffed grape leaves. motorboat, we biked up and down the green slopes
of the peninsula, where candy-colored beehives
were scattered under a canopy of pine trees. A few

JOURNEYkilometers later, we stopped at a roadside teahouseThe ruins of Our most beautiful ride also happened to be
TOLGA ILDUN/AL AMY STO CK PHOTO. ILLUSTRAT ION BY MAY PARSE Youtside the village of Bayir, where the owner,Knidos, an ancientthe toughest, a 51-kilometer round-trip out of the
Süleyman, was all smiles. Under the gorgeous late- Greek trading post town of Akyaka involving a 958-meter elevation
morning sun, he brought out glass teacups, filled on the Datça gain. The road traced seaside cliffs, which were
them with his strong Turkish brew, and offered us Peninsula. lined with gnarled pines stretching out over the
a warm “hoşgeldiniz,” or welcome. Our guide, alluring water.
Aydin Aygün, translated as we learned how
Süleyman harvests and sells wild bay leaves on the Though we’d hop in the same saddles every
hills we’d just cycled through. morning, the scenery was ever-changing. One day,
we stopped at the ruins of Knidos, once a wealthy
The day culminated with a grueling trading post. The fourth-century B.C. sculptor
1½-kilometer climb at a 9-percent incline. After Praxiteles put the city on the map in antiquity—and
we took what seemed like the very last turn, I was changed the course of Western art—with a nude
dismayed to see another road sign, warning that sculpture of Aphrodite that he carved for Knidos.
the next stretch would be just as steep. A van, as The work is now lost, yet art historians say its
always, trailed behind, ready to scoop up anyone vivacious realism—and the revolutionary fact that it
who wanted to throw in the towel. There was no depicted a nude female form—lives on in other
shame in it; several of the group opted for the air- Greek, Roman and even Renaissance masterpieces.
conditioned comfort of the Mercedes-Benz. But
my pride—or maybe my curiosity—kept me On the last day, we ventured away from the
pushing until the hairpin path crested the ridge, coast, passing through villages with evocative
yielding to a descent more thrilling than any roller names: Yeşilova (Green Plain), Elmali (Apple
coaster I’ve taken. Grower), and Portakallik (Place of Oranges).
On a quiet road used mostly by donkeys and
As we glided into the port of Bozburun, a laid- tractors, we came across two goatherds who were
back hamlet with a whitewashed mosque by the delighted to see a group of foreign cyclists. From a
sea, I experienced a sense of achievement I rarely burlap sack, they produced a sweet melon they had
feel when traveling. The rich scoop of pistachio just plucked and insisted that we take it:
goat-milk ice cream from a neighborhood parlor impractical to carry on a bike, yes, but impossible
felt well earned. And when I peeled off my biking to refuse.
gear to jump into the sea, the water was more
refreshing than I could have imagined. duvine.com; from TL44,500 for this Marmaris-
to-Bodrum itinerary. The next group trips are
slated to depart on September 19 and October 10,
2020. DuVine can also arrange a private sail. To get
there, fly in to Dalaman Airport via Istanbul.

Turkey

Bodrum

Marmaris

Knidos

MEDITERRANEAN SEA Bozburun

56 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

COURTESY OF INDOSOLE FLIP-FLOPS T I P S AND T RICKS TO HE L P YO U TR AVE L SMA RTER

Greening the Big Blue

While we’ve all been dreaming of getting back to the beach, newly thriving
marine environments are perhaps less eager to have us humans return. But we
needn’t always muck up the waters. Here’s a guide to how you can make your

next sojourn to the shore more sustainable. BY CA ROLY N B E AS LE Y

Indosole flip-flops in
their natural habitat.
5 7T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

T R AV E L E R 2
1

INTELLIGENT 1. FREOSTYLE TURKISH 2. VILO EYEWEAR CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: COURTESY OF FREOSTYLE TURKISH TOWEL; COURTESY OF VILO EYEWEAR;
TOWEL Made from certified COURTESY OF BARE & CO LUNCH BOX; COURTESY OF MANDA REEF-SAFE ORGANIC SUNSCREEN (2)
Accessorize, Bamboo is one of the fastest- sustainable sources of
Eco-Style growing plants and requires maple, zebrawood, walnut
less water to produce than and bamboo, Vilo Eyewear
As you pack for your next island or beach break, many other fibers. These wooden sunglasses look good
consider giving the planet a break, too. super-absorbent beach and do good. Donate your old
towels are hand-loomed in plastic sunnies to help those
3 traditional weaving villages in in developing countries and
Turkey and incorporate 70 receive a discount on your
percent bamboo. freostyle. Vilo purchase. viloeyewear.
com; from A$35. com; from A$69.

3. MANDA REEF-SAFE 4. BARE & CO LUNCH BOX
ORGANIC SUNSCREEN Sample local street food
Sunscreen chemicals can without adding to disposable-
damage corals, and not all plastic problems. Bring your
“reef safe” products are own take-out box, like this
really proven safe. Choose a one from Bare & Co, made
zinc oxide–based product from food-grade aluminum
with “non-nano” sized and topped with a bamboo
particles, like Manda organic lid, which handily doubles as
sunscreen. Manda includes a chopping board.
thanaka, a traditional natural thewellstore.com.au; from
sunscreen from Burma, and A$33.
comes in a biodegradable
sugarcane package.
mandanaturals.com; from
US$28.

4

58 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

6
5

6. WILL AND BEAR 7
PANAMA HAT
Feeling shady? This versatile
Panama hat by Will and Bear
is made from recycled-paper
straw, trimmed with natural
cotton. But sport whatever
style suits you: they’ll plant 10
trees for each hat sold.
willandbear.com; from A$99.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: COURTESY OF PEONY SWIMWEAR; COURTESY OF WILL AND BEAR; COURTESY 5. PEONY SWIMWEAR 7. MAZU RESORTWEAR
OF MAZU RESORT WE AR; COURTESY OF INDOSOLE FL IP-FLOPS; COURTESY OF STERIPEN ULTRAL IGHT Cut a fine figure and feel great BOARDSHORTS
about it in Peony Swimwear, The Hong Kong team at
made from recycled Mazu Resortwear has
materials such as used slapped a 1986
fishing nets, carpets and photograph of Tai Long
discarded fabric that may Wan Bay across these
otherwise end up in landfill or cheerful men’s
the ocean. peonyswimwear. boardshorts. They're
com; separates from A$70. made from Econyl, a
100-percent recycled
9 fabric, for the ethically minded.
mazuresortwear.com; HK$1,200,
available from July.

8. INDOSOLE FLIP-FLOPS 8
Tires take thousands of years
to decompose and are often
burned, generating harmful
toxins. Indosole flip-flops are
made from discarded tires
and sustainably grown rubber
in an ethical workshop in
Indonesia—plus they’re non-
skid! Great for the pool or
rainy season. indosole.com.
au; from A$45.

9. STERIPEN ULTRALIGHT
No clean water to fill your
reusable drinking bottle?
Avoid disposable plastic
bottles with the nifty Steripen
Ultralight, which uses UV light
to sterilize a liter of tap water
in just 90 seconds.
outdoorlife.com.sg/steripen-
ultralight-uv-water-purifier.
html; from S$159.

5 9T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

T R AV E L E R Conservation
Heroes
INTELLIGENT
Not too long ago, greenwashing was so
prolific that the term itself became
overused. But more and more tourism
providers around Asia-Pacific have
been taking sincere sustainable strides,
and we’d like to tip our sun hats to
these green-hospitality
groundbreakers. If visiting the beach
inspires you to seek out ways to save it,
consider the following eco-pillars and
the resorts that do them admirably.

