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Évora has everything one could ask for in a historic village, from an intimate chapel with human bones as the interior design theme, to a grand cathedral where one may take a walk on the roof. AND the columns of a Roman temple standing sentry at the very center of town. ÉVORA, PORTUGAL Évora has everything one could ask for in a historic village, from an intimate chapel with human bones as the interior design theme, to a grand cathedral where one may take a walk on the roof. AND the columns of a Roman temple standing sentry at the very center of town. The Road to Ruins Ham and cheese with a temple on the side. The Roman Temple of Évora maintains its timeless stand atop this inland Portuguese town, where locals and visitors traverse its cobbled roads to ruins. Évora is home to monumental Roman archeology, soaring cathedrals, small shops and the inevitable lunch at an outdoor cafe in the shade of centuries past. ___ Gothic Glow A fortified church dating back to 1186, Évora Cathedral is the largest in Portugal. Its cloister, added in 1325 invites a climb to the rooftop where its tapering roofline feels like a bridge to somewhere. Lined with castle-style battlements, the roof provided a 360 degree defense from the highest point of this hilltop city. Portals that today offer a peaceful panorama of the entirety of Évora and beyond. ___ Interior Design to Die For The Chapel of Bones was built by Franciscan monks in the late 16th century, tasked with relocating human remains from cemeteries around Évora due to the high value of land. Hence a rethinking of cemetery internment. Simultaneously, these enterprising monks reimagined interior design for churches, festooning the surfaces with all things skeletal. They topped it off with an ominous greeting above the door: “Nós ossos que aqui estamos, pelos vossos esperamos,” or: “We bones, are here, waiting for yours.” They also offered a traveler advisory, inscribed on one of the bony pillars: “Where are you going in such a hurry, traveler? Stop, for the sake of your journey. For the more you pause, the further on your journey you will be.” ___ Stonehenge’s Southern Sister The Cromlech of the Almendres is the Stonehenge of Portugal and one of the largest megalithic stone circles in Europe. Positioned on an east-facing axis, at sunrise it aligns to the spring and autumn equinoxes. On those dates, when the day and night is of equal length, the sun and moon rise at the same point on the monument’s principal stones, including the imposing Menhir dos Almendres, rising four phallic meters towards the stars. Located without fanfare in the middle of a cork tree forest, this monumental site is unfenced, free and open 24/7. ___ Back DESTINATIONS Next

Our top five favorite things to do in this bustling city of Tokyo, Japan. 1 The Okura Hotel Lobby This triumph of Japanese mid-century design, recently lost to demolition was recreated in a new high rise patterned after the original hotel. A project overseen by the son of the original architect, Yoshiro Taniguchi. TOKYO, JAPAN 2 Tokyo Bookstores Grand spaces with shelves vaulting upward to the sky, or tiny coves of lovingly curated literature. Featured: Ginza Tsutaya Books TOKYO, JAPAN 3 Main Bar Brilliant A MadMen setting perfectly preserved inside an otherwise unremarkable hotel. Crisp cocktails crafted with artisanal precision by buttoned-down bartenders straight out of a Stanley Kubrick film. TOKYO, JAPAN 4 Udatsu Sushi Gorgeous dinner served on ceramics by Jenny Sharaf (too fun and too talented) — per the ever fabulous David Lee Davis . TOKYO, JAPAN 5 Asakusa Culture Tourist Information Center This wonderful shop-lined area of Old Tokyo is now anchored with a fantastic modern wood facade visitors center. Inside the staff is incredibly helpful, including hand-drawn maps to vintage kimono boutiques and Japanese vinyl stores. TOKYO, JAPAN Back FIVE FAVES Next

