Adventures in Luxury Travel

Mimi Lichtenstein 0:01
If you're a traveler that believes luxury and adventure are not mutually exclusive, then you're in the right place. Every week I take you to a new destination with one of my partners, sharing the hidden gems over the top experiences and active adventures to inspire your next family vacation. I'm Mimi Lichtenstein, an experienced Travel Advisor who has also traveled with my three teenagers and my husband around the world. Let's get started. Welcome to Episode 48 of adventures and luxury travel. Today my turn I talk about Uruguay and under the radar South American destination this little country is full of reasons to visit, first of which is the lifestyle of focus on laid back luxury with beach bars and clubs, incredible restaurants, wineries, and a love for magical sunsets. There are also many active adventures from surfing to horseback riding in the moonlight. And there are three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, unique architecture and a vibrant art scene. Of course, we'll talk about the best hotels and spas to visit true a travel.com/ 48 for a video of today's show and additional resources. Good morning, everyone. I'm Mimi Lichtenstein. And today on Adventures in luxury travel, I have on my Utah Burnet chia, and we are going to talk all about ERG y. Mehta, thank you so much for coming on the show today.

Maita 1:27
Thank you, Mimi, and thank you for all the audience here. Joining us happy to do so.

Mimi Lichtenstein 1:33
I am so excited for the show. Because manita is as passionate about travel as I am and she has a wisdom, experience and knowledge about South America and in particular for Glide that she's going to share with us today. So let's get started. So you I know are your family way back when is from Spain, but you were born in Argentina, but spent a lot of your time growing up in ERG y along with your big extended family. So tell us a little bit about like, you know, what is it like? I know I've heard of it as part of it is like the Hamptons of South America. Tell us a little bit about the culture.

Maita 2:07
Well, thank you maybe I lived a very privileged life I have to say because of my family is from Argentina, and several generations and I grew up there. But all of our summers, family summers have been forever with my grandparents, parents, children, grandchildren, everybody who goes to Uruguay for the summer and for our weekends. So I've seen this area developed and evolved as for tourists. And back then no one came as a tourist. We were all maybe Uruguayans, and an Argentine and most of my family have a dual citizenship between Argentina and Uruguay. So it has been my place of two places in the world. Patagonia where I am right now actually where I'm now in Patagonia, you see this? I'm very surrounded by wood. And in green. We are in our fall in Patagonia. But my other place in the world apart from when a site is is Uruguay. So yes, your wife has evolved from being a very far away, as you see it's tucked in the south of South America bordered by that big country to the to the west is Argentina. And the big country to the north is Brazil. So those are the two neighbor, neighboring countries and the ocean towards the east. So it's very privileged, it's a little bit I always like to refer to Uruguay as the province or the Tuscany of South America. And this part or seaside area that we'll be talking about today, is a liquid referred to as many said, as the Hamptons of South America, very relaxed, very understated, very, you know, barefoot luxury style,

Mimi Lichtenstein 3:35
as well. I know for for those people who have been to South America, or perhaps want to do something a little bit different. It's such a great destination beyond definitely a little bit more off the beaten path, but so many unique things about it. So let's just sort of go through a few of the maps when you're looking at the country up close as you are here. You had mentioned when we were talking earlier, you can see obviously, there's a huge coastline all along the bottom, but then there's also a lot of rivers and a lot of lakes and mountains.

