Post on 26-Apr-2023
Condé N
ast Traveler September/O
ctober 20
21 · N
ew York C
ity’s Chinatow
n · Crete · M
exico · Wisconsin · Bangkok · Venice · The British Virgin Islands · Versailles · C
hicagocntraveler.com
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
MexicoCreteBangkokVenice And an ode to New York City’s Chinatown
the World Made locAl100 people. 100 countries. 100 reasons to travel now
Like Valeriya Gogunskaya, a longboarder from Portugal
CoNtENTSRIGHT AROUND
THE CORNER
After a most challenging year, New York City’s Chinatown looks aheadPAGE 62
MEXICO NOW
All the reasons so many Americans can’t wait to head south of the border as travel resumesPAGE 72
AN ISLAND FOR
ALL TIMES
On Crete, discovering a land of wild contrasts and pure pleasuresPAGE 84
Glyka Nera, one of the many beaches along Crete’s 650-mile coastline
4 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
PH
OTO
GR
AP
H:
TOM
PA
RKE
R
THE WORLD
MADE LOCAL
The seven international editions of Condé Nast Traveler asked an array of global citizens— from an Egyptian choreographer to a Buenos Aires baker— to tell us why we should visit their countries as we return to travelPAGE 15
WORD OF MOUTH
The first hotel on the grounds of Versailles is royally impressive; a Bangkok neighborhood drawing a next-gen crowd; why multifamily rentals are pure magic; the latest and greatest in ChicagoPAGE 35
WHY WE TRAVEL
In search of good company and even better food on a trip to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula; a sailing adventure in the British Virgin Islands (or elsewhere) is more within reach than you think; how the pandemic is prompting Venice to chart a more sustainable futurePAGE 51
A TRAVELER’S TALE
While visiting Japan, actor Manny Jacinto finds unexpected beauty in a traditional fertility festivalPAGE 94
CoNtENTS
The restaurant Ducasse at Airelles Château de Versailles, Le Grand Contrôle
6 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
PH
OTO
GR
AP
H:
MAT
THIE
U S
ALV
AIN
G
Here are some especially vivid memories I have of travel. I remember Robert, the
irrepressible Samburu bush guide who joked about all the ALTs—animal-like
things—as we looked for wildlife together in northern Kenya. I remember Jaime,
who gave me coca leaves for energy as we ascended the Inca Trail and said a prayer to
Pachamama when we reached the summit. I remember Ayob, who captained my felucca
boat on the Nile and brought me and my dad ashore to buy camel meat.
I remember the family in the Yucatán who scooped up me and my wife from a dusty
highway where we were waiting for a bus and drove us back to Valladolid, and the family in
Johannesburg who insisted on driving me and two friends from the airport to our hotel out
of concern for our safety. I remember the father and son in fatigues who helped me get my
car out of a ditch at a campground in the Adirondacks. I remember the kind woman who
served me and my wife snails and bitter Cretan mountain greens at her little restaurant on
a cobblestone alley in Chania. (For more on that lovely corner of Greece, see page 84.)
I am sure that if you look back over your most treasured travel memories, you will find
them intertwined with people like these. As travelers all over the globe resume their
journeys, the people who help us, feed us, teach us, and make us laugh matter more than
ever. These are precisely the people we celebrate in “The World Made Local” (page 15),
a collaboration by the seven global editions of Condé Nast Traveler in which individuals
from all walks of life tell you why you should visit their country next. As travel—and
Traveler—become more global, we mustn’t lose sight of the local. Because, as my col-
league Divia Thani, Condé Nast Traveler’s global editorial director, puts it so well in her
introduction to the project, it is “the people you meet along the way who can tell you
exactly where to go.”
On the CoverValeriya Gogunskaya, creator of the Longboard Camp, in Santa Cruz, Portugal. Photographed by Daniel Espírito Santo
SubscribeVisit cntraveler.com/subscribe, email subscriptions@condenasttraveler.com, or call 800-777-0700
Golden hour among the rice fields surrounding Skai Joglo villa in Bali, Indonesia. Photographed by Lily Rose (@lilyrose)
Follow us on Instagram @cntraveler
jesseashlock
JESSE ASHLOCKU.S. EDITOR AND DEPUTY GLOBAL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR
CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER IS A REGISTERED TRADEMARK OF ADVANCE MAGAZINE PUBLISHERS INC. COPYRIGHT © 2021 CONDÉ NAST. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. PRINTED IN THE U.S.A.
VOLUME 56, NO. 6, CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER (ISSN 0893-9683) is published 8 times per year by Condé Nast, which is a division of Advance Magazine Publishers Inc. PRINCIPAL OFFICE: Condé Nast, One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. Roger Lynch, Chief Executive Officer; Pamela Drucker Mann, Global Chief Revenue Officer & President, U.S. Revenue; Jackie Marks, Chief Financial Officer. Periodicals postage paid at New York, New York, and at additional mailing offices. Canadian Goods and Services Tax Registration No. 123242885-RT0001.
POSTMASTER: SEND ALL UAA TO CFS. (SEE DMM 507.1.5.2.); NON-POSTAL AND MILITARY FACILITIES: SEND ADDRESS CORRECTIONS TO CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER, Box 37617, Boone, Iowa 37617-0617,.
FOR SUBSCRIPTIONS, ADDRESS CHANGES, ADJUSTMENTS, OR BACK ISSUE INQUIRIES: Please write to CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER, Box 37617, Boone, Iowa 37617-0617, call 800-777-0700, or email subscriptions@condenasttraveler.com. Amoco Torch Club members write to Amoco Torch Club, Box 9014, Des Moines, Iowa 50306. Please give both new and old address as printed on most recent label. Subscribers: If the Post Office alerts us that your magazine is undeliverable, we have no further obligation unless
we receive a corrected address within one year. If, during your subscription term or up to one year after, the magazine becomes undeliverable, or you are ever dissatisfied with your subscription, let us know. You will receive a full refund on all unmailed issues. Address all editorial, business, and production correspondence to CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER, One World Trade Center, New York, NY 10007. For reprints, please email reprints@condenast.com or call Wright’s Media 877-652-5295. For reuse permissions, please email contentlicensing@condenast.com or call 800-897-8666. Visit us online at cntraveler.com. To subscribe to other Condé Nast magazines on the World Wide Web, visit condenast.com. Occasionally, we make our subscriber list available to carefully screened companies that offer products and services which we believe would interest our readers. If you do not want to receive these offers and/or information, please advise us at Box 37617, Boone, Iowa 37617-0617, or call 800-777-0700.
CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE RETURN OR LOSS OF, OR FOR DAMAGE OR ANY OTHER INJURY TO, UNSOLICITED MANUSCRIPTS, UNSOLICITED ARTWORK (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO DRAWINGS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND TRANSPARENCIES), OR ANY OTHER UNSOLICITED MATERIALS. THOSE SUBMITTING MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, ARTWORK, OR OTHER MATERIALS FOR CONSIDERATION SHOULD NOT SEND ORIGINALS UNLESS SPECIFICALLY REQUESTED TO DO SO BY CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER IN WRITING. MANUSCRIPTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, AND OTHER MATERIALS SUBMITTED MUST BE ACCOMPANIED BY A SELF-ADDRESSED STAMPED ENVELOPE.
10 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
ILLU
STR
ATIO
N:
AN
JE J
AG
ER
editoR’S LetteR
UNITED STATESThe Gullah Geechee community descended from West African slaves. We believe right whales accompanied the slave ships, so every December when they return, I go to the Georgia coast to pay homage to them. We want visitors to learn our folkways and foodways and to hear our language.
–“SISTAH PATT” GUNN, CEO, UNDERGROUND TOURS OF SAVANNAH, GEORGIA
the World Made locAl
The seven global editions of Condé Nast Traveler teamed up to ask residents of countries around the world why we should come visit them. Here’s what they told us
15CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
PH
OTO
GR
AP
H:
AD
RIA
NA
IRIS
BO
ATW
RIG
HT
There’s No Place Like (Someone Else’s) Home
SENEGALWe have teranga, which means that when you visit, everyone will welcome you and share with you. For local art, check out Black Rock, the multidisciplinary artist- in-residence program founded in 2019 by Kehinde Wiley. For music, listen to Akon, Youssou N’Dour, Viviane Chidid, and mbalax—Senegalese dance music. There are lots of new mbalax tracks creating buzz right now.
–KHADJOU SAMBE, PROFESSIONAL SURFER
For “The World Made Local”—the first true global collaboration between the seven editions of Condé Nast Traveler worldwide—we asked 100 locals in 100 countries what they most love about where they come from. As the world opens up, we want you to find your own reason to travel, and we wanted the coolest people we know across the world to give it to you—people like 28-year-old Senegal-born French chef Mory Sacko and the Guatemalan actor María Mercedes Coroy. You’ll find a taste of it all on the following pages, with more on cntraveler.com. Consider this proof that the most compelling motivator for travel is not just the places you may end up but the people you meet along the way who can tell you exactly where to go. –DIVIA THANI GLOBAL EDITORIAL DIRECTOR, CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER
16 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
the World Made locAl
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: H
IMA
NS
HU
LA
KHW
AN
I, G
IOVA
NN
I A
STO
RIN
O
SWITZERLANDI live in Zurich, which has a small but growing music scene. My friend
runs jam sessions and open-mic nights at Plaza Klub, and it’s so exciting
to hear upcoming electro or urban artists. If you are interested in
catching local talent, come visit in March, when the music festival called
M4Music is on. But summer is always a good time. Bäckeranlage park
is a beautiful spot to hang out with a picnic. A few of my favorite spots
in town are La Stanza for the best coffee and a great playlist—which
is essential and rare. I’d take first-timers to District 1, for the Swiss
National Museum. But by night we’re going to Longstreet Bar on
Langstrasse in District 4 for gin and tonics and live DJ sets, then on to
Moods for a soca party. On Saturdays, we’d go to the flea market in
Helvetiaplatz—I found a Stevie Wonder Greatest Hits record there. Plus,
my new album will be out on vinyl soon. That’s going to be a big moment!
–PRIYA RAGU, MUSICAL ARTIST
FINLANDMost people don’t realize that, after Argentina, Finland is the tango capital of the world. It’s dying, but there are places in the countryside where you can still find it. At Tanhuhovi outside Helsinki, women still come to dance in flower-print dresses.
–JASPER PÄÄKKÖNEN, ACTOR AND ENVIRONMENTALIST
ITALYIf you have just one day in my hometown of
Bergamo, in the mountainous north of the
country, here’s what to do: Take a walk on the
Corsarola to reach San Vigilio, the highest point
in town. Coffee should be from Cavour 1880,
while your aperitivo needs to be at Bar Flora in
Piazza Vecchia. Dinner should be on the terrace
of Baretto di San Vigilio at sunset, when the
view of the whole city is incredible and the
lights of Bergamo blend with the first starlight.
–ROSALBA PICCINNI, FLORIST AND JAZZ SINGER
18 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
the World Made locAl
NICARAGUA» Nicaragua (Nicanahuac), the land of
lakes and volcanoes, is powerful, magical, and a mother. Nicaraguan pottery is extremely high-end. You must visit the village of San Juan de Oriente in Masaya, which is dedicated to pottery. Beautiful vessels, dishware, and statement pieces are in this village.
» One of my favorite spots is the Museum of Archaeology and History Cihua Coatl in Sébaco, Matagalpa—a collection of locally found pottery, stones, and statuary. The Pre-Columbian Museum in Ometepe is a must-see as well.
» You must visit the colorful colonial town of Granada, famous for vigorón, a dish made of chopped cabbage, yuca, and chicharron wrapped in a banana leaf. From there head to Masaya, known as the cradle of national folklore, to shop in the Mercado Viejo for Nicaraguan gems including hammocks, leather goods, paintings, ceramics, and clothing.
–JOEL GAITAN, ARTIST AND CERAMIST
FRENCH POLYNESIAPeople focus only on Tahiti. But visitors should go to the mountain islands like Huahine or Raiatea. They should also go to one of the super-flat atolls in the Tuamotu Islands, like Fakarava, and then to an island in the Marquesas.–TAHIARII PARIENTE, CULTURAL AMBASSADOR AND SAILOR
19CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: P
IER
CO
STA
NTI
NI,
CA
L M
CIN
TIR
E,
AN
TTI
RA
STI
VO
, TA
HIA
RII
YO
RA
M P
AR
IEN
TE, J
OEL
GA
ITA
N
AUSTRALIAMy favorite place to visit is Broome, Western Australia. The traditional owners are the Yawuru people. The beaches and landscapes have the most intense visuals, from turquoise oceans and white sands to red cliffs and earth. It’s like no other place. –NATHAN MCGUIRE, MODEL AND ADVOCATE FOR INDIGENOUS REPRESENTATION IN FASHION
INDIAWe have some of the greatest and most diverse flora and
fauna in the world. The forests of central India have
beautiful tiger-scapes that are immersed in history. East
India has indigenous animals like the rhinoceros and red
panda. Nagarahole Tiger Reserve in Karnataka, South
India, is quickly becoming one of the most popular
wildlife destinations for its high density of Asiatic wildlife.
And the elusive snow leopard roams around snow-covered
valleys and rivers of ice in north India. This country has
so much to offer, and I still have so much to see.
–SHAAZ JUNG, WILDLIFE PHOTOGRAPHER AND BIG CAT SPECIALIST
CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
the World Made locAl
20
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: A
RJU
N M
ENO
N, N
ATH
AN
MC
GU
IRE
SAUDI ARABIAThe kingdom is one of the last remaining natural
undiscovered gems on planet Earth. The people are so
hospitable, the topography is so vast, and there’s such
a unique, diverse culture. We have the Red Sea, and it
is just so spectacular. I love the wildness and the
freeing feeling. Then there is Jeddah, my hometown,
with beautiful mountains and amazing art and culture.
–RAHA MOHARRAK, ADVENTURER AND MOUNTAINEER
EGYPTYou have to give the local food—ful, koshary, ta’ameya—a try. There are a few places near the Pyramids that are really authentic, and in my opinion, Khan El-Khalili, Cairo’s sprawling bazaar, is a great start. It also sells a lot of traditional jewelry and accessories. You can then find an ahwa and pause to smoke shisha and people- watch. And both the Citadel of Saladin and Al-Azhar Mosque are nearby. I also recommend taking a felucca ride on the Nile to see Cairo by night—you won’t get any sleep, of course.
–YARA SALEH, DANCEHALL CHOREOGRAPHER
SINGAPOREFor street food, try bak chor mee (noodles with
minced meat) at Block 58 New Upper Changi Road,
fried kway teow at Hill Street Fried Kway Teow in
Chinatown Complex, appom at Madras New
Woodlands Restaurant on Upper Dickson Road,
and Indian mixed rice at Barakath Restaurant on
Dalhousie Lane. I like Zai Shun Curry Fish Head at
Jurong East Street 24, but it can be crowded.
I don’t really eat at fine-dining restaurants in
Singapore, but if I had to choose, I’d pick Naked
Finn, Le Bon Funk, and Nicolas Le Restaurant.
–DAMIAN D’SILVA CHEF AND ADVOCATE FOR HERITAGE CUISINE IN SINGAPORE
the World Made locAl
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: M
OH
AM
ED B
AR
GH
AS
H,M
AH
DI
MES
SO
ULI
, KIN
, M
ELIS
SA
ALC
ENA
, CLA
RA
STE
PH
AN
IE S
CH
IEB
ER L
OR
ENES
I
BAHAMASThe National Art Gallery of the Bahamas opened
in 2003 and totally changed the cultural land-
scape, because it finally gave us a space dedicat-
ed to local art and to letting travelers appreciate
it. It is inside the former home of our chief
justice. Though if you are wanting something
more natural, the island of Eleuthera is fantastic
for cycling. It has rolling hills and the Queen’s
Highway, which runs north to south. You can
rent a bike for a day and explore. The Bahamas
isn’t sold as a bikers’ haven, but it should be!