A curated list of what not to miss. This is The City of Lights, not just because of its nighttime glow, but because of the illumination it brings to one’s heart and mind. PARIS, FRANCE A curated list of what not to miss. This is The City of Lights, not just because of its nighttime glow, but because of the illumination it brings to one’s heart and mind. FIVE FAVES / PARIS Musée Rodin If there’s one tip I can confidently impart to those visiting (or residing in) Paris it is the Musée Rodin at sundown, just before they close for the day. Sunlight pours like Viognier through the tall windows, glazing the walls with diagonal stripes, while draping the bare musculature of Rodin’s subjects in form-fitting couture light. The storied residence of sculptor Auguste Rodin is veiled in a lace of shadows as late sunlight sketches fleeting patterns across the room. Faces that the artist suspended in time a hundred years ago look away as the sun finds a place to rest in the garden until tomorrow. ___ Parc de la Villette Architect Bernard Tschumi designed the Parc de la Villette, with the intention of creating “a space that exists in a vacuum”, something without historical precedent, to allow for the existence of a “non-place” based on “culture” rather than “nature.” The design of the park is a groundbreaking example of architectural deconstructivism. “By allowing visitors to experience the architecture of the park within this constructed vacuum, the time and activities that take place in that space begin to acquire a more vivid and authentic nature.” In simpler terms, it’s big, open and not at all structured like the Parisian parks of old. La Géode in the Sciences Center is an otherworldly mirrored dome housing an Omnimax theatre. ___ Paris Philharmonic Designed by Jean Nouvel, the new home of the Paris Philharmonic is renowned for its near perfect acoustics. The convulsing metallic exterior with interlocking MC Escher-esque patterns looks alive in the changing daylight and luminous at night. It is one of several civic music facilities located within Parc de la Villette . ___ Crepes as Art In the right hands, crepes become “origami”. Gently flipped and folded, a paper-thin circle of buckwheat becomes sculptural rapture, be it savory or sweet. This artwork also serves as sustenance for those seeking rest and replenishment midway up the steep hillside climb to Sacré Coeur. I recommend one such haven from those unforgiving stairs, where works of creperie art are rendered daily: Rozell Café & Creperie , Montmartre. ___ Pinault Collection Presented in the rotunda of the reimagined Bourse de Commerce , a group of monumental sculptures composed of wax, each with candles inside are lit on the first day of the exhibition. As the candles melt, the sculptures gradually disintegrate, sending faces, arms and other appendices crashing to the gallery floor, which, in turn become part of the exhibit. The renovated space is itself a work of art by Japanese architect Tadao Ando that is nothing short of spectacular. Multiple galleries now ring the 1800’s building in modern art, forming the latest must-see art venue in Paris. Untitled (2011) by Swiss artist Urs Fischer ___ Le Louvre If the sky were not dark you’d swear it was daylight. Such is the ambiance of an evening in the twin courtyards of Le Louvre . A glow that takes your breath away when stepping through the arched gateways into this sanctum of light. Cellos and flutes resonate in the open corridors, played by lone musicians hoping that a passerby’s euros will alight upon their performance. ___ Morning Light in St. Germain Saint Germain des Prés is a neighborhood that connotes masterpiece scenes of the Left Bank. The obsession of every self guided art tour of Paris. Where poets, artists and philosophers famously conversed at Café Flore over the roar of possibilities. Yet, here inside the church, a centuries old stillness is anointed in the colors of stained glass. A reverence so hushed one can almost hear the candles fluttering, or the prayers for which they burn. The brilliant author and musician, Patti Smith was recently in Paris on tour with her reunited band and posted a brief description of her morning walk: “I lit candles in the St Germain church for the children of the world, and then went to say hello to Picasso’s tribute to his friend, the poet Apollinaire, that beautiful head of Dora Maar (in the rear garden of the church) near Café de Flore.” Ah, a morning inspired by Patti Smith here where Sartre and Camus once philosophized over coffee in the fabled Left Bank of Paris. ___ Le Musée d’Orsay France has a love of art, and walks the walk to support it. In 1975, it was determined that a new museum was needed to represent the arts from the second half of the 19th century. At the same time, a retired Beaux-Arts train station was about to be demolished when visionary preservationists spoke up. Et voilà, the proposed museum and the rescued “gare” became one. Today, Le Musée d’Orsay is one of the world’s most inspired art spaces, housing artworks so famous and fabulous it weakens the knees. But its crescendo is the great clock window on the fifth floor. As cinematic and startling as a Hitchcock storyboard, this watch-work window provides the ultimate photo location and a sweeping view from the Seine to Sacré Coeur. ___ Le Centre Pompidou In making one’s way through the Marais neighborhood in Paris, the narrow stone streets suddenly widen like gates opening onto a fanciful world of color and form as Le Centre Pompidou comes into view. Renzo Piano’s early and revolutionary work literally turned architecture inside out by placing the traditionally hidden mechanical parts of a structure on the outside, forming what appears to be a wild bionic beast crouching in the middle of a 17th century village. A friendly beast though, with wonderful qualities. A generous art aficionado with room in his heart to share inspiration with architecture lovers on their pilgrimage to one of the great cultural venues of our time. ___ Le Jardin du Luxembourg With one’s first step into this grandest of all Paris gardens, Le Jardin du Luxembourg , the clammer of the 6th arrondissement quickly fades. The world itself, seems subdued into silence, except for the lapping of fountains. Ancient sculptures stand frozen in their moment, concealing centuries they’ve seen go by. Today, flowers overflow their urns while dreamers contort into green metal chairs, watching the daylight move across the formal garden like a lazy sundial. Images : The Medici Fountain was built in 1630 by Marie de’ Medici. "L'effort" bronze sculpture by Pierre Roche (1855-1922). Toy sailboats navigate the Central Fountain. 5 euros for 30 minutes of sailing. ___ INSPIRATION : A touch of France for your world at home. The French Boulle Desk My office is anchored in 19th century splendor from Napoleon III’s France, (but I acquired it in this century from Nickey/Kehoe ). This over-the-top desk is described in design parlance as “clean and classical, standing on fluted legs and decorated with brass inlays in motifs of the Louis XVI style.” Despite its “let them eat cake” appearance, the desk is actually quite utilitarian. Hidden within its deceivingly compact size, it boasts a massive single drawer that slips away unnoticed amid the frufru. Tucked into the tight quarters of a Paris hotel in St. Germain, a helpful concierge plans out one’s day in the 6th arrondissement, executed in exquisite detail on a petit, black lacquer Boulle desk with added privacy panel. Back at home, a Boulle desk functions as a sort of personal concierge, providing an inspired place for charting life between travels. ___ Back DESTINATIONS Next

Our top five favorite things to do in the Garden Isle, Kaua'i, Hawai'i 1 Limahuli Garden This misty garden nurtures countless endangered native plants and birds in the self-sustaining, social-ecological practice known to Hawaiians as "Ahupua". Reservations are advised. KAUAI, HI 2 Kokee State Park 45 miles of easy hiking trails wind their way to sunny cliff-sides with sweeping views of Waimea Canyon and the Napali coast, and the most stunning vista of all, the Kalalau Lookout. KAUAI, HI 3 Hanalei Pier This unassuming concrete path leads to a tin roof gazebo with an epic view of paradise. A rough hewn temple of sorts that welcomes all to stand and gaze –or to use as a diving board! KAUAI, HI 4 Waimea Plantation Cottages 59 authentic plantation cottages from the 1800’s welcome your stay in comfortable Hawaiian style, at surprisingly affordable rates. KAUAI, HI 5 Talk Story Books “The westernmost bookstore in the US” is perched like its resident cat on the edge of Kauai, greeting readers from all over the globe –with aloha. KAUAI, HI Back FIVE FAVES Next

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