Page 13 – La Muse Blue

CLOSED Mantra: finely tuning Italy to raw plant cuisine

It is a terrible loss, but Mantra, the first raw restaurant in Milan better than most plant-based restaurants and cafes (read my vegan reports from LA) in the United States, where the raw foodism trend originated, closed. In Italy, the land of love and enunciated passion for its ingredients from the claws of sea clinching the South to the Alpine mountain-scape of the North, the potential for vegan dining is huge. Follows my homage to what was once our favourite raw food eatery in the world. I originally posted this article in 2016.
contemporary restaurant design

The sustainable sound of Mantra Milan

The location yielded in part the success of Mantra, but foremost, it is the creative spirit of its talented chef Alberto Minio Paluello, who heads the glass-walled raw kitchen with a zeal of a prophet. Paluello trained at the plant-food learning epicentre of Matthew Kenney‘s Academy in the US. Yet, his translation of raw food into reality is much better. The health-glowing chef creates more flavorful dishes than most of the Kenney’s operations in North America now. Still, he keeps the presentation up to the contemporary high dining standards. Edible flowers, lush green tips of herbs and a drizzle of olive oil, naturally cold-pressed, makes you think of dining at Noma or any other Nordic icon of contemporary gastronomic eloquence.
RAWV beet ravioli at Mantra
If in a hurry, which is not the tone Mantra resonates, you can just veer in for a daily juice fix, a raw nutty or dehydrated fruit snack liberally weighed on from hanging dispensers or bike your carbon emissions off in a smoothie. I mean exactly that! As you pedal on the orange stationary bicycle, your movement swirls the blender attached to it. I have not tried, but you can if you dare. A smart invention of a local genie passionate about the environment as much as his raw sense of humour. From the snacks the CRACK Almond and shiitake mushrooms crackers impressed me the most, the PAT airy dehydrated kale chips marinated in cashew cream and bell pepper are also a standout.
The takeaway juices are served in recycled plastic bottles, food in paper boxes, water is filtered through a Japanese carbon system (a black stick lingers in your jar absorbing the impurities in tap water) and the produce is mostly local with the menu changing seasonally. Expect different flavours in January from June.
Seasonal Ingredients calendar

In tune with the Italian seasons

Unlike in the always warm and sunny California, the changing seasons in Europe cast opportunities as well as limitations on the patron that pays attention to the seasonal availability of ingredients. On the wall across from the juice and dessert bar counter, hang the illustrated local plant calendar month by month. Still, the youthful chef is as resourceful as are the founders of Mantra, who often help by keeping an eagle eye on the happenings inside and at busy times wait the tables. Their presence assures that feedback is immediately processed and that everything runs smoothly. In the restaurant business, it is well known, that the relationship between the owner and his chef benefit the quality of execution and better communicate the vision of both to the customer.
Raw vegan Pumpkin ravioli

Vegan slow lifestyle choice for all ages

At lunch you see lone professionals enjoying a healthy lunch instead of the ubiquitous glutenous panini stuffed with salami, a mother with her fashionable teenage daughter venturing into the vegan lifestyle and health conscious friends chatting over leafy plates. Dinner is more fun with mostly organic cocktails and wines adding to the gourmet pleasure served at Mantra. The service flows in a healthy pace, which in a yogic practice means the waiters and the kitchen staff do not pump their arms faster than their breath frequency. Most of the global citizans of the modern fast food nation may get frustrated, but if you know it ahead you plan accordingly. Enjoy the conversation with your dining partner or bring a book if you eat alone.
raw vegan soup

Plant raw food plated beautifully

There are not many restaurants where takeaways are taken as seriously as the plated dishes. Our take-out not just survived the three hours drive from Milan to Monaco, but the flower petals and verdant herbs topping the dishes looked stunning at our dinner table at home. An effortless healthy feast after indulgent dinners in Italy brought us back to balance.
After two lunches at Mantra and two exciting takeaways, our recent favourite menu items were:
RAWV Pumpkin ravioli: a small starter, yet the best raw vegan ravioli I have had to date. Filled with pine nut and spinach “fondue” and topped with zesty cilantro (coriander leafs), lime and pumpkin seed pesto it was further freshened by sweet and sour vinegar marinated apple chunks. [pictured in the takeaway box above] In summer, I had Beet ravioli with lemon cream stuffing and yellow bell pepper sauce. A perfect display of seasonally changing ingredients.
TAB Hemp seed tabbouleh with mint oil, cucumbers, pomegranate seeds. On a side of this large salad was smashed delicious beet and pomegranate hummus with cumin crisps dehydrated from a blend of chia seeds, beet juice and cumin spice.
vegan raw food
ROT Rotolo wrap: bell pepper dehydrated wrap filled with vegetable crudites and creamy, perfectly ripe, avocado. Spiced through a ginger sauce this is an exquisite light lunch. Dehydrated foods can keep up across the seasons.
INSY WAK Algae and mixed leafs seasonal salad: a large and rich salad marinated in lime with tahini vinaigrette. Cucumber pickles and a ginger foam brought up the sour dimension while hemp seed and spirulina gomasio (seasoning) upped its nutritional super-status.

We were not as keen on the winter ZPAG SNIP raw carrot and parsnip noodles with sweet saffron and orange dressing (the summer zucchini with pistachio nuts version is much better); the perhaps too mushroomy POL walnut and mushroom balls (=polpettine) with marinara sauce (rich tomato paste); and the winter ZUP Tomato fondue that was too rich and for my taste too acidic soup (=zuppa) served slightly warm in the cool season. Again, we preferred the summer ZUP take of tomatoes and herbal olive oil.
The names may sound wacky, but these are the mantras of the dishes. Chant them if you want for a holistic experience.

Cold pressed but also warmly embracing drinks

The warm drinks I love are the lattes made from a generous homemade almond milk. The “milk” is unsweetened for your choice in the Matcha Tea Latte, while in the Salted Caramel Latte with empowering maca, sweetness comes naturally from the caramel. A good selection of teas and herbal infusions with a house style touch get a tea lover’s thumbs up.

The juice selection is not extensive, but good enough. Mantra is not just a liquid detox outlet, but a wholesome lifestyle concept. The sunny ZEN blend of apple, ginger with carrot is my favorite. The names are confusing as another ZEN is a green juice mix. As are the AUM mantras of carrot, orange and lemon blend, while another is bright yellow pineapple, apple and mint. To their labyrinthine mashup, I must credit their balanced flavours so not just my body but also my happy taste buds enjoyed sipping on these liquid nutrient bombs.

raw juice

Mantra is a rare healthful choice for a weekly vegan breakfast, weekend brunch, lunch or slightly different dinner than your usual meal out in Milan would otherwise be. If you spend a couple of days in this fashionable Italian city, rejuvenate at least through one meal there. You will be surprised as the flavours are better than at most Milanese restaurants, and that says a lot in itself!

🕗 Mon-Sat: 12noon-midnight; Closed on Sunday

✉ Via Panfilo Castaldi, 21, 20124 Milano, Italy

☏ +39 (0) 2 8905 8575

Gourmand mountain paradise in St Moritz

From globe-trotting chefs through hedonistic festivals to local Alpine indulgences, St Moritz has flexed its gastronomic muscle on the moneyed workout supplied into its Swiss mountain for decades. Before Courchevel (and Les Trois Valées), there was St Moritz. More, the glistening lakes, see-and-to-be-seen stage stretches its red carpet beyond the ever briefer winter snow season, and your palate’s whims won’t come short anytime of the year.

eating like pigs truffle pizza

Gourmandise has always been indulged in the posh resort where movie stars and the European power jet set spoon caviar from silver goblets, truffles are shaved over anything like salt flakes, and seafood is flown or driven daily from the Milan fish market for its utmost freshness. An annual St Moritz Gourmet Festival draws in the world’s most celebrated as well as the up and coming chefs. At the grand hotels, this is a dressy affair, while some of the multi-course tasting dinners are set in more casual, redressed conference and dining rooms in the area.

Eat local around St Moritz year round

On the mountain slopes, Salastrains has sustained the great food seeking crowds for decades. Their truffle pizza is Roman-style (tomato base on thin, soft, olive oil added, chewy crust) and satisfying. More young crowd, less expensive, and most dishes are hearty, mountain fare.

Inside the authentically renovated boutique hotel Chesa Rosatsch in Celerina (about seven minutes drive from St Moritz) for lunch after an intense cross-country run we like the Uondas grill where superb Alsatian tarte flambé are baked to an ultra-thin crispness under the créme frâiche with local dried venison, fresh Swiss cheese and other superb toppings. They dry age “madürà” calf, beef and lamb in their maturity cabinet that is then grilled to perfect. On sunny days, their house-made vanilla swirl ice cream with coffee is my indulgent après-ski replenisher. The food here is much better than at the more famous Chesa Veglia grill owned by the Badrutt’s Palace Hotel (the pizza restaurant there is very good though). Most restaurants now have vegan options or even a special plant-based menu. Uondas includes a few vegivore bowls on its evolving menu.