A METALLIC TAP-TAP on the divemaster’s tank prompts me to look down the SENSITIVE MARINE ANIMAL FROM TOP : COURTESY OF BATU BATU RESORT; COURTESY OF FOUR SE ASONS RESORT MALDI VES
vertical reef wall, where a two-meter-long blue-and-green Napoleon wrasse
darts upwards and flashes back down, followed by a sleek and silvery shark. INTERACTIONS
The two dance aggressively, and I’m astonished to see a giant trevally ease
over to check out the action. Sulawesi, just east of Borneo in Indonesia, is If your holiday plans include interacting
home to astonishing marine wonders—none of which, my local divemaster with wildlife, always ask yourself if
makes sure I understand, I am to come close to touching. He explains that you could be inadvertently harming
this may damage the living corals, or stress the animals. His livelihood the very creatures you came to
depends on sustainable tourism, and healthy reefs feed his community. admire. Some offerings are badged as
“conservation” but are actually run for
Alas, not every guide is so conscientious. Before I surface, I hear a noise profits, not the animals.
that raises my blood pressure. It’s the sound of uninformed snorkelers
standing where they shouldn’t. It’s the crunching and breaking of coral. Take turtles. Increasing numbers
of resorts are offering sea-turtle
Tourism, of the mass variety especially, has wreaked havoc on coastal experiences, but not all are based on
and island environments, creating a hard-to-reconcile tension between science. Batu Batu Resort (batubatu.
conservation and exploitation. We should think about getting back to the com.my; doubles from RM2,077 for
beach with an eye to maintaining the widespread benefits of travel: Local a two-night stay) on Pulau Tengah,
economies depend on visitors, and first-hand experience of these beautiful in southeast Malaysia, though, has
environments often inspires conservation, after all. Aside from the usual an excellent program that offers a
hotel cost-savings dressed up as eco-initiatives, here are a few ways tourism non-intrusive experience for guests.
operators are helping us to tread a little more lightly in our flippers. The resort funds Tengah Island
Conservation and the salaries of its
Photographing four biologists whose mandate includes
mantas at Four protecting endangered green and
Seasons Resort hawksbill turtle eggs from poaching or
Maldives Landaa consumption by monitor lizards. Nests
Giraavaru. Top: are relocated to a fenced enclosure; for
Don't touch the the safety of the turtles, they are not
turtles at Batu kept swimming in tanks for release at
Batu Resort. a convenient time and guests do not
handle hatchlings.
60 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0
Instead, you can opt to receive a
phone call when turtles hatch (day
or night), and hurry to the beach to
witness the babies scamper across
the sand to the ocean. Adopt a turtle
nest and you’ll receive a video of your
hatchlings. For those with an interest
in marine or environmental science,
conservation internships are available.

Clockwise from left: Dive
crew at Atmosphere Resort;
Six Senses Laamu safeguards

seagrass; an Ocean Quest
coral propagation class at
Adang Sea Divers; Gayana
Marine Resort restocks reefs

with giant clams.

CLO CKW ISE FROM LEF T: COURTESY OF ATMOSPHERE RESORT; COURTESY In the Maldives, travelers wishing biologist delivers scientific lectures conservation and coral-propagation
OF SI X SENSES L A AMU; COURTESY OF ADANG SE A DI VERS ; CAROLYN BE ASLE Y to engage in conservation while and reef clean-ups are conducted courses in the surrounding national
snorkeling can try the Manta Scientist in collaboration with NGOs: Project marine park.
for a Day program at Four Seasons AWARE and the Ocean Conservancy.
The resort assists the Institute Also threatened are the colorful
Resort Maldives at Landaa Giraavaru for Marine Research in collecting giant clams found on many tropical
monitoring data of the region’s reefs. reefs. Giant clams clean seawater as
(fourseasons.com; doubles from they feed, and their presence is used
US$2,105). In conjunction with the Many resorts now manage coral as an indicator of reef health. However,
Maldivian Manta Ray Project in Baa rehabilitation projects to assist they are becoming endangered
Atoll UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve, reefs in recovering from bleaching due to poaching—for sales in the
you’ll shoot underwater photos of the and historical damage. The most aquarium trade or as a delicacy in
mantas to help identify them, a key responsible programming we’ve some Asian cuisines. Gayana Marine
aspect in their conservation. seen in the region is by Ocean Resort (echoresorts.com; doubles from
Quest Global (oceanquest.global), RM1,272) on Gaya Island, in Sabah,
SAFEGUARDING MARINE which has developed a method of Malaysian Borneo, employs scientists
HABITATS natural propagation without invasive to breed and restock reefs with giant
materials. The organization trains clams, and guests can work with them
Marine habitats include coral reefs, local communities and dive centers as a “marine biologist for a day” to gain
mangroves and seagrass beds, all vital throughout Southeast Asia in their first-hand insights.
for providing homes and food for process, and is helping them make
marine life. In addition to the coral their livelihoods sustainably from COASTAL PROTECTION
bleaching caused by global warming, reefs. One place where tourists can
marine habitats can become degraded get involved is at Adang Sea Divers As trees, hotel buildings and even
by direct tourism activities. (adangseadivers.com; propagation swimming pools have crumbled into
courses Bt4,000 to Bt15,000). On the ocean, the tourism industry has
In the Philippines, Atmosphere Thailand’s Koh Lipe anyone with been learning the hard way how much
Resort (atmosphereresorts.com; doubles an interest, from landlubbers up to infrastructure built close to beaches can
from P11,607) on Negros Island seeks to advanced divers, is welcome to join upset the process of sand deposition—
tread lightly in many ways. Their scuba their selection of different Ocean Quest an especially pressing problem now
diving operation requires everyone
who straps on a tank to be educated
on protecting corals. Divers watch a
video introducing them to the reef
safety policy of not touching anything,
not wearing gloves (as this encourages
touching), and never feeding animals.
The dive boats (like the rooms and
restaurant) ban single-use plastics
and do not use anchors, which can
damage reefs. The resort’s marine

6 1T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

T R AV E L E R

INTELLIGENT

with sea levels rising. The beachfront LOCAL FOOD SOURCING fruits and vegetables from their own CLO C KW ISE FROM TOP LEF T: CAROLYN BE ASLE Y;
island. The rice is farmed in a wildlife- C O U RTE SY O F S O N G S A A P R I VATE IS L A N D; CAR OLYN B E A S LE Y
Discovery Rottnest Island Resorts can support their friendly method, and seafood, coconuts
neighboring communities and reduce and cashews come from local villages.
(discoveryholidayparks.com.au; doubles carbon emissions via food miles if they
from A$330) in Western Australia, has try to stick to their own backyards. BACK-OF-HOUSE SERVICES
carefully constructed all infrastructure
behind the vital sand dunes, preserving In Tasmania, luxury lodge Saffire Hidden technical solutions may
the stabilizing vegetation. The resort’s Freycinet (saffire-freycinet.com.au; not be sexy, but they are the key to
eco-tents are built on raised stilts so doubles from A$2,100) is in a region whether a self-styled green resort puts
cute, furry quokkas can pass synonymous with fine food and wine. its money where its mouth is.
underneath. Foot traffic on the Not only does the hotel offer locavore
property is restricted to boardwalks, fare, but also local food experiences. Inadequate sewage treatment or
helping prevent erosion, while the The beekeeping experience sees guests waste disposal can do extensive lasting
planting of 13,000 native plants further don protective suits to visit the on-site harm, including killing reefs. Luxurious
firms up dunes. apiary, learning about the importance Bawah Reserve (bawahreserve.com;
of bees to agriculture and the benefits doubles from US$1,780) in Indonesia’s
Seagrass meadows are the ocean’s of organic raw honey. On Saffire’s Anambas Islands is a poster child of
unsung heroes. They stabilize beaches marine-farm experience, visitors pull sustainability. The permaculture garden
and the seafloor, absorb carbon dioxide on plastic pants instead, sloshing includes vine-covered trellis tunnels
that helps reduce climate-change through a shallow estuary to discover dripping with pumpkins, fertilized by
effects, and provide food and homes for sustainable oyster farming. The guide fermented food waste. Multi-stage
sea turtles and juvenile fish. And yet, can open oysters for you—or, better yet, sewage plants terminate in ponds
in the quest for a white-sand postcard teach you to shuck your own. stocked with catfish, and pre-cleaned
look, many resorts, particularly in the wastewater is recycled for toilet-
Maldives, have been actively removing Off southern Cambodia, Song Saa flushing and garden-watering.
seagrasses—an extremely harmful Private Island (songsaa.com; doubles
airbrushing of the environment. from US$890) has sustainability at Clockwise from top left:
its core. Its construction features Eco-tents at Discovery
Six Senses Laamu (sixsenses.com; salvaged timber and driftwood, and Rottnest Island; Khmer
doubles from US$1,241) is leading its not-for-profit foundation supports
the way on seagrass protection marine conservation and community cuisine at Song Saa
and together with the Blue Marine development. Their food continues this Private Island; learn to be
Foundation and the Maldives theme, with Song Saa serving Khmer
Underwater Initiative has to date cuisine featuring Kampot pepper and a beekeeper at Saffire
convinced 30 resorts in that island Freycinet.
nation to safeguard their seagrasses.

62 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

Clockwise from left: All
timber is hand hewn on site
at Mango Bay; Bawah
Reserve protects sea life with
its low-impact tech; a breezy
room at Amuura Beach
House; do a kayak-homestay
with Kayak4Conservation.