Maita 4:04
Yes, the terrain in the geography in Uruguay is very undulated, I would say has CFLs not huge mountains like it will find in Chile or Argentina nearby, but it's more undulating and very beautiful. It's where the country side meets the sea. And then you have a very big river running to the western north to south which is the Ottawa River that divides Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay. And then you see a white river at the south, which is the River Plate. It's an archipelago it's a a delta two, it's very easy to cross from when Osiris to Carmela which is this area where the delta is or to Colonia and that is only a one hour ferry cross across an era in a UNESCO heritage site. Otherwise, you can take three hour ferry to Montevideo which is the capital of the country and it was a beautiful city like very laid back and stopped in time, but with a great art life and so on. And then you have content related winter releases the pug were to arrive to all the seaside villages were the most coveted. I would say point in all of the Uruguayan seaside is hosting NASCIO is this peninsula that you see here on the map, which is very particular because you have a very soft and calm sea on one side, to towards the east, towards the west and to the east. It's all like brain tremendous waves for surfing for beach goers. And well, and it goes all the way all along to the to the border with Brazil. So we have it becomes wilder and wilder as you go to the northeast. And it's really spectacular. What I think is special about all this is the lifestyle that exists in all this area.

Mimi Lichtenstein 5:43
Yeah. And we'll touch on that and what I love is it's such a unique geographical attribute that you have this peninsula right here where you could stay and if you're going with a family and some people want to do we'll talk about the watersports in a few minutes. But you know, more surfing or high intensity watersports, you can go to the east side and go where the big waves are. Or if people want to go stand up paddleboarding and more, you know, quieter, calmer things or just enjoy being on the beach, then you just go over to the west side. But you all stay together very close by.

Maita 6:15
Yeah, well, that's the map of the village opposing NASA itself. As you see it's very small. But it's become this hub for art, I would say an artsy and foodie scene that is very strong. And it's very socializing, but in a very, very understated way. Like people don't dress up, they just enjoy what we've mentioned before, like the Barefoot luxury, like not really the simplicity of life. And a lot of people from around the world had become an established themselves there. But this started it was was first settled in the 1700s. And then it became like, it's really started growing as a destination in the 1920s you have this beautiful lighthouse that you were seeing there. That is what divides the rocky point from the current ocean and the and the rough ocean. And so it's flanked by these two oceans, and it's a rocky point full of life in the world one on one TV, as I said is the capital city of Uruguay, it would be your entry point if you're flying from the US and on air. For example, American Airlines divers has a direct flight otherwise you could fly into buenos itis and then cross into on David is always a great site trip. And whatever we do has a great architecture Art Nouveau Art Deco, a wonderful coastline and has all these beaches and residential areas. What you see there is this hotel is what nowadays is a Sofitel, but it was the old hotel Caraco and it's an A very beautiful CABAC residential area. And another picture right you see that beautiful building, that's the salvia building, it has a twin building and when I say this, and it has a beacon on the on the on the top, where you can see one city to the other. And that's the old part of Montevideo that is very picturesque with great museums or galleries great food, what Montevideo is also known for the second home for Tango, remember?

Mimi Lichtenstein 8:05
Well, since my salsa dancing days in Puerto Rico last month, I'm definitely interested in learning more about South American dancing. Alright, so let's talk about some of the different active experiences you can have or actually we'll start with the culture. So if you go back, it's similar Argentina, you have this Gaucho culture where you have these cowboys tell us a little bit about that, and how people can experience that when they're there.