St Moritz vip best food in St Moritz

Eat fancy on the slopes

Literally next house to Salastrains, after 50 years of family restaurant business at La Marmite, the local star chef and co-founder of the annual St Moritz Gourmet Festival, Reto Mathis moved to a new location with an open terrace in 2017. Named CheCha by Reto Mathis, the caviar and truffle king (the ultra fine thin-crust pizza OMG!) rolls your eyes scanning the “Eggs & Balls” menu (Reto Mathis Private Selection beluga for 4200 Swiss Francs!!) also offers “VEKAPU”, a daily changing vegan basket of specialities. In March 2018 Switzerland introduced one of the world’s strictest laws that prohibits any infliction of unnecessary pain to animals. Lobsters cannot be cooked alive, but must be stunned before. Eating living and moving shrimps as in Japan would be a criminal offence in the otherwise quite liberal and neutral country. The crustaceans in the aquarium at CheCha wait to be pampered prior to entering your plate. Scientifically sound, the new rule acknowledges the highly evolved nervous system of the lobster. Non-skiers and indulgent lunch drinkers (English sparking Nyetimber gets a special, full page attention) can get there or back on a horse-driven carriage. The Culinary School here tempts home chefs to visit St Moritz in summer.

best Slovenian chef dish by Ana Ros

St Moritz Gourmet Festival spotlights female chefs and the world’s finest three Michelin chefs

The Gourmet Festival is scheduled annually around the Snow Polo on the Lake, late in January or early February. From our three years of participating, fancy ingredients still rule as the chefs seem to be concerned with not satisfying their fine clientele, nobody, yet, serves plant-based cuisine or humble produce that has been increasingly highlighted by sustainably-minded chefs globally. A growing influx of female chefs have recently accepted the invitations to cook in the sunny mountain valley. Dominique Crenn as well as the Slovenian Ana Roš paid a visit last year, Brazil’s Bel Coelho, Bee Satongun from Asia and others opened up our cultural taste buds beyond the Swiss borders .

St Moritz Gourmet Festival

Thematically, you encounter purely female chefs as in the 2020 edition, or just a melting pot of established and rising stars in the global culinary world. Usually, at least one Thai chef participates (we were thrilled with Ian Kittichai and Bee Satogun of Paste Bangkok, Laos and soon a new opening in Australia). We always discover at least one chef, whose restaurant we would otherwise missed (the three Michelin starred Jacob Jan Boerma, whose superbly balanced cuisine we loved, closed De Lest in 2019, now opening a more casual concept in Amsterdam), while Lola in Copenhagen inspired our return to the Danish capital for her by Bolivia-tinted, yet locally-driven cuisine. Saving ourselves unnecessary gourmet trips to those restaurants, whose chef’s performance underwhelmed (Ana Roš of Hiša Franko disappointed with her flat, quite boring execution). The festival dinners are spread beyond St Moritz between the local hotels, which is an opportunity to disembark from your regular haunts. This year over 4000 diners forked through the fine cuisine served during that indulgent week in St Moritz.

Caminada restaurant Andreas Caminada food

Fine dining in St Moritz

While some St Moritz restaurants have been offering reliable although not cheap delicacies for decades, almost every year a newcomer stirs the local dining scene beyonds its limits. The Badrutt’s Palace hotel leads the fun and fine dining evolution here. Recently, IGNIV overseen by the three Michelin starred Swiss chef Andreas Caminada upped the dining game at the Badrutt’s Palace. Small plates like luxurious tapas, each fine-tuned, tempting, fun, to be shared in endless servings inside the sexy and intimate ambiance. We loved it each season so far. Once a year, usually in February, the chef Caminada himself shares the kitchen with his IGNIV branch chefs in a spectacular evening of hedonistic pleasure. The head sommelier pairs the best Swiss wines with the intriguing fare, indeed a family party, as they call the night.

Jason Atherton at the Badrutt’s Palace Hotel launched his contemporary fun British culinary offensive in the last winter season. Set in the club downstairs, many of the Asia meets Europe creations are finished at the table as the Dj spins his favourite tunes. The chef himself was present when we came and later he rocked it out on the dance floor with his wife and young kids. An ideal combo of entertainment and truly delicious food.

Nobu Matsuhisa has a seasonal (winter) restaurant at the same hotel, but the execution is inconsistent while the prices peak high. By far, this is the weakest from all his nikkei restaurants we have been to anywhere in the world. dining St Moritz
Beyond the centre of St Moritz, creative gastronomy is served also at the two Michelin star Ecco on Snow at Giardino Mountain Hotel in Champfér.

There also a splendidly restored farmhouse (built in 1658) was transformed into an excellent Michelin restaurant Talvo by Dalsass. In the caring hands of Tyrolean chef Martin Dalsass and his son Andrea, you are for consistent, ingredient-driven, frequently updated pleasure. Olive oil lovers rejoyce as the chef pairs different Italian ones with the dishes and the lavish bread basket with the couvert of tomatoes and giant green olives.

The Italian concierges chitchat guests into another two Michelin-starred Italian Da Vittorio at the Carlton hotel, but a disappointing meal and flimsy service during our meal a few years ago will not attract us back anytime soon. The chef cooked his ingredients without much respect, yielding taste to his ego’s originality.

Mountain delicacies at your hand

Beyond fondue and raclette at the stüvas buy the local Engadine honey-laced walnut tart nusstorte, capuns or salzis (sausage). At Pur Alps, a gourmet store embracing local produce, much of the bounty is organic or “Demeter” (biodynamic) certified and sourced directly.

For Swiss chocolate head to the Läderach boutique in the town’s centre. My favourite slabs include the crunchy hazelnut dark chocolate, while the Grand Cru box allows for a more sophisticated cocoa bliss. Your hotel may feed you with indulgent chocolate domes on your way from the ski slopes (Badrutt’s sweet transport), or exclusive milk chocolate bars in a minibar (Suvretta House).

Aprés ski teatime

The English influence on the ski town is still rampant. An afternoon tea at any of the Grand Hotels was introduced to pamper the English guests over a century ago. Today, Russian Insta-stars (Kulm and Badrutt’s Palace), and other aspiring ladies with their entourage fill the glamorous chandelier rooms to display the opulent lobbies of the Badrutt’s Palace, Carlton, Kempinski Grand Hotel des Bains and the Kulm hotels. The most classy crowd gathers at the Suvretta House, where a live piano chimes to the Western tea ritual as a chef prepares warm waffles a la minute.

fancy breakfast

Hotel breakfasts are fine affairs in St Moritz too. Badrutt’s Palace throws in a harpist, while Suvretta House focuses on more healthy, superfood breakfast. The contemporary Giardino Mountain Hotel in Champfér offers a smaller, more usual morning buffet.

From the early hours before any activity sets you out through the warming afternoon indulgence and socialising at night, St Moritz will not disappoint you as a gourmand mountain paradise, choices abound!

Naoshima and Lee Ufan: expressive interconnection “exalting the self and the other”

Lee Ufan nudges you to see what you normally do not see. As in meditation, his work is not about ideas but rather transcendence of the self. The philosophical artworks express a momentous, site-specific relationship between the observer and the reality. Although he created sculptural interactions in the Kensington Gardens, in Versailles or at the Guggenheim in New York, nowhere his works resonate in evolving their wholeness as at the Lee Ufan Museum on the Naoshima island in Japan.

Naoshima, Lee Ufan

Beyond seeing, more feeling

The Art of Encounter in light and space — as much as in anything when art serves as the intermediary connecting the observer with the outside world — is the focus of Mr Lee. The artist may suggest, as he did at his personal museum, yet it is up to the viewer (my photo above) how she engages with and interprets the artwork. At the specific point of the day I saw more connection with nature of the Relatum sculpture with the sunlight and the tree, while the artists work included a broader scope of vision including giant concrete and steel poles.

Lee Ufan shared his hope that “artistic expression will lead to reflection and leaps of imagination” by creating “painting and sculpture that transcends the age of deconstruction and reinterpretation“. Around the world, his artistic discourse mediating the experience between an idea and reality, has engaged not only the visitors of leading galleries and contemporary museums, but also the passersby in London’s Kensington Gardens, where his rendering of another Relatum sculpture stopped your gaze fronting the Serpentine Gallery.

Perhaps for the artists’s accent on engagement and sensations of the viewer, the exhibition at his Naoshima museum concludes with a meditation room – a space with a white front wall painted with unframed “Dialogue” to expand the visitors’ experience through reflection and recollection of what they encountered in the artworks.

Site-specific art

At Naoshima, Lee Ufan Museum opened in 2010 to display more permanently the site-specific accent that the artist is keen to mediate. It is a unique experience felt distinctly with the changing seasons, so I recommend to any sensitive being to come and feel it on his/her own.

Architected, like the Chichu Art Museum and the Benesse House nearby, by his friend, the minimalist with a naturist eye Tadao Ando. The octogenarian is a leading creative figure transcending his native Japan into France (Museum at Château La Coste) and other countries. In fact, it was Mr Ando who brought Lee Ufan to Naoshima in 2007, suggesting the exact site of Kuraura for his first museum.

A painter, poet, sculptor but also a philosopher (graduated from Nihon University, Tokyo), his ideas and cultivated skills set Lee Ufan apart from most of the 20th century artists. Now in his 80s (born in 1936), he is pursuing his legacy not only through his teaching, but also in holistic spaces dedicated to his work as he intended it. His traditional, Confucian education, including calligraphy, he received in when growing up in Korea, then occupied by Japan, has formed his spiritual approach to art.