CLO CKW ISE FROM LEF T: COURTESY OF MANGO BAY; COURTESY OF BAWAH RESERVE; Small-scale resorts have often been and established Kayak4Conservation
C O U RTE SY O F M A N G O B AY R ES O RT; CO URTE SY O F AM UU R A B E ACH HO U SE ; CO URT E SY O F K AYAK4 C O NS E RVAT IO N quiet leaders in this department. In (kayak4conservation.com). They teach
addition to the in-house wastewater West Papuans to build fiberglass kayaks
filtration system and woodshop and train them as guides to take tourists
for making all their furniture and paddling out on the sea for multi-
accessories, the naturally constructed day trips, during which you’ll sleep
Mango Bay Resort (mangobayphuquoc. in homestays that were constructed
com; doubles from VND6,225,238), on through zero-interest loans. The families
Phu Quoc Island, Vietnam, for years has involved have a vested interest in
used solar hot-water systems, and was protecting their reefs to showcase this
proudly fan-only—though is introducing most biodiverse marine environment
low-energy air-conditioning units to its in the world, making conservation an
rooms in a transition made feasible by important income earner.
sustainable construction with naturally
cool rammed earth. Chiva-Som (chivasom.com; doubles
from Bt62,000) engages with the local
Similarly, Amuura Beach House community in Hua Hin, Thailand,
(amuura.net; doubles from Rs9,900) in through a mangrove-rehabilitation
Beruwala, Sri Lanka, employs cooling project. In collaboration with the
sea breezes and high ceilings with fans municipality and Silpakorn University,
rather than air-conditioning. They the resort established Krailart Niwate,
eschew paint in favor of polishing their a center that educates local students
Sri Lankan–timber walls, doors and and the public on the importance of
floors with natural beeswax. All the mangroves, and provides training on
cutlery and tableware are upcycled mangrove-rehabilitation techniques.
antiques. And the toilets are all
compostable. AS TOURISTS, there are countless ways
we can minimize our impacts when
COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT visiting marine environments. When
planning your next holiday, try to see
Often, the key to conservation through the misleading news of green-
success is engaging your neighbors, to washing, and vote with your wallet
ensure that the efforts are led by, and by supporting the operators who are
directly benefit, the community. making real change. That way we can
all breathe a little easier (through our
In Raja Ampat, Indonesia, Papua snorkels) and sleep a little better (in our
Diving owns Kri-Eco and Sorido Bay fan-cooled bungalows).
Resorts (papua-diving.com; doubles
from Rp35,000,000 for seven nights)

6 3T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

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J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

Paper patterns at
Ochanomizu
Origami Kaikan in
Tokyo, page 74.

JENNY HEWETT Nusa Lembongan If Bali gets too busy for you PAGE 66. Tokyo Currents of the past PAGE 74.
St.Bart's A Caribbean classic PAGE 82.

6 5T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

In Balance

A bit beyond Bali, boats bob in
waters so clear you can see their
shadows in the sand. Beach clubs ask
only that you shed your pretentions with
your flip-flops. And mola molas and
mantas remind us of the important things.
From a cliffside resort at the heart of
Nu s a Lembon gan, JE N I NNE LE E- ST. JOHN
finds paradise is draped in bougainvillea.

PHOTOGRAPHED BY
STEPHAN KOTAS

Looking north from
Nusa Lembongan
to Bali and Mount
Agung.

6 7T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

ON ONE OF THOSE
SO-PR ET T Y-IT-HURTS
BALI DAYS—CLEAR,
CORNFLOWER-
BLUE SKIES,

a whisper of a breeze in the air—I gathered up my
hangover, feebly rolled my suitcase down the dock
and nudged it in the direction of the porter, and
boarded a ferry for salvation.

Most of the hour-long ride was blessedly smooth,
but the water got choppy and the boat slowed,
rousing me as we pulled in view of land. I couldn’t
wait to get off—until I did, and found myself on the
10-kilometer string of giant Legos they were passing
off as a pier. OK, maybe it wasn’t 10 kilometers, but
it sure felt like it mincing gingerly down those square
floaties lashed together, a red plastic-brick road in a
shallow mangrove cove, the occasional wake sending
small ripples to big effect, my internal equilibrium
threatening to betray me with every step.

I was overjoyed when I set foot on shore, and not
just because none of my electronics had gone for an

68 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

FO OD AND RO OM: COURTESY OF BATU K ARANG Clockwise from top accidental swim. As the last of the passengers pushed out by development. This was what I was
left: Wisnu, of Batu alighted, deeply tanned guys in red-and-white looking for in Nusa Lembongan and I took the
Karang, gladly scoots uniforms and ball caps headed out with homemade wheelbarrows as a sign that I was going to get it.
guests to Dream wheelbarrows to fetch our luggage. It reminded me
Beach; a casual of a long-ago trip to the Brazilian island of Tinhare, Facing Sanur on Bali’s southeast coast, a satellite
gourmet lunch at where men with wheelbarrows greeted our of the much larger, more prehistoric, dive
Muntigs; a private- catamaran from Salvador city. The wheelbarrows destination Nusa Penida, Nusa Lembongan (along
pool room at Batu had TAXI painted on the sides, because the island with its little sister isle Ceningan) is much closer to
Karang; one of the had no cars and how else were you supposed to get Bali than the Bali of most people’s imaginations.
resort's three pools; your suitcases from the pier over hill, dale and rocky Ringed by the seaweed farms that provide the
hit the waves with coastline to your pousada on the beach? livelihoods for most of the island’s 5,000 residents,
Cakil, founder of it’s a laid-back idyll with no branded hotels but also
Lembongan Surf Tinhare was incredibly, adorably remote, despite very few bothersome hawkers. It has flat, glassy
Lesson. its geographic proximity to the mainland, a time- waters begging you to standup paddleboard on and
warp of calm, shallow beaches; of family-owned snorkel in them, off-shore reef breaks real surfers
hotels, and family neighborhoods intact, not yet seek out for their two-meter barrels, southerly cliffs
carved out by dramatic white-capped whirlpool
tides, and easy access to the dive sites of Penida that
are famous for their mola molas and manta rays. 

A Batu Karang butler picked me up at the ferry
along with another solo American, a Californian
wrapping up his business trip to Singapore with
some impromptu island chill. His was a family of
divemasters, he said: “My daughter is so jealous I’m
here.” As we crested the final hill, a shimmering bay
came into view, Jungut Batu beach, a fat swath of
turquoise painted nearly to the top of the canvas,
capped by the fog-obfuscated dark outline of Mount
Agung, across the sea in Bali. I immediately
understood why the folks at Batu Karang had
wanted me to take the ferry that docked on Jungut
Batu instead. But surely something this marvelous
from afar wouldn’t be so pretty close up, I thought.

WHEN, A FEW MINUTES, later we got to Batu
Karang’s pool-centered reception area and main
restaurant and found curtains of magenta
bougainvillea framing a brilliant stage of sea to sky
blue, I realized how wrong I was.

Built into a steep cliff, Batu Karang is a high-rise
oriented resort. A lane winds back and forth across
the narrow plot along which its greenery-enclosed
private villas afford gorgeous sweeps of the bay. In
mine, a gossamer-swathed bed faced the tall glass
doors and the deck, which wrapped around to the
outdoor bath and shower—it was basically
#viewsfordays in or out of your skivvies. The top of
the property is crowned by a small hotel-style
building, two more pools, a bar and the spa. 

The topography of the island ensures that
staying at Batu Karang weaves you into the fabric of
Lembongan. The public footpath—lined with hand-
painted signs for hotels and villas, and a VW van-
cum-Thai restaurant painted the baby blue of the
bay below—divides the main resort from its loungey
resto-bar The Deck. Tucked beneath that is The
Howff, a passion project pretty gutsy given its
setting. It’s a pirate-vibe whisky bar, a leather
couch–lined speakeasy whose design and liquor
selection would place it easily in a quiet corner of a