–JOHN COX EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF ARTS AND CULTURE, BAHA MAR
GUATEMALA» Mayan ceremonies in Guatemala are worth checking out.
For example, where I live, in Santa María de Jesús, we do a “rain request” from each of the four hills here. It is a way to ask Mother Nature to protect and sustain us.
» Our singer-songwriters are able to capture the beauty of Guatemala, like Sara Curruchich, an Indigenous Kaqchikel musician. I love her song “Junam” (a word that means “together”) for its reference to the unity of the people and the struggle in community.
» The essence of Guatemala will always be the smell of coffee and sweets like roscas. But also wet land—those dirt streets that are not paved, and when the rain falls, the rising steam, a musty smell, and a total feeling of relaxation.
–MARÍA MERCEDES COROY, ACTOR
23CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
FRANCEThere is so much more diversity in Paris’s food
scene now than before. A few years ago Asian
cuisine was mainly Chinese, but now you can get
Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Thai food very
easily. Parisians are much more informed about
what they are eating. My favorite area to eat in has
to be Canal Saint-Martin, in the 10th arrondisse-
ment. There is a small Asian-fusion canteen called
Siseng, where I’m a regular, and right next door to it
is Le Comptoir Général, which is a fun place to go
for drinks. They also sometimes serve street food
like bokit, a Guadeloupean fried sandwich, and
accras de morue, salt-cod fritters, which are a great
late-night snack. A bit farther up is Candide, where
chef Alessandro Candido serves the most delicious
roast chicken on Sundays, and on the other side of
the canal is Early June, which has a great wine cellar.
–MORY SACKO, CHEF, MOSUKE, PARIS
CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
the World Made locAl
24
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: C
AM
ILA
FALQ
UEZ
, QU
ENTI
N T
OU
RB
EZ
SPAIN» I live in Madrid, but my bond to my hometown
of Granada, where you can find flamenco everywhere, is magical. When I go there and need to relax, I head straight to Arab Baths of Bañuelo in the Carrera del Darro, which have such amazing history.
» Definitely visit the neighborhood of Sacromonte, which is full of caves where people live and shows are performed. It has a very narrow road leading to a very beautiful church. Opposite, across the Darro River, is the Alhambra.
» Nowhere in Spain does tapas better than Granada—your beer will come with fried fish, a hamburger. Head to Albaicín, the oldest neighborhood in Granada, for the best of it all.
–MANUEL LIÑÁN, FLAMENCO DANCER (THIRD FROM RIGHT)
25CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
ARGENTINA» The best way to see Buenos Aires is to rent a free bike
and cycle the Calles Gorriti-Superí lane from south to north. Starting at Billinghurst, the route captures plenty of barrio eclecticism through Palermo, Colegiales, and Coghlan before ending at leafy Parque Saavedra.
» For unique finds, head to the flea market at Parque Centenario, where I pick up vintage teapots and metal milk jugs. Guacha Textiles is where to go for fair trade baby-alpaca sweaters (I wear mine on chilly mornings when I bake). Oh, and Buenos Aires has a fantastic craft beer scene; pioneering bar Strange Brewing makes a refreshing saison.
» When I need a break from B.A., I go home to Cañuelas, a rural Pampas district in Buenos Aires Province, for asado. It’s also home to La Dolfina Polo Club, led by 10-goal-handicap player Adolfo Cambiaso. A must is Pueblo Escondido’s outstanding charcuterie and cheese.
–FRANCISCO SEUBERT, OWNER, ATELIER FUERZA BAKERY, BUENOS AIRES
BERMUDAThere is a renaissance happening right now in
Bermuda: Bermudians have fallen in love with their
island and are coming up with creative ways to
showcase it to one another and to visitors. A talented
young artist, Gherdai Hassell, just had her first solo
show at the Bermuda National Gallery, where she
created collages inspired by the Bermuda Slave
Registers and historic photographs in the Bermuda
Archives. There are also so many emerging young
writers. I’m excited about this new generation of
artists because they are going to be what helps the
world to better understand Bermuda, not just as a
tourism destination but as a living, breathing, vibrant
place. The magic of Bermuda is found when you get
out of the resorts and get into places like Drew’s Bay,
the Dragon’s Lair Gallery, and, of course, Mama
Angie’s Coffee Shop for a fish cake sandwich!
–KRISTIN WHITE, COMMUNITY ACTIVIST AND OWNER, LONG STORY SHORT BOOKSTORE, ST. GEORGE’S P
HO
TOG
RA
PH
S:
ESTE
FAN
IA IS
ELLI
@TE
FAII
, MER
EDIT
H A
ND
REW
S
the World Made locAl
UNITED KINGDOM For some nature in the bustle of London, we do Beckenham Place Park and Oxleas woods for long walks and fresh air. The greenhouses at Kew Gardens are worth hours of your time too, and Peckham Rye has some beautiful planted gardens.–ROMY ST. CLAIR AND IONA MATHIESON, FLORISTS AND OWNERS, SAGE FLOWERS, LONDON P
HO
TOG
RA
PH
: LU
CY
ALE
X M
AC
the World Made locAl
SOUTH AFRICA» Johannesburg has such a buzzing art scene. Visit Botho Project
Space for contemporary work and BKHZ, a Black-owned gallery that is home to young South African talent. If you’re into exploring local music, then give Zoë Modiga, Muneyi, Yanga YaYa, and Major League DJz a listen.
» For breakfast, hit up Arbour Cafe, a cute little restaurant with a courtyard tucked away in the Melrose area of Johannesburg. Have lunch at Kolonaki Greek Kouzina in Parkhurst, pre-dinner drinks at Saint Restaurant in Sandton, and dinner at Les Creatif by Wandile Mabaso.
» The neighborhoods, too, are something to explore: Maboneng, Parkhurst, and Melville for good vibes, and Kramerville for home and deco shopping. When I want to relax, I head to Nirox Sculpture Park, a historic area that is recognized as the cradle of humankind, a short drive from the city.
–TREVOR STUURMAN, PHOTOGRAPHER
QATARQatari women, like Her Excellency Sheikha Al-Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, are the driving force behind the art and cultural movement in the Arab world right now.
–FATMA HASSAN AL REMAIHI, CEO, DOHA FILM INSTITUTE
CANADAI strongly encourage people to attend our powwows. They’re places where you can get authentic literature, crafts, jewelry, clothing, and food. You really get a great taste of Indigenous culture.–SAGE PAUL, COFOUNDER AND ARTISTIC DIRECTOR OF INDIGENOUS FASHION WEEK TORONTO
CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 202130
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: JU
STI
N A
RA
NH
A, T
REV
OR
STU
UR
MA
N, D
OH
A F
ILM
IN
STI
TUTE
/TIM
P. W
HIT
BY/
GET
TY
IMA
GES
,DA
NIE
L ES
PIR
ITO
SA
NTO
/TW
OTH
IRD
S.C
OM
, TJO
K A
DI K
ERTH
YAS
A
the World Made locAl
INDONESIA I call the region of Tabanan the real Bali. Its iconic rice terraces, called jatiluwih, are UNESCO protected, and there are some beautiful rivers and volcanic hot springs. It’s cooler and wetter up there, making everything green and emerald. There are little villages too. –TJOK GDE KERTHYASA HOMEOPATH AND NATURAL-MEDICINE PRACTITIONER
PORTUGALI live in a small village called Póvoa de
Penafirme in Praia de Santa Cruz, near
the famous surfing hubs of Ericeira and
Peniche. It’s called the Silver Coast and
is loaded with charming beaches and
traditional fishing towns. You’ll want a
car to explore them all. In Praia de Santa
Cruz itself, go on a hike on top of the
cliffs, check out Porto Novo in the valley
by the river, and book a surf lesson.
My favorite secret beaches, each with its
own personality, are all up and down
this coastline. For a unique view of the
area, go to the local aerodrome and book
a 20-minute flight on a vintage plane.
It’s just 60 euro for three people!
–VALERIYA GOGUNSKAYA CREATOR, THE LONGBOARD CAMP, SANTA CRUZ
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO» If there’s one thing we
Trinibagonians do love, it’s a good party. If you come around Christmastime or Carnival celebrations, there’s a party every weekend—that’s where you see our true identity. It’s our history!
» You have to go to Queen’s Park Savannah, a big expanse of land with coconut vendors and what we call the Magnificent Seven: great houses with old architec-ture. At certain times of year the poui trees blossom, leaving a carpet of flowers on the ground. There’s a lot of history there—the main stage for our Carnival festival originated out of the Savannah.
» The dish to eat is called a doubles, from the East Indian settlers in Trinidad. It’s a lightly fried pastry with chickpeas and fresh pepper, or sweetened with tamarind. My spot is Das Doubles Factory, on El Socorro Road.
–KEES DIEFFENTHALLER, SOCA MUSICIAN
THE PHILIPPINESCome here to learn from the beautiful culture, heritage, struggles, and resist-ance. Come to see the coastal communities like Sitio Kinse in Barangay Taliptip, Bulacan, where fisherfolk have made houses on stilts with solar panels and care for the mangroves as the mangroves care for them.–MITZI JONELLE TAN CLIMATE CHANGE ACTIVIST
CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
the World Made locAl
32
CHINAA few tips for traveling around Shanghai: Good luck
trying to hail a taxi when the weather is bad; always carry
an extra phone charger; watch out for scooter-delivery
people; and you don’t ever need to carry cash around in
the city center as long as mobile payment options are set
up on your phone! It is a truly captivating city with
endless amounts of ambition and opportunity.
–DEAILLE TAM, CHEF, OBSCURA, SHANGHAI
BRAZILIn Rio de Janeiro, stay at the Chez George Airbnb. It’s a beautiful house with a great view of Santa Teresa, and the breakfast is delicious. Then do Horto waterfalls, which give off so much natural energy. After that, go biking by the Lagoa and finish up at Ipanema.
–JOÃO INCERTI, PAINTER
Want recommenda-tions for can’t-miss Stockholm watering holes from the team behind Tjorget, the top bar in Sweden? How about the secret island in Phnom Penh where Cambodian street artist Fonki heads for inspiration? Or the go-to Bogotá restaurant for Colombian fashion designer Kika Vargas? For tips and insights from locals in 72 additional countries, plus more from the folks featured across these pages, go to cntraveler.com/ theworldmadelocal. Think of this as your insider’s guide to everywhere you want to go next.
Let Them Show You Around
33CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: A
NG
ELA
DE
CA
STR
O, N
AVIN
DR
A H
AR
BU
KHA
N,
KIM
ÖH
RLI
NG
, JO
AO
IN
CER
TI
the people, places & ideas we're talking about right now
The Madame de Fouquet Room at Le Grand Contrôle
ROYAL THRILLA stay at the new Le Grand Contrôle hotel gives guests after-hours access to Versailles’s hidden corners →
35CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
PH
OTO
GR
AP
H:
MAT
THIE
U S
ALV
AIN
G
Word ºf mouth
T here is nothing new except what has been
forgotten.” The words of Marie Antoinette
still seem to echo within the gilded halls
of Le Grand Contrôle. Her point is proved by the
transformation of this historic building—set inside
the gates of the Palace of Versailles—into France’s
most anticipated new hotel. All traces of a pre–
French Revolution world have been preserved.
Classical music lilts throughout imposing salons
lined with portraits of well-coiffed luminaries, some
of them former guests. Each chair, mirror, and velvet
chaise, all dated to 1788—the last time the proper-
ty’s furniture was inventoried—and tracked down
at auction, looks like it belongs. And while many
corners of Paris, from the celebrated palace hotels
to the Louvre, read like a page from history, none so
eloquently sets a scene that can make you feel as if
you’re entering an 18th-century fairy tale.
Architect Jules Hardouin-Mansart, acclaimed for
completing the Palace of Versailles, designed Le
Grand Contrôle in 1681. Initially it was a private
home for Paul de Beauvilliers, a government official
under King Louis XIV. It went on to become the
home of France’s ministry of finance during the
reigns of both Louis XV and Louis XVI and briefly
served as a hospital before Napoleon stationed his
army there. Its last function before being left to
become a dusty empty space was as
a catering hall for Versailles officers.
From the dozens of hospitality
brands and venture-capital firms
that sought to reimagine Le Grand
Contrôle, LOV Group (the parent
company of the luxury hotel brand
Airelles) was selected. General
manager Julien Révah attributes this
success to LOV’s proposed approach
of classic styling and sympathetic
reconditioning rather than a complete
overhaul. While it’s not surprising
that a jaw-dropping figure—more than $48 million, excluding the decoration—
was spent on the almost five-year remodel, much of it was heavily invested in
specialists, including a team of art historians and restoration experts who advised
LOV Group.
Elegant but not ostentatious, the 14 regal rooms and apartments, each named
for a notable figure from the past, take their cues from the noble family houses of
the 1700s. The whimsical upholstery by Pierre Frey plays on the green spaces of
the estate, with flowers blooming along the fabric-lined walls, while the Necker
Suite, one of the largest at nearly 1,300 square feet, is a nod to 18th-century
finance minister and statesman Jacques Necker.
It’s fitting that Alain Ducasse, known for his Michelin-starred restaurants in
London and Paris, was brought on board, as he would have undoubtedly pleased
the royal court with his extravagant five-course dinners and theatrics. (All meals
here begin, as Louis XIV’s would, with a glass of warm vegetable broth.) To add
The Necker Suite, named for Louis XVI’s finance minister
36 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Word ºf mouth ›
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: M
ATTH
IEU
SA
LVA
ING
checking in
to the pomp, the subterranean spa not only has
hand-painted frescoes and a checkerboard
Carrara-marble floor but also a 50-foot swimming
pool. More than 100 staffers, all passionate about
Versailles, wear bespoke matching waistcoats and
breeches by Marie-France Croyeau of Terre et Ciel,
which also designed uniforms for La Mamounia
and Royal Mansour in Marrakech. Every employee
was plucked from the very best hotels in France—
the general manager from L’Hotel in Saint-Germain,
a butler from the Peninsula Paris. Several butlers
are part-time actors, ready to entertain at a
moment’s notice. Their enthusiasm for this role-
play is evident as they explain the most minute
details of palatial life.
But what takes the cake (preferably a gâteau au
chocolat by Ducasse) is the unprecedented access
the hotel offers to the palace. Every evening, after the
imperial doors are closed to visitors, guests can go
on guided tours and explore corners like the off-
limits dressing rooms connected to the king and
queen’s apartments. Even more thrilling is a moment
to reflect in an empty Hall of Mirrors, the impressive
gallery where some of the grandest royal fêtes
occurred and where the Treaty of Versailles was
signed in 1919. Entry to certain parts of the estate,
including the labyrinth of gardens by landscape
architect André Le Nôtreis, is also allowed before
Versailles opens for the day to the general public.