Lee Ufan Museum on Naoshima takes you on a sensory journey. You are not supposed to take photos, but in order for this experience to last in my failing memory I had to snatch a few snaps when nobody was looking. I am sorry, dear artist, but as a creative person yourself you must understand the fleeting nature of inspiration, and the works by Lee Ufan are one of those special things I connect with personally, so I need to see them through my lens, not in exhibition books and leaflets.

The Art of Encounter, a wonderful book about the artist’s fascinating philosophy, was published in collaboration with the curator Hans Ulrich Obrist of the Serpentine Gallery.

Displaying his prowess in light and space – the angle you take when engaging with his art such as in this image I captured first with the sunlight allowed into my frame, and seconds after with a lowered vision – changes the mood of his work. This was a few seconds moment in one’s life, but seen differently. As with an attitude, you can choose what you want to see. Relatum are series of spacial works spurred by Japan’s Mono-ha (‘School of Things’) movement, he was part of. The natural space relates with the material he uses creating a sensation of openness.

Naoshima, Lee Ufan

Titles as a small hint, service to the viewer

The time of the day also halos the here and now between you and the reality in front of you. I cannot more agree with Mr Lee’s about his outdoor works: “The landscape seems to be always changing. You can expect various experiences in relation to nature”. These photos of the sculpture (below) that was originally conceived at Versailles, titled “Porte vers l’infini”, taken only an hour apart, absolutely changed my perception of each moment. The first at 15:20 upon my arrival at Naoshima, contains more human noise and feels so sharp, while before the early sunset of late November at 16:30 the warmth of the moment embraces you with its natural calm.

The artist confessed in the Serpentine exhibition related book The Art of Encounter: “I often feel burdened about titling my works because a title tends to restrain the viewer’s interpretation of the artwork… There is a distance between the title and the actual work and the title is static while the artwork is a living thing that can be viewed differently anytime. So the title is perceived as a freeze-frame.” So as you walk through this rainbow gate, you glimpse the instance of infinity and its expansiveness. Whether facing the sea or passing back seeing the mountains, the sky unites all into an expanse of space. Infinity fascinates the artist, and he wants to open the source of your own imagination.

Naoshima, Lee Ufan

A dialogue, relationship and openness

His sculptures (3-D) open our awareness of space, while his paintings (2-D) interact with time. Starting with the Pole Place in front of the museum, moving to the Correspondence Place after the ticket office, exploring the Encounter Room, Void, Silence Room, Shadow Room, and ending in the Meditation Room, you are in for powerful and engaging experiences.

Inside the Lee Ufan Museum, the From Line, From Point, With Winds paintings express the magic of minimalism. In his hands, little says more than complex, purposefully visual reality reinterpreting paintings. In an interview published in The Art of Encounter he asserts: “In general, flatness of a painting represents individuality and ideality; the cubic quality of a sculpture represents generality and reality… For this, I attempt to mix 2-D and 3-D in my own way so the action of seeing can be considered as more multi-layered and dynamic.” This is why you need to see Lee Ufan’s works in their context like in the Encounter Room, not as inserts between other, unrelated works in packed museums. Unless, you witness the pure interaction between his sculpture set in nature. Then you can glimpse into the openness of the universe that he carefully unlocks for you. Clarity through the viewers’s experience is his goal.

Naoshima, Lee Ufan

Spaces, places in Lee Ufan’s work: Japan, Korea, France

“The artwork is not the same depending on how and where it is displayed“, Lee Ufan grasps the subtle energy of context that is particularly felt in his artworks embracing yohaku, emptiness or resonant space. Since his path to art is about the imagination and outer reality, not attempt for reproduction, he finds it important “to limit the parts of the work I make, accept the parts I do not make, and create a dynamic relationship in which these aspects both interpenetrate or repel each other.” Personally, I was immersed in his works, but could not explain what it was. As in my poetry, the sensation cannot be intellectualised, but when one’s awareness is opened, it can be felt. With me, the artist achieved what he hopes for: “the opening up of a poetic, critical, and transcendent space“, but for that a high level spirituality is required.

Ri Ūfan Bijutsukan was born in South Korea, but for most of his life created in Japan and later he partially moved to Paris. “At the intersection of three cultures, Lee Ufan’s work is universal and immediate in intent. Immediate in the sense that language is not a requirement: Ufan often describes how he made his first works while planning to study literature and philosophy in Japan, but failed to master the language. He opted for visual communication instead,” wrote Jean-Marie Gallais, the curator of the recent 2019 exhibition Inhabiting Time at the Centre Pompidou-Metz. Many sculptures found around Naoshima today are site-specific, engaging with the space they were installed on. Over a quarter century ago, The Benesse Art Foundation pioneered what is more common in today’s art world – showing works as unique intersections with reality at a specific location.

After Japan, Space Lee Ufan at Busan Museum of Art opened in 2015, and a new Fondation Lee Ufan Arles, currently scheduled to open in 2022 in the 17th century Hôtel Vernon, is being redesigned by [who else than] his Japanese architect friend Tadao Ando. “This Roman city, rich in history, was a catalyst for new ideas and thinking. I was inspired by the [potential for] dialogue between my work and the city’s fragmented ruins”, he writes on his foundation website. Arles has been reinventing itself as the new blood for artistic expression in the South of France. Far from the spoiled glitz of the Riviera and St Tropez and the commercial distraction of the major art selling cities (New York, London, Paris, LA, Tokyo, Beijing). I love visiting Arles beyond its summer photographic show, when the heat blurs my vision and clouds my mind. Next to the contemporary Luma museum, the Lee Ufan Foundation will draw more spirit-seekers into this beautiful Provençal relic.

Natural Clock: a poem on aging, pain and mindset

Minutes go by the clock counting age

Aware of their sonorous passage

My joints conduct the cracking message

Biologically confused, not a rock

My body is in the hands of a clock

Or not, I own my flesh and can decide

Worn out from the daily transformation

My mind ages desiring regeneration

Thoughts, like the sun’s burning rays

The messengers of passing days

Penetrate the epidermis

Like cancerous cells

Into the brain — decay, thought

It ought to manifest, that thought

Charged with energy that fills atoms

Thinking nectar enlivens or poisons organs,

The nerves and ligaments that conduct aches

But remembering that this space is all mine

An opportunity, emptiness to be filled,I own time

Positive and negative still ticking without a lock

I know now that I can wind the natural clock

Tic-tac, I changed the sound

So the clock goes by me

~ Joy

Natural Clock is a poem on aging, pain and the power of the mindset.

I mused on time already, so read more if you are intrigued.

I was inspired by reading The Divided Mind by Dr. John E. Sarno on body-mind relationship. Together with his medical colleagues, they healed over many decades patients with chronic pain, GIT inflammation and autoimmune diseases, all with scientifically unproven, unexplained cause. Their approach was formed through experience with their patients, not through the known scientific methods of testing objectively. The later in the case of belief and self-reported emotions are difficult to measure, simply for their subjective nature. Even neuroscience cannot grasp the full scale of the mechanisms involved in such self-healing.

Another Western source catching up with the millennia of developed Eastern thought, The Body Keeps the Score by Bessel Van Der Kolk, whose research on trauma yielded clinically proven conclusions knocked on my consciousness. Emotions can be stored in the body and called to the awareness years later. The accompanied tension is not just from the wrong movement or too much sitting, but also from emotional baggage. Over time, the accumulated tension grows into pain.

self-help literature

Natural Clock of Awareness

A chronic tension in my neck and shoulders brought me to a renown, experienced myofascial release therapist. Each time before he set his healing hands on me, we discussed health, pain, psychology and happiness. Upon each treatment I released all my tension, while guiding my breath freely through the body and meditating. No need for massage, muscle-relaxants or pain medication.

I had further experiences with the mind-body connection that manifested as unbearable pain, and it was just mind-boggling how easily that thorn in my being just walked away from me after certain emotional realisations. It was not easy to get there, I had to try all the medical ways, until, my meditation rose my awareness above the clouds of ignorance. There is so much information, also in the form of emotions deep within our bodies and minds, that we need to puzzle out. Mindfulness, reflection and meditation are like spiritual contemplation the free for all tools for self-healing more efficient than most other, physically-oriented, not holistic therapies.

BIO HACKING: WIND UP YOUR NATURAL CLOCK

Recently, after a thorough health check up, my doctor, one of the best in Switzerland, announced that my biological age is 16 years less than my birth age! Just days after a major milestone celebration calculated by the number of sunrises and sunsets, I could not feel more ecstatic. Some health and ageing factors are genetic, but most can be “hacked” though our own effort. Where we live, the pollution, noise, what we eat, how safe is the water, how we think and move on daily basis, are scientifically proven movers and shakers of our health and the speed of our physical ageing. I would add our connection with nature since she balances my emotional self.

The circulatory system, the heart, athletes’ pulse, liver and kidney function (detox), a good immune response as much as the strength of your bones, muscle distribution to keep you balanced, visceral fat, these all determine your biological age. Training but not taxing your body and mind. Balanced score.

Most pills are accompanied by numerous side effects, some potentially more harmful than the problem we used the medicine for. Patience pays off, and indeed for long-lasting results on human health it cannot be more true. Attitude and awareness count. Knowing what to do in the moment and that the positive mindset has a considerable power over our health set us for action.

I was curious if others could switch their attitudes and modes to healing from the quick fix to such accessible alternative solutions. Focused purely on the symptoms, most pills are not the cure, but a temporary relief of inflammation and pain. Time chimes differently for each of us, and the problem can resurface at any time.