Maita 8:29
Absolutely. In Uruguay, we have a very strong horse and go to culture. So a lot of things can be offered on horseback. And you have this beautiful terrain. So you have these groves, these beautiful forests of palm trees. These are you either have the Jatai or the Boutwell lutea palm trees that have these wetlands that are really spectacular and our natural reserves, but you can stay in private distances, farms that belong to private owners and live the real the inside story of a probate farm with natural also great wildlife that you encounter in this part of the inland of your why oh, we're there we're coming into art. The big contemporary art movement that is existing while you're away also always had a traditional art scene from the grandmasters of the past of the constant constructivism very famous names like Bharata, subtopic and C and then Carlos by the like, oh later on with the more the more the becoming friends with the Cubist as soon as he was big, big friends with Picasso and Dali and so on. And there's a beautiful museum which was his house in a rocky area on a point another Peninsula called whale point of Buddha Virgina but this specifically, this is the Uruguayan artists when we came acclaimed internationally, especially in Italy in Europe, he's called Pablo actual gallery and he makes these amazing, abstract and a little bit figurative art sculptures made of marble that have shaped a little bit of human life or still lights or even like breaking away He's, and you see them in art collections all over the world. But he has developed this first art studio, then an art collection, then a sculpture garden. And now, this amazing museum that opened just a few months ago. It's called the mica. It was so important that three presidents of Uruguay you know, the current president like magic bow, but the ex presidents who just engineered this, who was a great art collector and lover donated his collection to the museum. And that even possible heka, which was the you know, the extreme opposite political side of Uruguay. So it was very nice to see all these people coming together to this great opening. And it's an destination in itself. This is in man antalis, very near hosing NASA, which we just saw. It's one of those lovely seaside villages. And it's become like in that area, we have this beautiful sculpture garden, the the art collection, also contemporary exhibitions, it was inaugurated by an exhibition by Crystal Crystal was one, you know, there was the related exhibition in Paris a few months ago that they wrapped the art Arch of Triumph in Paris, and well that's that's crystal or the bridges or, you know, these islands, that's what was very famous for. But there's a big sculpture garden and very beautiful that surrounds this contraption. And that building was built by countless great architects that we will hear about later as well. This gossip wave law. This is another beautiful art museum nowadays, it was the house of this wonderful Uruguayan artists, probably the most famous because of his personality. And as I Is he was called Carlo by Billetto. Unfortunately, he passed away a few years ago, but he's, like, cherished by everybody. He had this charming personality, we would do great things there. He built this museum to be his house. It started with a shack with woods, but then he created like a sandcastle that could be, but it's all white. It could be in the Mediterranean or Mykonos. But what I find amazing about this, too, is that apart from his art collection, which you can visit and is wonderful. In Uruguay, you have the most incredible sunsets you can see there that this this falls on a cliff into the ocean into the sea. And what you do there is there is this, the carnivals have these wonderful Candombe drummers that take place and you have the ceremonies of the drummers coming down the hill, there's a big pit of fire. And he would always recite his ode to the sunset, a poem that he would do it always there. Now he passed away. But the interesting thing is that people go there to watch the sunset, and there's a recording of his voice with his poem to the ODE of the sunset. It's really a very special place in Europe as well.

Mimi Lichtenstein 12:39
That's amazing. Well, I'll say a couple things. I know when you and I were talking in the last week to hear about almost the culture surrounding the sunset experience with the people there was so fun, tell us a little bit more about so if you're driving down the road, or you're nearby and you know, the sun's about to set what happens.

Maita 12:57
Absolutely. I grew up with that, that sense in our family, but then everybody around, it's like, you would follow the sign in your way you cheat beaches, where you depending on the time of day, but at sunset, we have to have your decision. And even if you don't have it, you always think you have to stop the car and decide if you're with your family with children, wherever, where are you going to enjoy the sunset, because I've never seen sunsets as beautiful as in Uruguay, sunsets on the sea. And the sky stone is completely orange and red. And the minute that the sun meets the ocean, it's like very invigorating, I know people just stop and clap and applaud for the sunset not less green ray of light that some people seem to see the minute that the sunsets over the ocean. So we really do that, you know, we buy something to eat, because the Uruguayans Argentine has always said this the strength the national drink that is the matter made of matter leaves. So you would have a drink of matter with some really, really good and when we call the media Lunars which are the local presence or whatever it is when you will stop somewhere to buy something to eat enjoy the sunset in nature, you know, in one of the wonderful beaches that have this, this views

Mimi Lichtenstein 14:06
and I love it. And for people who have been to Barcelona before many people say that Casa Pueblo was very Gaudi like in its in its architecture that

Maita 14:15
a couple of would say is that he made it like a sandcastle you know when you drew Yeah, sand it starts forming shapes and that's how he was he kept developing this. This building.