6 9T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

cashed-up metropolis but in fact hangs open-air dystopia then Disney-fied: a castle with waterslides Clockwise from top DIVING: COURTESY OF OLIVER, BLUE CORNER DIVE.
over crashing waves, offering drinkers a front-row and watermills and trampolines, roped into a patch left: Search for
seat to paddleboarders tooling by during the day of oceanic real estate. Troy made a valiant attempt elusive mola molas
and the planetarium of stars at night. at masking his chagrin while he explained that it with Blue Corner
was a day-trippers’ floating theme park, to which Dive; Ohana's serves
One afternoon I took a mixology class with two tourists are shuttle-bussed then -boated from Bali nouveau-Aussie fresh
cheery Australian women—we each selected a drink for a few hours to splash in serene, transparent fare poolside; Yellow
on the menu to make and standing there measuring waters the likes of which you could never get there.   Bridge connects Nusa
out jiggers with the bartenders while watching the Lembongan to Nusa
day’s last surfers ride in on the deepening turquoise, Its presence felt at odds with the rest of the Ceningan; just after
I wondered why any hotel would ever suggest I learn island, a mass-market encroachment on a place that sunset at Ohana's;
to do anything in a room without a view. This view.  is small-town wholesome. morning prayer
finished.
It was the empty surf breaks that first drew The Sinclairs have been here for two decades, it
Aussie Troy Sinclair to Nusa Lembongan in 1999. occurred to me. It seemed like the perfect place to
Experienced in hospitality, he got his MBA in hotel launch a boutique hotel. Why, I wondered aloud,
and tourism management. His sister, Alex, worked didn’t they have more competition?
in design and marketing, and their brother, Ashley,
was in building and construction management, as You could look at Bali as being just an hour’s
was their father, Alan, who owned a project- and boat ride away for potential guests. But, Troy told
construction-management company for 40 years. me, you also have to look at it as being an entire
Mom Elizabeth, now known at Batu Karang as Ibu hour’s boat ride away from even the most basic
(“high boss”), was in spas and had been a nurse and necessities. Everything needs to be shipped in. Even
a flight attendant. This family was practically if you’re paying just a few pennies per item to each
engineered to build what was the island’s first of the people along the supply chain, that adds up.
upscale accommodation, and remains its nicest—as The local governments are different, as well, so the
long as they were all up for a massive challenge. minimum wage on Lembongan is higher than in

The Sinclairs partnered with then–village chief
Johnny Tarzan in planning what became a
community-wide hands-on groundbreaking. That’s
a literal truth: the entire property was excavated by
hand, some 6,000 cubic meters of coral stones
(“batu karang”) that were then hand-carved into the
retaining and driveway walls that line the property.
A local husband-and-wife team dug the two original
wells, 43- and 27-meters deep, also by hand.

The villas were built by locals using traditional
techniques and sustainable timber, and each year,
among its community-empowerment initiatives,
Batu Karang offers hospitality internships for at least
20 students. All organic waste from this single-use-
plastic-free property is passed to farmers for animal
feed. On site they have nine absorption wells, a
water-purification system and a reverse-osmosis
sewage treatment plant, which breaks down gray
water into nutrient-rich fertilizer that is partly used
for the greenery and the hydroponic garden.

“We didn’t do this because we wanted to be all
green,” Troy tried to front—because we both know
they clearly are, and admirably so. “My dad and I sat
down and looked at the logistics. In Seminyak you
just plug your pipe into their pipe, like you do
everywhere else in the world. But we didn’t have
that luxury. This is a place with no infrastructure,
no sewage. We weren’t going to contribute to
hurting it. I said, ‘Dad, I surf out there. We aren’t
going to toss our garbage out there.’”

THERE ARE, HOWEVER, signs of tourism
pollution on the horizon. I spotted offshore what
looked like the set from Waterworld stripped of its

70 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

Bali, Mitch Ansiewicz explained to me later. Bad
news for people looking for bargain-basement
backpacker-cheap, great for those who want
creature-comforts cool in a slow-life place that still
feels undiscovered.

Great, that is, for the clientele of Ohana’s, the
beach club Ansiewicz and his wife Ashleigh
launched in 2018 at the northern end of Jungut
Batu. Mitch, who grew up surfing on the Gold Coast
and vacationing with his extended family in rental
villas in Bali and Lembongan, left his job high up in
an Australian financial-services firm for a fated
second act that he said felt like coming home.

“We recognized a gap in the market. We knew a
certain segment of people would love to come here
but don’t want to come and sit in plastic chairs—
even though Ashleigh and I actually do,” he laughed
as we grazed on tuna tataki, fried giant prawns and
pizza one evening. They had invited me to have
drinks with them and Mitch’s cousin and his wife
who happened to be in town, driving home the
place’s name: Ohana means family in Hawaiian. 

They borrowed ideas from their favorite spots in
the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney, and they visited
every beach club in Bali, too, for inspiration on what
they did and didn’t want for their own place. The
result is a buzzing, pretense-free seaside lounge on
the island’s main drag where the cabanas, beach
chairs and pool are oriented west for the sunset’s
daily IMAX show over the ocean. “I’d promote
Lembongan as more exclusive than Bali,” Mitch said.

When I was visiting Lembongan last November,
midway through a resort-hopping trip around the

southern half of Bali, I thought of it as a perfect side
jaunt, a place to be active but at ease, to level out
mentally between glitzier and busier destinations.
As I write this in the middle of Covid-19, I’m certain
the island’s brand of not-that-big-of-a-slog
exclusivity is what more travelers will seek out for
their main event as we all get our sea legs back.

From top: The Island, BEWARE THE MOLA MOLA. They are ugly as
a hippie beach bar on sin and will scare the crap out of you. But if they do,
Nusa Ceningan; you will be grateful. These giant ocean sunfish look
mixing drinks at The like a kid’s drawing of the lovechild between a shark
Howff, Batu Karang’s and a flatfish, whose tail was chopped off and
speakeasy; the crimped like a dumpling. 
ethereal Blue Lagoon,
on Ceningan. Mola molas are a major draw for divers in Nusa
Penida because it is one of the only places you’ll
find them in the region, and rarely at that since they
live in deep, cold water, usually only coming to the
surface in search of cleaner-fish to gobble parasites
off their skin. After October (on through June) it’s
usually too warm at normal diving depth to see
these prehistoric beasts. That I was there at the end
of November was just one reason I was shocked
when, diving along a shelf in Crystal Bay, I saw one.

A spectral shift from cerulean to cobalt marked a
plummet in water temperature, and I was freaking
myself out contemplating the vast increase in
distance to the seafloor when a huge dark blob
floated into my peripheral vision. It loomed like the
Death Star. Just as I realized what it was, it turned
and gracefully swam off in the opposite direction. I
instinctively yelped, “mola mola!,” before I
remembered no one could hear me.

Crystal Bay is a popular destination for day-
tripping beach bums and snorkel boats—probably
too popular, but less-overrun Lembongan is better
for it. One morning, I hopped on the back of a
motorbike belonging to Wisnu, a front-office
reception staff at Batu Karang. He set off to show
me Mahigiri Beach, the flat, powdery northern tip
of Lembongan, and Mangrove Point nearby, which
has a thriving shallow reef colored in an Easter-egg
array that makes it a ridiculous spot to snorkel. We
had to make it quick: Lembongan Village was