I know from studying pharmacology, that the scientifically recognised placebo effect can be as potent as the medicine used to cure. Belief is a powerful tool that the human mind was blessed with. And we can use it for our benefit. Psychologists are puzzled by this phenomena since we do not have a proper method to measure the mechanism of beliefs.

contemporary art

Tick-tock, tic-tac, tic-toc, … experience time’s movement

I am not a voracious self-help, magic promises, bestselling (mostly American) books consumer, yet when a personal experience agreed with what a growing number of very experienced health practitioners empirically observe, my curiosity was teased to investigate.

A documentary on Netflix, titled Heal, further opened this theme for me. The timing for watching this open-minded, case-driven, alternative approaches supporting production was ripe. About in the middle of the streaming, someone I know wrote me out of the blue about her husband’s diagnosis with cancer. In such a dire situation one needs more than hope. Belief in recovery is at least as essential next to all the necessary and tested medical therapy. I hope that this poem inspires your everyday mindset as it shifted mine.

I still wonder. For most of known history, we counted time through the moving light of the sun as our planet turns from the cycle of a day into the night. The sun-dial was visually more aligned with the astrological origin of our time awareness. Don’t you think? Einstein certainly understood the relativity of space and time.

Somehow technology is shrinking our perception of space.

I feel that before our digital time counting, even the predecessor of the winding clock, the bell, allowed for more free space between the anchors of Earthly time. Thus our perception of time between the hours rather than the minutes and seconds announcing clock, watch and now mainly digital devices like our smart phones was more special. Perhaps, that is why we are so rushed, fast-paced and can hardly rest today. We feel the squeeze of the clock acutely in our daily experience.

Balanced health from Europe through Arizona to Japan

Healthy eating, rejuvenating beverages, spa, fitness and psychological wellness allure longevity seekers. I am a hedonist, loving life, great food and wine, yet following the Hippocratic premise that “a dose makes a poison” I try to balance these indulgences with moderation. In my quest to balance my body and mind, my best recent rejuvenating experiences holistically calmed or invigorated me when needed. This is the equilibrium of health that we instinctively seek.

Pampering my health in the Mediterranean, on the road in Africa, America and Asia, I share the best rejuvenating experiences at luxurious, rustic rural or revamped ancient public spa resorts worth investing in whether you are nearby or plan a special journey around their promise to balance your health.

Seeking health must be a priority, yet over two decades of nomadic lifestyle I learned that one has to be flexible when on the road. Directly from nature’s pharmacy I devoured with a healthy relish the mountain vegetables (sensai) in Japan, Naturopathica’s herb bar in New York settled my spinning mind and so did hikes around LA, snow-clad strolls around Aspen, Arlberg and St Moritz, while the freshest spring green tea detoxified me in China. While staying at a spa resort is a luxury, nature provides free for all healthy lifestyle. Just open your mind to its opportunities.

Seasonal opportunities ripened to rejuvenate

Winter’s bounty stretched my legs on the Alpine snow in Austrian Tyroles and the Italian-Swiss Engadin mountains (the river valley cross-country marathon trails are impeccably maintained). An ad-on infra sauna après-ski in St Moritz warms you deep inside more than mulled wine. In summer these river trails turn into safe cycling, rollerblading and running routes.

A truly royal hamam at the Royal Mansour Palace Hotel in Marrakech rubbed my skin to pristine cleanliness in balmy February.

The desert wilderness of Arizona in spring charmed my soul when hiking the red hills and relaxing during a crystal bowl concerto.

A seriously deep foot reflexology and organic face pampering inspired by the Siamese royal court with ‘Erb’ botanical potions beautified me in Thailand. Later, embalming autumn chills in natural Japanese hot springs at Beniya Mukayu and the luxurious Amanemu on the spiritual Kii Peninsula, I wrapped up my annual Asia trip. Taking on the legendary Kumano Kodo trail, I realised that forest bathing can be enjoyed throughout the year anywhere where the soil does not get muddy after rain.

In summer, returning to La Reserve de Ramatuelle, my favourite hotel retreat in the Mediterranean, totally “happified” me – coastal hiking, massages and swimming always feel ageless! Karl Lagerfeld used to channel the creative energy here every August in the last decade of his life.

In fall, I retreated to the most celebrated and exclusive spa in America, checked up with my genetic health potential on a clinic in Spain, and bathed my mid-thirties in restored Roman Baths of old Girona (AQUA BANYS ROMANS).

Psychological & physical wellness united for health:

I find mental balance through contemplating, hiking, meditation, running, water activities and quality sleep.

Experts warn that anxiety is the pandemic of the 21st century and insomnia has spread with mobile phones on at all hours. Pricy sleeping retreats get booked months in advance. SHA Clinic in Spain, Lanserhof in Austria and Germany are one of the most luxurious and tech-savvy spas in Europe offering such sonorous reeducation. I had not napped myself a decade younger and slimmer as some popular authors vividly described in their recent books, but I tried a sleep program at Kamalaya on Koh Samui island in Thailand. A burbling waterfall next to my room kept me up most nights, so the program failed to sleep me rosy despite the calming spa treatments and herbal brews. The 24/7 technology flood, family health and the endless to-do-lists can roll behind my closed eyes like an endless movie when trying to fall asleep. How many of you battle sleeplessness these days? One report says that about 70 percent people do not sleep enough. Are we living through an epidemic of mind’s restlessness?

A hermit might not have as many distractions as a social being, yet most of us crave balance between the two. Going to an ashram or having time on one’s own may seem unrealistic for busy parents, but you can get your slice of peace in nature, cocooning in a meditation booth, contemplating at church, and even while musing over the depths of life at a cemetery. The escape from the noisy urban world feels like bathing in a cashmere wool after walking through a field of cacti.

In Morocco, I found my mental balance while running through the manicured olive orchards in Marrakech. It’s safer than hiking alone in the stunning Atlas where some recent incidents rattled even the most adventurous women.

Crossing over to Europe running (I was in a good form) through the olive trees laced farm in Portugal built my appetite for a generous, locally-sourced breakfast (if there exists only one place to eat meat sustainably, it’s in the Alentejo). While jogging the dirt roads shared with freely grazing cattle, I passed a lake and an ancient fortified village embellished my vista. Here, at the historic São Lourecao do Baroccal, plumped up to a luxurious spa hotel, my mood was tuned to a mesmerised mode. Fragrant ripe oranges and the vine-framed view from the bath keep you soaking for an eternity.

Happiness is health

In California, a deep state of focus and inspiration blessed my weary mind. Discovering traditional healing powers of Native Americans, I found new ways to engage with my aching body and heal it rather than abuse it. Read about my transformative, weeklong stay at the Golden Door to spy on where the Hollywood (I hula-hooped, practiced taichi with Julia Roberts, who hugged everyone and smiled so wide that the movies pale next to reality) and accomplished American businesswomen (men retreats are rare as this is mainly female-only retreat) recharge for health.

London finally got an excellent breath work, meditation and sound relaxation centre. ReMind nests practically near the industrious hub of the Victoria station. My frequent lunch reset in Marylebone, Yeotown Kitchen not only offers balanced and healthy food, but its underground meditation booth stills your spinning urban mind before or after the meal.

Even Paris meditates. On cold fall evenings I enjoyed the yin yoga and gong meditation at Omm in the Marais, a two minute walk from the superb boutique Palais de la Reine hotel where I stayed. Strolling the City of Lights with a friend’s vintage Leica, snapping photos on a film connected me more than snaps with a smartphone. Slowing down and paying attention carefully before pressing the shutter felt so yesteryear — better to be precise.

In Vienna, Shambhala Center has for over three decades induced the stern Austrians to meditate in the hip Josefstädt near the Museum Quarter. Courses like art, qi-gong, taichi, yoga, enlightening lectures, traditional medicine education and live concerts enrich one’s city soul.

Soothing my mind was as important to my health as tuning to my changing body. Muscle mass deteriorates after 30, and even the former model whom the agents bullied for being too toned has had come to terms with the reality of having softer arms, bum and belly (I feel very feminine and comfortable, no shaming). Loving one’s body as it is, is even more important though than striving for constant improvements. I do not subscribe to the gymnasium ratrace. Going through physiological challenges with the right attitude illuminated new paths to wellness. I see it as an opportunity to find something else that feels right for me uniquely.

A wrist injury and chronic pain accelerated my transition from highly physically demanding workouts to more mindful exercise and physical therapy that cares about my body rather than abuses it. More hiking and walking, instead of hard impact boxing, tennis and running too often, ushered me into mid-thirties. Restorative yoga won over power flow popular in most fuelled-up cities. Qi gong is an incredible old Chinese method to unite the mind with the gently moving body working like a medicine for the organs. There are great online classes in english with Sifu Anthony on his Flowing Zen website.

I noticed that I feel younger when tackling challenges outdoors, truly invigorated, injected with the solar Vitamin D and longer lasting endorphins than from the sweat-infused heavy weights in the gym or the gymnastics-like power yoga of today. I transformed my yoga practice. Returning to the real yoga of the union between the body and the mind, pranayama breath training and with gratitude to my India-born, between California-Tulum based teacher Madhu, my spine (where all the chakras run) shed any tension accumulated from daily life.