Mimi Lichtenstein 14:26
So far. Obviously we've seen very different architecture so far in the show, and we're gonna touch on some more. It is a beautiful place with such diverse types of architecture that I think anybody who is interested in that kind of thing, it would be a great destination just to see all the different types of buildings. And then we continue on with the contemporary culture of watching sunsets and going to beach clubs or or beach bars and would you say is this all along the coast or is it more centered around Jose Ignacio

Maita 14:57
this is all around the Beach Coast. We have been Each gloves and beach bars that are very picturesque and very like raw and rugged and real. I think the first ones to develop this was a great chef for for instance man want to put this area or more more so because they nasty on the map and you will find these we call them paradores where you have great drinks and and people just go either to beach clubs that are a bit more sophisticated to or simple beach bars like this one you see on the photograph

Mimi Lichtenstein 15:26
beautiful and so fun right for summertime. Nothing beats just sort of having that barefoot luxury experience so active a lot. Arrghh way obviously has large coasts. So a lot of the active adventures center on being in the water surfing great picture here of people on some waves, as far as we'll touch on later kind of the best time of year to be there but is surfing something that is done concentrated period of time and your summertime, which obviously would be opposite of ours January, February.

Maita 15:55
But it's actually happens year round. But most people you know, travelers go in our summer, spring and fall as well. And yes, surfing takes place and all those beaches that we said have rough ocean that are to the east of the peninsula, because you have several peninsulas in, but one that we're talking about now is forcing NASCIO so here Yes. And there's also we do like itineraries, you know, you go surfing from one beach to the other and biking either mountain biking or hiking from lighthouse to lighthouse and where you have different surf experiences. And once there's one little beach hotel, called Posada don't pick up that it's like a tower in an area made by an architect and intervene by artists of the area where it's the perfect place for surf lovers. But you have a surf school and every little beach then and that is great for beginners or for real. And then you have kite surfing kite surfing is a big thing. This is in Laguna and so and you have that strip of sand that you see in the back is one of my favorite beaches in the whole area because you have this lovely little restaurant that he can only arrive by boats and you have to have a previous invitation or register for a reservation and you cross over by a boat and it's you're surrounded on one side and have the open ocean, the South Atlantic and on the other side are fresh or brackish water lagoon where you have kite surfers that look like butterflies in the sky. And it's also there's a school for beginners or for people who have already experienced it. And it's just so much fun to learn. Also, for anybody who likes sailing we have these activities which will teach you how to learn to read the winds and maneuver a boat. And those also great classes have that have to do with all these outdoor sports.

Mimi Lichtenstein 17:34
Absolutely and for many of my clients have teenagers, college kids who they take on vacation so all of these things would be appealing to them. And I personally

Maita 17:44
know sorry, Mimi that for kite surfing, you can do it you can have classes for seven year olds to add something that's what we get

Mimi Lichtenstein 17:51
well and my family has taken kite surfing lessons before which I watched I did not partake in it's very hard to learn so you have to dedicate your time to it. But I personally love just sitting on the beach watching the kites go back and forth like it like you said it's like butterflies and they're all different colors and it looks so beautiful and the people are so skilled and make it look so easy. And it's not fun. It's just fun to simply watch it from the beach. And this is beautiful. So paddle boarding, which you can do on the column part of the sea or in one of the lagoons for those people who are listening. This is a photo of a guy out paddleboarding with his dog on his paddleboard, which I actually do with my dog here in New Hampshire on the Connecticut River in the summertime. Such a fun way to be out and about with your pet for sure.

Maita 18:34
And very much fun and that guy that you see the picture. His wife is the great yoga teacher now and one of the great hotels, Vivek that you have the oh, this the yoga shack. She's the teacher and she's amazing. And he's wonderful, too. So he does these backward paddleboarding, as you said, in the lagoons, and in the soft part of the oceans, and the horse riding

Mimi Lichtenstein 18:54
horse riding. So there's lots of different types of horse riding. Tell us a little bit about the different options.

