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INVEST IN
TRAVEL
INVEST IN
YOU

GRAND ADVENTURES RETURN

I N A W AY, T H E Y ’ R E A L L
F R O N T R O W S E A T S.

WAGONEER.COM

This is

the life





Contents

DEPARTMENTS The village of Sent, in southeastern Switzerland (page 102).

12 Letter from the Editor F E AT U R E S 108 Catskills Calling

17 DISCOVERIES 88 Modern Love The hotel scene may be
booming with chic, design-
Splash out on handwoven For mid-century design forward arrivals in this rural
basket designs from obsessives, the sunny, seaside part of upstate New York, but
Ghana; meet the female enclave of Sarasota, the setting is still the star.
entrepreneurs reshaping Florida, is full of wonders.
travel in Egypt; book with 120 YOUR BEST SHOT
a socially responsible tour 96 Gilded River
operator; and more. Reader Marko Dimitrijević
A new, Bangkok-based river photographed a research
EXPERIENCES cruise immerses visitors in the station on Goudier Island,
venerable rhythms of Antarctica.
41 Something in the Air the Chao Phraya.

The frankincense trail 102 Alpine Avant-Garde
in modern-day Oman
offers a window on the How Switzerland’s bucolic
ancient world. Engadine Valley became an
unlikely hub for blue-chip art.
46 Good Vibrations

Sound meditation is
shaking up the traditional
guest experience at a safari
lodge in Laikipia, Kenya.

52 The Game Changers

A pioneering tennis
academy is seeding the
next generation of
players on Anguilla.

56 Toward Justice

The legacy of Martin
Luther King Jr. is
everywhere in the
American South—if you
know where to look.

63 INTELLIGENT

T RAVEL ER

Pro tips for spotting the
aurora borealis, why
private jet travel is soaring
during the pandemic,
avoiding the crowded
slopes this ski season,
and more.

O N T H E C OV E R HORSEBACK RIDERS ON SALALAH BEACH, IN OMAN (PAGE 41). PHOTOGRAPH BY MARTA TUCCI. CLARA TUMA
6 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 202 1

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Contributors

TARA DONNE

CATSKILLS CALLING (P. 108)

Hudson Valley–based Donne spent
a few October days photographing
fall foliage in the Catskills. “It’s fun

to drive around an area you are
familiar with but to look at it with a

different lens and an eye toward
storytelling,” she says.

CLARA TUMA BOB MORRIS KAYL A STEWART CLO CKW ISE FROM TOP : CHEL SIE CRA IG/C OURTE SY OF TARA D ONNE; C OURTE SY OF K AYL A STE WART; MARTA MARIN/C OURTESY OF MARTA TUC CI;
CESAR SEGARRA/COURTESY OF L ARA COSTAFREDA ; COURTESY OF PE TER TERZ I AN; COURTESY OF CL ARA TUMA . CENTER: COURTESY OF BOB MORRIS
ALPINE AVANT-GARDE (P. 102) MODERN LOVE (P. 88) TOWARD JUSTICE (P. 56)

Tuma, who’s based in Switzerland, “It can be a challenge to take in all Over the course of 10 days, the
fell for the Engadine Valley’s of Sarasota’s Modernist design—it Houston-based writer and her sister
blankets the city like a perennial took a Civil Rights–focused road trip
farm-style art galleries and houses—
especially the hand-carved sgraffito garden,” says the writer, who across the Deep South. “I was
traveled from New York to Florida deeply touched to walk the same
walls—while photographing the in March to report on the low-key,
area for this issue. “The architecture streets Martin Luther King Jr.
yet culturally rich city. marched,” she says.
is eye candy,” she says.

PETER TERZIAN L ARA COSTAFREDA MARTA TUCCI

CATSKILLS CALLING THE MAPS SOMETHING IN THE AIR (P. 41)

“We had a breakneck trip,” The illustrator, who lives in For someone who “grew up
T+L’s features editor says of his time Llardecans, Spain, started creating dreaming about the ancient trade
reporting in the Catskills. “So it was T+L’s watercolor maps in July. “I
love the research before beginning routes,” it was a special treat to
especially nice at the end of our photograph and report on Oman’s
visit to sit on the porch at the the work: reading, looking for frankincense trail: “It was mind-
DeBruce, a hotel with an incredible photos, and cross-referencing the bending to stand at this crossroads
restaurant, and sample course after plot points is so inspiring,” she says.
course of thoughtfully made food.” of culture and tradition,
experiencing history firsthand.”
Tucci lives in Trancoso, Brazil.

