LatinAmerica

The Deep Luxury of Simplicity at Hacienda San Lucas in Honduras

Filed under: Luxury Travel & Hotels, Green

At luxury hotels, there's something of a formula: the latest electronic gadgets, check. Personalized service, check. Luxurious linens, lovely room design, delicious food, check, check check. Maybe I'm jaded, but doesn't it get a little same-old, same-old after a while?

What's really rare is a place that provides true luxury outside this conventional mold -- a feat which I think is only accomplished by having a person of impeccable taste paying attention to every last detail of a guest experience. And to my mind, the exemplar is Hacienda San Lucas, in Copán Ruinas, Honduras.

Hacienda San Lucas is an eco-lodge has just eight rooms, and no, it doesn't have the latest bells and whistles. There's no flat screen TV, no whirlpool tub, no "in room console" where you can open and close your shades while lying on your bed. There's not even a telephone in the room -- which, come to think of it, is a luxury of its own kind. But owner Flavia Cueva is a person of impeccable taste, and she has rigorously thought through every single detail. The result is a total retreat that's simply and sensually luxurious.

When you arrive through the tropical lush greenery, you'll smell strong scent of burning wood, hear the pat pat pat of fresh tortillas being made, and see commanding valley views: in places, directly into the town's Mayan ruins, with the the wavy-topped mountains as a backdrop. The main building was Cueva's centuries-old family home, some nine years ago, she added guest rooms at a remove from the main building. The rooms feature pitched wide wooden planked ceilings, white plaster walls, adorned with local tapestries and art work and smooth stone floors. At night the entire property is lit by countless candles, in the rooms, along the walkways, and in the dining area.

In a quiet spot, there's Gaia, a dedicated yoga pavilion and meditation space with views into the Mayan ruins. Arrange yoga classes during your stay with excellent local teacher (and ex-pat Canadian) Leah Glatz, who frequently works with Aum Rak, a local Mayan shaman. Or attend an organized retreat: on August 8th-16th, Global Soul Adventures is running one of its acclaimed yoga retreats at San Lucas.

Gallery: Hacienda San Lucas in Copan Ruinas, Honduras

Hacienda San Lucas Day Dining is Simple Elegance in the

Tags: central america, CentralAmerica, ecolodge, honduras, latin america, LatinAmerica, travel

Arteamericas Results: Shorter Distance to Crash

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Art

When you're close to the floor, you don't have far to fall.

That was the sentiment at the seventh Arteamericas event, which ran from March 27 – 30 at the Miami Beach Convention Center. This year, the fair drew 52 exhibitors, down from 70 last year. Collectors and dealers alike see this as positive in a generally harsh art market.

The Latin American art space, which is the focus of Arteamericas, did not grow as aggressively as the Chinese art sector, which has protected collectors. Since prices did not rise to absurd proportions (by art market standards, at least), the art crash of 2008 and 2009 won't impact these collectors as severely. Sitting on the panel, "Latin American Art in Today's Global and Local Art Markets," Vivian Pfeiffer, a regional director for Christie's in South Florida, said, "We don't have that much distance to crash." Further, collectors of Latin American art tend to be unwilling to sell their holdings even when times are tough.

The largest sale at the event was the 1945 painting Sorcerer, by René Portocarrero of Cuba. It fetched $135,000 on the first night of the event. Another Portocarrero, Woman with Birds (1982) sold for $40,000.

[Photo: "The Smoker" by Julio Aguilera"]

Source

Tags: art, art market, artist, ArtMarket, artwork, chinese art, chinese art exhibit, chinese arts, ChineseArt, ChineseArtExhibit, ChineseArts, christies, cuba, florida, latin america, latin american, LatinAmerica, LatinAmerican, miami