A stay here is like being given an after-hours
all-access pass. With the entire grounds of Versailles
at your disposal, you could disappear for a clandes-
tine picnic along the Grand Canal or lie back on an
antique daybed while feasting on Ladurée macarons
or ring a bell for a candlelit dinner in your private
chambers. However you choose to spend your time
reliving history, returning to reality will be an
adjustment. kasia dietz
Doubles from about $2,000; airelles.com
The 17th- century Orangerie of Versailles
Lunch on the terrace at the Alain Ducasse–helmed restaurant
The hotel’s elegant Salon d’Audience
A bust watches over the hotel library
37CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
> Where to grab breakfast— or a nightcapThough you’re better off staying close to the Chao Phraya for easy sightseeing, you should still hit up the Wes Anderson–esque Josh Hotel, if only for the carbs: Volks makes excellent bagels (try the activated charcoal and black sesame varieties) slathered with wasabi or wildraspberry cream cheese. If you visit after dark, ask for the key to room 72: It leads to a speakeasystyle cocktail den. joshhotel.com
> Not just any old cup of joeWhat sets Nana Coffee Roasters apart from the myriad other hip cafés nearby is its treelined garden. A hot spot for digital nomads, the second outpost of this local favorite has more than 30 singleorigin beans in its arsenal, which baristas prepare at the slow bar, the siphon brewer, or in sweet espressobased concoctions with coconut foam and yuzu soda. nana coffeeroasters.com
OUTSIDE INFLUENCEJust beyond central Bangkok, the laid-back enclave of Ari is pulling in a cool new crowd
> Art for allHaving also lived in Melbourne and London, creative director Rom Sangkavatana sees Ari as Bangkok’s analog to buzzy, communityminded neighborhoods like Fitzroy or South Kensington. At his yearold gallery and retail space Townhouse, he aims to channel the area’s creative energy with flowerarranging workshops and coffee cuppingcourses, plus exhibitions by Thai artists. townhousespace.com
> Restaurant mainstayWhile neighboring businesses have come and gone, the glassandconcrete exterior of Salt has been a constant in Ari’s social scene since 2010. Cluedin locals stop by for casual dinners that fuse Italian, Japanese, and French flavors and techniques—think duck confit and scallop noodles—and to sip organic wine in the cactusstudded courtyard. Dinner for two from $40; saltbangkok.com
> Thai styleThe city’s indie fashion scene is loaded with treasures, but it can be tricky to navigate without language skills and insider intel. The industry vets behind concept store HIDE. (who go by Tao and Fang) have made everything easy for you, stocking the shelves with Thaidesigned shirts, shorts, and dresses in natural hues and breezy silhouettes, plus a range of monochrome basics from their own collection, H. by HIDE. hide-selected.com
> Local spiritsWhen the sun sets, the neon lights flick on at quirky Oh! Vacoda Café, where avocado appears in all of the dishes (and some of the drinks); the change signals its transformation into Fruit Bar, a divey social club with mismatched furnishings and scribbly patterns on the walls. You’ll find more than 40 types of umeshu (plum wine) and home brews made with SangSom Rum and plums grown by hill tribes in Northern Thailand.
Fruit Bar’s homemade umeshu
Townhouse, a retail space, gallery, and community hangout
Chubby Dough, a purveyor of milkshakes and doughnuts
The midcentury villas and affordable apart-
ments in Ari, an area just south of Bangkok’s
riotously fun Chatuchak Weekend Market,
have long drawn artsy types who have moved there
to open art galleries and beer gardens along its leafy
roads. But in recent years, a younger generation has
arrived, adding photogenic matcha bars and burger
joints in pastel-hued next-gen concept spaces like
Gump’s. Now, mobile som tum vendors hawking
plates of crunchy green papaya salad share corners
with stamp-size espresso bars, and visitors can find
artisanal doughnuts (try the ones at Chubby Dough)
alongside syrupy khanom, or traditional Thai
sweets. Wander down the low-key streets Soi Ari 4
and 5 for a taste of what’s seduced so many locals
and expats. chris schalkx
38 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Word ºf moutH ›
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: C
HR
IS S
CH
ALK
X
walk this block
FAMILY STYLEFor scattered clans longing to reunite, nothing’s better than renting a great big compound with ample space to entertain
Clockwise from left: Summertime fun at Camp Wandawega in Elkhorn, Wisconsin; the camp’s tree house, in the middle of the grounds; a lunch spread at Wandawega
A bout a decade ago, my wife and I started
spending a week in the Hamptons each
June with a group of other families at a
charmingly run-down collection of converted farm
buildings. The place is like a little pocket of the
Catskills that got lost in chichi eastern Long Island:
It’s pleasingly rustic and disheveled, but the neighbors
own professional sports teams and keep Serra sculp-
tures on lawns large enough for their players to scrim-
mage. It’s one of those word-of-mouth rentals (I’ve
been asked not to name it), passed around through
the years among like-minded NYC creatives. Days
have a pleasing sameness, revolving around the divine
local beaches and cooking com-
munal alfresco meals utilizing
the compound’s multiple kitch-
ens and barbecues before sitting
by the fire with a glass of whatever’s being poured while the june bugs twinkle.
I dug this getaway when I was younger and childless, but as our group of friends
has aged and had babies and migrated out of New York City to the suburbs or
California, it has come to mean so much more—particularly now that my kids are
old enough to look forward to going each summer. The pandemic took it from us
last year, so it was especially sweet this summer to see my little ones reunited
with friends who’d grown a head since the last time we saw them and showed up
with new haircuts, new books, new lingo. And it was sweet for me, too, to have a
dear chef friend tutor me on my knife skills as we worked together prepping larb
and bun for the Southeast Asian–themed night or to sit up till midnight under the
stars talking about late-’70s Dylan and the Brooklyn Nets with a couple of dudes.
And it was sweet for all of us to come together and see that we’d all made it
through this dark time in the world and know that we could keep coming togeth-
er like this as our children grow taller and the lines around our eyes grow deeper.
So sweet, in fact, that a bunch of us plan to do it again soon, at a converted
boys camp on Lake Pemaquid in MidCoast Maine, where we’ll once again cook
and swim and sit by the fire. In my life so far, outside of the those weeks in the
Hamptons, I’ve really only taken part in these kinds of big group rentals for
40 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Word ºf moutH ›
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: A
IMEE
MA
ZZ
ENG
A, B
OB
CO
SC
AR
ELLI
Group Travel
Camp WandawegaElkhorn, WisconsinFirst opened as a speakeasy two hours north of Chicago and later reopened as a resort in the ’50s, Camp Wandawega has three- bedroom lakefront cabins, rustic bunkhouses that sleep up to 24, or the modern two-bedroom Hillhouse. All include access to sum-mercamp go-tos like fishing, canoeing, hiking, archery, and more. Cabins from $650 per night; wandawega.com
Scarp Ridge LodgeCrested Butte, ColoradoFind relaxing mountain elegance behind a former saloon storefront in this six-bedroom getaway from Eleven Experience. They’ve thought of everything, from the seven-bunk dorm room for the kids to the oxygen- enriched air system to help you adjust to the nearly 9,000-foot altitude. Wind down after exploring
destination weddings. But our cohort
has pretty much aged out of weddings,
and our lives have taken us farther
and farther apart from one another, so
we need weeks like these to come
back together, to eat, to check up on
each other. There are email threads
going right now about Taos, Andros,
Mallorca. Who knows where we’ll meet
up next. jesse ashlock
Crested Butte’s summer hiking trails and winter slopes in the indoor salt-water pool, steam room, or rooftop hot tub. $19,900 per night based on 10 people (maximum occupancy is 14); elevenexperience.com
EleanthiPirgos, GreeceSet on one of the highest points in Pirgos, just a few minutes from the beach on the Mani Peninsula and just over three hours south-west of Athens, this former 19th-century monastery turned five-bedroom vaca-tion home split between two semidetached builldings has incredible views from its private rooftop balcony. There’s room for everyone to spread out, between the main kitchen, airy courtyard, olive garden, and multiple living areas with original stonework. From $450 per night for up to 13 guests; eleanthi.com
La Selva Giardino del Belvedere Montegonzi, ItalyThis luxe 17th-century estate with three villas, about an hour’s drive from Florence, has something for everyone: a private saltwater pool, 45 acres of olive trees, pizza ovens (yes, more than one!), views of the Tuscan countryside from every angle, and even a stone amphitheater. Be sure to coordinate a chef-prepared dinner (or at the very least a private pasta- making lesson) during your stay. From $980 per night for up to 10 guests; chianti-farm.com
Casa BlueTamarindo, Costa RicaWhether you’re in the infinity pool, standing on one of the balconies, or inside the light-filled living room, this five- bedroom cliffside Airbnb has prime views over Tamarindo Bay on the west coast and the surrounding rain forest. But the best perspectives come from the two wooden pagoda-style bungalows—each with its own bedroom, en suite bathroom, and outdoor shower—just a few steps from the main villa, all set on one and a half acres, which feel like a complete escape from reality. From $1,100 for up to 10 guests; airbnb.com meredith carey
5 AMAZING RENTALS FOR MULTIFAMILY RETREATS
Wandawega’s A-frame tent cabins have cots and lounge chairs
Outside the historic Old Bunkhouse at Wandawega
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: JE
NN
IFER
LAW
REN
CE,
KAT
E B
ERR
Y
Word ºf moutH
It might be called the Windy City,
but Chicago never blows its own
horn. And yet America’s third-
largest metropolis has plenty to brag
about, from its cultural legacy and
historic architecture to its influential
food scene (whether you’re talking
about the Obamas’ date-night fave
Spiaggia or Polish-sausage subs the
length of your arm). As Chicago enters
its next chapter, its strength, beauty,
and get-her-done attitude are more
evident than ever. Throughout the city
center, a clutch of sophisticated hotels
is welcoming back travelers, while
top chefs are rolling out restaurants
that showcase globally minded but
neighborhood-driven fine dining. Of
course, if it’s a beer and a burger you’re
after, you’re in luck there too, thanks
to a slew of craft-beer bars elevating a
beloved local classic.
But it isn’t just hot openings that
make the Paris of the Prairie so excit-
ing right now—it’s also the spirit of
community. You’ll see it in the latest
edition of the Chicago Architecture
Biennial, opening in September,
which tasked star designers from
around the world with permanently
reimagining abandoned public spaces.
Construction is also set to begin on
the 19-acre Obama Presidential
Center, with a museum, a branch of
the public library, and gardens. When
it opens in 2025, it’ll usher in a new
era for the South Side—home to the
University of Chicago and the tradi-
tional nexus of Black life in the city.
“Chicago has a civically engaged
spirit that’s only been bolstered by the
pandemic,” says Louise Bernard,
director of the Museum of the Obama
Presidential Center, who shares her
area picks here. “People are eager to
reengage.” With so much going on,
there has never been a better time to
visit. andrew sessa
CHICAGO HOPEWith its many openings and new experiences, the Midwestern giant embodies the sense of optimism beginning to take hold again in America
The iconic Willis Tower, still called Sears Tower by many
44 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Word ºf moutH ›
PH
OTO
GR
AP
H:
NIK
OLA
S K
OEN
IG/O
TTO
on the ground
Classic Chi-Town hotels like the Drake and Palmer House became icons by being great places to
stay and social hubs for perfectly poured cocktails and celebratory meals. The new crop extends
this legacy. After stepping into the four-month-old Pendry Chicago, in a gold-crowned Art Deco
landmark building in the Loop, you’ll want to go everywhere at once: the clubby lobby bar for a
cocktail, the French brasserie for oysters and steak tartare, and the reservations-only rooftop for
sushi and rosé. Wherever you start, the high-ceilinged, midcentury-style rooms are a nice place to
end up. At Adorn, up the Magnificent Mile, James Beard Award–winner Jonathon Sawyer’s
charred-tomato tartlet is a can’t-miss at the just-renovated Four Seasons Hotel Chicago, as are the Lake Michigan Terrace Suites, whose block-long water-view verandas were previously
open only to longer-stay guests. Set on the restaurant row called Fulton Market, super-chef Nobu
Matsuhisa’s Nobu Hotel is a hushed reprieve from the crowds outside: Rooms are a relaxing combo
of Japanese minimalism and the neighborhood’s industrial vibe. Of course you’ll want to eat at
the golden-hued Nobu restaurant, but don’t skip the rooftop bar. Set to open by the end of the year
is the Financial District’s LaSalle Chicago, Autograph Collection, an urban aerie occupying the top
five floors of one of Chicago’s first skyscrapers, a 22-story Classic Revival landmark.
Best Beds in TownLike the city itself, Chicago’s newest hotels are playful and sophisticated
The Art Deco exterior of Pendry Chicago in the Loop
NO SECOND CITYThis fall Chicago showcases the breadth and diversity of its culture-scape
For the fourth edition of the Chicago Architecture Biennial, dubbed the Available City, organizers paired community groups with big-ticket international designers to permanently rethink abandoned urban spaces. A particular high-light is a new entry plaza, designed by Tokyo-based Atelier Bow-Wow in part-nership with local artists, architects, and community groups, for a 1.7-mile High Line–style elevated park being developed in the Englewood neigh-borhood, on the South Side. The multi-site Toward Common Cause, a presen-tation from the University of Chicago’s Smart Museum of Art in conjunction with the Chicago-based MacArthur Fellows Program, which turns 40 this year, explores the idea of the commons through works by 29 artists who have received “genius grants” since the program’s inception. Finally, in November, the legendary Steppenwolf Theater unveils a $54 million expansion and renovation, including a theater in the round. Leading the blockbuster lineup on the main stage is King James, a Steppenwolf original about basketball icon LeBron James.
46 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Word ºf moutH ›
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: S
AN
DY
NO
TO/E
SM
E, K
ATH
LEEN
RO
BIN
SO
N/C
HIK
ATA
NA
, MAT
T H
AA
S/R
OS
E M
AR
Y, S
TEV
E H
ALL
/HED
RIC
H B
LES
SIN
G
on the ground
> “The 61st Street Farmers Market at the nonprofit community space Experimental Station is devoted to community and urban farms around the city, with a special focus on Black farmers. I’m partial to savory pies from Pleasant House Bakery and cheese from Stamper Cheese Company.”
> “Located by the University of Chicago campus, the Seminary Co-op Bookstore—and its satellite, 57th Street Books—is a favorite haunt. I often go in for something specific but then find something else too, because the curation is so wonderful.”
> “Chicago artist Theaster Gates and his Rebuild Foundation transformed an old bank into the Stony Island Arts Bank. It has exhibi-tions, music, yoga, outdoor programming, and a film series.”
> “I love Virtue, from local chef Erick Williams, who brought this corridor of 51st Street to life. The food has a Southern slant (the gumbo with a side of cornbread is maybe my favorite). He’s friends with many artists, so there’s great art on walls.”
> “In Burnham Park, Promontory Point has bike trails and wonderful lake views. I love to walk and run here. There’s also the restaurant and jazz spot The Promontory, which has the best chickpea fries.”
Food MattersAt the city’s buzziest new restaurants, the theme is Midwest meets the world
MY NEIGHBORHOODLouise Bernard, director of the Museum of the Obama Presidential Center, which breaks ground this fall on the South Side, shares her top spots in the area
Think of month-old New American–style Esmé in Lincoln Park as Chicago on a plate. Owners Jenner Tomaska, formerly of Michelin-starred Next, and Katrina Bravo source everything locally, from the Tarbais bean masa steamed in leeks to the crockery.
Expectations were understandably high for the Adriatic-inspired Rose Mary, the f irst solo spot from ex-Spiaggia executive chef and Top Chef champ Joe Flamm, in Fulton Market. The graceful tuna crudo and hearty lamb ragu show he has more than met them.
Chef Zubair Mohajir ’s Indian pop-up Wazwan Supper Club earned a cult following for its impeccable chicken ballotine, which is wrapped in its own skin and cooked sous vide for two hours. This summer, Mohajir opened the brick-and-mortar Amăn, in lively West Town.
Chicago-born Guillermo Reyes honors both his Mexican heritage and his hometown with plates like American Wagyu carne asada and seasonal caulif lower “chorizo” at new Chikatana in Fulton Market. But the mezcal, agave, and tequila-heavy cocktails feel decidedly south-of-the-border.