10 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021

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Letter from the Editor

Jacqui and her FROM MY TRAVELS
family shot by
adventure Our journey to Kenya
photographer kicked off with an
Andrey Josephs exceptional airline
(@andreyjosephs) experience. Using
on a helicopter the pros at Skylark
excursion in the (skylark.com), I got
Laikipia Highlands tickets on Qatar
operated by Tropic Airways (qatar
Air Kenya. airways.com), which
earns raves for its
I T ’ S T I M E TO retire the term bucket list. Especially during a Qsuite business-
pandemic. Don’t get me wrong: some lists will always have a class service; the
place in my life, and I’m sure it’s the same for you. For example, quad configuration
I like to make a record of books that I want to read some day. was ideal for our
And that’s purely because I’m forgetful. group, with four huge
But the idea that you must itemize the destinations you seats that converted
want to see before you die—and that those select destinations into double beds. In
will somehow have a grander impact on your physical being or Nairobi, we stayed at
mental health than others—seems silly. And so very 2019. The the secluded and
truth is, all travel is worthwhile, and if we’ve taken anything lush Hemingways
(hemingways-
away from the past 18 months or so, it’s the realization that life collection.com; dou-
bles from $1,460)
is uncertain and precious. Travel, at its core, is about self-enrichment, before flying to the
family-friendly Finch
which I suppose is a life goal. But should we all expect the Pyramids of Hatton’s (finch
hattons.com; dou-
Giza or the ice fields of Antarctica to make us feel complete, or more bles from $1,640), in
Tsavo West National
enlightened, by the time we hit 80? I think not. Park, where the star-
gazing from our villa
We used to call our November issue “Trips of a Lifetime,” a softer was unreal. At
Cottar’s 1920s Camp
way of selling the bucket-list idea. This year, we’ve made a switch to (cottars.com; dou-
bles from $1,930),
“Invest in Travel, Invest in You,” focusing on journeys of self-enrichment, set on a private
reserve in the Masai
whether it be through wellness, sports, culture, or the arts. The Mara, we came
across 22 lions—the
investment in you also goes beyond—and into local communities. In Sopa pride, out for a
stroll. At nearby
Discoveries, we spotlight businesses that give back to the people who Angama Mara, we
tried the new mobile
make them who they are. tented camp
(angama.com; camp
The magic of travel becomes clear, I believe, when you go on a trip not from $6,950, three-
night minimum) and
expecting anything epic. That happened to me in Kenya, with top safari shared drinks with
our guide, Daniel
outfitter Roar Africa (roarafrica.com), over the summer. My family and Njiriri, around the
campfire. In Laikipia,
I decided to fly far, far away—not because I Segera (segera.com;
doubles from
had to see Kenya before a certain age, or to $3,800) was our final
stop. We did a Lion
replicate something I’d seen on Instagram. King movie night, ANDREY JOSEPHS
then saw real-life
It was to watch my son, Bobby, grow. Kenya drama when a leop-
ard dragged her
may appeal to you now, in five years, or impala kill up into a
tree. The bush is
even later. If you do decide to go, my advice @jacquigiff never for the faint
is simple: Get ready to be surprised. [email protected] of heart.

12 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021

TAKE A MOMENT TO

take it all in

Find Your Way to America’s Favorite Island.

32.1386, -80.8109

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EDITOR IN CHIEF S E N IO R V IC E P R E S I D E N T, G R O U P P U B L I S H E R

Jacqueline Gifford Giulio Capua

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14 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021



FOR THE
S T O R Y MAKERS

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Where evening sunsets charm
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EDITED BY
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A ZURE ABOTI ZORE/COURTESY OF THE BABA TREE COMPANY LTD Your guide to
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Heritage, by Hand

In Ghana’s “City of Baskets,” a fair-trade cooperative builds on the region’s
distinctive artistic tradition—and the results are one of a kind. By Paula Froelich

17T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E . C O M

DISCOVERIES Up to

A ZURE ABOTI ZORE/COURTESY OF THE BABA TREE COMPANY LTD15%

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The Baba Tree Basket Co., method—a technique of creating in her native country, with
based in the town of Bolgatanga, undulating waves that takes years the goal of preserving and
brings this work to an international to master—each one can occupy a promoting artistic
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most of the past 20 years in Ghana, named Kwame Ayine, is shaped like region, weaving from the
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DISCOVERIES

Clockwise from left: Asmaa Khattab,
founder of Walk Like an Egyptian; a street
in Historic Cairo, where Khattab leads her
walking tours; Laila Hassaballa, center,
leads an eating tour with her company
Bellies En-Route.

Women About Town In Egypt, women have historically
lacked a seat at the business table.
As Egypt makes an effort to diversify its workforce, new The country ranked near the bottom
faces in the travel industry are introducing visitors to the in the World Economic Forum’s
Cairo they love. By Stephanie Vermillion (WEF) Global Gender Gap report from
2015, and 2019 figures indicate that
I N H I S T O R I C C A I R O , you don’t Our walking tour was also an women make up less than a quarter
just see the sights—you feel them. introduction to a cultural shift that’s of the labor force. Slowly, though, the
Between the whoosh of cyclists reshaping the visitor experience in landscape is changing—and tourism,
and the wafting scent of piping-hot Egypt. Expanding beyond the classic which makes up a significant portion
flatbread, my senses couldn’t keep up. Pyramids-and-Sphinx tourism model, of Egypt’s economy, is among the
young guides are bringing travelers to most promising industries.
“Ready for a snack?” asked my lesser-visited locales like this unesco-
guide, Asmaa Khattab. I obviously protected neighborhood, pairing Last year, the government
wasn’t the first of her clients to be the country’s millennia of history announced the Closing the Gender
both dazzled and disoriented by this with a crash course in contemporary Gap Accelerator, a WEF collaboration
corner of the city. The cobblestoned culture. And Egyptian women aimed at increasing women’s
maze of mosques and monuments are helping lead this movement participation in the workforce
dates back to the 10th century—the toward experiential tourism—paving and helping more of them reach
largest collection of medieval a long-overdue path for future leadership positions. Egypt also
architecture in the Islamic world. But female entrepreneurs. became the first country to launch
such relics were only half of the story. the United Nations Development
Program’s Gender Equality Seal for

