When I first opened the Zai web site I was greeted by a poem written by Leo Tour "In the beginning was the mountain". I was sure that I was going to learn about a new bottled water from the purist of mountain springs or possibly even a zen retreat. I was in fact entering a kind of temple, a secular one, where the worshipers follow not a god, but snow and a the sport of skiing.

The word Zai means "tough" in the little know dialect of Sursilvan which is spoken in the mountains of Switzerland and specifically in the town of Disentis where the Zai skis are crafted. As seems fitting, the town lies below an ancient Benedictine monastery. The personal dream of Simon Jacomet, who insists that his skis be made by people who have skiing and the mountains in their heart and soul, the company produces some of the finest and most technologically innovative ski equipment on the slopes. The skis are produced in a small and tightly controlled production plant using state of the art machinery and assembled by hand.

All of the Spada skis are limited editions, only 111 pairs of each model are made. The newest innovation just out for this winter season is a special ski that uses a carbon-stone-technology with a rubber exterior. Zai was the first manufacturer in the world to use a stone core in their skis and is still trendsetting in their product development being the first to use a natural rubber surfacing. It is not just rhetoric that the skis are "of the mountain" as each pair has Grisons granite in the core of the ski. As with all carefully thought out designs the skis themselves are beautiful too, they will definitely not get lost in the pile on the ski racks outside the lodge at lunch.

Available in the United States exclusively at the high end winter sports retailer Gorsuch whose stores in all the nicest ski areas of Colorado, such as Beaver Creek, Vail and Aspen, sell the Zai Spada skis for $5,900.00 a pair.

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.

This winter the latest place to play in St. Lucia is Calabash Cove, a new boutique hotel resort set to open in December 2008. The resort offers three types of suites as well as nine teak and mahogany Water's Edge cottages, shown above, which have plunge pools, outdoor rain showers and hammocks as well as TV/DVD/hi-fi systems, refrigerators and coffee/tea makers, large patios and Jacuzzis. The suit offerings include the "Swim Up" suites which have private Jacuzzis and ar located just steps from Sweetwaters--the resort's designer pool with a 40-foot infinity edge, mahogany loungers and tropical refreshments provided by pool butlers. The swim-up suites afford private access directly from the patio of your room. Calabash Cove will also have a spa, fitness studio and full-service beauty salon as well as the Windsong Restaurant and C Bar. Rates at Calabash Cove range from $295-$895 per night and include the resort's island breakfast buffet. The entire resort can also be rented out for destination weddings for up to 52 guests for $50,000 per day.