> Bitter PopsHood: Lakeview Don’t miss: the local Hop Butcher for the World Pro tip: Pull your own to-go brews at the adjacent craft-beer shop
> Ravinia Brewing Co.Hood: Logan Square Don’t miss: the Steep Ravine IPA Pro tip: Hit up the taco truck out back for asada
> Solemn Oath BreweryHood: Logan Square Don’t miss: Lü Kolsch Pro tip: Check out bathroom murals by the artist of the beers’ labels
> Life on Marz Community ClubHood: Bucktown Don’t miss: American Pale wheat Jungle Boogie Pro tip: Watch for killer pop-ups from local chefs
Inside the Seminary Co-op Bookstore
WHEN IT’S BEER O’ CLOCK
Stop in at these epic new
craft-brew hubs
47CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Why wE trAVelthe experiences that change how we see the world
Into the Woods Surrounded by fellow foodies in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, Ashlea Halpern rediscovers the joy of getting really, really far away from it all
For 452 days, I fantasized about
what it would be like to travel
again. I imagined diving into the
turquoise sea in Turks and Caicos or
stuffing myself silly at a Taiwanese night
market. What I didn’t picture was sitting
around a campfire in the backwoods of
Michigan on an early June night, trading
tips on pig butchery.
And yet here I am, having scored a
last-minute reservation at Milkweed
Inn, the latest venture of the lauded
Chicago chef Iliana Regan. In early
2019, fed up with the churn and burn of
the restaurant industry, Iliana and her
sommelier wife, Anna, bought a four-
bedroom hunting lodge, sight unseen,
on 150 acres in Hiawatha National
Forest, seven and a half hours north
Chef Iliana Regan prepares a meal in a Dutch oven at Milkweed Inn
→
51CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
PH
OTO
GR
AP
H:
KEN
DR
A S
TAN
LEY
MIL
LS
of Detroit. The yard is carpeted with wild strawberries and fiddlehead ferns, its
perimeter ringed with elderberry bushes. The place is so remote, and the old
logging road to reach it so rutted, the women often pick up their guests at a gas
station 28 miles away and bring them out in a four-wheel drive. Even those with
the gears to make the trek aren’t allowed to attempt it alone, instead trailing Anna
on the winding, cell-service-free road that leads to the compound.
The couple hosted their first guests that summer while simultaneously running
the Michelin-starred restaurant Elizabeth in Chicago. Thanks to early media
attention, a cap of 10 guests per weekend (six in the lodge; four more split
between a canvas-walled tent and a silver Airstream), and a season that spans
only May through October, Milkweed was quickly booked solid for the next two
years. Then the pandemic forced the pair to push all their reservations back a
year. On a whim last spring I joined the waiting list (like Sweden’s now-shuttered
Fäviken, Milkweed is the kind of forest-to-fork destination where you book
the table first and worry about getting there later), and by some miracle of the
calendar gods immediately landed a spot.
After 50 minutes bumping through corridors of sun-dappled pines, dust bil-
lowing in our tracks, we arrive. Immediately, four dogs bound out of a modest
pine log cabin, barking their fool heads off; there’s George, a fluffy Newfoundland
with a graybeard’s tired face; Bunny, an Old English sheepdog; and Shih Tzus
Clementine and Bear, the latter of whom cannot and will not be befriended.
Iliana is out back when we pull up, stoking the fire beneath an enormous lake
trout. She wears her pants tucked into her hiking socks and is so soft-spoken
I have to lean in to hear her. It’s not what I expect from someone whose viscerally
raw, hard-partying 2019 memoir, Burn the Place,
opens with a fantasy of torching her own restaurant.
Raised on a 10-acre farm in rural Indiana, the self-
taught cook battled countless demons—alcohol,
gender dysphoria, the death of a beloved sister—on
her rise to the top of Chicago’s restaurant scene. The
one thing that kept her grounded was cooking.
Watching her pinball between the kitchen and firepit,
unfurling sheets of fresh pasta, scoring sourdough in
a Dutch oven, and rhythmically cracking eggs on the
rims of metal bowls, you sense a steadiness beneath
all of the movement.
Despite her success (industry hotshots René
Redzepi and David Chang are fanboys), her decision
to slow down was a long time coming. The exhaus-
tion of running Elizabeth—as well as the critically
acclaimed Kitsune and the micro-bakery Bunny,
both of which shuttered in 2019—consumed her.
Milkweed was a ticket out. “My dream was to have
something small, where I was foraging and growing
my own food and using extremely local ingredients,”
says Iliana. “This was everything I ever wanted and
beyond my wildest dreams.”
Anna ushers us onto the porch, where we ex-
Carrots charred over an open fire
52 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Why wE trAVel ›
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: KE
ND
RA
STA
NLE
Y M
ILLS
, SA
RA
STA
THA
S
Pilgrimage
change pleasantries with other guests over fruit
leather and cashew cheese. We lavish attention on
the dogs, because they’re the easiest thing to talk
about when everyone’s social skills have spent the
last year rusting on concrete blocks. Still, it’s a
good warm-up for what will effectively be a three-
day dinner party.
The night’s inaugural meal offers a taste of things to come: smoked trout with
pesto, pierogi stuffed with sauerkraut and mushrooms, a wild-strawberry sorbet
laced with tender young spruce shoots. After dinner, Anna cracks open a bottle of
Two James Spirits J. Riddle peated bourbon, and the ice begins to splinter. I look
around at my dining companions, including a gym teacher and an orthopedic
surgeon, and think of how a love of good food and the outdoors unites us. It feels
nice, almost natural even, to break bread with strangers and leave as friends, though
it helps that Milkweed is self-selecting. “Our guests know what they’re getting into
here,” says Iliana. “They’re ready for this experience.”
By that, she means a real-deal, off-the-grid lodge: solar panels, well water, no
Wi-Fi. The cabin is too secluded to wander off-property, so guests busy them-
selves with activities. With her tips, I scour the forest floor for ramps and yarrow,
and rumble down back roads in an ATV, pausing at a pond dotted with butter-
yellow lilies. Thunder ripples across the sky as I try my hand at archery, steadying
the bow exactly as Anna showed me and squealing when my arrow zips through
the air with a satisfying snap. Other guests curl up with a book on the lodge’s
covered deck or pick Iliana’s giant brain about foraging and fermentation. Over
the next two days, we feast on the
fruits of her labor: five extraordinary
meals, including an epic tasting menu
on Saturday night. In Iliana’s world, a
salad is never just a salad. It’s mustard
greens, violet leaves, spruce shoots
plucked from the forest, and koji-fermented black
beans tossed in a wild-blackberry vinaigrette. Ramp
pasta is just that—plus trout lily, stinging nettle,
marsh marigold, cattail shoots, egg-yolk amino
acids, and a “shit ton of butter.”
Four hours pass like this, with an exquisite parade
of creative dishes, but I’m too lost in merry banter to
notice the time. Like riding a bicycle, the old rhythms
of confabulation come roaring back, and all the
anxiety I’ve been hanging on to falls away. Belly
laughs echo through the rafters as the dogs run
maniacal circles through the house. Iliana wipes
down the counters, and Anna checks and rechecks
that our glasses are full. And indeed they are.
Milkweed Inn hosts guests weekends from May through
October. Rates from $1,750 for two for a two-night stay,
all meals and activities included; milkweedinn.com
From top: A guest room in the main cabin; a 16-foot Airstream, one of the accommodations; Bunny, the Regans’ Old English sheepdog
53CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Chart Your Own CourseAboard a yacht in the British Virgin Islands, David LaHuta finds the next great (and affordable) family vacation
My family and I have just boarded our 50-foot chartered catamaran, and
the wind is whipping through our hair as we enter Sir Francis Drake
Channel, a deep blustery strait that connects much of the British Virgin
Islands. Our captain, a scruffy, bearded Texan named Tyrone LaRue, points out
Dead Chest Island, an uninhabited knob where the pirate Blackbeard marooned
his crew with nothing but a saber and a bottle of rum. The legend inspired Robert
Louis Stevenson’s song “Dead Man’s Chest,” which appeared in Treasure Island.
According to local lore, only a handful of the crew made it. We sing the sea
chantey, or at least the “yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum” part, and imagine what
these waters were like then.
Geographically speaking, not much has changed. Sailors know that the over 50
isles in this British Overseas Territory east of Puerto Rico still provide calm,
protected coves, and that the trade winds, which consistently move from east to
west, make this archipelago one of the finest boating destinations in the world.
One of charter company The Mooring’s yachts, near Sandy Cay in the British Virgin Islands
56 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Why wE trAVel ›
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: TH
E M
OO
RIN
GS,
CR
AIG
FO
RD
HA
M
On Board
What is less common knowledge is that chartering a yacht here, as well as in
many vacation spots around the globe, can cost less than a luxury resort.
This is a relatively new phenomenon. When The Moorings, the company my
family worked with, began operations in the British Virgin Islands in 1969, it had
six 35-foot Pearson yachts, tight-quartered, two-cabin monohulls that required
extensive sailing know-how and deep pockets. Back then, The Moorings was the
sole charter company in the region. These days, its diversified fleet is more than
400 strong in more than 20 destinations—a success story that has encouraged
tech-savvy newcomers like GetMyBoat and Yachtico to get in on the charter
game and try to appeal to Gen X and millennial travelers. Like The Moorings,
they offer crewed yachts where a captain and first mate do the work, as well as
“bareboat” charters, where guests with certified licenses can take the helm,
significantly lowering costs. With thousands of ultra-modern vessels available to
book, some of which sleep 12 comfortably, charter companies are courting
younger generations who crave not only the freedom granted by a sailing vaca-
tion but also the value it can provide.
Charter yachts are also great options for families with young kids, like mine.
The yacht we picked up in Road Town, Tortola, the largest and most populated
of the BVI, was more like a fully kitted-out floating home than a traditional
sailboat. In addition to the high-tech extras (solar-powered water makers and
push-button winches), it had modern bathrooms, air-conditioning, spacious
seating, and luxe amenities like a bow trampoline with plush beanbag chairs,
a teak swimming platform, and a 12-foot dinghy. And, of course, we could take it
wherever we wished. Unlike cruise ships, which have set itineraries and desig-
nated ports, charter boats let you choose your own adventure. This flexibility is
particularly apparent in the BVI, since unlike other popular sailing archipelagos
(such as French Polynesia), all of the islands are within sight, which means you
don’t have full days of sailing to
reach your next stop. You basically
wake up, decide where you want
to go next, and arrive within an
hour or so of active sailing.
Back on the water, Tyrone is
busy tacking and jibbing through
the whitecapped sea when my
young sons, Jackson and Tyler, ask
to sit at the helm. Once they’re
installed behind the wheel, Tyrone
resumes his geography lesson. We
learn that the Virgin Islands were
named by Christopher Columbus
in honor of Saint Ursula, a fourth-
century Catholic saint, and the
alleged 11,000 virgins who were
martyred alongside her. Tyrone
also tells us where we’re headed:
the tiny 1,779-acre Peter Island.
From Tortola it takes about 45
minutes to reach Peter Island,
where we anchor in a calm bay
where there’s not much more than
the setting sun and a handful of other boats. About
an hour later, savory smells waft through the galley
and out to the aft deck, where my wife, Joy, and I are
relaxing with cold glasses of Minuty rosé. Tyrone is
grilling pork tenderloin; Jess, his first mate and wife,
is busy whipping up asparagus tips with a brandy
cream sauce and a sweet potato mash.
The following morning, we awake to poached
eggs on avocado toast. It’s time for the captain’s
daily briefing. “The plan is to circumnavigate the
BVI,” says Tyrone, holding a colorful map for us all
to see. He quizzes the boys on where we’ve been and
tells us that our next stop will be Cooper Island.
After Jackson feeds a school of blue runners from
the swim platform and we’ve begun sipping our first
round of pineapple mimosas, we’re off. Forty minutes
later we drop anchor in a quiet cove called Man-
chioneel Bay and swim the 30 yards to shore. We
beachcomb for sea whips and intact urchin tests—
the creatures’ spiny exoskeletons—then hike up a
steep brush-lined slope to Cooper’s highest point.
From atop the breezy hill we have a bird’s-eye
view of Virgin Gorda—a voluptuous volcanic island
so named because Columbus thought its profile
looked like an overweight woman lying on her side.
The next morning we’re there, and our excitement
builds as we anchor near its most impressive
natural attraction, a national park
called the Baths where massive
granite boulders form grottoes you
can wade into. It’s a magical morning
that gets even better when Tyrone
arranges for a taxi driver to escort
us to Hog Heaven, a mountaintop
barbecue spot where the fall-off-
the-bone ribs are almost as epic as
the panoramic view.
The rest of the week follows a
similar cadence of exploration and
relaxation. We visit Anegada, a
pancake- flat atoll where feral
donkeys and goats roam free, flocks
of flamingos splash in muddy marsh-
lands, and visitors explore dusty
roads in Mokes, the classic British
open-air vehicle. Eventually, we end
up at Cow Wreck Beach Bar, on the
island’s northern tip, where we mix
our own rum cocktails and tally our
tab on a notepad. The joint, perched
on a white sand beach with license
57CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
plates and faded flags nailed to its wooden rafters, is as close to a Kenny
Chesney song as you can get. Other days we follow Tyrone on under-
and above-water adventures. One afternoon we snorkel through schools
of blue-striped grunt near Monkey Point, off the southern tip of Guana
Island; on another we explore Norman Island’s water-level caves, where
we swim past blooms of moon jellyfish. On the 163-acre isle of Little
Jost Van Dyke, we trail Tyrone down a narrow goat path to the Bubbly
Pool, where crashing waves fill a small rock pool with frothy seawater,
creating a sort of natural jacuzzi. And one afternoon we make the
near-mandatory swim to the Soggy Dollar Bar on Jost Van Dyke, wet
cash in hand, and order painkillers (a cousin of the piña colada) while
the boys play ring toss in the sand.
Our last day is one for the family annals. We have some of the best
snorkeling of the trip near the unfortunately dubbed Indians, a group of
rocky outcroppings shaped like tipis, where we snorkel over kaleido-
scopic coral and through schools of reef fish so thick we have to part
them with our hands. Then Tyrone takes us to Pirates Bight, a peaceful
cove that’s home to a retrofitted tanker-cum-bar called the Willy T,
where locals and visitors jump into the water from its second-floor
deck, despite clearly posted signs advising to the contrary. Before we
know it, Tyler, our youngest, jumps, and the rest of us follow. That night
we have a fantastic last meal back on the boat. The thought of leaving is
hanging heavy in the air as Joy and I put the kids to sleep in their cabin
and then head to the top deck for one final nightcap under the stars.
The breeze is warm, the sky is black, and we watch as Orion’s Belt
slowly rises across the Milky Way.
In the BVI, a crewed four-cabin catamaran starts at $2,500 per person
per week, including meals and alcohol; without a crew, rates start at
$1,375 per person. Moorings.com
Long Bay Beach on Tortola, the largest of the BVI
5 charter yachts to check out
> Sailing Collective Travel Co. This NYC-based sailing specialist plans private charters (as well as group journeys bookable by the cabin) on 45-to-65-foot monohulls and catamarans that visit over 40 archi-pelagos and coastlines around the world, including Belize, Sicily, and French Polynesia. Depending on dates, a 57-foot monohull that sleeps eight for a week in Croatia’s Dalmatian Coast will run between $15,000 and $32,000. Sailingcollective.com
> EYOS Expeditions Since 2008, EYOS has been crafting trips to far-flung places like Antarctica and Papua New Guinea on kitted-out superyachts. Expect serious bells and whistles: helicopter hangars (for heli-ski excursions), ice-class hulls (to break polar ice beds), and Triton submarines, which safely bring guests more than 3,000 feet below the ocean’s surface. Taking over a 156-foot expedition yacht that sleeps 12 for approximately eight days in Antarctica comes in at $212,000. Eyos-expeditions.com
> Kontiki Expeditions In August, this newcomer to the charter scene launched two Ecuadorian itineraries on a pair of 128-foot luxury yachts; a third yacht is coming in early 2022. Each has nine staterooms and visits largely unexplored ports along five of the country’s coastal regions. For $152,800, you and 17 of your friends can have a yacht all to yourselves for seven nights. Kontikiexpeditions.com
> Yachtico With an inventory of more than 16,000 yachts in sought-after sailing regions (the Caribbean, Thailand, the Mediterranean), this digital platform connects vacationers with professionally maintained boats of all types and sizes. Prices start around $1,000 per week for a houseboat on a canal in Europe and top $280,000 per week for a 154-foot superyacht in the Caribbean. Yachtico.com
> GetMyBoat Like an Airbnb for watercraft, this San Francisco–based company offers some 140,000 boats in over 9,300 locations worldwide. For a seven- day charter around Mykonos, aboard a catamaran that sleeps 12, you can expect to pay around $11,130. Getmyboat.com. d.l.