22 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021 PHOTOGRAPHS BY CHRISTINA RIZK

tourism: a pledge to bring tours. The duo hosts multi-meal Casa Palopó’s
more women into the sector. jaunts between hip and hidden pool looks out
spots in Downtown Cairo. These over Guatemala’s
Khattab dreamed up include Hassaballa’s favorite Lake Atitlán.
her company, Walk Like an woman-owned restaurant, Fasahet
Egyptian (fb.com/walk.like. Somaya (fb.com/fasahetsomaya), PAYING IT
an.egyptian.page), to showcase whose founder, Somaya El-Adiouty, FORWARD
a side of her country not found rose to culinary fame after helping
on a tour bus. “It’s not just feed protesters during the 2011 Hotels are encouraging
about checking off stops one, Egyptian Revolution. guests to explore beyond
two, and three,” she told me, their walls—and offering
recalling her early days at a “I was shocked no one was doing local perks in the process.
travel agency where cookie- food tours in Cairo,” Hassaballa told
cutter trips were the standard. me as we ambled between kahwa By Chadner Navarro
She quit in 2010, tired of (coffee shops) and hole-in-the-wall
hollow, highlights-only travel, diners. The idea struck her during a When Casa
then launched her Historic pizza-and-gelato cooking class with
RIGHT: BRONWYN KNIGHT Cairo walking tours in 2015. Italian chefs in Florence in 2014. Palopó (casa $15+
For her, “it felt like we were peeling palopo.com;
“What makes Egypt special back another layer of the culture.”
is not only the history and the Business quickly took off, and last doubles from Amount distributed
sights but also the warmth and year, she and Nezar released a $331), the to local businesses
hospitality,” Khattab explained. cookbook, Table to Table. colorful, art- for each night spent
We shared a bowl of foul, a
dish of fava beans, tomatoes, Female entrepreneurship at Casa Palopó.
and garlic, just outside the is shaping Egypt’s culture well
tentmakers’ market, where beyond travel. Entreprenelle filled hotel on
artisans sell khayamiya, the (entreprenelle.com), a grassroots
colorful Fatimid-era appliquéd business incubator and education the banks of
textiles. As Khattab put it, “I’m initiative, has helped thousands
trying to have tours with soul.” of Egyptian women bring their
ideas to life. Program graduate
She’s far from the only Shorouk Abdelaal showcases the
one. In 2016, Laila Hassaballa work of emerging Egyptian fashion
and Mariam Nezar introduced designers at Châteaux Chic (fb.com/
Bellies En-Route (belliesen chateauxchic), in New Cairo.
route.com), the city’s first Another alumna, designer Omnia
business specializing in food Raouf Noly, sells her handmade
purses through Noly Bags (fb.com/
nolybags). And artisan Shorouk Guatemala’s Lake Atitlán,
Mohammed founded Al-Ghoria
(fb.com/alghoria), an online reopened this past summer
store for her colorful handcrafted
home goods. after a pandemic closure, owner

These female founders aren’t Claudia Bosch insisted on
waiting for an even playing field.
Khattab, for one, is already thinking including her neighbors in her
about her next big plan: making
her Historic Cairo tours wheelchair- recovery strategy. She started a
accessible. With tight cobblestoned
alleyways and heavy foot traffic, this program called Palopó Activo,
will be no small feat. But it’s part of
her goal to treat every guest with turning 5 percent of every
the Egyptian hospitality she loves.
“We should welcome people in guest’s nightly rate into
our country as we welcome them in
our home.” vouchers to be spent at nearby

shops—for candles at Fábrica de

Velas y Cerería Sajvin,

embroidered textiles at Centro

Cultural, and hand-painted

tableware at Cerámica Palopó.

Villa Bokéh (villabokeh.com;

doubles from $217), a recently

opened sister property in the

city of Antigua, will launch a

similar program next year.

