all the dish that’s fit to print
ramadan detox
Ramadan officially started August 11th and marks the month-long period where Muhammad is believed to have composed the Quran. In honor of this holy month, Muslims around the world will focus on inner peace and cleansing from now until September 9th through daily fasts during sunlight hours and abstain from any harmful habits that introduce toxins to the body (like drinking or smoking).
Ananatara resident spa guru and unofficial Ramadan expert, Liz Smailes, shared her advice with us on incorporating the relevant messages behind the holy celebration into daily life. (more…)
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family time by the pool doesn’t have to be local
Indagare.com just released their list of favorite indoor and outdoor pools for travelling families. Three of our Park Hyatt properties topped the list! Take a look at their fabulous details, and a few more of our personal favorite pools from around the world.
Indgare.com’s Picks:
Boasting the best pool area in the city, Palacio Duhau – Park Hyatt Buenos Aires features a large, indoor pool that is available to guests all year. The pool, which is 82 feet long and surrounded by soothing natural toned marble, is a great way to keep kids entertained or for couples to unwind after a busy day in the capital. (more…)
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2010 wine spectator restaurant awards
Interior of Sea.Fire.Salt. at Anantara Phuket Villas
Congratulations are in order for the Bangkok-based Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas! We raise our glasses to the 5 amazing establishments that were featured in the 2010 Wine Spectator Restaurant Awards. The new recipients include: Fuddan Fusion Grill at Anantara Dhigu Resort & Spa; Geckos Restaurant, Anantara Veli Resort & Spa; Baan Thalia, Anantara Hua Hin Resort & Spa; and Sea.Fire.Salt. at Anantara Phuket Villas. Special praise is due to Anantara Bophut Resort & Spa, after winning its fifth straight Award of Excellence for its delicious Italian eatery Full Moon. Cheers!
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hotels go high-tech
Admittedly, no one can keep the innovative pace of Steve Jobs. But hotels, in their pursuit to give guests an ever-richer experience, delivered ever more quickly, are helping to push technology to its limit. We aren’t speaking of iPod docking stations in every room – those seem as de rigueur as the VCR was in the 1990s. Here’s what’s next…
Royal Mansour Marrakech
anantara phuket now a virtuoso property
Joining its sister property Anantara Golden Triangle Resort & Spa, Anantara Phuket Villas is now the second Virtuoso® member in the Anantara family!
Located on the remote Mai Khao Beach on Phuket’s northwest coast, Anantara Phuket Villas is one of the newest properties to open on the island, featuring 83 private pool villas arranged around a central lagoon, reminiscent of a traditional southern Thai water village.
Only 15 minutes from Phuket International Airport, the resort is far removed from the hustle and bustle of the strip and offers total privacy as it is surrounded by the natural beauty of the Andaman Sea and the verdant forests of Sirinath National Park. Anantara Phuket Villas is accessible to mangrove fields, jungles, and Mai Khao Beach, which is renowned for the migratory sea turtles who make their way to the area in the winter season to lay eggs.
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ny recreates ancient thailand
Escape the bustling city for an evening of Thai beauty by checking out Pichet Klunchun Dance Company’s Chui Chai. The dance combines contemporary moves with Thai khon, a royal palace style. The women, beautifully composed in ornate headpieces and shimmering gowns, flow gracefully around Pichet Klunchun, who shows off his perfectly sculpted body by only wearing jeans.
Through dance, the performers convey stories from the Ramayana, which is a religious Hindu text that explores human nature and the existence of dharma. The story follows Rama, an incarnation of the Supreme god Vishnu, who loses his wife to Ravana, the evil demon king of Lanka. Chui Chai, which The New York Times calls “gorgeous from start to finish,” truly captures the emotional journey of Rama as he tries to save his captured love.
The performance takes place July 24th & 25th during the Lincoln Center Festival at the Gerald W. Lynch Theater at John Jay College. Find yourself wanting more after the show? Check out some of the special promotions offered at Anantara properties throughout Thailand, or the Metropolitan Bangkok’s Bouncing Back promotion.
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celebs hit the green carpet?
At the beginning of the month, celebs took a break from their usual red carpet to attend the Elephant Parade charity auction, of which Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas is a strong supporter. Stars including Elizabeth Hurley, Goldie Hawn, and Princess Beatrice of York hit the grass to show their support of the protection and conservation of endangered Asian elephants. Despite the rough terrain, fashion did not suffer. Sporting colorful dresses and forever high wedges and heels, these celebs looked almost as good as the painted model baby elephants (all of which were on sale at the event, including Anantara’s own ‘Little Bird’). The auction marked the end of the Elephant Parade in London, which earned over $1.5 million dollars for this great cause!
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baby elephants on the move
Remember when we told you about the Elephant Parade, the installation of model baby elephants scattered around London? Run by Elephant Family, the goal of the charity is to raise awareness of the declining population of the Asian Elephant.
‘Little Bird,’ the baby elephant representing Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas, is somewhere throughout London. Now there is a little extra incentive to finding her, as the Director of Elephants at Anantara Golden Triangle, Mr. John Roberts, has announced that he would give out a free dinner to the first person to send in a photograph of themselves with ‘Little Bird’. And that’s not all! Elephant Family is offering the chance to win a vacation for two to none other than Thailand’s Anantara Golden Triangle where the lucky winners will train with mahouts at the resort’s famed elephant camp and learn about these gentle creatures. To enter, visit http://www.elephantfamily.org/how-can-you-help/events/competition/, fill out the petition, correctly answer the questions, and tweet a message to encourage your followers to sign the petition. The competition closes on July 9th, so hurry before it is too late!
The elephants are on the move! As the Elephant Parade comes to a close, 62 of these life-size, model baby elephants will be migrating from their positions around the city and congregating in Leister Square. July 3rd will mark the end of the parade, when these magnificent pieces of art will be auctioned off in hopes of raising over $2 million!
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baby elephants on parade
The Elephant Parade officially began in London this month. How will they fit, you might ask?
Well, the Elephant Parade is actually an open air art installation of life-size, model baby elephants positioned around the city. Elephants are painted by artists and celebrities, such as Diane von Furstenberg, Isaac Mizrahi and Lulu Guinness to inspire awareness of the plight of the Asian Elephant. With a current population of only 1,500 in the wild in Thailand (down from 300,000 at the turn of the last century), they face a severe risk of extinction.
Run by the small charity Elephant Family, these efforts require serious support from their patrons, which include Goldie Hawn and Sarah, Duchess of York. Anantara Hotels, Resorts & Spas is a sponsor and champion of this cause, and has a little baby of its own, known as ‘Little Bird,’ placed somewhere around Londontown. All elephants are for sale by auction and Elephant Family aims to raise over $2 million.
This is London’s biggest outdoor art event on record and runs from May to July 2010. If you are hanging out in Trafalgar Square or Green Park, these colorful creatures will be impossible to miss. So, enjoy the exhibit because it may be the only time you see an Asian elephant in London!
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iPads in phuket
Paradise just got an upgrade with the addition of the revolutionary iPad at Anantara Phuket Resort & Spa along Mai Khao Beach on the north end of the island. Guests can book a massage at the Anantara Spa, schedule a dive excursion to the Similan Islands, or simply read the latest headlines in their local paper from virtually anywhere, with just the touch of the screen. Don’t bother packing your BlackBerry or iPhone, simply borrow an iPad directly from the resort and keep up with what’s happening around the world while chillaxing on a daybed poolside or sailing through Phang Nga bay.
Not going to Phuket? No worries! iPads will be introduced at all Anantara hotels and resorts worldwide within the coming months.
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