58 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Why wE trAVel ›
PH
OTO
GR
AP
H:
SA
NA
E U
EYO
SH
I
on board
Casa Bortoli, a stately home on the Grand Canal
Piazza San Marco, on a morning during lockdown
Changing TideVenice has long been the poster child for the global overtourism crisis. Could a year without visitors prove to be a turning point? By Jackie Caradonio
In May, at the opening of the rescheduled Venice
Biennale of Architecture—pandemic edition—
banners hung from every doorway in the Arsenal
emblazoned with the question “How will we live
together?,” the theme of this year’s show. As I explored
photographer Marco Cappelletti’s hauntingly beauti-
ful City to Dust, a collection of images depicting an
empty Palazzo San Marco and a shuttered Rialto
Bridge, every step I took made an unsettling crunch.
The floor was constructed of terrazzo tiles in the
60 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
Why wE trAVel ›
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: M
AR
CO
VA
LMA
RA
NA
/FA
I FO
ND
O P
ER L
’AM
BIE
NTE
ITA
LIA
NO
Perspective
shape of Venice, suggesting the damage crowds do to the city. “Because the tourists
trample her soul...” the narrator of an accompanying video stated grimly. “Every
single step is, for every single visitor, a physical confrontation with his or her poten-
tially harmful impact on the environment.”
Bemoaning the perils of Venice—the cruise ships and dwindling population;
the fact that it’s more a theme park than a place where people live and thrive; and,
don’t forget, it’s sinking!—is nothing new. Observers have lamented the city’s
overexposure since at least 1909, when Henry James wrote in Italian Hours, “The
Venice of today is a vast museum...and you march through the institution with a
herd of fellow-gazers. There is nothing left to discover or describe....” But this was
hardly the Venice I encountered when my architect-husband, John, and I arrived
a few weeks before the Biennale—when tourism was still banned in Italy—to
build an installation for the exhibition. What we found was a city grappling with
how to move forward with the world paused.
All those quiet days and empty streets gave Venetians precious time to ponder
real-life solutions to their overtourism problem. The government has attempted
for years to alleviate the issue, passing measures from installing turnstiles to keep
a head count to taxing day-trippers, but some of the biggest initiatives in decades
gained traction while the city was in lockdown. In March, the government decreed
that it would ban cruise ships weighing more than 40,000 tons from the Venetian
lagoon. That same month, the mayors
of Venice and Florence teamed up on
a manifesto demanding that the
Italian government impose tighter
restrictions on the thousands of
short-term rentals contributing to the
cities’ housing crisis. And following
pressure from local activist groups,
Venice mayor Luigi Brugnero recently
announced his administration is
working on a booking system that will
establish quotas on tourist access to
the city’s historical center.
“It feels a bit like the beginning
of a new era,” says Valeria Duflot,
cofounder of the Venice-based think
tank Overtourism Solution. “The crisis
catapulted tourism to the top of the
political agenda, providing a historic opportunity to transform the industry at
the root.” For Venice, that transformation will come when the old extractive
tourism model—in which travelers focus solely on what they can take away from
a destination—is replaced with a regenerative model that also helps sustain local
communities. Duflot is helping to nudge that shift through her website Venezia
Autentica, which provides a veritable how-to guide to conscientious tourism,
listing locally owned businesses and certified tour guides, and suggesting itiner-
aries that take travelers off the beaten track by showcasing places like the
neoclassical Museo Correr and artisan workshops making authentic Carnival
masks. “The return of tourism at the level it used to be is expected for 2024,”
Duflot says, “and we aim by then to have created a dynamic of transformation
that renders going back to the old normal obsolete.”
The great COVID-19 reset also underpinned the need not just for fewer
tourists but for more Venetians. “The pandemic
made absolutely clear the total dependence on
tourism to survive,” says Fabio Carrera, a professor
at Worcester Polytechnic Institute Massachusetts,
who teaches part-time in Venice and for 30 years has
studied solutions to improve local life through his
WPI Venice Project Center. “The real problem is not
tourism—it’s that there are no alternatives to
tourism.” At least half the working population is in
travel, giving the industry outsize power over every-
thing from the types of businesses that survive
(souvenir shops, not grocery stores) to the funding
of public transportation (which runs more regularly
to tourist locales). Carrera argues that developing
tech and other entrepreneurial industries indepen-
dent of tourism will create a more livable Venice—
and a more attractive home base for new residents.
To that end, this fall, his incubator on the island of
Giudecca, across from San Marco, will launch a new
partnership with MIT that aims to help Venetian
start-ups get off the ground.
Of course, Venice can’t be fixed overnight. Both
Carrera and Duflot say their missions are focused on
the long term. “It’s going to take 10, 20, maybe 30
years to get where we want to be,” Carrera says. This
became especially obvious on June 3, when the first
cruise ship in more than a year sailed past Piazza
San Marco. Soon after, in response to UNESCO
advisers’ recommendation that the organization list
Venice as an endangered site, the Italian government
said it would begin enforcing its ban on August 1,
also lowering the weight limit to 25,000 tons.
On our last night in Venice, the city was quiet,
save for a few Biennale-goers, as John and I sat at
our usual table at La Zucca, a neighborhood spot
that seemed to draw enough locals to remain busy
even without tourists. I watched an older couple to
my left order without looking at the menu. But it was
the table of four to my right that was interested in us.
When we told them we were American, their disap-
pointment was palpable. I knew they’d already
begun to miss their hushed little city.
I wanted to tell them that over the past three
weeks, John and I had slowly soaked in Venice rather
than gulping it all up in a day like most tourists. We’d
become regulars at restaurants owned by locals and
skipped many of the standard attractions for visits
to family-run squeri, or boatyards on the lagoon.
Instead, though, I just raised my glass.
“To Venice!” I said earnestly.
“To Venice,” they echoed back.
Without travelers, the vaporetti ran empty last May
61CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
right around the corner
after a year of hardship for
new york city’s chinatown,
a younger generation is
writing the neighborhood’s
next chapterBy Francis Lam Photographs by Andrew Bui
62
A tenement building on
East Broadway
Opposite: Sweet and
savory tofu puddings with
plenty of toppings
at Fong On
mother cried when I got a job in Chinatown. “Twenty
years we worked there so you wouldn’t have to,” she
said, sobbing. She shopped there, she worshipped
there, she ate there, but for her, the point was to get
out of there: To be somewhere else meant you’d
made it. Eventually she calmed down enough to say,
“Fine. But if you hear gunshots, don’t be a hero.”
It was 1999, and Chinatown had become plenty
safe. It had always been always delicious. And even
though I never told her this, it had always felt like
home. Not in a comforting way, in a place-of- loving-
obligation way. You see, I’m the son of immigrants
from Hong Kong, and I spent my entire youth
blowing off my parents’ every attempt to assimilate
me into their culture. Now I can never feel Chinese
enough.
For years I would take visitors to Chinatown and
play tour guide with expert, practiced lines. I’d tell
them that Mott Street General Store opened in the
1800s to sell groceries to Chinese men forced to
cook for themselves because America forbade them
to bring their wives. I’d take them to Fong Inn Too, a
fresh tofu shop, where, standing on the always-wet
floors and eating over a garbage can, we’d devour
warm bowls of silky soy pudding, barely set, quiver-
ing on our spoons under a veil of brown sugar
syrup. I’d see them stop and stare when they turned
the corner of Doyers Street to glimpse the picture-
perfect, movie- set Chinatown view, and I’d know it
was the right moment to drop the bit about how this
used to be called the Bloody Angle because of all the
triad killings on This. Very. Spot. (No, Mom, really,
that hasn’t happened in decades.) If I couldn’t grow
up in Hong Kong like my mother did, then at least
I could feel like I had a place in Chinatown.
Chinatown has always occupied an uneasy spot
in the life of New York City. Starting in the 1870s,
Chinese men who’d been harassed out of California
by that era’s anti-Chinese movement started set-
tling into a corner of the infamous Five Points slum
and turned to work that wouldn’t threaten white
men, like cooking and laundry. Soon after, the
my
64
Clockwise from top left: The aftermath of a meal at Hop Kee; Sophia Ng Tsao (seated), who runs the specialty market Po Wing Hong with her father, Patrick Ng, and her mom, Nancy; a mural on Division Street
Opposite from top: The corner of Mott and Canal, the heart of Chinatown; dishware at K.K. Discount Store
65
restaurants they opened began attracting bohemi-
ans; today, of course, every Chinatown in America
is basically a playground for foodies. But because
it is situated next door to SoHo and Nolita, the inex-
orable creep of gentrification makes New York’s
Chinatown a precarious home to dumplings that go
five for a dollar. And the neighborhood faces other
crises, most recently the anti-Asian attacks brought
on by the pandemic. Even so, Chinatown today, just
as it was a century and a half ago when it got its
start as a refuge from racism, is no less driven by
its will to live.
A few months ago, I turned that corner on Doyers
Street and got a cup of steaming ginger-lemon tea at
Mee Sum Cafe with Grace Young, an unassuming
titan of Chinese food writing. “Hop Shing, 47 years
old, gone,” Grace said, beginning to list the old-line
businesses that didn’t make it through the pandem-
ic, each utterance a paying of respects. “69 Bayard
Restaurant, 61 years. Hoy Wong, 42 years. Lung
Moon Bakery, over 50 years.” We sat in the middle of
a street empty but for a row of dining tables set with
tablecloths, waiting for soup-dumpling eaters to
emerge. “I don’t want a Chinatown that’s all trendy
stuff, like bouncy cheesecakes and mochi dough-
nuts,” she said. “If you lose the classics, they will go
away forever.” (I agree, but for the record, bouncy
cheesecake and mochi doughnuts are phenomenal.)
That afternoon, I walked around the neighbor-
hood for hours, my first visit after a COVID-19 year
away. I saw the rolled-down security shutters that
break Grace’s heart: one for every three or four
doors, it seemed. But this, also, has been a fact of life
in this neighborhood, even before the pandemic and
the hate crimes bared their teeth. That tofu shop
> the greatest hits On the corner of Mott and Mosco, down a dark flight of stairs, unassuming neigh-borhood stalwart Hop Kee has been serving up no-frills Cantonese fare since 1968—but the lack of fuss is
see the sights, try the food
exactly why you go (and why Anthony Bourdain loved it). Slide into a booth and order the crabs Can-tonese style, served in a rich brown sauce, and the salted squid with spicy green pepper. Over on East Broadway, Hwa Yuan
Szechuan’s white tablecloths are great for a dressed-up family dinner or a Friday night on the town; for something more low-key, Noodle Village on Mott is the perfect casual spot to roll into around 4 p.m. on a Saturday for
66
steaming bowls of pork wonton noodle soup. On Doyers, Nom Wah Tea Parlor has been open since 1920, making it the oldest continuously running restaurant in Chinatown—and it’s still buzzing today, with locals and visi-
tors who pack in each weekend for dim sum staples like shrimp shumai and Shang-hainese soup dump-lings. By contrast, Mee Sum Cafe on Pell Street feels like a place that time forgot, with hulking dun- colored cash registers
and metal barstools crowned with burnt- orange leather. Order one of the banana-leaf-encased sticky rice bundles, which sit by the dozens in trays on the counter, and a whole fish, marinated in soy sauce and scal-lions, if it’s available.
> new kids on the blockThough Koreatown is technically three miles north, some of the best KFC—Korean fried chicken, that is—is on Pell Street, where Boka Korean Fried Chicken opened in 2019.
Do a 10-piece order, along with a gut- busting helping of bulgogi French fries and a watermelon soju cocktail—served straight from a mini melon. Tonii’s Fresh Rice Noodle on Bayard opened in October of 2019,
Clockwise from top: Gary Lum at his family’s china shop, Wing On Wo & Co., run by his daughter, Mei Lum, the fifth-generation owner; chewy mochi doughnuts at Alimama Tea, a Chinatown newcomer; the menu at Fong On
Opposite: Nom Wah Tea Parlor, a Chinatown staple for dim sum for more than a century
→
67
I brought chefs to? Opened in 1933, it closed
four years ago. The Mott Street General Store shut
its doors in 2003. I don’t remember when the roast
duck at Big Wong started to taste different to me,
but that flavor, too, is gone. And I remembered
September 11, standing on these blocks, looking up
in the sky and seeing an attack on America whose
aftermath shut down lower Manhattan for months
and bled so many of Chinatown’s businesses dry.
I remember getting back here for the first time after
the smell of smoke started to finally go away and
seeing American flags in the windows of the busi-
nesses that made it.
As I ambled these once-again quiet streets, my
memory filled in the sights I used to see: vendors
grilling cumin-dusted kebabs like they do in western
China; a woman with skin like leather selling 100
spears of sugarcane. I didn’t have to rely on memory,
though, to see the familiar lady who could have been
though with its scuffed white floors, random stoner art, and half-empty boxes of supplies, it looks more like it’s moving out than in. But the young crew behind the counter makes you forget all that—as do the pillowy rice
noodles, with fresh shrimp and roasted duck. Tucked beneath the Manhattan Bridge, Hak Box is a sliver of a store at all of 200 square feet, but its namesake Hak Rolls, rice noodles stuffed with scallions and coated in bits of Spam
and dried shrimp, are worth the squeeze. Fong On, the next-gen incarnation of the shuttered neighbor-hood staple Fong Inn Too, sits on a quiet stretch of Division, with red floors and white tiles that feel unimposing but cool.
> indulge your sweet toothTraditionally, Chinese meals end with some-thing light, like a platter of seasonal fruit; full-fledged dessert items are typ-ically reserved for snack time, and in
Chinatown there is no shortage of snacks to be had. Start at Keki Modern Cakes on Mott Street, where the sweet scent of baked sugar hits you the second you step inside. The shop is known for its “bouncy cheesecake,” but the
my auntie coming down the block in a red tracksuit,
carrying a bag of leafy greens the size of her torso.
And then, in the shadow of the roaring overpass
of the Manhattan Bridge, I spotted a curious sign:
“Fong On, Family Tofu Shop, Established 1933.”
Could it be? The floors and walls were immaculate
white subway tile, the ceiling festooned with highly
Instagrammable red lanterns. I ordered a bowl of
the tofu pudding and asked for a spoon; there is
nothing quite like eating it fresh and warm—tasting
the bean as it slides down the back of your tongue.
As I left, a group of 20-somethings came in and
said, I swear, “Look at this aesthetic,” the word
sounding like an award.
Paul Eng, the owner, laughed when I told him that.
“When I was living in Russia, people told me that if
my photography didn’t work out, I should just come
home to the family business and sell tofu to hipsters.”
When Paul was a child, his father would tell him he
would carry the shop on one day, so he did what any
American kid raised on rock and roll would do—he
got as far away as he could. He studied architecture,
played in bands, became an artist, and moved to
Moscow. Only after his father passed and the shop
closed did he think about trying to run it, on his
terms: making it younger, cooler, carrying on the
recipes but presenting them to people who didn’t
grow up with them. “I’m grateful for those custom-
ers because that says there’s a future,” he said.