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DISCOVERIES SETTING THE STANDARD

These companies make finding a 10%
socially responsible tour operator easier
than ever. By Lynn Houghton Niarra Travel’s
commission from
NIARRA TRAVEL
on-the-ground
When planning trips to Africa, tour operators,
many travelers don’t realize that compared to the
commissions of up to 35 percent standard 35%.
are paid to large tour operators
Textiles at Centro Cultural, one by the local hospitality industry. BRONWYN KNIGHT
of many shops where Casa Palopó Niarra Travel, based in London,
guests can spend part of their has committed to reducing
nightly rate. its commissions to 10 percent
when referring clients to local
Palopó’s approach is unusually businesses, like northern Kenya’s
proactive, but these types of Reteti Elephant Sanctuary, which
community perks are an increasingly employs community members as
popular way for a hotel to connect its keepers (like Naomi Leshongoro,
guests with the neighborhood. The right). This leaves more funds for
nine-month-old Kimpton Hotel the places and communities who
Palomar South Beach (hotelpalomar- need them most—and honors
southbeach.com; doubles from $200), the concept of niarra, the Swahili
for instance, announced exclusive word for “with utmost purpose.”
partnerships with some of Miami’s top niarratravel.com.
wellness brands. Guests get 20 percent
off treatments at Skin by Tatum and ETERNAL LANDSCAPES
classes at the Pilates Place, with more MONGOLIA
to come. Provenance Hotels just
launched its Community Pass Women have typically been
program; guests at Seattle’s Hotel Max excluded from meaningful roles in
(provenancehotels.com; doubles from Mongolia’s tourism sector, but
$122), for example, get two-for-one Eternal Landscapes aims to change
wine tastings at the Browne Family that. The company—which offers
Vineyards tasting room in Pioneer adventure journeys throughout the
Square. Soon, all of Provenance’s country, including treks on horse or
14 U.S. hotels will offer local discounts. camel—recently launched a 15-day
women-only trip led by female
These initiatives feel particularly guides (right). Highlights include
impactful now, but some hoteliers visiting quilters in the capital,
have been forging partnerships like Ulaanbaatar, a homestay with
these for years. Since the Downtown herding families in the Gobi Desert,
Clifton Hotel Tucson (downtown and learning from female eagle
tucsonhotel.com; doubles from $139) hunters in the Bayan Ölgii province.
opened in 2014, guests have been eternal-landscapes.co.uk.
able to bag deals at 20 local hot spots
just by flashing their key. “We want BLACK CULTURAL
to eventually turn this program into HERITAGE TOURS
a digital walking tour,” says owner
Moniqua Lane. “It’s a fun way to make This company’s itineraries spotlight
the stay more interactive and share the people and places that have
what we love about the city.” shaped Black culture in the United
States. Road trips in 2022 will run
26 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021 throughout the Southeast, including
a stop at Morehead Manor Bed &
Breakfast in Durham, North
Carolina, run by Daniel and Monica
R. Edwards (right). The trips are
supported by the National Blacks in
Travel and Tourism Collaborative,
which is partnering with tourism
boards, local businesses, and other
travel associations to build a Black
travel “ecosystem.” experience
blackculture.com.

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DISCOVERIES St. Croix Shine

Souvenir shopping in the U.S. Virgin
Islands? Take a cue from the locals.

By Sarah Greaves-Gabbadon

From top: Crucian C A R I B B E A N - B O U N D travelers than 200 hand-hammered bracelets MODEL: AZALIAH JOSEPH
Gold Flower of Life in looking to expand their jewelry a day. After finding your match,
silver, $95; IB Designs collections should make a beeline for take a lesson from the staff on how
Pamoja in gold, St. Croix, where every other islander to wear it: according to locals, the
$1,140; Crucian Gold seems to be wearing at least one ends of the horseshoe should face
Chaney Latch in silver, hook bracelet, if not several. inward, away from your hand, if
$105; Sonya’s Original you’re romantically entwined. Single?
Hook in gold, price The classic version of this Crucian Reverse the orientation to silently
upon request. Rings by icon comes from Sonya’s (sonyaltd signal your availability.
IB Designs, from $55. store.com), which has been a fixture
in Christiansted, the island’s largest The affordable bracelets (silver
30 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021 town, since 1964. Sonya Hough’s styles start around $65) are so mix-
original design—a horseshoe shape, and-matchable that after your first,
like the bottom bracelet in the image you’ll likely be...well, hooked. Add
above—is said to recall the wristlets to your addiction at local jewelers IB
that fishermen’s wives would fashion Designs (ibdesignsvi.com) and Crucian
from fish hooks as a reminder of their Gold (cruciangold.com), where riffs on
husbands at sea. the original include Caribbean motifs
like coral or breadfruit, and select
Now under new ownership, the styles feature chaney—the blue-and-
compact boutique still heaves with white shards of colonial-era Danish
customers jostling for position at pottery found all over the island.
the display cases; it often sells more

PHOTOGRAPH BY MEREDITH ZIMMERMAN



DISCOVERIES New Mexico’s
Zuni Visitor Center
COURTESY OF NEW MEXICO NOMADoffers tours of
the pueblo’s
distinctive cliff
dwellings. Below:
Archaeologist
Kenny Bowekaty
leads a tour group.