Maita 18:59
Yes, well, this is one of my favorites, because you can gorge horse right, riding with this out of school diva that belongs to Caroline Malmo and she had a great start with wonderful horses and what you do is also you go through the all these barrier beaches that go on forever, and you can diet and combine them with sunset or even with a full moon light when you go and ride horses on the beach and finalize with this great way of cooking over fire we call a saddles in our part of the world and it's just a magical evening. It can also be done on day like like this one, but it's beautiful. You go through the sand dunes and all those other guys boulders, these palm trees that I mentioned that grow near the the countryside near the beach, and then you combine it with the beach itself,

Mimi Lichtenstein 19:45
love it. And then the next option is polo polo lessons are watching Polo. I happen to have a 16 year old son who learned to play polo last year. He's not been playing in actively but I saw lots of fun pictures of him learning to play it and I think for Anybody who might have had an interest in writing when playing polo before it would be a great thing to try out to see how much you like

Maita 20:08
Absolutely. Polo is a big thing as you know Argentina has the best qualifiers and best courses in the world but Uruguay is second to that there's some great polo clubs and polo farms this one exactly that you see on the on the picture is this fancy avec which is a hotel in itself. So there you go and can go and take polo lessons or immerse in the Polo scene and go and watch the Polo. Match and meet the Meet the the polo players who are always so well known for being so good looking and charming.

Mimi Lichtenstein 20:37
Yes, I've seen photos they do look good looking and charming. Yeah, yeah, so and then golf we just touch on golf, but there are some beautiful golf courses. So if you have golfers on your trip, getting out there and taking an 18 holes would be also another option. And then more amazing

Maita 20:55
golf courses. I have to say me me all around. The newest one is this stuff on by a great development by a while this business bank called Alexander Corleone who also developed wineries and other things in the area. But that's an amazing, amazing new golf course but also the traditional ones can take at Laguna Saucedo levada golf club for anywhere in Uruguay, you can go and play wonderful golf near the ocean.

Mimi Lichtenstein 21:21
And you know, it makes me think sometimes I have couples who go away on a golf trip, but they sometimes are all golfers and sometimes they're not. So if you have several couples you're going away with and half of them play golf and the others don't. It would be great to be in a place like or a guy where there is so much to do for the non golfers while the golfers are out on the golf course.

Maita 21:40
Exactly. I think all these areas have a lifestyle. It has great lifestyle, a great culinary wine, and art scene. So you can combine culture with nature with wildlife with adventure sports. This that you see on this photograph is one of the typical meandering streams that flow into the ocean and form these beautiful outlets which where you have incredible bird life you have you can spend sunsets or picnics there by the beach, full of seagulls and oyster catchers. But in the meantime, you can roll in a canoe or take a boat. This exactly is the Belissa stream that is born. There is a great hill called the Buena Vista hill now the beautiful view Hill from where we have these incredible sand dunes that are great for sandboarding. But then you board a boat. And you can either do these in the evenings or you can go shrimp fishing with a local fisherman and catch the catch of the day. Or you go on the boat all the way all along this this beautiful stream. And it's very pastoral, very bucolic very rural. So you see Katelyn forces, and also some Ostriches are the regions that are the local ostrich of South America. And you come to the end of the stream and there's a beautiful lagoon again, great for bird watchers and bird life. But there's also a very unique forest of the blue trees that are only found in this part of the world is really a very beautiful nature reserve.

Mimi Lichtenstein 23:04
I love it. Well, last week I was in Belize with my family and we went fishing as we often do, because my son loves to fish but before we got there, I think he really only as far as fish ate ate salmon and tuna. And we caught both grouper and red snapper. And when someone catches it themselves to have somebody prepare it for you that evening, he was a lot more apt to try some new fish since he had been helping catch them. So for people who are maybe who have kids, I mean I've never been shrimping that sounds like such a fun afternoon experience to then go back and eat those for dinner.

Maita 23:38
Yes, actually it's wonderful to go for the shrimp and the crab and also you go out and fish from from those seaside beaches you fish for cod and drum fish and you have also the Karina Blanca are in need of the soul. Lisa, and then you eat it at night. I mean, all these bits ceremony of fire cooking is well I think there's we're coming down cooling earring wine.