I also love to jump in water with the retirees during aqua gym. My favourite pools for indoor water exercise are the beautiful Thermes Marins Monte-Carlo and Terre Blanche in Provence. Outdoors, the Golden Door in California and Monaco’s Beach Club, freshen me up with this low impact exercise. The Icebergs pool on Bondi Beach in Sydney is just too freezing, although they say the colder the salt water, the healthier, brr muscle tension and bad for arthritis, beware!

The best HOLISTIC wellness concept I found is the Viennese quartet by Saint Charles. It rounds up a transformed pharmacy (Apothecary) with history going back to 1886 you get all health potions imaginable, organic cosmetics boutique (Cosmothecary joined by a beauty parlour Hideaway), wellness centre (Complementary – alternative therapies, yoga, et al.), and a healthy, herb-based organic seasonal bistro (Alimentary). All are on the Gumpendorfer Straße. The concept has recently expanded to Berlin. This socially aware business model alleviates the current refugee crisis as “unaccompanied, underage refugees are given the opportunity to go on one-week holiday camps and experience an unfettered break from the constraints of everyday life surrounded by nature” on a farm in Prigglitz, Austria.

At home in Monaco, where construction sites recall Dubai in its peak development, the Maritime Alps comforted me while hiking in solitude. My favourite new hikes in Europe straddled the rocky hilltops of the less populated, ochre-hued Esterel mountains in the South of France and along the westside of the Lake Como in Italy. Starting from the Sentee di Sort – da Rovenna a Moltrasio above Cernobbio, the gorgeous vistas from the poster-perfect rustic Italian villages and the well-marked trails to Urio’s boat terminal reminded me of simple life in traditional communities.

Como Lake Como Lake Italy

In America, the Temescal Canyon above and in the Pacific fog hijacks you from the car maze of LA (find a pal, it is quite dangerous). The ‘wild-west’ wellness week at the Miraval resort in Arizona was worth the trip. Their famous horse therapy program is booked months ahead, but anyone can enjoy the best views from a yoga studio imaginable and their off-property hikes in the Sonoran Desert that schmoozed with my soul. Hiking through the rocky Ventana Canyon spiked with millennial cacti impressed me the most.

In Japan, I rustled off far too many snakes along my route to one of the shinto shrines surrounding Ise, otherwise I would revel in this less populated hiking area. While the signage is legible for foreigners alongside the well-trod UNESCO World Heritage Kumano Kodo, the most scenic stretches of the pilgrimage trail are now too busy for one to contemplate life. Cycling along the Kamogawa river North towards the mountains around Kyoto was the most authentic local exercise. This outdoor exploration is more interesting than being locked in a gym of one of the luxurious hotels that have reshaped the imperial city recently.

Beware of the sharks in the wellness industry: what works vs what siphons your money away

I appreciate zero cost as much as luxurious activities. Flags up! In the wellness business many cash draining offerings — pseudoscience treatments like ozone blood cleansing, oxygen inhaling (just go out to nature), wellness gene sequencing tests (5 -10% is your DNA, the rest lifestyle), fasting (paying for not eating? Just consult with your GP, sip broths at home, and add all supplements you need), placebo (belief works), temporary or zero effect witchcraft, should keep your reason on alert.

Cure-all trends in health come with caveats. Personal differences must be considered. For example, I’m not the fasting type. For skipping only a meal can make me dizzy, jittery, tired, nervous, “hangry”. A broad genetic test confirmed my tendency for constant hunger, a sigh. Although I am thin, have high HDL cholesterol (the good one), which the test did not grasp, my food cravings rarely hit a pause. On the contrary, my husband boosted his immune system, reduced his arthritis and chronic swelling by fasting at the best clinics in Europe (his favourite is Lanserhof) and his strong will enabled him to continue at home. I bow down to his resolve.

Health is an individual path and we must listen to our bodies in order to treat them right. Genetics reveal only a tiny part of the truth, so no excuses since we can influence our environment and our lifestyles that change the rest. Start now.

Cruising the Mekong River in Laos

Cruising the Mekong at sunset can be an unforgettable experience, if you do it right. In Luang Prabang, there are large, with tourists packed loud boats taking you for a ride as anywhere on the bucket list map, but you can go small scale to avoid it. The intimacy of a small boat, free from phones snapping the moment which you have basically missed yourself, is worth paying for.

The golden hour of the sun nesting into its bed of horizon filters the light into a warm bath of airy presence. Facing towards Thailand, our wooden boat glided on the silky ruffles of the water’s surface. We were dreaming of the tangible possibility of eternal beauty here and now. It wasn’t the wine only that tricked us into such a romantic illusion, the scenery intoxicated us with its serene calm. The cinematic narratives of the Mekong’s charm we knew from movies played a live stream right in front of us. Surrounding to this moment, I felt romantic, like the teenager sitting in front of a campfire, musing on the magic life we humans have the opportunity to participate in. I want to be the part of that spiritual life! I thought.

Eco unawareness

Another put off is the unromantic reality of the wasteful, cheap and utilitarian lifestyle we consume today. Environmental pollution is not a priority in the impoverished Laos. Plastic trash pops up in the forest on trekking trails, around the less touristy temples, as well as floating on the surface of the magnetising Mekong river.

Shifting reality through your consciousness

What alarms one’s eyes though, does not bother another’s mind. The Lao people do not seem to be aware of this piling up of trash being a problem, so for now let me just close one eye and savour the soul-melting sunset over the Mekong.

I get deeper in my connection when I close my eyes. I can better immerse myself into being in the moment and in my budding visual creativity. Further, like with kissing, my feelings intensify with my eyelids shut. My breath becomes my sight. The mind travels through the body and I sense more fully my surroundings. This river of breath carries me far away from any fear, pain or worries. Each inhale frees more space between my body tissues. I expand, freed. The exhales liberate the nods and tension stressing my muscles that crave relaxation. Like melting chocolate from its heavy form into a fluid cup of pleasure. Huh, feeling great!

I opened my eyes.

fishing for the food market in Laos

The surrounding natural canvas changed from the lazy cosiness of the afternoon palette to the deep, restful blue hues of the evening. This was one of these experiences when a little wine accentuates the tiniest layer into something more clearly enunciated (which does not work in other, mainly to productivity-geared activities). The gold imprinted on the veneer of the temple walls and roofs, on the ponds at the nearby Royal Palace, and the Mekong would be muted very soon.

As the night descended upon our melancholic state, reality tapped in. Our captain steered the boat back to the mooring in the gently lit-up town. Luang Prabang does not waste its public electricity on the sparkly light show of many cities. The dimness feels very cosy though. One wants to cuddle in and just chill.

Market life by the Mekong in Luang Prabang

In town, the night market was in its full, local pace. Browsing the crafts, textiles, organic soaps, mostly silly T-shirts and some tacky souvenirs, there was still authentic quality to be found. I needed a toiletry bag as the zipper of my past Christmas gift just broke down, and I found the perfect, handmade one. Girlfriends chit-chatting at one of their mother’s stand exchanged smiles with us, their 20 years older selves. I empathised with them having their special moment out at night. In their age, I thought this would be so rare, a cherished outing. Unlike in Cambodia or India, they did not push us into buying anything. I was impressed. Then, I was amused. A toddler dressed in a grass green dinosaur costume trod around the colour paintings at another stand. His mum was chatting with another lady. A family life live at the night market, no need for media.

The morning food market nearby is more interesting produce-wise, at least for me, an avid cook seeking always new local and seasonal ingredients. I was offered to taste almost everything, but some strangely looking river fish that I’d rather not see. On the other side the fried bamboo shoots and banana chips made a perfect snack, while the river weed without the saltiness of seaweed intriguingly seasoned many local plates from chicken to rice.

Spiritual charms of Luang Prabang

The spiritual charms of Luang Prabang breathe out the air of authentic, focused, generous, innocent, kind, open and pure Buddhist attitude. Being, and not just Instagram-posting, in this UNESCO shrine of Laos swallows you into a tranquil stream of slow, content life. Beyond any blindly devoted ignorance of some other religious communities, here you feel welcome whatever your background may be.

The Lao people are as friendly as the Thais, with whom they once shared a kingdom and their official modern language is heavily influenced by the Thai language. The tiny town centre is dotted with stunning architecture and active, yet slow-paced street life. In December, there were not many tourists, so we could experience the local life unfiltered. Reminding me of my trip to Cambodia some 14 years ago, the difference being that nobody was actively trying to sell postcards on the streets in Luang Prabang. Social media have swallowed this nostalgic travel paperwork.

Reach the heaven of your mind in Luang Prabang

Luang Prabang is like a small island of Buddhist lifestyle. Encountering frequently the rusty saffron robed monks (bhikkhu in Pali, the ancient language of Buddha), one cannot escape pondering over their choice of simplicity. Their uttarasanga is a cross between an Indian sari and the ancient Roman toga, loose, yet wrapped according to precise rules. I thought, these happy monks do not need to worry about food, as the daily rice offering is a popular and promoted, early morning activity for visitors here. Enjoying their community, indeed a brotherhood, chanting, meditating and praying together in a temple adjoining their minimalist accommodation, seems like an ideal life to not only the poor Lao people, but to the stressed, lost or with work obsessed Westerners. No wonder, some emigrate and join the peaceful, contemplative life in a monastery (often, curiously, in Asia). Somehow us, the Westerners, are now more attracted to the Buddhist way of spirituality. Perhaps because it is more accessible, I wondered in my contemplation. The zenith of enlightenment in Buddhism is to be found inside oneself, not elsewhere. Intriguingly, the monastic ranks in Europe have dwindled. Abbeys across the old Christian continent are opening to the public as galleries, museums, artists and writers retreats or closing their gates facing dilapidation.