People Power KENNY BOWEKATY here but also supports our
artists and businesses.”
One New Mexico pueblo is making sure After studying archaeology Revenue goes to ongoing
tourism happens on the community’s terms. at Stanford, Bowekaty excavations of historic
returned to help develop a sites and creating more
By Sucheta Rawal series of history- and tourism offerings. The Zuni
culture-focused initiatives. Tribal Government hopes to
Z U N I , W I T H 1 2 , 5 0 0 Indigenous residents, His most recent projects eventually build a hotel in
is the largest of the 19 pueblos, the state’s involve new programming at Zuni. (Right now, most visi-
traditional Native American villages—and the Zuni Visitor Center, tors stay in Gallup, 30 miles
one of the most remote. The 1,300-year-old including Zuni-led walking away.) Still, Bowekaty
settlement in the Colorado Plateau, at the foot tours of the pueblo’s Middle stresses the importance of
of the Dowa Yalanne mesa, is home to adobe Village, trips to the ruins at respecting the sacred land:
houses, archaeological sites, and thousands Hawikku and the Village of “We welcome visitors, but
of petroglyphs. Most of the area’s modern the Great Kivas, and meals they have to honor our
economy is based on traditional craft: woven catered by local women. tribal rules by keeping dis-
textiles, painted pottery, inlaid mosaic jewelry. “This work allowed me to tance, obtaining photo per-
see how deep our history mits, putting cameras
Until recently, visitors to Zuni were few due is,” he says, “and to create away during sacred cere-
to its location and lack of infrastructure. Young an infrastructure that not monies, and exploring only
people were moving out for much the same only helps bring people with local guides.”
reason, drawn to jobs in larger cities. But pueblo
leaders saw potential in tourism—not only to CELIA TSABETSAYE
generate revenue but also to increase awareness
of Zuni culture and its role in U.S. history. After retiring from her post
Now the pueblo is developing a responsible- at the Bureau of Indian
tourism model that prioritizes sovereignty and Affairs in Washington, D.C.,
authenticity. Here, meet three entrepreneurs Tsabetsaye returned to the
who are sharing their ancestral heritage—and pueblo, drawn back by its
preserving it for future generations. peaceful open spaces and
her ancestral connections
32 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021 to the land she grew up on.
To keep her mind active
(she recently turned 78),
Tsabetsaye decided to
share her passion for food,

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DISCOVERIES converting her 19th-century Taking Back the Land
family home into a neighbor-
FROM TOP: COURTESY OF SOUL FIRE FARM; COURTESY OF NEW MEXICO NOMADhood restaurant, the Village To nourish both body and soul, support one of these
Bistro. She offers cooking dem- agro-activism projects built around fresh produce by the
onstrations and seasonal lunch people, for the people. By Kristin Braswell
menus with Zuni staples such as
pozole, blue-corn tamales, and AS WE SHIFT TOWARD the people.’ Our first program
a thin, rolled bread called piki, was doorstep delivery of fresh
along with homemade red and embracing healthier, more produce to our neighbors.”
green chile sauces. sustainable food practices,
it’s worth remembering that As a young Black child in the
AVA HANNAWEEKE food access is not only about rural Northeast, Penniman found
sustenance—it’s also about it difficult to understand where
Prior to 2020, Hannaweeke had equity. This is the philosophy she belonged—but always found
a thriving catering business at of a rising number of social- solace in nature. (“When human
the pueblo. But after many justice-focused agricultural beings were too much for me to
Native American communities initiatives working to spread bear,” she says, “the earth held
went into lockdown, she pivoted empowerment and inclusivity in firm under my feet.”) At age 16,
to making hebogo mula, a Zuni their industry, among them the she answered an advertisement
bread. Hannaweeke and her 80-acre Soul Fire Farm (soulfire for a farming job in Boston that
family collect wood from nearby farm.org), in Grafton, New York. promised an opportunity to
forests to fire their hornos, the serve the urban community. It
beehive-shaped clay ovens in “This work was partly sparked a journey to address
the backyard, and knead the inspired by our experience living the discrimination and loss of
sourdough by hand before in the South End of Albany and land faced by Black farmers over
molding it into the traditional struggling to find fresh food the past century. In 2018, she
horn shape. They sometimes for our children,” says Leah channeled that work into a book,
have 100 loaves baking at Penniman, who cofounded Soul Farming While Black (farming
any given time. News of her Fire with her partner, Jonah whileblack.org; $35), proceeds
bread quickly spread across Vitale-Wolff, in 2011. “When from which go to Black farmers.
neighboring communities, and community members found out
people drive for hours to buy a we had farming experience, they Soul Fire now has a staff
loaf. Through Ava’s Bread encouraged us to start a ‘farm for of 10, who are committed to
Experience, she offers hands-
on baking lessons to visitors
who want to learn the tradition.

Contact the Zuni Visitors Center
(zunitourism.com; 505-782-
7238) to book these and other
experiences.

Ava Hannaweeke bakes hebogo
mula, a traditional Zuni bread,
in her backyard ovens.