Mimi Lichtenstein 23:56
Yeah, magical. So let's start with wine. For people who haven't had or acquired wine, go to your local wine store and buy some you'll love it. There are a lot of different wineries all through or white, mostly concentrated in the South. Do you want to tell us about you know, what, what are their main production or what are their most famous wines?

Maita 24:19
Well, in Uruguay as each country, at least in our part of the world, each country develops a very special grape that they're known for. Like Argentina has the Malbec and she has the current Monera will Uruguay has the Tannat t 180. It's a wonderful wine all what you see marked in green are the different wine regions. So you see it goes all along the coast starting from Carmel and Colonia and California is near Montevideo and and all the way to Jose Ignacio and beyond. And then you also have a winery ended up in the north in the border with Brazil and also a lot the Euro White River that I mentioned before. So it's a great wine region, not only tonight then you have like great Pinot Anwar is you have great, another great that is very, very much from the area. But you have a force all the other all the other varieties as well. But what I see that it's it's a beautiful rolling hill countryside full of vineyards and being wineries and small boutique wineries to visit. And he's got a son. Yeah. Tell us about us my most famous one. Yeah, that's the most famous one because it has won two years in a row that award for the Best New winery in the world. And it's really an amazing development by Alexander William O'Neal and Argentine businessman who really discovered this area years ago. And he not only developed the wine, but also the olive tree plantations and great olive oil and the Gulf forests. And now he has a great development called Costa Gunson where there's a lovely beachside restaurant, there's as well. But this one has a great as you see, do the winery up on the hill at some amazing Lee designed winery and a great restaurant by the best chef by Francis Mallmann. And then apart from that era, Sony has a small little wineries all across there is one that I think is very special to mention that is called Sacromonte. That was the investment of a Peruvian French family who moved to Uruguay and develop this beautiful beautiful wine vineyard that has three, three beautifully designed cabins where you stay overnight, which is the hotel and it really made the cover of Time Magazine as the 100 places you have visit to visit before you die or something. Or this year, maybe your that year, not where you died, which is Sacromonte really recommend that one but there's also very little libraries like CRL entirely of SANIKA many many wants to visit grieving over fire. You know, that's a tradition both in Europe, why in Argentina, we feel that the everything is mostly cooked or grilled over fire and over wood. So there is a master of fire cooking that we cherish who is Francis mailman to put this on the map. His books are very well known. He's had these books like ma'am London fire seven fires, seven ways, techniques of cooking over fire with wood. And now his new work is called Green fires for cooking vegetables and more vegan and vegetarian recipes. But Francis was an institution and himself. I mean, he's a lifelong friend that I adore. We have the same age, we grew up with the same, you know, things and I think loving the same things, you know, going to really wild places, and he's been instrumental in putting places on the map. You know, this was a NASA that we mentioned as the most coveted point and all of all of the Uruguayan coastline, I would say the most chic Beach Resort in all of South America. Well, he put it on the map, you know, first he established his first restaurants there in the 70s. Then his very famous restaurant by the lighthouse board was negros. And now he has three different restaurants happening in the area. We can talk about that later. But that's what he does.

Mimi Lichtenstein 28:02
Well, I think and for those people who are listening and not watching, this is not your American average Barbecue, where you're throwing a couple steaks flat on a grill. It looks much different. You know, you have the big wood fire in the middle and then dangling things above it like vegetables, or even chicken and whole heads of cabbage. And so I would highly suggest that you go check out the video to see what a typical Paraguayan barbecue looks like. And then I love magical settings for meals. Tell us a little bit about this.