A future. Maybe this is it? The answer to Grace
Young’s lament about losing the classics. What
about all the classics that are being reborn? I started
to ask around: Where else is there a new generation
of old-school Chinatown businesses?
At 125 years old or so, the china shop Wing On
68
fluffy cream puffs, loaded with fillings like bright purple ube and delicate matcha, are every bit as mem-orable. Continue down Mott to Pinkla-dy Cheese Tart, a tiny four-stool joint that sells exquisite tartlets (be sure to sample
the nutty black sesame), delicately packaged in individu-al boxes, before back-tracking to Alimama Tea, a hip café on Bayard with polished concrete floors, exposed brick walls, and a jumble of fairy lights hanging in the
window that will delight Instagram influencers. Both the cartoonishly pink lychee rose tea and Onyx mochi doughnut, dredged in a shiny chocolate lacquer with flecks of gold and silver, taste as good as they’ll look in
your feed. But on a hot summer’s day, there’s nothing better than heading a block west on Bayard for red-bean scoops (ideally in an M&M- studded sugar cone) from the Original Chinatown Ice Cream Factory.
> DO Try this at homeTo re-create the flavors of Chinatown in your own kitchen, hit Po Wing Hong, whose ruby-red awning—and the shopping attendant who diligently parks customers’ rolling
“I grew up in Westchester County, but my parents had ties to the Taiwanese commu-nity, so we spent a lot of time below Canal Street. I was crashing in a studio on Baxter on 9/11. The Chinese community is private, but 9/11 exposed them because Chinatown is an artery for everything else. The commu-nity delivered, and then, when enough time passed, the city forgot about it. Not unlike the beginning of COVID-19, the shops weren’t doing any business, they were just helping people—but rents were due. Many were doomed immediately, but they held on for a few months. When COVID hit, it felt like Chinatown had a better idea what to do because of 9/11 and SARS. Still, the neigh-borhood is so reliant on people coming down and having something nice to eat, to have that lifeline cut off was terrifying. But the community rallied. It’s standing. In quarantine the vibe was bleak; now, though, people are eating food and waiting for tables. I no longer have any connection to Westchester, so if anything happens to me, scatter my ashes on Mott Street.” Andrew Kuo is represented by Broadway Gallery. The Joy of Basketball, his new book with Ben Detrick, is out October 19.
20 years laterArtist Andrew Kuo on Chinatown Since 9/11
Clockwise from left: Fresh produce on Grand Street; Alimama Tea owner Janie Wang inside her café; K.K. Discount Store
Opposite: Steamed Shanghai pork soup dumplings from Noodle Village
→
69
carts outside—makes visits feel like a trip to the theater. Inside, the space opens up to reveal long aisles stocked with every-thing from bottled sauces and bagged noodles to purplish dried sausages and slick jellyfish slices.
(You can also pick up dried goods like plums and sea cucumbers, sold by weight.) Aqua Best, on Grand, sells glis-tening fluke, branzino, and sea bass, all propped up on ice. If your day starts early, swing by the fruit
stands flanking both sides of Mulberry Street near the inter-section of Grand: Vendors hawk fresh oranges and just- ripe cherries, prickly dragon fruit, and unwieldy durian beneath multicolored beach umbrellas.
> shop till you dropCT Seafood Mart, on the corner of Grand and Chrystie, is a clearinghouse for everything from fresh produce and seafood to pastel-colored bedspreads and bamboo- tile car-seat
covers. On Mott, K.K. Discount Store is packed with silver-ware, rolling pins, and mocha pots of every size; there’s also plenty to covet at the tiny Ting Yu Hong Co., including wooden sandals, delicately wrapped soap bars,
Wo & Co. has never been younger, thanks to its
30-year-old fifth-generation owner, Mei Lum, who
makes memes of her grandmother and educates
customers on the craftwork of Chinese porcelain.
In the ’80s, the legendary chef Shorty Tang was
credited with introducing New York to cold sesame
noodles, the dish that launched a thousand takeout
ships. His son, chef Chen Lien Tang, and grandson,
James Tierney Tang, resurrected the long-gone Hwa
Yuan in 2017. It’s probably the finest fine-dining
restaurant in Chinatown. Even while customers ate
on the street in an ersatz sidewalk dining room,
a server presented the cold sesame noodles—
the sauce more delicate than you’d expect, splitting
the difference between rich and tart—by expertly
coiling them out of a tureen and placing them, like a
bird’s nest, on my plate. The gesture was dignified,
a symbol of pride.
And when strolling the aisles of Po Wing Hong,
a 41-year-old grocery store, I felt a peculiar pang, a
visitation from the ghost of bean curds past. There,
past the jars of $1,400-per-pound dried abalone, the
wall of ginseng, and the trillion flavors of instant
ramen, I stared at jars of chili-fermented bean curd.
It’s something my mother always kept in our fridge,
a condiment that my cousin once called Chinese
cheese. Growing up I used to scoff at the glorious,
yellow slices of salt-flavored soy cream. But there, in
the store, I could taste in my mind their pungent,
saline, familiar funk.
Sophia Ng Tsao grew up in this store, the little kid
behind the counter who would get your cigarettes for
you. She never thought she’d be at the helm alongside
her parents one day. “Even though I was working at
the shop, I didn’t feel a connection to the products,”
70
and (in a nod to its 1950s origins) the occasional cigarette holder. Now five gen-erations in, Wing on Wo & Co. is China-town’s oldest store; make an appointment to browse its exqui-site porcelain goods, suitable for everyday
use (a turquoise soy bottle) and special occasions (a jade- handle mirror). Beauty haven oo35mm stocks slather-worthy tinctures like Beauty of Joseon Radiance Cleansing Balm. Other noteworthies include Chen’s Watch Inc.,
a spot that deals in shiny vintage pocket watches and grandfa-ther clocks from the likes of Le Coultre, and Bok Lei Po Trading Inc., a martial- arts supply store with a trove of Feiyue shoes and Jing Wu three-button shirts.
> walk it offHead to Columbus Park’s Dr. Sun Yat-sen Plaza to watch elders play card games for a crowd, or stop at the Chinatown Fair Family Fun Center, a pitch-dark arcade on Mott, for a few rounds of ice ball. Don’t miss the
Maya Lin–designed Museum of Chinese in America on Centre, which traces the history of the diaspora. Recently reopened after a devastating fire in January 2020, it’s free for all through September 19. betsy blumenthal
she told me. But after she went to business school,
the customers of her parents’ generation finally got
to her. “They kept saying, ‘Please take the store over,
or I won’t have anywhere to buy my ginseng!’ ”
So she stayed, and learned about the products,
and is now finding customers her age coming in to
ask about them. “I think the younger generation is
going through a major identity crisis, and missing
out on Chinatown hits so close to home,” she said.
“And they’re compelled to do something about it.”
The thought made me smile, as did the fact that I
had time for one last bite before going home. When
I was a kid spending summers in Hong Kong, wonton
mein—a bowl of wontons, noodles, and soup—was
my ur-snack. I learned how to use the subway there
so I could get to my favorite wonton noodle stall. For
years, my brother had told me that the Chinatown
restaurant Noodle Village has a good one. It’s not
self-referential enough to be either new school or old
school. But you can taste what they care about.
I took my bowl across the street to an empty set of
dining tents. You have to eat it right away, while the
noodles still snap back, so springy they almost
crunch. While the broth is still scalding hot, the
steam carrying the aroma of the flecks of garlic chive
on its surface. The smooth wontons earned their
translation of “swallowed clouds,” with skins so
smooth and soft, enveloping a filling that tasted of
pork fat, sesame oil, and toasted shrimp roe.
I used to spend the longest time looking for
wonton mein that would remind me of my time
spent in Hong Kong. But eating this, in the strange,
hopeful, liminal moment of a neighborhood reawak-
ening after a pandemic, I found a bowl that will
always remind me of Chinatown.
Clockwise from top left: Inside Hwa Yuan Szechuan, which serves spicy upscale dishes; the hard-to-miss entrance to the porcelain shop Wing On Wo & Co.
Opposite: K.K. Discount owners Ken and Vicki Li with their daughter, Norina T
71
Concrete and local parota wood create a sleek, minimalist retreat at Casa Tiny, a mini vacation rental 18 miles northwest of Puerto Escondido in Oaxaca
Opposite: Structure VIII at Becán, an impressive Mayan ruin outside the village of Xpujil in Campeche
72
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: C
AM
ILA
CO
SS
IO, L
EILA
AS
HTA
RI
MeXico NoW
Both fresh and familiar, away from home but not too far, our neighbor to the south has perennial appeal. As we begin traveling internationally again, this country’s pristine Baja beaches, out-of-the-way Mayan ruins, modernist hotels, and rich culinary scene are calling our name
My first impression as I glide on a Hobie
Cat is how much Bacalar looks like the
Caribbean. This 31-mile lagoon near the
border of Belize is known for its many shades of
aquamarine. Travelers like me come expressly for
these glowing waters, which have none of the
crowds of Tulum and Cancún.
But more visitors (200,000 in 2019) are venturing
into this region of tangled mangroves and dense
jungle, and a clutch of considerate, design-focused
hotels have opened to serve them—most recently,
the sustainably minded Habitas, which opened 35
A-frame-style tented rooms last month. Yet those
building Bacalar as a destination have seen the con-
sequences of overtourism in Mexico, including in
Tulum, about two hours to the north, and are deter-
mined to prevent the same from happening here.
“There has been profound damage done to the eco-
system in the Tulum area, and it’s a vivid example of
what to avoid and reverse if economic interests
manage to take precedence over ecologic needs once
again,” says Sofia Lynch, co-owner of the boutique
hotel Casa Hormiga, another new arrival.
blue horizonThe next hot spot on the east coast could set an example for ecotourism going forward
Clockwise from bottom: The many shades of blue on display at the tranquil Laguna de Bacalar; a quiet balcony at hotel Casa Hormiga; the hotel’s entrance
74
Capital Eats
LaMari
Chef David Castro Hussong’s neighborhood spot in Lomas de Chapultepec is all about Mediterraneanstyle dishes with a twist. The squash blossom with hummus and octopus tostadas with matcha and avocado are two of the more inventive combinations. Dinner for two, about $150; lamari.mx
Mi Compa
“Chava”
Inspired by Sinaloa’s seafood carts, chef Salvador Orozco (Chava is his nickname) highlights straightfromthePacific ingredients. Order the Señora Torres, a tower of raw and cooked shrimp, tuna, octopus, and scallops, topped with a bright salsa. Lunch for two, about $80
Makan
After working in kitchens across Asia (including Bangkok’s esteemed Gaggan), chefs Maryann Yong and Mario Malvaez opened this tuckedaway space in Roma last year, where they sling casual Singaporean dishes like chicken rice and noodles with duck breast. Dinner for two, about $60; makan-restaurante-singapore-food.negocio.site
Casa Prunes
From acclaimed bartenders Mafer Tejada and Mica Rousseau, this boîte’s creative cocktails and fruit wines (try the banana one, seriously) are as impressive as the Art Nouveau building it calls home. Dinner and drinks for two, about $100 pedro reyes
Stromatolites, spongy microorganisms that are millions of years old, lurk
below the lagoon’s shallow waters, giving them their color and stabilizing
this ecosystem. But these fragile reeflike formations are easily destroyed
and will take millennia to grow back. The area follows a low-impact devel-
opment policy that limits the number of hotel rooms allowed per square
foot, and prohibits large builds on the shoreline. Signs warn visitors not to
touch the stromatolites, and boat usage is heavily restricted.
Even more pressing than capping the number of visitors, Lynch suggests,
is ensuring that business owners properly inform their guests how to inter-
act with the environment. She and her husband settled in Bacalar in 2009,
when there were only a few businesses and foreigners in town, and opened
a small café which expanded into a beach club before becoming Casa
Hormiga last year. By working with tour operators, such as Bacalar Sailing,
who share ecological best practices, as well as encouraging guests to be
conscious about how they use air- conditioning and water, the couple hopes
to create a more responsible environment. The same goes for Habitas.
“Educating guests on the importance and fragility of the stromatolites is
crucial for their preservation,” says cofounder and CEO Oliver Ripley.
As part of its conservation strategy, the hotel has collaborated with local
NGO Agua Claro to support lagoon monitoring, as well as Ejido Noh-Bec
community and One Tree Planted to make a local reforestation program. At
Macario Bacalar, a restaurant set in an open courtyard, chef Ricardo
Méndez (formerly of Mexico City’s Pujol) serves zesty nopal tostadas.
Méndez is working to launch a sustainable food festival to raise awareness
and support the town.
On the Hobie Cat, we cruise along the blue, milky water for three hours,
passing gnarled mangroves, sucking on lychee, marveling at the stromato-
lites, and stopping for a dip where we press our toes into the squelchy white
limestone soil, with no other tourists in sight. It’s magnificent, but back at
the shore, the water is temporarily brown from sediment swept in by recent
floods. It’s a reminder of the lagoon’s fragility. But also that, we, as travelers,
have the chance to protect it. mary holland
Habitas Bacalar, doubles from $400, ourhabitas.com; Casa Hormiga, doubles
from $166, casahormiga.com
Despite the past year’s challenges, Mexico City’s culinary scene has never tasted better, with exciting concepts from names old and new
75
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: C
AS
A H
OR
MIG
A B
AC
ALA
R, H
AB
ITA
S B
AC
ALA
R. I
LLU
STR
ATIO
N B
Y D
OM
INIC
TR
EVET
T
A meander through the less-explored central peninsula shows a different side of the region
For decades, Cabo San Lucas has been the magnet of the Mexican
state of Baja California Sur, luring sybarites and adventurers to the
peninsula’s southernmost tip with its high-end resorts and world-
class sportfishing and surf breaks. But those who seek a smaller, sleepier
Baja town have begun heading north to Loreto. With increased direct
flights from Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Dallas, the little colonial city is a
great jumping-off point for a drive exploring the state’s untrodden beaches,
wildlife-rich marine parks, and artsy desert towns.
the new baja road trip
Days 1 and 2With the Sierra de la Giganta mountain range to the northwest, Loreto has a Sedona-meets-the-sea vibe. You’re not there for the hotels, but Villa del Palmar Beach Resort & Spa is a good home base and has an excellent wellness center. Devote two days to exploring the Pueblo Mágico–designated town (a title granted by the Mexican government to small cities that stand out for their beauty or history) and the islands of Loreto Bay National Marine Park. Dubbed the Galápagos of Mexico, the bay is home to some 800 species, including dolphins, manta rays, and, in the winter months, six species of whales. A kayak trip among the islands is the best way to access the park’s pristine coastline. Back in town, don’t miss homemade tamales at Canipole, a charming open- air restaurant tucked away near the 17th-century Mission Loreto, the first Jesuit mission in Baja.
Day 3You can’t visit Loreto without trying the local delicacy, almejas chocolatas—large, meaty clams with chocolate-hued shells. On your way out of town, stop at Vista al Mar, a no-frills beach hut just off of Highway 1, then drive four hours south to La Paz. There, check in at Baja Club, the newest property from the homegrown brand Grupo Habita. It overlooks the Malecón, the town’s iconic promenade, and is a convenient starting point for a day trip to the empty beaches of Espíritu Santo Island. Book an excursion to snorkel with the resident sea lions off craggy Los Islotes or, between October and February, to swim with gentle whale sharks. For classic Baja cooking, Tacos de Pescado y Camaron El Estadio is the best. For avant-garde riffs like bone-marrow tacos, try Tatanka Baja Fish and Steakhouse. P
HO
TOG
RA
PH
S:
ILA
N R
AB
CH
INS
KEY,
LEI
LA A
SH
TAR
I, C
ÉSA
R B
EJA
R/G
RU
PO
HA
BIT
A. I
LLU
STR
ATIO
N B
Y D
OM
INIC
TR
EVET
T
Day 4Wake up with a potent cold brew from Doce Cuarenta café, then hit the road early to enjoy the calm, Caribbean-esque waters of Playa Balandra, 40 minutes outside of La Paz. When the sun heats up, get on Highway 1 and drive two hours south to Los Barriles, a fishing village and kitesurfing mecca on windswept Las Palmas Bay. Hire ATVs and bump along dusty roads past the mango and guava groves surrounding the village of San Bartolo—be sure to stop at the roadside stands to sample the town’s famed sweets, like dulce de pitaya. The Four Seasons Resort Los Cabos at Costa Palmas—the only luxury stay on the East Cape—is 45 minutes southeast. Given that cardon cacti still outnumber people, the staff don’t frown upon dust-covered arrivals.