36 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021

DISCOVERIES

From left: A CSA
delivery from
Soul Fire Farm,
in Grafton,
New York; Soul
Fire volunteers
prepare beds for
planting; Sweet
Water Foundation’s
“Thought Barn,”
in Chicago.

their ancestral right to belong to to host youth programs. “Having
the earth and to have agency in the young people here really pushes
food system.” the movement forward,” says food
justice coordinator Brooke Bridges.
Despite pandemic setbacks, “Being able to plant tiny seeds and
Soul Fire was able to continue its watch them grow reminds me that,
Solidarity Share CSA (community although things can shrivel due to
supported agriculture) program . lack of sustenance, the cycle will
The farm currently hosts virtual and always begin again.”
in-person tours and will soon begin

FROM LEF T: COURTESY OF SOUL F IRE FARM; COURTESY OF SWEE T WATER FOUNDAT ION ending food apartheid—a term that + MORE NEW ROOTS SWEET WATER
describes systemic lack of access JUSTICE- COOPERATIVE FOUNDATION
to healthy foods—by establishing FOCUSED FARM
food sovereignty in marginalized FARMS “There grows the
communities. Its initiatives include This 30­acre farm, neighborhood” is
farm training for people of color MULOMA HERITAGE created by a group of the motto of this
and offering the weekly harvest CENTER Somali refugees in Chicago­based
to neighbors for little or no cost. Lewiston, Maine, pro­ initiative, which
The property opens to the public Artists and chefs— vides organic produce blends urban agricul­
on community farm days, giving including Mashama to the community ture, art, and educa­
participants a chance to get their Bailey of the Grey, in through farmers’ tion to transform
hands dirty while learning about Savannah, Georgia, markets and CSA vacant lots and
the Afro-Indigenous farming and Adrian Lips­ boxes, and recently abandoned buildings
and spiritual practices that guide combe, founder of installed solar panels into productive, sus­
their work. “I would like Soul the 40 Acres & a Mule to make its operation tainable community
Fire Farm to be remembered as a Project—will use this more sustainable. assets. Among its
community for a new generation of 38­acre plot on South The farmers are col­ projects: the Perry
Black and brown farmers,” Penniman Carolina’s St. Helena lecting donations via Avenue Community
says, “supporting them in finding Island to create GoFundMe to pur­ Farm, where visitors
their way home to the land, restoring educational culinary chase the plot they’ve can pick seasonal
experiences been working since vegetables like
centered around 2016, with the goal of kale and tomatoes
African American scaling up and making sprouting from the
foodways and long­term improve­ South Side
farming techniques. ments to the land. neighborhood of
muloma.com. newrootscooperative Englewood. sweet
farm.com. waterfoundation.com.

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

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Frankincense T RAVELERS ’ TALES ,
resin is burned FROM NEAR + FAR
in the spa at Al Baleed
Resort Salalah by EDITED BY
Anantara, in Oman. SARAH BRUNING

Something in the Air 4 1T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E . C O M

Aromatic frankincense turned Salalah, Oman, into one of the ancient world’s
most important trading ports. Writer-photographer Marta Tucci explores the
history of this fragrant resin—and finds its storied appeal very much alive.

ALL MAP IL LU STRAT IONS BY L ARA C O STAF REDA

EXPERIENCES

A vendor scoops up
frankincense at the Al-Husn
souk, in Salalah.

The coast of Oman THE PEOPLE of Oman have an The tale of frankincense—the
between Salalah and old proverb that warns God will precious resin once considered
the Khor Rori estuary. prevent anyone who steals as more valuable than gold—begins
much as a pearl of frankincense high in the desert plateau of Dhofar,
from setting sail from the country’s Oman’s southernmost province,
shores. Standing among the ruins where beds of limestone offer
of Sumhuram, a first-century just the right amount of water for
A.D. trading port on the Arabian scraggly Boswellia sacra trees to
Sea, I imagined what it would thrive. Once a year, in the hottest
have looked like in its heyday—merchants months of April and May, a handful
bargaining with shoppers; Hindustani, of Bedouin men make a trip to the
Arabic, and Latin ballads echoing through groves and cut into the tree’s papery
the alleyways; dozens of frankincense-laden bark, allowing it to ooze a fragrant
ships heading off into the distance. Minus, sap that is then left out in the sun to
presumably, any would-be thieves. crystallize into frankincense.

I had traveled to Salalah, the capital
of Dhofar, after reading travelogues of
Marco Polo and T. E. Lawrence, whose
accounts spoke of the region and its
incense. While desert traditions and
camel caravans still characterize parts
of Dhofar, Salalah is almost tropical,
with palm-fringed beaches and
verdant mountains.

42 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021

New Zealand Table Wine, ©2021 Whitehaven Wine Company USA, Healdsburg, CA. All rights reserved.