holding a religious procession that day and if we Bali
didn’t get back through the main drag before it
began, we’d be stuck for who knew how long. Denpasar Nusa Lembongan
airport
Wisnu then drove over the hill towards the Nusa
island’s south, passing barely there neighborhoods, Sanur Ceningan
corner stores selling gasoline in apple-juice jars, and ferry piers
cheap hostels and homestays tucked in the woods.
We saw Dream Beach, a crescent of golden sand Nusa
way at the bottom of a steep cliff, the most Penida
Southern European seaside here in terms of both
terrain and vibe. Next was a drive-by of Devil’s Tarry awhile in Nusa Lembongan
Tears, over-loved by Chinese tour groups who were
MAP BY PHE TMAYSA NOKLEK in full swarm mode that day. Maniacal waves have Getting There sensibilities and 90s facing Lembongan and
been carving away this cliffside for millennia and hip-hop soundtrack of the sunset framed
watching them roar in, strike rock and often Fly to Bali then take its young married through its IG-ready
double-up on themselves is mesmerizing. It’s also one of the several daily owners, Mitch and swing. fb.com/
terrifying: tourists aggressively craning to get a fast ferries from Sanur. Ashleigh Ansiewicz. theislandceningan;
photo of life on the edge have actually fallen off the The schedules change They’ll send a truck to drinks Rp60,000.
edge into the churn. Rope fences were put up last with the tides and fetch you, and light a Hai Bar & Grill Pretty
year, but you’d be wise to keep an eye on the tide— weather; it’s simplest bonfire poolside for beachfront hangout on
and perhaps check out the northern side of the to book the land-sea marshmallow roasts. crystalline Mushroom
point, where there were far fewer visitors. transfer through your ohanas.co; meal for Bay; screens movies
hotel (see below; two Rp600,000. under the stars. haitide
The cute Yellow Bridge connecting Lembongan transfers A$50-70). Kayu Lembongan beachresort.com; meal
to Ceningan was rendered almost comical in the low Garden-nestled veg- for two Rp250,000.
tide, when the seaweed flats emerged to the sun Stay forward (there’s also Ginger & Jamu Another
and it seemed I could just walk straight across. If ahi and beef rendang) Canggu-style organic
Lembongan is Valium, Ceningan is Quaaludes. The Batu Karang This café with fare from café on Jungut Batu,
coastal road is lined with dreamy beach bars where laudably sustainable, local farmers, bakers, with yoga. gingerand
in each the lack of more than three customers community-minded cheesemakers and jamu.com; meal for two
seemed wholly inconsequential to the owners. At resort has fantastic brewers. kayulembon Rp200,000.
the islet’s southern end there’s a little keyhole food in its picturesque gan.com; meal for two
cranny of a bay called Blue Lagoon, where the eateries Muntigs and Rp200,000. Do
Egyptian-blue ocean froths along the shore like a The Deck (do not sleep Thai Pantry A Bangkok-
vanilla milkshake. It still seems impossible to me through breakfast), a style converted VW The water is perfect for
how many starkly different breeds of beaches I seafront whisky bar, an van marks the spot for low-stress aqua sports
lollygagged on in the space of a few hours.  ice-cream parlor, your seaside spice fix. like SUP, snorkeling and
romantic villas and thaipantrybali.com; kayaking. If you dive,
Another early day, back on Jungut Batu, I had an sweet staff. There’s meal for two this is the closest best
appointment with Lembongan Surf Lesson. A Dutch also a day lounge: you Rp200,000. place to do it off Bali.
girl (intermediate surfer) and German girl (beginner can check out of your Sandy Bay A patch of Book with Blue Corner
but ballsy) hitched a ride out on the boat to Razors room, catch your last white sand near Devil's Dive (bluecornerdive.
with me and my chiseled, tattooed, bronzed and waves then shower Tear houses this beach com) or Twin Island
bleach-blonde instructor, Cakil. Razors is known for before your boat back club and bar, bistro, Dive (twinislanddive.
being a fast, hollow lefthander, but this day’s swell to Bali. batukarang spa and “beach shack” com)—and check the
was smallish, the waves consistently catchable for lembongan.com; accomms complex. water temps first; you
me on my borrowed longboard. doubles from A$200, sandybaylembongan. might need a 4-mm
but contact the hotel com; meal for two wetsuit for the cold in
On such a clear day with such ideal conditions for the reopening date. Rp500,000; doubles Penida. Finally: surfing
anywhere else, you’d expect the break to be from Rp120,000. is a must! Hire Cakil at
rammed with beginners on their big foam boards, Eat+Drink The Island Ceningan Lembongan Surf Lesson
but there were only five other tourists out for Rustic hippie beach (lembongansurflesson.
lessons with their teachers, and a few solo Ohana’s The vibe at this bar on the tidal flat com; lessons from
hobbyists. Riding in each time, I’d remind myself to new, soft-white beach Rp400,000). — J.L.S.J.
look up and around at the panorama of bobbing club flows straight
boats, long lick of white sand beyond, the shaded from the Sydney
wooden beach bar on the rocks, the village and
trees encircling to the farthest reaches of my
peripheral vision. In the center stood waterfront
Segara Temple, where locals pray to Dewa Varuna,
the god of the sea sustaining the islands. A good
anchor for the equilibrium that came easy.

7 3T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

ONCE UPON A TIME FROM LEFT: ELAINE LI; TOMOOKI KENGAKU/COURTESY OF TRUNK
IN

To k yo

Japan’s capital is not all bright lights and future-forward.
Jenny Hewett travels to the city with her parents in tow and finds
that the beauty of Tokyo’s landscape is f lush with ripples of its past.

74 T R A V E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

Trunk House dining
with garden view.

Opposite: Tour guide
Noriko Nagura.

Kobayashi-san has I’M IN SENSORY OVERLOAD, standing in a sea CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: TOMOOKI KENGAKU/COURTESY OF TRUNK; JENNY HEWETT;
been an origami of color. Vivid pops of orange, red, turquoise and TOMOOKI KENGAKU/COURTESY OF TRUNK; JENNY HEWETT (2)
gold explode into my periphery like starbursts. It’s
sensei for 44 years; a neon Tokyo—but not how many of us know it.
dragon that reminds Unlike the in-your-face irreverence of modern
Shinjuku and Shibuya, this vibrant room in the
him of Poland. neighborhood of Yushima is a meditation on ancient
Japan. Thousands of sheets of delicate origami
76 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0 paper are neatly arranged in vertical Technicolor
rows along the walls around me. Those that have
been given identities now sit on the display shelf,
folded into samurai, kangaroos, elephants and frogs.
“It’s good exercise for my brain,” says 74-year-old
Kazuo Kobayashi, his frost-white hair brushed back
from his kind, lived-in, bespectacled face.

Leaning over his desk, Kobayashi-san’s fingers
work in a slow and measured flow as he chats
animatedly, tucking the canvas into shape. He rarely
glances down; like the route he takes from home to
this building each day, his craft has become second
nature. Within moments my eyes have shifted to
the finished work, orange in some folds and gold in
others. “I felt like making a dragon because I met a
couple from Poland this morning and I remembered
that I saw a dragon statue when I was there many
years ago,” he says, a little twinkle in his eye. 

Kobayashi-san is a fourth-generation origami various nuances of this in the people we meet, from
master, having reached sensei level 44 years ago. our butler Mori, who bonds with my Dad over their
His craft, which dates back to the sixth century, has shared love of camping, to our tour guide Noriko,
been passed down from his forefathers, and who achieves more in a weekend than I do in a year:
origami-loving fans flock to see his demonstrations handmade cat crafts, paintings, baked tarts and
at Yushima’s international origami center, French cooking.
Ochanomizu Origami Kaikan. 
My parents and I have come to Tokyo to seek out
Like Kobayashi-san, my passion, too, has been the historic soul of the city. But what we find is
inherited. The daughter of a diplomat, I learned to multi-generational parallels that point back to
traipse the world, collecting cultures, long before I purpose. I do wonder if, along with the country’s
could drive a car. Experiencing new places together wealth and hyper-organization, it’s these deep-
is one of my family’s most treasured pastimes. But rooted, cultural heirlooms that led to Tokyo being
as my parents get older, our ancestral hand-me- picked as the first Asian city to host the Summer
down begins to take on even more meaning. So it Olympics twice. The games, originally scheduled for
seems fitting that my parents and I are sitting here this summer, now postponed to at least 2021, last
side-by-side in Tokyo in an institution that family took place here in 1964, when they were the first to
built. Kobayashi-san is just as surprised as we are reach a worldwide audience, broadcast globally on
when he finishes folding his next piece and hands it live TV via communication satellites (without
to my mum. Her face lights up: an origami emerald having to physically fly the taped recordings around
ring, almost an exact replica of the engagement the world). This technological turning point was
piece she has been wearing for 45 years. fitting for a country whose modern identity is tied
to innovation. A lot has changed. But plenty hasn’t. 
You’d expect to stumble upon such a time
capsule of ancient Japan in Kyoto. Yet as I soon Founded as a washi paper–dyeing factory by
discover, Tokyo, too, retains strong currents of Kazuo’s great-great-grandfather, Ochanomizu
tradition. I’ve always thought that one of the most Origami Kaikan hosts paper-folding workshops and
admirable qualities of Japanese culture is that, sells crafts and books, most of which Kobayashi-san
despite how busy people are, they put time and has authored. Origami was once strictly considered
effort into nurturing their passions. And I find a luxury for ceremonial purposes; it wasn’t until the
Edo Period, spanning 1603 to 1868 when the arts
Karaoke classics The Hewett family, flourished in Japan, that it began to emerge as a
await late nighters in with chef Masa and recreational activity. The factory runs as it always
Trunk House's neon butler Lee. has on the fourth floor of this building (original,
disco. high-quality origami paper is still made and sold on

With a little luck,
you’ll spot a geisha
wandering the
thoroughfare outside
Trunk House.

7 7T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

Contemporary art Drift off on a cloud in the premises) and visitor tours reveal the intricacies CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: TOMO OKI KENGAKU/COURTESY OF TRUNK HOUSE (2); JENNY HEWETT (4)
pays homage to the lone bedroom of behind a dyeing process that has been around for
Trunk House's past Trunk House. more than 150 years.
incarnation as a
geisha home. “ If you’re lucky, you can see geisha walking
down the street,” says Haruka Osaka,
communications manager of the luxury one-
room stay Trunk House, as she slides open the large,
screen window and motions to the cobblestoned
alleyway below. “We have 17 in this area. The oldest
geisha here is 81 and the youngest is 18,” she says.
“Palindromic geisha,” jokes my dad, a total math
geek, who eventually persuades me to use that line
in this story. 

Tucked in a maze of narrow lanes in Kagurazaka,
Tokyo’s original geisha district now hidden in the
heart of the urban sprawl, Trunk House is a rare
boutique accommodation in a city that’s inundated
with skyscraping hotels. It’s a 70-year-old former
geisha house reimagined for modern indulgences.
I’d never thought I needed a private disco room
until I danced across this one’s mini light-up floor.