Day 5To truly appreciate Baja’s diverse landscape, drive about 40 minutes inland to Rancho Ecológico Sol de Mayo, in the town of Santiago. The ranch owners will prepare a breakfast of eggs and machaca (spicy shredded beef), then point you to a trail that leads to a lush, palm-shaded oasis. Wear a swimsuit—the falls here double as natural waterslides. With the car windows down, your hair will be dry long before you reach El Pescadero, two hours away. This farming hamlet has replaced neighboring Todos Santos as Baja’s new boho hot spot. Stay in one of the desert-sleek villas at newcomer El Perdido. In the evening, catch a show at Teatro Pescadero (a pandemic project from a Broadway veteran) or have a cocktail and hear a DJ set at Pura Playa beach club. If you’re feeling remiss about skipping Cabo, stop for breakfast at Flora Farms before heading to the Los Cabos airport for your flight home. jen murphy
Clockwise from top left: A cardon cactus on the uninhabited island of Espíritu Santo; poolside at the new Baja Club hotel in La Paz; the tiny Isla San Francisco in the Sea of Cortez
77
come togetherPast and present, traditional and cutting edge, all have a place in Guadalajara’s vibrant design community
Clockwise from bottom: José Noé Suro of Cerámica Suro; the store Chamula Hecho a Mano; graphic artist Luis César Cantú Della Rocca (a.k.a. Rocca); a pile of woven rugs at Estudio Pomelo
78
In 2006, the industrial designer Laura Noriega left her hometown of
Guadalajara to study in Milan, intending never to come back. The art
scene in Mexico’s second-largest metropolitan area had been growing for
a decade, but Noriega found the design community stagnant, disconnected
from the rich artisanal traditions still practiced throughout the region. Two
years later, though, she changed her mind. “I started visiting markets and
workshops and realized I didn’t know Mexico,” she says. Noriega ended up
forging a new professional path by approaching her culture with a curiosity
and desire for knowledge she didn’t have when she left.
Noriega is one of many artists and architects, designers and illustrators,
who returned home around that time after leaving to pursue their trades else-
where, tapping into the wealth of craft they had, for years, overlooked. Today,
she and her brand Tributo, which produces housewares with craftspeople
scattered throughout central Mexico, is part of an expanding community of
makers transforming Guadalajara into a hub for design.
Throughout the 20th century, Guadalajara produced some of the leading
lights of Mexican art, from the muralist José Clemente Orozco, whose fiery
work makes Rivera look mannered, to Luís Barragán, whose architectural
style became shorthand for the country’s modernist aesthetic. But most left
Guadalajara to advance their careers. In the early 2000s, many of the city’s
young creatives did the same, though there were exceptions: The sisters Julia
and Renata Franco started their fashion line, Julia y Renata, out of their
parents’ garage in 1993, around the same time that José Noe Suro started to
produce work for contemporary artists at his family’s ceramic studio, Cerámica
Suro. Still, says the designer and artist Aldo Álvarez Tostado, who moved to
Guadalajara in 2005, “the boom you see now, that didn’t exist 15 years ago.”
In 2013, Álvarez Tostado created a cooperative called Occidente to bring
together the homegrown talent. That year, the cooperative’s 12 design firms
mounted a stall at the first Abierto Mexicano de Diseño design fair in
Mexico City, challenging perceptions of Guadalajara as a provincial place.
Yet it’s precisely that small-town atmosphere—despite a metro-area
population pushing six million—that’s made Guadalajara so attractive to
creatives who have returned. Within a few hours of the city, Álvarez Tostado
works with stonemasons to carve bold, graphic skull pots for his brand
Piedrafuego, products he sells from a workshop in the city’s historic center.
Noriega, who keeps an elegant showroom in the leafy Colonia Lafayette,
works with the ceramist Ángel Santos in the village of Tonalá to produce
burnished-clay mezcaleros, while Luis Cárdenas and Melissa Aldrete create
experimental ceramics for their brand Popdots using techniques they’ve
learned in traditional workshops.
“What interested us about being here was doing instead of just designing,”
says Cárdenas. Guadalajara, he says, “lets you live at the pace the materials
demand.” Access to traditions and the time to understand them, says the
graphic artist Rocca Luis César, “opens a space for experimentation.”
Ultimately, it’s collaboration that sets Guadalajara’s design scene apart.
Many creatives open their workspaces to visitors who contact them via
Instagram. Frequent pop-ups bring together curated collections from the city’s
best designers. And shops like Viento México and Chamu Hecho a Mano blur
the lines between craft, design, and art, disciplines that have been artificially
siloed for too long. “At the end of the day, these boundaries are porous,” says
Álvarez Tostado. “We’re the same community.” michael snyder
San Cristóbal
de Las Casas
Head to this city in the central highlands, flanked by mountains, for the colonial architecture and the food. Even with the cobblestones, this is a walking town, and you’ll pass the neoclassical Templo de Santo Domingo and Catedral de San Cristóbal before picking up handwoven rugs and ponchos at the fairtrade emporium Táabal. For dinner, get Vok ich ta alak’, an Indigenous masaandepazote stew, from Kokonó, helmed by Tzotzil chef Claudia Ruíz Sántiz, before settling in for the night at the contemporary Hotel Bo, in the heart of the city.
Tuxtla
Gutiérrez
The capital of Chiapas is an ideal base for exploring the state’s diverse nature. Tour
the Sumidero Canyon, located on a river full of crocodiles and flanked by sandy shores. Don’t miss the Templo Sumergido de Quechula, a church engulfed by the Grijalva River. Be sure to stop, too, at carver Jorge Alberto González Moreno’s workshop to browse wooden and amber masks.
Tapachula
Closer to the coast, check in to the ecofriendly Hotel Argovia Finca Resort, on a working coffee farm. From there, take a day trip to the lagoons at the UNESCOprotected La Encrucijada Biosphere Reserve. You’ll want to make a detour to the nearby town of Tuxtla Chico for the legendary tamales chiapanecos from Tamales Doña Petra—thought by many to be the best tamales in Mexico. bill esparza
where to go in chiapasThe under-the-radar state—and Mayan capital—has crafts, food, and nature unlike anywhere else in the country
79
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: C
HA
MU
LA, J
ULI
O R
EY, A
GU
STÍ
N E
LIZ
ALD
E, M
AJ
LIN
DS
TRO
M. I
LLU
STR
ATIO
N B
Y D
OM
INIC
TR
EVET
T
coast linesOne of the world’s great architectural playgrounds is emerging along the shores of Oaxaca
Clockwise from bottom: Casa Tiny, a petite vacation rental with an outsize visual impact; the pool deck at the Tadao Ando–designed artist retreat Casa Wabi; an installation by Bosco Sodi at Casa Wabi
Guests at the creative complex Casa Wabi
find its thatched-roof, open-air lounge
down a long, rectangular slab of cement
with a sparkling infinity pool at its center. They
arrive to a burst of brightness caused by the sun’s
reflection off the silvery surface. This effect is one
reason Casa Wabi’s founder, the Mexican con-
temporary artist Bosco Sodi, commissioned the
Japanese architect Tadao Ando to design this foun-
dation and artists’ residency by the sea: for the way
Ando uses concrete to capture light.
“My entire philosophy is to not compete with the
landscape,” says Sodi. “I believe we must adapt to it
and use materials that get even better with time, like
wood, concrete, and bricks.”
Five years ago, the site of Casa Wabi, along
Oaxaca’s Pacific Coast, 45 minutes west of the leg-
endary Playa Zicatela surf break, was a wilderness—
a spread of succulents spilling into a palm oasis
ahead of the Sierra Madre del Sur mountain range.
But Sodi had a vision: a laboratory for the world’s
most influential architects, similar to the Benesse
Art Site in Naoshima, Japan. After Casa Wabi’s
opening in 2014, he acquired an adjacent, mile-long
80
strip of earth where a natural rock barrier spills into the sea, and secured the
area’s official designation as Punta Pájaros, an ecological and regenerative devel-
opment that blends hospitality and art. Sodi views Punta Pájaros as a blank
canvas for creativity to flourish, a place where artists and architects are encour-
aged to let their ideas run as wild as the landscape.
This part of Oaxaca has fast become a destination for those seeking a different
type of vacation on Mexico’s Pacific Coast. When Sodi built Casa Wabi, he had
the good sense to commission the 16-room Hotel Escondido from designer
Mexican hoteliers Grupo Habita. Not far away is the stylish Casitas by the Sea,
eight independent villas for travelers from legendary architect Alberto Kalach—
who also led the area’s reforestation efforts, including the recovery of the native
forest and the addition of 20,000 endemic plants. In the past few years, a number
of high-design, bookable villas have followed, including the aptly named one-
room Casa Tiny, by architect Aranza de Ariño and Casa Volta, and a collection of
three vaulted terracotta brick villas symmetrically separated by a central water-
way and hugged by the dense tropical vegetation, for larger groups. Though these
dwellings differ in style and aesthetic, all use local materials and glass-free,
open-concept layouts. “We want people to feel connected with nature, to feel the
air coming off the ocean,” says Sodi. “What is the point of windows if you can’t
hear the sound of the waves?”
The aesthetic extends beyond hotels. Down a dusty dirt path from Hotel Escon-
dido is the de Ariño–designed mezcal bar Cobarde. Farther on still is Kakurega
Omakase, a 12-seat, open-air eatery created by Kalach and Sodi and his cousin
Luis Urrutia. Inspired by traditional Japanese architecture, with a Oaxacan twist,
the restaurant’s thatched-roof palapa is made from
brick, concrete, and burnt pinewood that was charred
according to the principles of shou sugi ban, an
18th-century Japanese weatherproofing technique.
Though Punta Pájaros’s international flavor is
hard to miss, one of its goals is to support Mexico’s
architects. The area’s latest project is the work of
Carlos Matos and Lucas Cantú of Tezontle, a young
creative studio that blends Mexico’s pre-Hispanic
heritage with the abstract work of the country’s
modernists. Inspired by the ancient cultures of
Mexico and the temascal, a traditional Mexican
sweat lodge, the project, called Papelillo, is a sauna
and bathhouse built with prefabricated, sand-cast
concrete panels oxidized with water from the Punta
Pájaros aquifer. The heavy iron content of the water
gives the panels a deep red hue similar in color to the
bark of the local papelillo tree, which continuously
sheds its skin in a process of regeneration, like the
experience intended by a temascal. In addition to
Papelillo, there are two new properties this year:
Casona Sforza, a Kalach-designed boutique hotel
with 11 arched-and-vaulted guest suites set in the
serene La Barra de Colotepec river delta, and, at
press time, a yet-unnamed wellness-focused design
hotel by Grupo Habita and Kalach.
Sodi hopes the success of this architectural com-
munity in Oaxaca can be a model for other parts of
Mexico, especially with the demand for sustainable
architecture increasing in coastal areas like Cabo San
Lucas. “Architecture can revolutionize an area and
create a regenerative movement that adds to the envi-
ronment and melds with what exists,” says Sodi.
“With this type of impact, we can change the future of
Mexican development forever.” michaela trimble
81
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: C
AM
ILA
CO
SS
IO, I
LAN
RA
BC
HIN
SKE
. ILL
US
TRAT
ION
BY
DO
MIN
IC T
REV
ETT
Of the three states that make up the Yucatán Peninsula,
Campeche is both the largest and the least visited. It is
home to one of Mexico’s most beautiful colonial cities,
exceptional food, and endless swaths of inland tropical forest
studded with Mayan ruins. Good roads and a well-earned reputa-
tion for safety make it one of the best states in the country for a
road trip, with ample opportunities for detours and pit stops at
ancient temples half-consumed by the jungle.
Day 1Any visit to Campeche should begin with a stay at Hacienda Puerta Campeche, a Luxury Collection Hotel, in the 481-year-old capital city that gives the state its name. Set within centuries-old fortifications, the tidy streets of the old town are lined with pastel-hued houses whose windows are thrown open to draw in breezes off the electric-blue sea. Inside the city walls, the barrios of Santa Ana and San Francisco are home to some of Campeche’s best food. Have lunch by Parque de Santa Ana: tacos of cochinita pibil at Taquería Hecelchakán, or tortas de lechon (roasted-pork sandwiches) at Taquería del Parque. For dinner, La Pigua, in Barrio de Guadalupe, specializes in seafood, while the simple fondas under the arches at the Portales de San Martín are ideal for late-night tamales and icy coconut horchata.
Day 2 Start early, driving southeast from the capital to the archaeological site of Edzna, where iguanas skitter across grassy plazas framed by meticulously restored pyramids. From there, continue south for about three hours to the community of Conhuas, and check in to the Hotel Puerta Calakmul ecolodge, a cluster of cabins at the edge of the Calakmul Biosphere Reserve. After lunch at the hotel’s restaurant, visit Balamku, a small archaeological site just northwest of Conhuas, to see one of the best-preserved Mayan friezes. Time and energy permitting, use the remainder of the day to explore the ruins of Becán, where covered passageways and a tight urban layout give the rare sense of what Mayan daily life was like, and nearby Chicanná, famous for its ornate façades.
campeche by carA drive is the best way to see the range of natural and cultural riches in this Gulf of Mexico state
82
Day 3Wake before dawn to the sound of howler monkeys and drive 90 minutes south through virgin forest to Calakmul, once a rival to Tikal in Guatemala and among the mightiest cities of the classical Mayan world. At the archaeological site, a vast network of pathways winds through the jungle between plazas and soaring pyramids, whose peaks rise like mountains above the canopy. Spend a few hours here before returning, invigorated and exhausted, to your room at Hotel Puerta Calakmul for a siesta. Then, as the sun dips low, drive four and a half miles east to a cave hidden just off the road and watch millions of bats spiral into the evening sky.
Day 4 There are several routes back toward the capital, the most interesting of which passes a half-dozen Mayan sites where you’ll encounter few other visitors. Stop at Xpujil, with its magnificent three-towered temple, before turning north off the main road and cutting through nearly 90 miles of virtually uninterrupted greenery. (If you have a couple of extra days, look into staying at Indigenous villages that are a part of the peninsula’s community-tourism network). The road eventually turns west through the town of Dzibalchen, passing the marvelous ruins at Hochob, whose elaborate geometric carvings are among the finest examples of the Rio Bec architectural style, sometimes dubbed Mayan Baroque. By evening, you’ll arrive at one of the Yucatán’s best hotels, the Hacienda Uayamón, located a short distance outside the capital. Set in a former plantation for henequén, the agave fiber that powered the peninsula’s formidable economic engine until the 20th century, it makes for a refined and peaceful last stop. m.s.
This page: The historic plantation turned hotel Hacienda Uayamón
Opposite, clockwise from top left: An ancient ceiba tree at Hacienda Uayamón; a vibrant scarlet macaw, a common sight in the Yucatán; chile peppers for sale at a market in the capital city Campeche
83
PH
OTO
GR
AP
HS
: IL
AN
RA
BC
HIN
SKE
Y.