Renewed spirituality in zeitgeist of gender equality

I have visited a few temples and monasteries around the world, but never felt as intimate as in that little spiritually-charged area in Luang Prabang. Always hungry for the real local experience, I walked through the suburban tails of the growing sleepy town. More, I hiked with a former monk. Climbing up the dry, cool, winter forests above the stunning Rosewood hotel, I nudged my smiling, yet reserved guide of me into a deep talk about happiness and purpose in life. He shared nothing new to me, yet he answered cleverly not just through his scripture-perfect paragraphs, he understood, and you could feel it. I grasped that while monks are simple, they are often very deep. Mindfulness is broadened awareness, our survival advantage. By accepting change, anything that happens will pass more smoothly. You know that any moment will pass, and that fighting only brings more pain, not salvation. A complex urban lifestyle brings about a complicated mind, that is why monasteries are secluded or start in small communities. Declutter your life.

Later that day I was to learn much more through a very special experience he facilitated. And you can, respectfully. too.

The candle-lit, village aura of the Wat Xieng Mouane where my guide invited me and my friend (a practicing Thai Buddhist herself), lacked the burdensome weight of other religions that collected negative karma in their violent past. Excuse my judgement, but I went through some trials and errors. Trying to contemplate life at a Christian cathedral, the grey aura of the crusades and the child abuse scandals by the priests block my connection. At a mosque, my femininity is intercepted by the illiberal Islam. Hindu temples are sculptural masterpieces, but too many Gods to worship is confusing (like India itself). Protestant churches feel too rational, distant from the right brain I am seeking to occupy. I am not a religious zealot, yet spirituality as for many of my contemporaries fills the gap that materialism has widened over the past century. We are in the ravine of false connection, and we need to fill it with purpose.

Gold-plated were the Buddha sculptures, reliefs of dancing Apsaras on temple doors and, naturally, the feeding grains for birds in cages sold as blessings and freeing the believers conscience off the emotional burdens of life. Only the poor were not robed in gold, yet they seemed content.

Still, the reality of the Buddhist doctrine is not as rosy and open as one may think.

The male monks cannot even touch a woman. A monk in Bangkok dropped a Buddha talisman into my hands like into a vessel, while he warmly gave another one to my husband. Even more unfairly, men adhere to substantially less rules than the Buddhist nuns are obliged to. If women in the country are allowed to become nuns at all (In Laos they are not, in Korea and Japan the shaved female heads join nunneries freely). As with other major religions, Buddhism is misogynist, aligned with the paternal culture of the past. My hiking guide, a former monk dressed in a baseball cap and trekking outfit, expressed his regret that in Laos women are not allowed to be equal in their choice to become a nun. His liberal millennial outlook is not only refreshing, outgrowing the old, dried out prejudice against women, but encouraging more open conversations about gender, intellect and the emotional make up of humans. It gave me hope and assured my purpose to contribute to the quest for equality.

Watching the visiting junior monks posing for their cell phone snaps in front of the Wat Xieng Thong, I wondered if technology can push the women’s scale for justice further towards the equilibrium. Later, I realised in my meditation that this is already happening and that I am part of this massive cultural and social shift swiping the globe. Any poetess or any woman that writes and publishes today fills the vast chasm of the past ignorance of female ideas and potential.

A woman myself, I felt empowered and proud, watching a schoolgirl in her humble (yet for my taste enviable) street writing set up between a wall of a temple, her family’s bbq and likely a tiny home across the road. Her chocolate gaze connected with my own. Dressed in a cream white pyjama, she learned to become an adult in this institutionalised world. Such outfits were common until very recently in China and Thailand, I find them amusing so it is sad realising that their bring-home-the-outdoors chic is disappearing. Later, further from the tourist centre, another pink pyjama wearing schoolgirl carrying a plastic bag with her errands strolled ahead of me. I smiled, she looked stylish in my eyes.

Off the beaten road

The Buddhist UNESCO heritage site mesmerises the visiting world through its religiously charged bounty. Battles, Gods, dancing Apsaras, suffering and royalty themes unite the reliefs and wall depictions at the numerous temples and the Royal Palace. Sadly, you cannot safely cycle around the dusty Luang Prabang where potholes cushion just enough the corpulent tyres of the locals’ motorbikes. Swarming around all day long, the polluting, yet convenient relics of the industrial era, should soon be replaced with e-bikes. So, I walked.

On my dusty venture, accompanied by the choir of stray dogs, I realised that most temples were unpretentious. A bottle of beer nested next to the River Goddess at one, kids played in the mud around another. The ease, naturalness, and directness of the locals impressed me. Compared with the costume show in Japan, Laos felt free and joyous. Squealing pigs teased to to peak through the holes in one house’s wall. There were about five, squashed on a tiny yard liveable for one max. I lost my naiveté of vegetarian Buddhism in a poor country. Nevertheless, the chickens roam free in their truly free-range habitats. Like the monks, accepting whatever is given to them in the once-per-day alms, meat is consumed if that is what is available. Ironically, the vegetarian cafés in town are frequented by foreigners.

The girl scout in my sent me on a hiking mission that ended in lush vegetable gardens of an authentic local settlement. The adventure just started. Surprised yet smiling heads nodded me towards their hamlet’s shrine. A world’s more modest than the central temples around the Royal Palace. All offering stories on ethics, customs, sins, the royal or saintly life that elevates you into the heaven or cooks you viciously in the boiling pot of repentance. These murals confirmed what I already knew – life is a battle between suffering and joy, famine and feast – and was not that sure about – the afterlife will accentuate your life’s deeds into more of a hell of heavenly peace. These fearful images are quite a motivation!

Back to reality of the second millennium AD. Compared with its giant, Northern neighbour China, where some 50 minorities have been unified into one language (Mandarin) over the last decades, Laos is an ant, alluring visitors through its own diversity. The landlocked Laos is home to 49 tribal groups, 160 ethnicities and about 90 different languages. The Chinese presence was inevitable, and the most popular temples such as the gold on black frescoed Wat Xieng Thong, are being weighed down by these new tourists. Until now, the Americans (post WWII), French (bringing coffee industry before them) and Thais (cloning their language on the locals recently) prevailed. Since the country’s opening to foreign travellers in a safer political climate from the 1990s things have moved faster than before. Now, the rich Chinese are changing the face of Luang Prabang more profoundly than any recent visitors. Further along the Mekong, new developments, hotels and residences are being built covered with Chinese characters.

If you want to experience the spiritual charms of Luang Prabang, go now before the monks move to the remote mountains.

The best wines I discovered recently

After weeks of pondering and scouring my massive digital photo library I’m sharing the best bottles that made my palate sing with joy. The best wines that stood out from the rest were mostly good value for quality wines, but there were also icons that the vinous world had already appreciated and so their price climbed to the heavenly highs. Professional wine tastings, generous friend’s cellars, smart and timely investments and our contemplative pockets at very special restaurants made these luxurious choices possible.

Authentic luxury wines exist: look for a great sommelier, small producers, no fancy labels advertised heavily

I indulged in Moutons, ultra-rare Burgundies, Penfolds Grange and Super Tuscans, but the most impressive wines for my palate were less brand flashy. An exquisite Meursault that a friend brought us during a summer visit was so complex and mineral that I thought of a Grand Cru Chablis. Domaine Arnaud Ente was dubbed by Berry Bros & Rudd of London as “arguably Burgundy’s brightest rising star”. Whetting our appetite for more, a 2004 vintage Chambolle-Musigny Les Amoureuses by Domaine Comte Georges Vogue also from our friend’s cellar was easy to fall in love with, uncontrollable emotions in a truly superb, elegant Pinot Noir.

In Chablis, no producer can match up the complex diversity of the Grand Cru vineyards as Ravenau. My favourite cru is Monts Mains. Bread, flowers, yellow plums (mirabelle), very clean minerality with only a gentle touch of oak. There is no more complexity in a white Burgundy than this.

The first wine I toasted to the 2018 with, a late disgorged Jacquesson 1990 vintage Avize Grand Cru was impeccable. Champagne for NYE is a must and when dining at a three Michelin-stared French restaurant but if you care about value, skip the well marketed labels like Dom Perignon, Mumm’s, young Crystal and others from the Roderer stable. Bollinger, Charles Heidsieck and Pol Roger in a great vintage being the once in while indulgent exceptions. Still, better buy them in a store as the wine menus add a heavy margin to these bling bling bubbles.

Larmandier-Bernier champagne best French wines

Grower champagne are often the most character-wielding and complex sparkling wines there are and many professionals tend to prefer them. Récoltant-Manipulant is the term in French, often you find “RM” on the label. Larmandier-Bernier, Longitude Premier Cru Blanc de Blancs purely from their own Chardonnay is one of my favourite Extra Bruts. There is a great bistro in Saint-Paul de Vence, where we often enjoy a bottle of Terre de Vertus with more fruit on the palate.