Still, this one-of-a-kind bolt-hole, Tokyo’s second
Design Hotel, is an homage to the way things were.
Teaming up with design studio Tripster, The Trunk
Group preserved many of the townhouse’s original
features, including a pine tree and stone genkan
entrance, and filled it with contemporary art, a large
sento-inspired Japanese cypress bath, butlers and a
culinary team. The sleeping quarters are on the
upper level, occupying what was originally a stage
and training area. And with ample space for an
extra single futon, our grown-up family of three
doesn’t feel crowded at all.

“This neighborhood is very traditional. We call it
Little Kyoto,” says our 30-something butler, Mori, as
he walks us around the area later that afternoon,
pointing out traditional izakaya and the 50-year-old
public bathhouse, Atami-yu. “We call our street
‘Hide-and-Seek Alley,’ because it’s easy to get lost,”
he smiles. Dressed in head-to-toe black with cloven-
toed footwear (tabi) and an elegant uniform
inspired by Japanese working clothes (samue), Mori
has a slight British accent, having studied in
London, and both he and his butler colleague, Lee,
who was born in Japan to Korean parents, are

Fushikino revels in Trunk House
sake as much as the breakfast is more
Michelin-starred fare like edible bingo, and
they pair it with. served alongside

roasted tea.

78 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

Chef Tomo, one of
your two private

chefs at Trunk
House.

Hide-and-Seek alley
in the Kagurazaka
district.

refreshingly sincere, personable and good fun. We which have been combined together to create a
quickly build a rapport with them, belting out unique flavor profile. Ingeniously, each pairing is
karaoke ballads in our neon-pink disco until 2 a.m. served in a different ceramic vessel and when I
visited, the little works of drinkable art
Centuries ago, the geisha training here would accompanied small, Kyoto-style kaiseki dishes of red
have been doing something similar, albeit with bream and squid sashimi with wasabi leaves, Kyoto-
more grace and cultural finesse. During the Edo style sushi and mackerel with Chinese cabbage.
Period, Kagurazaka thrived as an entertainment
area due to its proximity to what was once the Edo Booking ahead is advised for tables at Tokyo’s
Castle, which is now part of the Imperial Palace. It’s awarded eats. But some of the best experiences in
one of the only surviving geisha districts in Tokyo, Kagurazaka fly under the radar. The culinary team
but it’s also a microcosm of French culture thanks to at Trunk House don’t boast a star, but they should.
the expat community that has settled here since
World War II. Shinto shrines and boutiques selling “My name is Tomo. Tomorrow morning I serve
cherry-blossom bonsai sit alongside French- you breakfast,” jokes inked-up assistant chef Tomo
language schools, European cafés, boulangeries and as our 10-course omakase dinner comes to a jovial
cheese shops, dog-grooming boutiques and close later that evening. Tomo is the Michelin-
Michelin-starred restaurants. trained right-hand man of Trunk House’s Hiroshima-
born head chef Masa. Together they work the small
So, the area is awash in French wine, but being kitchen, leading us on an intimate culinary
in Tokyo is, of course, a great opportunity to plunge adventure, preparing and plating each of the dishes
into a complex array of sakes. Yoshio Aramaki and on our table, right before our eyes.
Yusuke Miyashita, head chef and owner,
respectively, of one-Michelin-starred Fushikino,
have dedicated their restaurant to this Japanese
cultural treasure. Fermented rice wine has been
made in Japan for at least 1,500 years and this fine-
diner, which has held its star for close to a decade,
does an elegant job of showcasing it, going so far as
to provide a map to help diners learn more about
where the sake comes from and how it’s rated.

There are no menus and the sit-up, cedar
counter seats just 11 diners who choose from seven
or nine seasonal courses, which are paired with hot
and cold sake from different prefectures, some of

Mr. Ogami's rice Handle with care at Uncomfortable laughter erupts when the JENNY HEWETT (5)
cracker stall. Gallery Okubo. barbecued soft-shell turtle appears, artistically, and
somewhat confrontingly, presented in its shell. But
Craft-beer flights of with only a squeeze of lime for seasoning, it’s
fancy at Yanaka surprisingly tasty. So much so that it almost
Beer Hall. overshadows the duck, aged in chestnut soy for a
full two months, finely sliced and served tataki-
What’s New style, and even the tonkatsu-style Kobe beef that
really is as soft as butter. It’s one of the more
Peek your head out of the history books and memorable dining experiences of my life, not in the
visit these modern additions to Tokyo, too. least because of the free-flowing drinks and
Japan Olympic Museum Learn about the subsequent banter. One minute I’m eating eel
120-year history of the world’s greatest Parmentier, the next thing I know, my dad is in the
sporting event. japan-olympicmuseum.jp/ kitchen—almost unthinkable in Japan—with chef
en/; admission ¥500. Masa giving a demo on sharpening knives.
Shibuya Scramble Square Head to rooftop
observation deck Shibuya Sky to get a K indness is priceless in Tokyo and it rarely
bird’s-eye view of the most iconic comes with expectation. Omotenashi
pedestrian crossing in the world. shibuya- translates to hospitality, and more
scramble-square.com; admission ¥2,000. specifically, the above-and-beyond generosity for
Mori Building Digital Art Museum Epson which the Japanese are renowned. “In most antique
teamLab Borderless Along with permanent shops you can’t touch, but mine you can,” says
exhibitions, this psychedelic digital art Atsuko Okubo, dressed in a kimono, as she
museum has seasonal artworks that are welcomes us into her family’s tearoom in Yanaka
showed for a short time only. Check the the next day. Her father is a fourth-generation
website for updates. borderless.teamlab. antiques collector and they offer tea ceremonies on
art; admission ¥3,200. the second level of their Gallery Okubo tea-
ceremony shop.
80 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0
“Your Granny J used to have one of these
Noritake China dinner sets,” my mum says
nostalgically as she peers into a glass cabinet.
There’s no hard sell, simply an offer to view their
collection, which they graciously share with guests.
You are invited to select an antique cup to sip
from—the oldest has a vintage of 150 years. “Please

Michelin-starred
beauty at Fushikino.

The Details

don’t break anything,” our guide, Noriko Nagura, Visitors become the Stay Konjiki Hototogisu
says gingerly. I stand as still as I can. canvas at Tokyo's One of the latest
digital art museum Trunk House Tokyo ramen venues
But to experience the true essence of this city teamLab. Contemporary one- to attain Michelin’s
and how it once lived, don’t stop at tea. room stay in Tokyo’s Bib Gourmand status.
Affectionately known as Temple Town, Yanaka is original geisha Prepare to queue.
one of the city’s last remnants of old Tokyo. It district with private 81-3/3373-4508;
miraculously avoided a series of dire events in the disco, culinary team lunch for two from
20th century and many original houses and temples and butlers. trunk- ¥2,000.
still remain. “Yanaka is famous because it survived house.com/en/;
the three crises,” Noriko says. “The Great doubles from Do
Earthquake of 1923, the bombings of World War II, ¥500,000 per night.
and the Bubble Period in the 1980s.” To better Hoshinoya Tokyo Ochanomizu Origami
understand the history of Tokyo, and how it rebuilt Luxury urban ryokan Kaikan Original washi
from such natural and manmade devastation, visit set in a skyscraper paper factory and
the Edo-Tokyo Museum at nearby Ryogoku. with a rooftop onsen, origami center with
daily tea ceremonies souvenirs and
The quiet residential streets are a tapestry of old and a fine-diner classes. 81-3/3811-
and new: contemporary cafés, public bathhouse downstairs. 4025; classes from
turned art gallery SCAI, local fishmongers, tatami hoshinoya.com/ ¥1,000. 
art, paper boutiques, specialty-food stalls, Mr. tokyo/en/; doubles Gallery Okubo
Ogami’s rice-cracker shop, and Yanaka Beer Hall, from ¥189,284. Antiques store and
which brews craft beer using water from Mount Fuji. gallery offering
Eat + Drink unique tea
Later we stroll under an archway of gnarled trees ceremonies. gallery-
in Yanaka Cemetery that will soon flower with Fushikino Kyoto- okubo.tokyo; tea
cherry blossoms. It’s a gentle reminder that change inspired tasting ceremonies from
is upon us. We can’t see the complex network of menus of either ¥1,100. 
roots entangled underground, but the trees are a seven or nine
fitting metaphor for this city and our shared courses with sake Guide
experience of those in it. Much like the people we pairings. fushikino.
have met on this heart-warming trip to Tokyo, my com/en/; dinner for Noriko Nagura
own ancestors have influenced who I am and what I two from ¥24,000. English-speaking tour
do. Travel is at the root of my family’s identity. But Yanaka Beer Hall guide with extensive
as the years have passed, our relationship has Casual eatery serving knowledge of Tokyo
evolved. The world is my office. And now my izakaya-style bar and its history.
parents get to visit me in it. snacks and craft- 81-80/7827-9466,
beer flights; Noriko_Nagura@
81-3/5834-2381; hotmail.com; tours
lunch for two from from ¥26,000 for four
¥3,000. hours. — J.H. 