EXPERIENCES UNITED ARAB OM A N medicinal properties of frankincense.
EMIRATES After placing a few granules of resin
ILLUSTRAT ION BY L ARA COSTAFREDASAUDI ARABIAover an ember to perfume and
cleanse the air, my therapist, Ansaya
Dhofar ARABIAN SEA Kaewsawang, handed me a date-size
pellet to chew. As I got accustomed
Salalah to its soapy taste, she explained that
frankincense has antiseptic properties,
YEMEN so gnawing on it can improve
oral health and digestion. Next
Not the worst place to be left ashore, came a shiatsu-style massage with From left: An
I thought as I settled into my room at the frankincense-infused oil, which has abandoned fort
Al Baleed Resort Salalah by Anantara (anantara. anti-inflammatory effects. at Ubar; dishes
com; doubles from $392). Situated within like the prawn-
unesco Heritage grounds, the beachfront hotel That evening, I weighed whether and-saffron
incorporates arched doorways and other design to make the two-hour trek to the risotto served at
elements that pay tribute to the ancient trading ruins of Ubar the following day. A Anantara’s Al Mina
post of Zafar, the ruins of which can be seen in trading and processing center of the restaurant are a
the archaeological park next door. ancient world, the city had been lost reminder of Oman’s
for more than 1,500 years in the sands position on the
Soon after I arrived, I met up with Hussain of the Empty Quarter, before being fourth-century
Balhaf, Anantara’s on-site frankincense expert rediscovered in 1992 by the famed B.C. spice route.
and my guide for the next few days. As we British explorer Ranulph Fiennes.
chatted, I learned that, while the majority of Concierges and locals had cautioned
Oman’s residents are Arabs, Dhofar developed me to “skip the disappointment,” but
into a more multiethnic community thanks to I couldn’t let the story go and called
the trade caravans that connected it with Rome, Taimur Al-Said, the owner of Hud Hud
Babylon, and East Asia, beginning in the fourth Travels (hudhudtravels.com) and the
century B.C. The routes are long gone, but the only person who could arrange this
scent of frankincense lingers, perfuming the air expedition on such short notice.
with notes of honey, pine, vetiver, and lime.
The following morning, I met one
After a quick lunch at a fisherman’s shack, of Al-Said’s guides, a sheikh named
Balhaf and I made our way to Al-Husn, Salalah’s
famous souk. We were greeted by kaleidoscopic
displays of the famed resin—from opalescent
rose to deep topaz—in containers lining the
narrow, sun-dappled alleys. “Najdi, shathari,
shaabi,” shouted a vendor, calling out the names
of the different grades, which cost between
$10 and $104 per kilogram. Balhaf prompted
me to request hojari, the highest-quality, which
merchants often hide in velvet-lined pouches.

When we returned to the hotel, I headed to
the spa for a treatment designed to showcase the

44 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021

Frankincense expert EXPERIENCES
Hussain Balhaf under a
Boswellia sacra tree in
Afor Valley, near Salalah.

Some private villas Musallam Hassan. We crossed the mountains As everyone had warned, what
at the Anantara that stand between the desert and the coast, was once a thriving, life-giving oasis
resort look out onto eventually stopping at Wadi Dawkah—a unesco- on the fringes of the Empty Quarter
the Al Baleed protected grove of Boswellia sacra and the largest was now a scant collection of ruins
Archaeological Park. cluster of frankincense-producing trees in Oman. slumbering away beneath a faded
billboard. We toured the site in a
Seated in the marbled shade of an old mere 10 minutes, then jumped
wounded tree—left scarred from centuries of back in the car and set off into
sap-extracting incisions—Hassan reflected on the saffron sands.
how he’d seen his country change. “Life before
1970 was hard,” he said, referring to the year We reached a sea of wind-carved
the late Sultan Qaboos took over the throne dunes just in time for Hassan to
from his father, Sultan Said bin Taimur. Unlike set up camp as the sky turned
his predecessor, the new ruler leveraged wealth amber and blush. I joined him on
from recently discovered oil to build hospitals a kilim beside a crackling fire and
and other much-needed infrastructure while gratefully accepted his offer of dates
protecting heritage areas, including sites like and cardamom-laced coffee before
the one we were sitting in. twilight called him to prayer.

Back on the straight, single-lane road, As Hassan went through the
I began to lose my sense of time and direction serene motions of his ritual, I caught
as we traveled farther into arid, barren desert. the scent of frankincense on the
I looked down at my watch and thought, breeze—perhaps from his dishdasha.
We should be there by now. Just as I was I wondered where the trail would
turning to ask Hassan how much longer lead us next—and who else I’d
it’d be, the car came to a sudden halt. encounter along the way.