In Beijing, I saw wine infused with black truffles on the beverage menu. Such a vanity reminded me of using a great wine for a vin chaud in France or sangria in Spain. Who does that? Adding spices and sugar kills the exceptional taste of any great produce. I ordered a pot of pure Chinese tea, naturally.

True artisan wine

There are so many excellent artisans creating incredible wines from their special land, but I could not have ever had just one bottle of the red Château Rayas, my beloved Châteauneuf-du-Pape and the best wine made in the Rhône Valley. Over the past year we opened the 2004, 2001, 2000, 1998, 1989 vintages, some even twice! The best selection and price for the older vintages is at the legendary L’Oustau de Baumaniere in Provence, so we always splurge a bit on Rayas there. Also the 1998 and 2001 at Hostellerie Jerome, my favourite restaurant near Monaco (more consistent and more rewarding taste than at Mirazur in Menton) were the perfect expressions of their respective vintage. The winemaker, Monsieur Reynaud might not be a people man, but he listens to his vines impeccably so they recite beautiful verses.

In Italy, Emidio Pepe redefines Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. His red wines age particularly well. I recommend not to drink them less than a decade old. These biodynamically grown grapes are living aromas that once opened and allowed to breathe shift so profoundly over time. We open a bottle and keep savoring its journey during several hours. From humus, the animal character with a touch of forest fruit dance around your nose.

Natural wines can deliver, but choose wisely

Barred to their own vinous bones natural wines can reveal bad winemaking. Ironically, faults due to insufficient hygiene, exposure to oxygen (oxidation), fizz when it should not be, an off smell (such as rotten eggs), and other widely agreed wine faults pop up in “natural wines” more than in attentively and wisely made wine.

Not far from Rayas, dwells another Southern French favourite of mine, Domaine Milan. Last year I re-tasted Henri Milan’s entire range at his cosy winery in Saint-Rémy de Provence. The Grand Blanc blend, Merlot in Le Jardin, and the Presk’ Orange Rolle (Vermentino) are still my tops. The later, a beast on its own, balanced, deep yet fresh started our NYE dinner once. The SX is a powerful Grenache for a special mood.

Hailing from Italy, Susucaru is a natural red wine from the iconic Frank Cornelisssen in Sicily. So bright and juicy that our bottle at the Franco-Japanese restaurant A.T. in Paris was gone before we reached the end of the tasting menu. In a good vintage, I prefer its ease to the pumped up intensity of the expressive Magma or MunJebel. Volcanic soil does the rest.

Another Etna I enjoy are some of the ungrafted centenarian vines by Graci. Indigenous varietals like Nerello Mascalese with Nerello Cappuccio in the Quota 1000 Contrada Barbabecchi from pre-phylloxera, high altitude old vines that do not need any treatment.

Best wines from Spain

Viña Todonia Reserva Lopez de Heredia is one of the best Riojas. We relished a 1982 vintage at El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Spain. Their 2004 white, salty, mineral yet assertive aperitif, was a conversation opener with friends in New York.

Another superb Spanish wine I resampled at my favourite restaurants in Spain – the Asador Etxebarri in the Basque Country and at the Catalan El Celler de Can Roca in Girona was Fillo da Pedra O Poulo from La Perdida in Valdeorras. The monovarietal Garnacha Tintorera was made with a non-interventionist approach from recovered old vines in a region heavily industrialised by large volume viticulture. Its elegant lightness and low alcohol (12.5%) is atypical for the usually corpulent Spanish wine. Floral, balsamic bouquet and herbal, mineral character make this red an incredible value.

Best wines from America

From the new world discoveries, Ceritas enchanted me at first with their Chardonnay and Pinot Noir we had at Single Thread, the quick rising three Michelin-star restaurant and farm in Healdsburg, California. Later, a visit to the tiny family workshop winery nearby revealed a new treasure. There I tasted the Monte-Bello green pepper freshness in Ceritas 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon. The grapes came from the Santa Cruz mountains where Ridge Vineyards craft their highly valued Ridge Montebello, perhaps the greatest red wine made in America. It needs patience though.

From Napa Valley came Araujo’s Sauvignon Blanc that will sadly cease to exist with the new French owners of the precious Eiselle Vineyard. This white, Bordeaux-like, but in its own world residing beauty, left even the three Michelin chef Kyle Conaughton of the Single Thread speechless. He wrapped the night off while sipping from a glass. We exclusively visited the gorgeous property near Calistoga the next day pledging for its preservation, it is never too late to change one’s mind, s.v.p. Merci!

The most impressive picks on a wine menu over the past year were for us at the Brooklyn Fare in New York,HIDE in London, L’Oustau de Baumanière in Provence and Lung King Heen in Hong Kong. Despite its worldwide fame, the giant cellars of Hotel de Paris in Monaco, rarely please value seekers, plus the big brand focus seems a lazy work to me. Yet, there are other excellent wine lists around the world that I selected in my post on The best, most interesting wine lists I came across. Vinivores, check these out!

The Best Thai Restaurants in Bangkok now

The best Thai food in Bangkok is found on its streets, in private residences and luxuriantly restored mansions.

My selections were co-curated with my local, food-savvy, designer friend Moo Chulalux Piyasombatkul. She has dined in her hometown more broadly than any Westerner can muster, tried all the voted best as well as up-and-coming restaurants, and guided me to her Thai favourites in Bangkok. Each visit, she takes me to different places, her family’s old favourites as well as into the most talked about (or not yet known) openings in town. She reigns confidently on her home turf.

Thai architecture Thai forgotten ingredients

Thai food in Bangkok then and now

From when I lived in the Thai metropolis almost two decades ago, times have changed quite dramatically on the local dining scene. Luxurious shopping malls are not the only, surgically clean, design driven, high-end locations for new fine restaurants to settle. Now, you can sit at the chef’s table in her grandmother’s private house or tuck into a discreet dining room in a narrow soi in Sukhumwit. More money in the local pockets, new luxury hotels springing up like flowers in the spring, and well-heeled visitors beyond the backpacking Europeans that have traditionally flooded the capital, opened the gates for more culinary diversity. The always smiling Thai chef Ian Kittichai has done his laudable deal in modernising his country’s food in the Thai capital and beyond. Our favourite from his large family of restaurants is Issaya Siamese Club set up in an old Thai mansion. With his gastronomic empire growing, traveling to food festivals (we encountered him in St Moritz), consulting and frequent Tv appearances, it is unlikely that he will cook where you eat though.

Thai fine dining Bangkok Michelin

My following recommendations include purely restaurants where the founding chef is in the kitchen.

Ever since the local tourism board sponsored Michelin to come to Thailand to rate its dining scene, Bangkok levelled up its gastronomic reputation with other global cities. With the stars awarded to for-decades-established street eateries, elegant classic restaurants as well as to more contemporary experiments, the mouths of international travellers opened up to new possibilities of eating out in Bangkok.

waiting list Michelin star Bangkok Bangkok Michelin Jay-Fai in Bangkok

Best Bangkok street food

The crowds flood to the famous spots and create hard to book stand-offs. Clogging the street in Chinatown, the cameras snapping a septuagenerian cook stirring giant woks over direct fire in goggles and a wool skullcap in the tropical heat of Bangkok. Jay-Fai runs with her family one of the must try street eateries. Book by email months ahead or queue, but my advice is to get the first seating at 2pm as the busy cook tires from her daily marathon of Chinese-influenced Thai cooking. Seafood rules over the menu. Her giant crab omelette is a must. A whiff of egg rolled into flaky, generous chunks of Southern Thai crab is served with spicy chilli sauce. Simplicity made into perfection! Share the Drunken noodles, Dry Tom Yam of stir-fried seafood, and the Rice porridge with hard boiled egg, giant prawns and squids for comfort. Jay-Fai’s relatives chop and serve the wok-fired bounty in a well-maintained, superbly clean environment.

Still, the street food as in most of Asia is even more exposed to the dangerous, ultra heavy pollution from the ever crazier traffic threatening the reputation of Thai food in Bangkok. Be mindful of unprotected roadside offerings by the busy thoroughfares.

Nested in the clean environment of an indoor mall is my Thai friend’s favourite som tum served at SOM TAM NUA. The North-Eastern Thai staple of shaved raw papaya marinated in spicy sauce with peanuts has won awards. There are several branches, but The Central Embassy Mall’s (5th floor) convenient location in the shopping and hotel-saturated Phloen Chit area won us over. There many other plates, often with pork, but the varieties of the papaya salad are fun to compare.

For Thai-style chicken over steamed rice khao man gai (ข้าวมันไก่) head downstairs to Eathai, the Eataly-style grocery store cum food court of Thai provenance in the basement. Without queueing in the street food section find Thai signature dishes from all regional cuisines – central, southern, northern, and the easan food. The Traditional Thai crispy pancakes here are my friend’s mum favourite.

SRI TRAT: traditional spicy Eastern Thai food

For indoor, traditional, no fuss, pungent and spicy Eastern Tai meal head to Sri Trat. Be ready for a serious fire in your mouth! The pungency of the chilli sauce in a pot with tofu is accented by betel leaves wraps even when you say you want it mild spicy. Even some locals cannot handle the level of heat here, beware.

PASTE: female push for sustainable local ingredients

Thai female chefs spearhead local, sustainable farm sourcing for the best Thai food in Bangkok. The chef at Bo Lan was one of them, but the level of cooking has evolved as the following ladies head the hyper-local culinary revolution in Thailand.