8 1T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

From left: New staff uniforms at the
Sand Bar; a life preserver in Eden
Rock’s signature red at the Beach
Bar; the private pool at Nina Villa;
hotel employee Martin Richard.

82 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0

ROCK
STEADY

Nowhere embodies St. Bart’s unique
mix of natural Caribbean beauty and
French va-va-voom quite like the iconic
Eden Rock hotel. As the property
bounces back from Hurricane Irma with
a total rebuild, PETER J. FRANK digs out
his Vilebrequins and checks in.

PHOTOGRAPHED BY NOE DEWITT

8 3T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

T H R EE Y E A R S AG O, Hurricane Irma Lunch at the believes the island is so beloved. He credited
barreled through the Caribbean with Sand Bar St. Bart’s particular appeal to a confluence of
its 286-kilometer-an-hour winds, restaurant. historical fact and socioeconomic structure. The
tossing cars and catamarans and Janus island was colonized in the 17th century by French
et Cie lounge chairs like so many crumpled cans of Eden Rock, Huguenots, who, unable to cultivate the arid, rocky
Perrier. Of the wreckage left in its wake, perhaps which sits on a soil, survived on salt fish, goat’s milk and the spoils
none was as iconic to a place as Eden Rock hotel to bluff above Baie of both free trade and contraband. In 1784, France
St. Bart’s. sold the island to Sweden, but bought it back within
de St. Jean. less than a century.
Before I go any further, I’ll make a confession:
until I flew in last November, I had never set foot on Generations later in the 1950s, the colonists’ dirt-
St. Bart’s. In my preconceived opinion, it was where poor descendants turned to tourism for economic
the extremely wealthy went to compare their latest salvation—a project spearheaded by Rémy de
Art Basel acquisitions, where Beyoncé swan-dove off Haenen, a swashbuckling French merchant marine.
yachts, and where moguls ran up US$50,000 De Haenen landed the first plane on the island in
champagne tabs at Nikki Beach. In short, a place that 1946 and, in 1953, established its first hotel on a
held little interest for me. But enough people who I promontory made of quartzite that juts into Baie de
love and respect had such affection for this tiny, St. Jean: Eden Rock. Among his early guests,
rocky islet—located 32 kilometers south of St. Martin fortuitously, was David Rockefeller, who, smitten,
and spanning just about 15 square kilometers—that I promptly bought several tracts on St. Bart’s for
knew there had to be more to it. I booked my flights, himself. Greta Garbo, Howard Hughes and Edmond
packed my most stylish bathing suit, and attempted de Rothschild followed, and the rest is history.
to open my mind.
TO DAY, T H E I S L A N D is an autonomous
“Welcome home,” the affable receptionist said as “overseas collectivity” of France—most of the 10,000
I ascended Eden Rock’s front steps. The flight from residents pay no income tax but enjoy many of the
San Juan, Puerto Rico, lasted an hour, and my ride benefits of French citizenship, including a post-
from the airport took about two minutes. Sun storm infusion of cash that helped swiftly fix the
dappled the blue water off the crescent-shaped US$1.4 billion in damages from Irma. Matthews
beach of Baie de St. Jean on this hot morning. But painted a utopian picture: the St. Bart’s government
David Matthews, the British owner of Eden Rock, is stable and debt-free, and employment is near full.
seemed as cool as a bottle of Domaines Ott as he And its famously short runway, which limits arrivals
joined me for breakfast in the Sand Bar, the hotel’s to small propeller planes, keeps mass tourism at bay.
seaside restaurant.
Matthews and his wife, Jane, discovered St. Bart’s
Over poached eggs on toast and yogurt with and Eden Rock while sailing offshore in 1995. Shortly
pistachio granola, I asked the septuagenarian after, they acquired de Haenen’s then-ramshackle
businessman and former race-car driver why he guesthouse, eyeing it as a family home. The couple
soon realized it made more financial sense to turn it
84 T R AV E L + L E I S U R E | J U N E / J U LY 2 0 2 0 into a hotel, which they’ve expanded and operated
ever since. “The deal I made with Rémy was that he
was to leave everything behind except his
toothbrush,” David Matthews explained, because he
wanted to preserve the eccentric atmosphere. The
adventurer’s furniture, photographs and bric-a-brac
are mostly gone, but his singular personality still
guides the proprietors.

It’s a decidedly family-run place: Jane Matthews,
a Zimbabwe-born artist responsible for much of the
interior design, was there on my visit, still tinkering
with the placement of bowls and vases. Their son
Spencer, a former reality-TV star in the U.K., was
also in-house to make sure his new line of low-
alcohol spirits was stocked behind the bar. (One of
their other sons, James—not there—happens to be
married to Pippa Middleton, sister of the future
Queen of England.)

The closure allowed the family to add needed
features. The formal restaurant that occupied the
summit of the Rock—as the landmark outcrop is
called—has been replaced with three new signature





suites. A small spa has been added where the Walking home Strewn throughout were details that felt
kitchens once were. The main building, completely from Les Salines, considered and un-hotel-like: dried flowers arranged
destroyed by the storm surge, was rebuilt with the a beach on the artfully in ceramic vases, a leather tray to empty my
addition of a spacious lounge area called Rémy Bar. island’s southern pockets into, big yellow coffee mugs by the
Tinged in green and gold, with a touch of 1970s coast that takes its Nespresso machine. In the bathroom I found a
glam, it has an open fourth wall overlooking the name from the salt leather-bound manicure kit and a red rubber ducky.
Sand Bar. The menus are overseen, as before, by chef pond nearby. Other touches of cheeky humor included an electric
Jean-Georges Vongerichten (several dishes have bug swatter labeled PARADISE PROTECTOR and a sticker
migrated south from his ABCV in New York City). Its From left: on the phone that read USE SPARINGLY. It was, in short,
L-shaped tiers of seating take advantage of the beach Crudités with a space with personality.
views and create something of a stage set for people- hummus, harissa
watching. Along with the adjacent boutique, the bar and chutney at “We spent enormous sums on books, placing
and restaurant combine to form a buzzing all-day the Sand Bar; the different volumes in each room,” David Matthews
social hub, and the hotel’s de facto living room. Sand Bar’s palm- told me. “And not just standard-issue art books, but
fringed dining those classic novels you’ve always meant to reread.”
The London-based interior designer Martin (In mine: Treasure Island and Ann Beattie’s collected
Brudnizki did a superb job with these public areas. room. New Yorker stories.) Artworks were selected as
Brudnizki, who is known for his work at New York’s expressions of creativity rather than items of décor.
Beekman Hotel, Miami’s Soho Beach House, and A mandala-like painting of fruits and vegetables by
Annabel’s, an exclusive members’ club in London, Chilean artist Alonsa Guevara hung above my bed;
struck a careful balance between colonial-tinged monochromatic acrylics by Spencer Matthews (no
elegance and beachside informality. The natural relation) brightened the sitting room.
materials include bamboo, rattan, linen and
limestone, and the colors—most prominently Eden That night, I had dinner at the Sand Bar with the
Rock’s signature red—are tropical and vibrant. There hotel’s general manager, Fabrice Moizan, who
is no lobby or reception desk; check-in formalities are resembles Richard Gere, only suaver, and French.
completed after settling in. The overall effect is lively, After discreetly surveying the room to confirm his
tasteful, and intimate—much closer to a vacation high standards were being met, he explained the
home than a corporate-driven luxury resort. secret sauce behind the hotel’s enviable 50 percent
return rate. “We identified a few words that capture
My duplex villa, called Orchid, had ample space what the hotel is all about: Eden, Rock, chic and
for spreading out and relaxing—a large front porch, a glamour. Everything that we do—every service
downstairs sitting room with a queen-size daybed, element, dish in the restaurant, item for sale in the
two big bathrooms (one with a soaking tub), an store—must be associated with one or more of these
outdoor bath, and a wraparound terrace with beach words.” Eden focuses on the sea and the natural
views. The master bedroom had high, sloped ceilings beauty of the setting. Rock encourages
and a bed frame of curved wooden panels. The unconventional thinking. Chic is all about the
floors were a luxurious, cream-colored marble, the stylishness of the design, while glamour ensures a
closets copious and enormous, the lighting superb. steady stream of A-list celebrities.

