Go hide away in the sun-drenched valleys of Jordan May 9, 2010 THE afternoon sun is browning our sweaty pink skin as we lie by the pool at Evason Ma’in, nudged between a massive yellowstone fortress-style hotel and a water-spewing rock face. Well, it may be all lemonade, glossy magazines, dramatic scenery and sun-tanning poolside, but just a few kilometres away on the Dead Sea’s south-east coast [...]
TRAVEL NOTES May 9, 2010 Luxury and style in Vietnam Travel company Scott Dunn is offering a 25 per cent discount on trips to the stunning Vietnamese beach retreat Nam Hai. Sitting on the deserted sands of a fairytale beach, and a short distance from the historic town of Hoi An, the hotel – which has an old Buddist temple [...]
A tranquil heaven far from clubland May 6, 2010 AS any Europhile will tell you, away from the clubs, Ibiza is one of the Mediterranean’s brightest gems: as tranquil and exotic as anywhere in Europe, with crystalline waters, dramatic vegetation, ancient stone architecture, wonderful local cuisines and a true Spanish feel. And with British Airways’s new direct flights from City Airport, Ibiza’s charms as [...]
SELLING Q&A May 6, 2010 MANAGING DIRECTOR OF PROPERTY HUNT Q. Dear Russell, I’m selling my home but it is taking ages. How do I know if the buyer is stalling? A. The key is to have a good solicitor on board who is a specialist in residential property rather than a generalist. They will be able to deal with [...]
Be chairman of the board in this City penthouse May 6, 2010 SPENDING one’s working day in the boardroom is one thing, but living in one? That’s the option awaiting anyone who snaps up this smart-as-they-come penthouse on the edge of the City. The triplex three bedroom apartment called The Provenance (you’ll just have to get used to the name) sits at the top of a Victorian [...]
The girl that’s helping City ladies sparkle May 6, 2010 LAUREN Adriana could have taken the easy route of gliding, It-Girl style, through her twenties. At 24, she is fashion aristocracy, being the grand-daughter of designer Paul Smith and the child of fashion world insiders. She’s friends with all the right people (including the world’s most famous jeweller Joel Arthur Rosenthal, known as JAR) and [...]
High concept meets low aspirations May 6, 2010 Film HOT TUB TIME MACHINE Cert: 15 ** PRESUMABLY the makers of Hot Tub Time Machine started with the title – as titles, and indeed ideas, for high-concept extreme silliness go, it’s a humdinger. What couldn’t be funny about a hot tub that transports you back to the neon-coloured, mullet-sporting 1980s? Hmmm – well, pretty [...]
ALSO OUT THIS WEEKEND May 6, 2010 FILM THE BACK-UP PLAN Someone allowed J-Lo to make a film again, supposedly a romantic comedy. Bad idea. NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET Lame and pointless attempt to remake the Freddy Kruger slasher flick. FURRY VENGEANCE Even worse, Brendan Fraser gets set upon by CGI woodland animals. I mean really. DVD THE PRISONER The recent remake [...]
ON IN LONDON | SIX OF THE BEST May 6, 2010 ART: Angela de la Cruz Head along to the Camden Arts Centre to decide for yourself whether de la Cruz, a painter who inflicts deliberate damage on her canvases, is worth her nomination for the Turner Prize as announced this week. THEATRE: Posh The Royal Court’s cracking show offers a satirical look inside the privileged [...]
Live and let drive… Bond-style May 5, 2010 FIRST: a confession. I probably should have told the good people at Lotus that I have a slightly unlucky history with James Bond. The first 007 film I ever saw was Moonraker. Dressed up smartly in my white broderie anglaise blouse, I sat with my family in a rather grand former theatre in Auckland, New [...]