Maita 28:35
Well, this is the pop up dinner that has been very successful this last season. This is an Argentine chef called Martin Molesey. He lives in London and he developed this what he calls owner ifIm ephemeral tables. He does it in the sun Pancras tower in London. And then he realized that maybe a Jose Nasir would be a wonderful place to develop this in a different way. And it's done in the grounds of the beautiful forest that is behind the one of the small little hotels that have developed in the area. It's called loose culinarian wine Lodge. And it has this beautiful pine forest. So in that pine forest, he puts up this pop up dining table where he develops this tasting menu, but it also has its their magical nights with some theater and concert music of like music, classic music. And it happens you can do it either for your own group or group of friends. Or you can go and sign up for one of the evenings any day it has in London. He does it for 12 people, here's tables with more 24 because you can do a more communal table and it's all lit with these beautiful lighting. It's quite really magical. I recommend it.

Mimi Lichtenstein 29:42
I love it and then more outdoor dining but this time at the beach, which is a more universal term than just in Uruguay. Tell us a little bit more about what Sharon gate those are.

Maita 29:52
Yes, I think to recall the word developed in Uruguay and Argentina and then the rest of the world is what we called a little like pop up, nothing really bad but a very simple little restaurant that happens on a beach and it's like toes in the sand. And this was the new venture Francis has mentioned. For instance, Muhammad has now three restaurants in the area. This is the newest one, and it's in an area called both dragon stone that has this beautiful beach. And as you see, it's very romantic. You have these little tables and stretchers, and also they're divided. You can't see it on the picture, but they are like little thatched roofs and they're exactly by the ocean, everything that you eat there is grilled in his way. And it's just magical. And he's always around says great, always great to meet Francis. Great night.

Mimi Lichtenstein 30:38
And more picnics, I love planning pop up picnics for people right or surprise picnics. And sometimes it's nice to do them by the sea like here in a beautiful looks like shaded spots or at a winery or in the mountains or near the river. So there's so many places in Uruguay where you can have a beautiful picnic.

Maita 30:57
Exactly. I think picnics in Uruguay are mandatory by the sea or as Mimi said in the vineyard in the mountains and in very beautiful sunset places and lookouts. And this is one of our signature experiences no in my 10 Our company that is dedicated to personalized strips and creating signature experiences picnics anywhere or dinners or combinations of personalities and, and fun outdoor experiences. This is exactly a dinner that we did this season for for a family in the Sierras of Carson up in the mountains with a sunset happening over there. And this was done by Francis malman. And it's just magical. I have to say that Francis is probably one of the best aesthetes I've ever known. He has the most impeccable taste. So with nothing like with the simple lemons or potatoes or hydrangeas, I think I see there were very simple things. He will create a magical setting. Yes, it absolutely did my for example, my daughter's wedding in Patagonia and it was something out of this world because people came from all over the world because she's got she got married to this wonderful French designer. And it was done in the middle of middle of nowhere in Patagonia where people had to arrive by boat to this very secluded island or beach and with sands of all different colors and key created this incredible atmosphere and with all very simple things, you know, wood recovered from the driftwood and as I said just peel Yes, but then like maybe just lemons and very, very simple, impeccable design.

Mimi Lichtenstein 32:31
Beautiful. Well, I look forward to getting down there so I can eat it maybe all of his restaurants while I'm there. We touched on the sunsets just another stunning you know, beautiful picture of sunsets. And then there happens to be some nudist beaches in Aragua Yeah, just want to bring that up.

Maita 32:51
Yes as well now Yes, just a little bit on the sunset you know it's so important and sunset that we mentioned before that people would go there they really clap when the sunsets it's like really amazing to find that out but the Chihuahua beach. I think it's a quite interesting thing that developed years ago this was decades ago I was a child growing up and I would hear see people talking about Chihuahua, but my parents wouldn't take me there. But nowadays it's become like this. Yep, full families fully nude fully naked. There's a hotel, there's a little club, there's a beach club. And people even go there out of curiosity, but also respect to you know what other people do. And it's interesting or people are just chatting on the beach completely new talking about what they bought in the supermarket. It's just a natural light but with no clothes. Yeah. And that happens. It's it's very, very calm, see where you can go swimming. And it's just one little beach amongst other beach sites, you know, that happen all along the coast.

