Yesterday, while browsing at the incomparable Idelwild, a travel book store in New York's Union Square, I learned that the store is having trouble keeping South American guide books in stock -- the weather starts to get super nice down around those parts just as North American weather takes a nose dive.

If you're looking for a good South American destination to aim for, try Cartagena -- which has been called the next Buenos Aires. There's a new place to stay, too: The Tcherassi, a boutique hotel owned and designed by Latin fashion designer Silvia Tcherassi. She restored and renovated a 250 year old colonial mansion in the heart of the old city for the project, creating a hotel with just seven rooms, each named after a fabric she works with. The result seems a decidedly happy marriage of the old with sleek contemporary lines. (The roof pool is pictured here, see the gallery below for other images.) If The Tcherassi lives up to its promise, I wouldn't be at all surprised to see it become a regular on hot design hotel lists.

W Hotels Worldwide just unveiled its first ever hotel in South America, W Santiago and The Residences at W Santiago in Chile. The W brand's 33rd hotel, W Santiago is the cornerstone of a larger, mixed-use complex, Isidora 3000, which includes a convention center, boutique office space, and high-end retail shops in addition to the W Hotel and W-branded residences. Developed by the Territoria Group, W Santiago is located in the heart of the fashionable El Golf district of the Chilean capital city and surrounded by the magnificent peaks of the Andes. Renowned New York designer Tony Chi partnered with native Chilean designer Sergio Echeverria to create cutting edge interiors for the hotel and residences that are a cool, contemporary take on the varied Chilean landscape. The property features several restaurants and bars as well as a rooftop pool overlooking the city lights (above).

Click Wine Group, the privately held, Seattle-based company that owns and imports wine from around the world, has a standout collection of vintages in $10 - $13 range, starring Root: 1 from Chile and the indefatigable Fat Bastard. Their Global Wine Collection consists of signature varietals from world-class appellations with easy to pronounce (and sometimes amusing) names and appealing, consumer friendly packaging aimed at taking the intimidation out of wine. They have something for virtually every palate and autumnal occasion. To meet growing consumer demand, Root: 1 recently added two new varietals to its lineup: a smooth, richly flavored Carmenere and a crisp, fresh Chardonnay. Carmenere is Chile's signature varietal, a deep colored, full-bodied wine that offers the charm of Merlot and the structure of Cabernet Sauvignon.

Produced in Colchaugua Valley, Root: 1 Carmenere is deep red in color with gentle tannins and rich flavors of plum, blackberry and spice. Root: 1 Chardonnay is not the heavily oaked kind that has become a wine snob's cliché, but rather a fine balance of fruit and acidity. Grown in the cool, coastal Casablanca Valley, renowned for producing the best white wines in South America, Root:1 Chardonnay is fresh, expressive and balanced with melon, honey and toasted hazelnut flavors. Also well worth trying is the Root 1: Sauvingnon Blanc, a crisp wine with citrus notes and a fresh, clean finish. The ungrafted rootstock produces a bright, tropical fruit flavor that pairs perfectly with salads, seafood and creamy pasta sauces.

Europe – the same corner of Europe, actually – claims the first three spots in Mercer Consulting's annual Quality of Living Survey. Vienna, Austria and Zurich and Geneva in Switzerland lead the list, followed by Vancouver, Canada and Auckland, New Zealand in a tie for fourth.

Little has changed for the top half of the top 10. Last year, Zurich nabbed the top spot, and Vienna and Geneva shared the #2 spot. Vancouver is unchanged year-over-year, and Auckland's #5 finish last year is roughly the same as its tie for fourth in 2009.

Not only are the top places to live ostensibly enjoyable, you're more likely to be there for a while. Life expectancies in these cities start at 79 years. It's better than living a nice long life in a dump, I guess.

The United States doesn't appear until the bottom of the top 30, with Honolulu and San Francisco. From Asia, only Singapore picks up a spot in the world's 30 best places to live. South America and Africa are not represented at all. It's strange, I half-expected to see Mogadishu on this list.

Of the 215 places listed, Baghdad has the distinction of finishing last. Sometimes, common sense prevails.

The first boutique luxury hotel has just opened in Cusco, Southeastern Peru, the historic capital of the Inca Empire. Situated in a meticulously-restored colonial mansion that is probably the first Spanish building ever constructed on the ancient site, La Casona Inkaterra features eleven luxurious suites surrounding a sumptuous courtyard that's nearly 400 years old. The hotel, which is only a short distance from famed Machu Picchu, a UNESCO world heritage site, boasts modern amenities like radiant heated floors and iPod docks that would have shocked the original inhabitants.

[via UrbanDaddy]

Hotel Unique in Sao Paulo, Brazil is a breathtaking achievement by local architect Ruy Ohtake. It is easily recognizable as it resembles a big slice of watermelon; with dramatically sloping sides and flat-topped roof and round, port-hole-style windows for the seeds. It is a sleek, cutting-edge structure and so attracts a lively clientele; it is the IN place to stay if ever in the "helicopter-capital of the world". The average room price here is approximately $360 USD. They have all the amenities that one comes to expect of a luxury boutique hotel and is the perfect spot for the young and hip traveler or the newly-wedded-- this place will let you get to know someone in a hurry. This hotel features guest rooms with bathroom walls which disappear with a push of the button and one of the chicest bars in the city -- don't even show up unless you're a perfect ten. If you're traveling solo, you are sure to meet at least one someone special in the lobby. It has an informal, chill vibe with the requisite Brazilian trip-hop music and a few lounge chairs grouped around low tables. A chilled bottle of champagne greets the incoming guests, great for breaking-the-ice. And check out the crimson-red pool on the roof -- I don't know what to think here; probably something you have to experience before you decide, wonderful for a sultry late-night swim or just wildly unnatural?