4 5T R A V E L A N D L E I S U R E . C O M

EXPERIENCES

Good Vibrations Sound meditation is a practice
that replaces the noise pollution
What better place than a serene retreat in Kenya to of the modern world with healing
immerse yourself in sound meditation, the “it” reverberations. It’s not the kind of
healing practice sweeping the wellness world? wellness approach I would typically
Pilar Guzmán tunes in and chills out. have bought into, but like so many
of us, I had emerged from last year
T E P P I N G O U T onto the terrace at Segera, looking for ways to calm my rattled
a luxury lodge in Kenya’s Laikipia highlands, nerves. I started meditating in March
we spotted a trio of reticulated giraffes loping of 2020, then tried a sound-therapy
toward us as if beckoned by some invisible session and learned how, when
conductor. There was certainly music: a exposed to certain music, the brain
19th-century gong was still reverberating enters a “theta state”—that barely
in the room behind us. I was one of a group conscious realm we experience just
of 12 guests who had just finished a sound- before falling asleep and just after
meditation session in the second-floor lounge waking, when the mind is especially
of Segera’s main lodge. When they caught sight receptive to growth and restoration.
of us, the giraffes lowered their necks like party crashers
trying not to call too much attention to themselves. There can be few better
My group consisted of well-heeled travelers from Paris, environments to practice sound
Dubai, New York City, Cape Town, and Beirut, Lebanon. meditation than the Kenyan savanna,
We were at Segera for a retreat hosted by Roar Africa CEO where the only commentary comes
and founder Deborah Calmeyer, who was born and raised from the trees, the wind, and the
in Zimbabwe. Well-known for pushing the conventions of wildlife. Tucked between Mount
safari beyond game drives and sundowners, Calmeyer is Kenya and the Great Rift Valley,
among the first travel experts on the continent to tap into Laikipia is one of East Africa’s most
the wellness zeitgeist. important migration corridors.
Segera was a cattle ranch until
2005, when German businessman
Jochen Zeitz, formerly CEO of Puma
and now head of Harley-Davidson,

46 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021 IL LU ST RAT ION BY W H O OL I CHEN

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savor the bought the property and restored its health of my maternal grandmother.
BAHAMAS 50,000 acres. Fences were removed By turns hopeful, nostalgic, and
and endemic species, like the African
Let your culinary adventures wild dog and reticulated giraffe, were hypnotic, the sounds of gongs and
begin with celebrity chef cuisine reintroduced. Today Segera is again singing bowls were interspersed with
and authentic Bahamian flavors vibrating with life, and the lodge, recordings of Byzantine chants and the
which is designed like a village, feels low, mournful voice of the Bhutanese
designed for every palate. like a haven in the heart of the bush. Buddhist Lama Gyurme. Flashes of a
young, healthy version of my father,
Having chosen the perfect who died 14 years ago after a long
location, Calmeyer devised a illness, suddenly came to me. Then, a
sound-meditation program that veritable flip-book of images of my son
cherry-picked spiritual and cultural as an infant, a toddler, and all the way
traditions from places as disparate up to the present day, played behind
as Armenia and Australia. The my eyelids. I felt for a split second his
technique—a favorite among Silicon toddler’s hand clutching my hair as he
Valley CEOs—combines breathing pressed his cheek against mine.
and visualization exercises with the
sounds of Himalayan singing bowls, After the session, the group dined
gongs, chimes, zithers, various drums together in Segera’s lobby-cum-art-
and shakers, and even a didgeridoo. gallery (Zeitz is also one of the world’s
biggest collectors of African art).
Before the session started, we each Dinner was platters of Ottolenghi-
lay down on one of the mattresses style salads made with the fruits of the
set out in a semicircle, and were kitchen garden. I sat next to a woman
encouraged to set an intention: a who said that during the sound
phrase to anchor us on our journey. journey she had, for the first time, felt
This could be something big, like compassion for her estranged mother.
trying to get at the root of one’s On my other side was a woman who
anxiety surrounding change, or told me that she felt something akin
it could be small, like prioritizing to self-acceptance after a lifetime of
time to keep a journal. Mine was to battling body dysmorphia.
come to terms with raising a newly
independent teenage boy who, until Walking back to my room, I
just a couple of years ago, had never spotted two of the three reticulated
wanted to leave my side. We each giraffes that had sidled up to our
placed a notebook and pen beside us ceremony earlier. I thought back to
to write down whatever might come a discussion about the physics of
up, then closed our eyes. resonance earlier that day. In addition
to the physiological rhythms we can
We were told that the quickest see, feel, and measure, like circadian
way to turn inward and enter a rhythms, breath, and heartbeats, our
relaxed, introspective state is to bodies experience countless smaller
listen to instruments that produce vibrations that take place on a cellular
harmonic overtones. These are the level. And these can profoundly affect
high, vibrating sounds you hear how we function and feel.
when someone plucks a sitar string
or strikes a gong, for example. We Watching the giraffes head off into
began by focusing on the sounds of the bush, I found myself acutely aware
singing bowls, and the recording of the way our cells resonate, not only
of a instrument called the duduk in response to sound but to other
played by Armenian composer Djivan people, to birds, trees, and insects.
Gasparyan. After just a few minutes I I finally got what sound-meditation
saw the red dots on the inside of my practitioners mean when they say,
eyelids I used to see at night when “We become one with it.”
I was a child. The vision took me
back to the age of seven, when I was roarafrica.com; seven-night sound-
haunted by unfounded fears about the meditation retreats from $15,000
per person.

48 TRAVEL+LE ISURE | NOVEMBER 2021