Paste is tucked in a luxurious shopping mall, but the female chef Bongkoch ‘Bee’ Satongun was recently awarded as the Best Female Chef in 2018 edition of Asia’s 50 Best Restaurants. As a regional pioneer she has curated the local dining experience for maximum flavours in her elevated, contemporary style inspired by historical aristocratic Thai cuisine. Common dishes, forgotten old flavours revived from her research through old cookbooks and by extensive field trips across Thailand. The Royal alongside simple, provincial recipes continue to inspire chef Bee, whose culinary background was spurred in her childhood when she helped at the family-run food stand. Recently, her second restaurant opened in Luang Prabang and I tried it in its early days. Laotian cuisine is tightly knit with Thai, and the chef further explores the natural bounty of this landlocked neighbour in her signature elegant style.

BAAN TEPA: New breed of internationally-trained Thai chefs back at home

Soon not-to-be secret, the hardest table to book in Bangkok will be the just opened Baan Teppa.

This is chef’s table only restaurant by the young, first Top Chef-winning Thai female talent Tam Chudaree Debhakam. Set in her grandmother’s house (Baan means home in Thai), where a small garden was planted organically with Thai herbs like lemon grass, various strains of basil, kaffir lime and pandanus leaves. You are for a locally unique, authentic, unpretentious, almost countryside tasting-menu-only experience on a communal table set up right in front of the kitchen. Chef Tam personally sources Thai ingredients grown by small farms in the North. Her culinary stint at Dan Barber’s Stone Barns Upstate New York opened her eyes to these rare, small-scale produce in her own backyard. Her all female team shares her values and includes an experienced sous chef from the Brooklyn’s lauded Blanca.

Scouting for Thai biodiversity yielded gems unknown even to the savvy locals. Cocoa from Chiang Mai, forgotten fruits and vegetables from Chiang Rai, and herbs accompany the southern seafood like the superb, pour-over fried prawns.

Her emotional approach is in touch with nature, and her experience, memories, as well as the sustainably sourced ingredients form her east-meets-western culinary techniques cooking.

Around you, fermenting in jars is kombucha, Thai fish sauce, and tightly sealed in boxes, the dry ingredients that can pop up on the constantly evolving menu. She embellishes local rice originally, like the black rice berries served in a giant lotus leaf with pan-fried fish and ultra-concentrated fish soup or the Jasmine rice topped with the decadent salted duck egg relish and prawns heads sauce with a custard-like texture. The menu changes seasonally, with March taking up the next shift.

SORN: Traditional Thai food in a fancy coat

Served with a pinch of an attitude (a new wave of service in Thailand, somewhat familiar with the French fine dining snobbism), the authentic Southern flavours at Sorn, spice up seriously your culinary experience in the Thai capital. Moving from his home region to the Thai capital into a restored traditional house in a tiny inlet in the maze of Sukumwit, the chef-owner Supaksorn Jongsiri, known as Khun Ice, comes from a Thai culinary family in the South.

Sorn made international headlines as foreign foodies snap the almost impossible to book (the phone lines rarely get through) experience. We were lucky to sit at one of the two tables fronting the kitchen. Clay pots of rice, seafood and meats simmering over direct fire. The service a mixed bag, unlike our sour female waiter, the cooks serving some of the food are very friendly. Particularly my Thai friends were taken aback by the sour attitude and the distant feel of the head chef. There is a rumour that locals are discriminated from the reservations, and for the rating glamour foreigners are put ahead on the table list. The food is great though and the creamy coconut Tom Yum was the best I have ever had!

LE DU

The Best Thai Restaurants in Bangkok seek inspiration beyond the old Siam’s borders. A merge of Thai ingredients with Western cooking techniques at Le Du grew into delicious renderings of jackfruit, crab, coconut, durian and other local highlights as snows, crumbles, creams, jellies, and purees. Do not expect the level of breadth of the previous chefs’s menus, as Le Du offers a compact menu of seasonally sensitive Thai plates. Although the name suggests French seriousness, the vibe is the most fun and lively from my non street food picks.

For the sugar lovers, my friend Moo knows the cure. This is the treat of her childhood memories that she still, occasionally craves today. Mont Nom Sod has since 1964 pleased the sweet tooth of Thai families, but also provided a rarity back then – fresh milk. Still, today some get the glass of dairy with their crunch, but it is the warm steamed white toasts spread generously with condensed milk, coconut custard, butter, pandanus, and other jams that fill up the original location across the City Hall until late at night.

Last, you cannot visit Bangkok without trying a proper Thai tea. The Cha Tra Mue brand has since 1945 provided the Original Thai tea. There are a few branches across town. The Central World location offers sweet Thai lattes (traditional with an intense condensed milk or unsweetened), pure Thai-sourced brews as well as soft serve, while at the international airport you can boost your energy with a more limited selection of their signature beverages. It is as if you visited Colombia or Brazil and did not have coffee, in Bangkok sip Thai tea. Herbal iced infusions I recommend are bael fruit, lemongrass and pandanus leaf. All refreshing and caffeine-free. The nail polish red roselle also known as hibiscus is rich in Vitamin C, but too sour and intense to my taste. The butterfly pea is too blue, even for La Muse Blue!

Le Cabanon: bohemian beach dining near Monaco

Shaded by the low parasols of mulberry trees, Le Cabanon epitomises the bon vivant lifestyle in the Mediterranean. Not just in the summer, but after the berries ripen into their darkest, sweetest selves and when the leaves fall off, the sunny and calm winter days breeze in the leisure of the Azure Coast. A short coastal stroll from Monaco, this rocky peninsula reminisces of the Côté d’Azur long gone, when tourism did not feel so suffocating.

At le Cabanon, the outdoor rustic setup is open on most days when the mild coastal mood of the Mediterranean weather permits. Otherwise, a cosy beach shed provides shelter for the needy foodies strolling or running by.

You are in for a hearty Southern meal, strong French coffee, tisane, a glass or bottle of something vivacious to lift up your social skills. Authenticity was killed elsewhere, but this beach-side café on Pointe des Dounaiers keeps the beach bohemian nourished.

Le Cabanon Cap d'Ail

Teasing you in, the smell of fresh French bread and the casual jolly vibe – conversing, sipping, patting their dogs or playing the boules – you cannot resist. Spread like a French village carpet, the petanque field is open to the public, so come early on weekends.

On warm days, we swarm in with the joyous bon-vivants on the al-fresco terrace (December and January may surprise you with 14-16 degree days as in 2020 the winters warm up above average also in the Mediterranean). The inside of the restaurant, cosy it may look, seems as an emergency seating, for even on the cool days, people wrapped in shawls sip their drinks outside. Without a meal, enjoy a refreshment on the wooden benches set on the side as a bar.

mediterranean food Provencal rose wine

Once you order an aperitif, a pissaladiére, the Niçoise-style focaccia topped with stewed onions, olives and anchovies is served. In their full hedonistic glory, spread by the outside kitchen counter, the pastries seduce for a glutenous feast.

The page-long wine ‘carte‘ includes organic wines from all over France, with the Southern regions more prominent. We usually go for a rosé by Domaine de Léoube with one lunch, Château Sainte Marguerite on another day or a bottle of white Loire Sancerre.

Le Cabanon was taken over by the restaurant group that also manages La Resèrve du Mala, the Tahitian-style cove restaurant further on the seaside path towards Cap Ferrat. Ever since, the food and consistency have both improved.

Plenty of vegetables (order the bowl of cruditès, raw veggies with dips), but also hearty meat stews, pasta, burrata and other Franco-Italian bounty changes seasonally on the menu. In the fall, we love the Rabbit stuffed pasta with artichokes, carrots, olives and tomatoes. The local, fresh, fish and seafood are usually just perfectly grilled and served with potatoes and seasonal veggies. There is always either lamb or French beef on the carte and on special days even a tender veal.

The ‘bistro a la plage’ always offers a daily catch – grilled à la plancha served with lemon, potatoes and southern vegetables. On special occasions such as the Christmas Day or New Years’ lunch a fixed multi-course menu smoothens the service, that can be otherwise quite laid back (this is not a quick business lunch caffetteria). To finish, the dessert manu always includes some home cake, but also more fancy sweets, but we prefer the French cheese platter as purists.

Red mullet at Le Cabanon Cap d'Ail Veal at Le Cabanon Cap d'Ail Dessert at Le Cabanon Cap d'Ail

The schmoozing resident cats (Buvette + friends) bring even more homey touch. Their shiny furs halo how well-fed these domesticated pets are at Le Cabanon. Throwing them a bit of fish skin or a crumble of bread, pleases both the feeder and the fed.

Beware, the few parking spots next to the restaurant became a thorn in the eye of the local police. Better leave your car either at the nearby hillside, tricky to find Parking des Douaniers or a less than a 10 minute stroll at the end of Plage Marquet parking (either is free on Sundays, public holidays and from 12noon-2pm every day).

We have a tendency to relive the positive memories, and often I revisit these happy moments I shared with others at Le Cabanon in Cap d’Ail. Still, the magic is in our own attitudes, and if you are open to be happy, you will be anywhere and at any time. Although I carry this image of the perfect meal at Côté d’Azur in my mind, I also enjoy other places on this marvellous coast or away from it. Nevertheless, I am always looking forward to my next meal at Le Cabanon!

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