8 7T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M

Over black-truffle pizza, mahi-mahi bathed in From left: cloudlike chèvre. The Sand Bar is on heavy rotation
coconut milk and lime juice, and fresh spinach Reinforced for most St. Bart’s visitors, no matter where they are
bucatini, Moizan went on to outline his vision of “submarine doors” staying—a tradition I expect will continue.
Eden Rock as a brand that lives outside the walls of protect the resort
the hotel itself. The boutique, Eden Being, carries against future Indeed, although my visit coincided with the very
exclusive collaborations that range from Diptyque storms; the lounge beginning of the season, Eden Rock seems destined
candles and Alexandra Llewellyn backgammon sets of Villa Frangipani, to reclaim its status as the island’s social epicenter.
to a US$21,000 Hublot watch. There’s even an app designed by The beach has a frosé trolley and a floating dive
that streams the Sand Bar’s playlist to iPhones co-owner Jane platform, but the primary activity seems to be
anywhere in the world. Matthews. watching people as they parade up and down the
sand. Rooms are cleverly shielded to ensure privacy,
Hotels as lifestyle brands are nothing new, but it’s Flip-flops, but once you step outside, you’re in the mix. You
an unusually ambitious program for a family-owned complimentary come here to be both ogler and oglee. Socializing is
property of just 37 rooms. It helps that operating the whole point.
duties are shared with the Oetker Collection, for guests at
managing partners of the property. Like Eden Rock, Eden Rock. Of course, my experience was not limited to Eden
Oetker’s other hotels—which include Le Bristol in Rock. Moizan encouraged me to think of St. Bart’s as
Paris, the Lanesborough in London, and the Hôtel a single resort, his property being only one element.
du Cap Eden-Roc in France—are quintessential to Guests bounce around, visiting other hotels for lunch
their locales. or drinks, sampling the 22 beaches, and going out for
dinner. Because of the island’s small size, everything
Few people know how to cater to the tastes of the felt at my fingertips, the roads vertiginous but well
international leisure class better than Vongerichten. paved, the beaches open to all, the villages studded
At the helm of the Sand Bar since 2011, he is as much with colorful houses, boulangeries, and a very
a fixture at Eden Rock as the Matthews family or any French sense of order. Remarkably, Irma’s scars were
of the hotel’s regulars. Enthusiastic, open, and barely noticeable—a boarded-up villa here, a bare
utterly without pretense, he chatted with me at patch of garden there.
Rémy Bar, lamenting the loss of his five-tonne oven
in the storm (submarine-style steel doors made of It was easy for me to hop in my rental car and
15-centimeter-thick steel now protect the kitchen drive five minutes over the mountain to the capital of
from future storm surges); discussing his revamp of Gustavia for a bite of tuna tartare at Fish Corner,
the menu to focus on freshness and wellness; and followed by a beer at the Mykonos-style beach bar
extolling the bounty of St. Bart’s clear, clean water. Shellona. I could window-shop the Hermès and
Prada boutiques on Rue de la République, then duck
Using locally caught seafood and produce in to the humble Bartholomew’s Anglican Church,
imported from neighboring islands, the Sand Bar built in 1855, with its louvered windows and pink
serves a sort of greatest hits of resort dining and limestone walls.
global flavors—all executed with classic Jean-Georges
polish. For lunch, I ordered a watermelon salad with I could pick up a pain au chocolat at La Petite
Colombe in Lorient and eat it on the white sandy

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beach at Gouverneur—to my eyes the most to those early settlers: roughly gorgeous, splendidly
picturesque strand on the island, its azure water isolated, a blank slate upon which to project dreams
perfectly framed by green-carpeted hills. (Les and ambitions.
Salines was a close second.) I could chug overpriced
rosé at Nikki Beach or eat cheap burgers at Le Select. On my last afternoon, I walked to the island’s
There’s plenty of bling on St. Bart’s, but dressing up most mythologized beach, Colombier, a secluded
is not required. cove that was once part of the Rockefeller estate. It
can be reached only by boat or on foot—either a
One morning I took a step even further from steep descent via stairs leading down from Route de
civilization, going for a hike on the so-called Côte Colombier, or a gentler hike that begins just beyond
Sauvage, the wild southeastern coast marked by Flamands Beach, where the Cheval Blanc hotel has
rocky shores, whipping winds and the sense that also just reopened.
pirates may have docked here. My guide was
Aminata Clason-Diop, whose namesake wellness I took the latter route, which hugs the coves and
company also offers yoga and meditation classes, outcrops of the rocky coastline, stopping frequently
nutritional guidance, and homeopathic flower to take in the vistas of waves crashing beneath me,
remedies. Starting just beyond the entrance of the and the towering islets dotting the horizon. Finally,
Hôtel Le Toiny, we descended first to the nearby after crossing a meadow grazed by baby goats, I
beach, Toiny, then clambered up and down the reached Colombier.
rocky slope. One summit looked toward the rugged
Grands Fonds, another afforded a view of nothing This wide arc of sand is set dramatically at the
but ocean. Rocky, windy and altogether beautiful, base of a green gully and embraced by two
the walk provided a welcome moment of absolute headlands. The only visible human encroachment on
quiet and recovery. the landscape was the Modernist roof of the now-
abandoned Rockefeller villa peeking through
Of Swedish-Malian parentage, Clason-Diop was the treetops. A few clusters of sunbathers sat on
raised in Stockholm and educated in New York City. blankets; two yachts bobbed in the bay. I took a dip
She started spending summers in St. Bart’s at the in the water—clear, barely touched with salt, colored
age of 16. Easily as worldly as any of the visitors she the gentlest blue—and watched a regatta in the far
guides, she knows that for many of them, wellness distance, the sailboats silhouetted against the distant
and engagement with the natural landscape of a backdrop of St. Martin. No champagne buckets. No
place have become as critical as food or furnishings. speakers blasting house music. No looks from the
Even as we eyed the extravagant villas dotting the 2020 Resort season. Just peace, quiet, nature, and
cliffs, it was easy to imagine St. Bart’s as it appeared the lightest, most rarefied footprints of civilization.

Then I headed back to the hotel for some rosé.

A St. Bart’s Primer

Getting There Gilles & Boissier. On Flamands beach-dining classics (tuna steep descent required.
Beach, the LVMH-owned tartare, roasted lobster) from Nearby Salines is almost as
First, you need to get to a Cheval Blanc St-Barth Isle de Jean-Georges Vongerichten. striking and a touch more
different Caribbean isle: France Hôtel (chevalblanc. Near Gustavia, Maya’s crowded. A long hike (or a boat
Antigua, St. Thomas or Puerto com; doubles from US$1,245) (mayas-stbarth.com; mains ride) is required to access
Rico (San Juan). Tradewind expanded into the former US$37–$48) offers a menu of Colombier, which offers near-
Aviation (flytradewind.com) Taïwana hotel next door. The simply prepared dishes like desolation and pristine waters.
operates prop flights to St. best choice for a romantic chicken curry and tomato
Bart’s from these; it has getaway is Hotel Le Toiny salad, while Fish Corner (41 Rue 8 9T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E A S I A . C O M
partnered with American (letoiny.com; doubles from de la République; 590/51-36-
Airlines for seamless US$2,195), on the remote Côte 33; mains US$24–$33), wedged
connections from the U.S. Sauvage, while Le Sereno behind Gustavia storefronts,
(serenohotels.com; doubles serves the day’s freshest
Where to Stay from US$1,330), on Grand Cul catch. Nikki Beach
de Sac, has a minimalist (saint-barth.nikkibeach.com;
After the hurricane's beach-chic look. And in Anse mains US$43–$46), meanwhile,
destruction, Eden Rock–St de Caye, the eco-resort Hotel is the place to observe the
Barths (oetkercollection.com; Manapany (hotelmanapany. outrageously wealthy getting
doubles from US$1,664), on com; doubles from US$610) outrageously drunk.
Baie de St. Jean, underwent a was recently refreshed, too.
full redesign; and in Gustavia, Beaches
Hôtel Barrière Le Carl Gustaf Where to Eat
(hotelsbarriere.com; doubles Gouverneur, with its expanse
from US$1,640) updated its 23 Eden Rock’s restaurant, Sand of white sand, is surprisingly
rooms in colonial-mod style Bar (mains US$43–$94), serves quiet, perhaps because of the
by the French design team

WISH YOU WERE HERE

I N TH E S E DAYS O F S OCI A L DI S TA N CI N G , few idyllic stretches of sand can top those
lining the shores in and around Krabi. Dozens of Thai islands sprout from the Andaman
Sea, many of them unnamed in English. Where some of the more famed limestone
outcrops along this dramatic coastline are home to chalk-fingered climbers, the coral
reefs below to deep-sea divers, you’re never more than a longtail boat away from a
secluded strip of beach, a throwback to the days when thoughts of isolation were a
blissful dream, not a modern necessity. Best to visit with a specific plan, plenty of
sunblock and a lunch basket to get you through what is bound to be an unforgettable day
of staying away from everyone else. — CEDRIC ARNOLD

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