ILLU
STR
ATIO
N B
Y D
OM
INIC
TR
EVET
T
In Crete’s honeyed west, urban creativity coexists with a raw wilderness of rocky ravines and empty coves
By Rachel Howard Photographs by Tom Parker
The white sands of Balos Beach are
accessible only by boat or by foot
for all times
when Marianna Leivadi taki
offered to cook me fish
soup, I knew it would be
good. Marianna is head chef at Morito, the Greco-
Moorish mezze bar in London that is one of my
favorite restaurants. But I didn’t expect to be eating
her silky, briny broth for breakfast in northwestern
Crete on a green bay wedged between granite cliffs.
We had never met before she picked me up earlier
that morning in her brother Antonis’s motorboat.
I squeezed on board beside Antonis’s young son,
Orpheus, whose blond curls floated in the breeze.
We glided past the craggy shoreline, pocked with
caves and coves, until we found the perfect spot.
Antonis tipped a mighty fish he’d caught a few
hours earlier onto a cracked white stone. Marianna
roughly chopped potatoes and tomatoes into a
saucepan and tucked the fish on top. She scraped
some salt from the rocks, tossed it in, and covered
the contents with water and glugs of peppery olive
oil, then lit a gas canister and left the soup to bubble
vigorously under the sun.
“Cretan food is so simple,” she told me. “There
are no recipes or rules, apart from family traditions.
What’s important is to know exactly where your
ingredients come from.” Marianna grew up gutting
fish and waiting tables at her family’s taverna outside
Chania, the surprisingly metropolitan capital of
western Crete. Her father, a fisherman, taught her
how to make kakavia, a fortifying soup eaten after a
long night at work. While we waited for it to cook,
Antonis and Orpheus pried sea urchins and limpets
from the rocks. Knee-deep in the water, we slurped
them from their shells to whet our appetite. “What
I love most about Crete is that you might be here, in
an empty bay, feasting on urchins,” Marianna said.
“Then, half an hour later, you’re up in the mountains
in a different world, with guys in black shirts and big
mustaches talking about hunting and eating game.”
Crete is a vast island of contrasts and contradic-
tions, with a 650-mile coastline that rears up to
misty summits more than 8,000 feet high. The kind-
ness of strangers is what unifies and defines the
island for me. I’ve been coming here since the early
1990s, but I’ll be honest: At first it didn’t rock my boat. The soulless resorts
concentrated on the northeast coast, slapdash cities, and boring motorways were
nothing like the Greek islands of my imagination. The corkscrew roads twisting
through the highlands made me queasy; driving two hours to find an empty bay
felt like too much effort. But that effort brought rich rewards: hospitable locals,
incredible food, powerful landscapes, magnificent beaches for every mood.
Slowly, stealthily, Crete got under my skin. Our relationship deepens every time
I return, and yet the island still feels unknowable, infinite, mysterious.
Crete was only united with mainland Greece in 1913—after a bitter and bloody
independence struggle—and Cretans often refer to their homeland as a continent.
Divided by the snow-flecked White Mountains, the Chania prefecture, which
covers the western quarter, is a different destination at every turn. The legacy of
Roman, Byzantine, Venetian, and Ottoman rule ripples through the fortified city
of Chania, but there’s a contemporary edge to this spirited town of merchants and
students. Over the past decade, a new generation of ambitious islanders have
returned to their roots after studying and working abroad to refresh tired family
businesses, renovate historic properties, and set up sustainably minded ventures.
Ceramic artist Alexandra Manousakis left a marketing career in Manhattan to
take over Manousakis Winery with her Swedish-Iranian sommelier husband,
Afshin Molavi, who co-owns the phenomenally popular Salis restaurant on the
86
Clockwise from left: A guest room at Metohi Kindelis; Chania’s old Venetian harbor; gathering sea urchins; Danai Kindeli, owner of the organic farm and hotel Metohi Kindelis
87
In this lonely wilderness you feel the visceral pulse of nature—rasping cicadas, circling eagles, chanting bees
The Lefka Ori, or White Mountains, of western Crete, named for the color of the limestone that forms them
88
harbor front. Stylish environmentalist Danai Kindeli returned from Madrid to
help her uncle Manolis run Metohi Kindelis, a 400-year-old organic farm and
guesthouse. And curator Sofia Mavroudis and artist Antonis Houladakis have
built two raw-concrete cabins in the middle of his family’s ancestral olive groves
that offer a refreshingly modern immersion into the wilderness.
eyond the urban chatter of Chania, hillside villages, pink sands,
and stands of silver olive trees give way to sudden ravines
and soaring peaks. In his novel Zorba the Greek, Cretan
literary giant Nikos Kazantzakis compared the country-
side to “good prose, carefully ordered. It said what it
had to say with a manly austerity. But between the
severe lines one could discern an unexpected sensitive-
ness and tenderness; in the sheltered hollows the lemon
and orange trees perfumed the air, and from the vastness
of the sea emanated an inexhaustible poetry.”
This chafing of rugged machismo and soulful sensibility is
embodied in Kazantzakis’s antihero—an archetypal Cretan, with a defiant,
devil-may-care attitude and an insatiable appetite for life. In many ways, the land-
scapes and people of western Crete are just as Kazantzakis described them:
immense, intense, exhilarating. But you need on-the-ground intel to cut through
the noise. My go-to is Nikos Tsepetis, the owner of Ammos, a feel-good hotel on
Chania’s sandy fringes filled with contemporary art and design. An irreverent
perfectionist, he embodies a generosity of spirit that is as essential to the local
identity as olive oil and tsikoudia, a fiery eau-de-vie-like brandy locals down at
every opportunity. You don’t say no to a Cretan, and you definitely don’t say no to
Nikos. When he tells you a place is worth visiting, you don’t ask any questions.
You just hop in the car and go.
On this trip, Nikos dispatched me to Polirinia, an ancient citadel, surrounded
by silent valleys and ridges, that has collapsed into the earth. His friend Manousos
Chalkiadakis, a ceramic artist with wise hands and gentle eyes, cooked me the
most delicious take on eggs and potatoes at his 17th-century home (the secret:
Fry both in olive oil). We hiked from Meskla to Zourva, through a miniature
canyon and forests vibrating with birdsong—far less strenuous than the famous
Samaria gorge, with not a soul in sight. At Kedrodasos—less crowded than the
shallow lagoons of Balos and Elafonisi—I floated in the fluorescent sea and
snoozed in the shade of a twisted juniper tree. “If California were an island, it
would be Crete,” Nikos declared as we shared battered and fried zucchini,
blush-pink tarama, and a little too much rosé on the seaside terrace at Ammos.
“Both have sprawling, imperfect cities, a beautiful coastline, amazing food, and
great hikes. And you need a car to explore the mountains, which is where you’ll
find the soul.”
In these highlands, road signs are pockmarked with bullets, and heavily armed
statues of revolutionary heroes dominate village squares where whiskery men in
black monitor passing vehicles with a flick of their cigarette or a flip of their worry
beads. The toughest natives are from Sfakia, a hardscrabble mass of peaks cracked
by deep gorges that lead to electric-blue bays. Until the islanders laid the hairpin
roads, stone by stubborn stone, this isolated region was a perfect refuge for bandits,
b
89
rustlers, and resistance fighters. All of the independence struggles began here.
“The locals always had an enemy, whether they were Venetians, Turks, Germans,
or Greek royalty. If there was nobody else to fight, they turned on each other,”
confided Maria Mylonaki, the supremely competent founder of Crete travel
specialist Diktynna, as we drove deeper into the White Mountains. Vendettas are
still rampant in this unforgiving terrain. An argument over a goat bell was enough
to spark a bloody feud in Aradena in the 1950s. After seven people were killed, the
remaining residents fled. The village is a beautiful, melancholy relic teetering
above the forbidding gorge. Disembodied saints stare from the faded frescoes of
the 14th-century church.
In this lonely wilderness you feel the visceral pulse of nature—rasping cicadas,
circling eagles, chanting bees. But the only human presence was a pair of tiny
figures walking along the rocky bed of the gorge below. Several hours later, I feasted
on slow-roasted lamb, freshly churned goat cheese, and puffy little doughnuts
drenched in thyme honey at Chrisostomos, a heavenly taverna on a headland
jutting into the Libyan Sea. Gazing at the horizon, I recalled the narrator’s words in
Zorba the Greek: “I’m all right here. May this minute last for years.”
Above: Renata Leitão and Alexis Aplada, owners of the Chania bistro Ginger Concept
Right: A lush corner in Chania T
90
TRIP PLANNER> where to STAYAmmos Like jazz improv, the elements of this seaside hotel come together in wonder-fully clashing harmony: uplifting interiors, great food, punchy cocktails—and good-natured staffers who don’t flinch when a toddler smears tomato sauce on one of the designer chairs—all delivered with a dash of humor and genuine Cretan hospitality. Rooms from about $150; ammos hotel.com
Metohi Kindelis Stories of Venetian dukes and Ottoman pashas rustle in the avocado and mango trees of this magni- ficent 17th-century estate on the out-skirts of Chania. Behind the rose-pink
walls there’s an organic farm, a family home, and three self-contained guest-houses. Each has a private pool, a garden, and a dining terrace for sampling home-grown produce and delicacies that are replenished daily—figs, persimmons, lychees, and straw-berries; nutty graviera cheese; and smoky heather honey. Guesthouses from about $235 for up to four; metohi-kindelis.gr
Cabanon Concrete Retreat Two tiny cabins with glass façades peep out of a silver haze of olive groves. Midcentury furniture, raw-concrete walls, and a modular, minimal living space with maximum comfort pay homage to Le Corbusier’s ideal of Mediterranean balance. It’s a proper immersion in nature for those with a sharp eye for modern design. Cabins from about $110 for two; cabanonconcrete retreat.com →
91
> the best tables in chaniaEvgonia Nektarios Chalaka-tevakis and his wife, Sofia, run the best taverna in town. Order fish and chips, Cretan-style: whole grilled cod, french fries crisped up in olive oil, and the colorful house salad. Set in a resi-dential neighborhood, the restaurant is where the locals eat—for a fraction of what you’d pay on the waterfront. Dinner for two, about $50
Salis This harborside restaurant pulls off a tricky balancing act, combining a distinct sense of place with an of-the-moment vibe. Sommelier turned chef Afshin Molavi’s seasonal menu offers reimag-ined Greek standards (taramosalata blended with avocado and topped with bottarga crumbs) and avant-garde flourishes (tuna belly with burnt-grape molasses and pickled watermelon rind). An exceptional wine list invites slow drinking alongside the parade of sharing plates. Dinner for two, about $55; salischania.com
Ginger Concept For brunch, an early-evening spritz, or a relaxed dinner date, this Bali-inspired bistro on a pedestrian alley in the Splantzia quarter hits the mark. There’s nothing tradi-tional about the pick-and-mix menu (tuna tartare, chicken and mozzarella coxinha croquettes, burrata with toasted almonds and asparagus) or the interior (rattan armchairs, retro tiles, Amazonian head-dresses). Be careful with your cocktail consumption or you’ll leave with a Ghanaian basket full of caftans from the on-site store. Renata Leitão, the glamorous Brazilian owner, is also behind Just Brazil, the best bou-tique in town. Dinner for two, about $60; gingerconcept.gr
Periplous Fresh seafood and pasta are prepared with finesse at this smart new restaurant, which is helping lead the revival of Tabakaria, a district of crumbling leather tanneries on the out-skirts of town. Dinner for two, about $70; periplousrestaurant.gr
Clockwise from above: The seaside restaurant Thalassino Ageri, in Chania’s Tabakaria district; hanging herbs and produce; mezze at the harbor-front restaurant Salis
TRIP PLANNER
92
> off-the-grid KITCHENSEmilia’s A winding drive up to the high-altitude hamlet of Zourva, in the foothills of the White Mountains, leads to this lovely lunch spot with panoramic views. It serves hearty hunter’s fare: braised goat, fried eggs in a puddle of staka (clarified sheep’s-milk butter), and maratho-pita, a wild-fennel pie that’s more like an anise-flavored pancake—a perfect foil for ice-cold shots of tsikoudia. Lunch for two, about $25
Acropolis At this flower-filled shack wedged into the walls of ancient Polirinia, up in the olive-green hills of Kissamos, Vasiliki Sfakianaki and her daughter turn out humble classics while the sheep-rearing patriarch, Yannis, delivers a running commentary on Greek politics. Try dakos (grated tomato, capers, olives, and a fluffy cloud of goat cheese piled onto brittle barley rusk), boureki (a baked stack of minty zucchini, potatoes, and cheese), and stamnagathi, bitter greens dressed in bright olive oil. Simple but sublime. Dinner for two, about $30
Milia Crete’s first eco-lodge has been around since 1994, long before “farm to fork” became a popular expression. Everything served at this mountain retreat (once seasonal lodging for chestnut farmers) is organic, with familiar ingredi-ents providing surprisingly sophisti-cated flavors: There’s beef brisket in a Greek- coffee crust, squash blossoms filled with bulgur and cheese, and snails with vinegar, rose-mary, and bee pollen.
For dessert, order the satisfyingly sticky goat’s-milk ice cream. Dinner for two, about $45; milia.gr
O Dris Kostas Boundourakis’s kafenion in the scrappy village of Maza, in the White Mountains, is one of those insider secrets you can hardly bear to share. There’s no menu, just a few dishes of the day to be savored beneath the sprawling bougainvil-lea. In the evening, Kostas grills pork chops on a barbecue in the square, fragrant smoke wafting over the 13th-century chapel of Saint Nicholas. Always, always get the Greek salad. Prices vary
Chrisostomos Accessible only by boat or by foot, this taverna (also known by the name Dialiskari) sits on a thatched terrace above a tur-quoise cove. Waiters bring dish after deli-cious dish: lamb that falls off the bone, roast potatoes, and eggplant with a feta crust, all slow-cooked in a wood-fired oven. Finish with sfakiani pita, bubbly dough stuffed with cheese and drizzled with honey. Dinner for two, about $35 r.h.
93
I went to Japan for the first time, in 2017, to visit my sister and her husband, who
were trying to have their first child. My sister had heard about the Hōnen Matsuri,
a fertility festival that happens every year on March 15 in the town of Komaki,
northeast of Kyoto, from a friend of hers, and she jokingly mentioned that maybe this would help
them have a kid. She had the day off, and it sounded interesting, so we took the train north from
Nagoya to attend. It’s a really nice ride: You go past these beautiful green plains, and every once
in a while, you would see women in kimonos getting on and off. Then you finally find yourself in
this little town, which is very simple. As you walk toward the festival area, there are stalls of food
and shops selling souvenirs—but when you look closely, you see that everything, from key chains
to desserts, is penis shaped. It’s like a little Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade: a dozen men in
traditional uniforms carry this large, elaborately decorated wooden phallus, which is probably six
feet long and weighs 600 pounds, around on their shoulders while a huge crowd of people
watches. Luckily, I was perched on top of a rock and had a panoramic view of everything. Before
the men took a left toward the shrine, they turned this massive thing around all together and
started yelling and chanting, and the crowd just went crazy. Afterward, they carried the wooden
penis toward the shrine, where people lined up to say a prayer or make a wish. The great thing
about the festival is that it’s for everyone; kids and grandparents were there, too, because it’s also
to celebrate prosperity within the family. It was definitely surprising, but something about
it being in Japan, and the spirit of it all, made it so beautiful. About a week after I got back to
Los Angeles, I found out that my sister was pregnant. Maybe it’s purely coincidence, but I’d like
to think that the festival had something to do with it.” as told to betsy blumenthal
manny jacinto stars in the limited series nine perfect strangers, now streaming on hulu and amazon prime video.
japan
Actor MANNY JACINTO on
94 CONDÉ NAST TRAVELER SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
ILLU
STR
ATIO
N B
Y G
AYLE
KA
BA
KER
A trAVeler’s tale