Mimi Lichtenstein 33:50
And then marine life. You mentioned ostriches, which are on land and obviously the horses and there's birding. But then when it comes to the water, there's places like Isla de Lobos that has a huge seal population. So for people who love marine life and wildlife, and then what about the whales that come through? What's what's whale season?

Maita 34:10
Exactly? Well, you have there well, starting with a whale season that happens from July to November. There are great places to go and watch whales and this is the Southern Right Whale which is very tame and very curious and very friendly that you can approach it but it happens a lot. In one of the seaside villages are in the white we call the white east. After both Ignacio there was a way to cross into this region that is called Raja and along the seaside villages with one called La Pedrera. And other one called there's a beach called Kota stool in LA in La Paloma where you're bound to see whales. And there are some islands for sea lions like this one is called Isla de Lobos lovers means the sea line which is the perfect little island that you see from anywhere in Poland dilated with a Lighthouse where you can go by boat there but there are also closer ones one that is a in Kabul, Bologna, which is one of these little villages which are in the raw Raja seaside area. And so there are different places where you see sea lions, also elephant seals and also dolphins during the sunset with the column see in Jose NASCIO. In that area where you see the sunsets, many times I've gone swimming in the in the sunset, and you and you swim with dolphins. And there's also another interesting thing you haven't seen. So the sea turtle sanctuaries is a great one. And one is several verde but the other one is in a beautiful beach called La Mata visas in Macedonia, which is beautiful, beautiful beach very near to the border with Brazil, where there's a picturesque shining bridge over these outlets, that water into the sea. And you can you know, there's a great area to go and learn about this, the sea turtles as well

Mimi Lichtenstein 35:48
love it. Well, we love having lots of different opportunities to see marine life. And then when we look it back to a little bit of architecture, but focused on this bridge, tell us about this very special bridge. And again, for those of you listening, you might want to google it to see what it looks like. It's really very spectacular. And I know there's some reason behind it, circular shape of it. So tell us a little bit about that.

Maita 36:11
Yes, this bridge was a bit controversial at the time, because it's the only way of crossing from the area posing NASA that we've been talking about into the role and ragged what we call the wild eastern shores where you have those those little other little villages that we've just mentioned about the whales and sea turtles and the sea lions and so on. The only way of reaching there was crossing this beautiful lagoon that is a nature sanctuary. And it's called Laguna Garson. So before we would call cross on a barge, and authority would go with your car and put your car on the barge only three minutes across. But when this area becomes starting more popular than there were lines of cars trying to cross in the middle of March. So there was a real estate developer who's also an art Maecenas who was very, very well known in the area and also in Argentina. It's Eduardo cotton, Dini, who was the founder of the MALBA Museum and one of the things that he also developed some great real estate developments here in Raja one called what one call guard says and in this area very near what we're seeing on the on the bridge so with between the local guard Uruguayan government and it were though they called on this wonderful architect called Black, they will be the only who is from from Uruguay. But he has this great international firm in New York and it's very worldwide known. And he developed this design of a bridge that would try to affect the least the impact on the nature reserve that happens on this lagoon. So his idea of doing a round bridge is that by going around bridge first you slow down the speed of your car. There's also a lane for bicycles and even walking and so you enjoy the natural scenery and also at the same time it's round shaped so it looks like the lagoon within a lagoon and also environmentally it's supposed to be less damaging for the for the nature reserve because it has less shade or shadows on the water. So it affects less the bird life.

Mimi Lichtenstein 38:07
Wow. Well it is beautiful and obviously very, very unique. So be fun to drive over it for sure. All right, let's transition to some of your favorites. We'll go through actually skipped ahead. There we go. As far as places to eat some restaurants. beach side it looks like the first couple are the favorites. Um, tell us a little bit about Burisma

Maita 38:29
Yes, the food and the wine in this area are amazing. So the food you can skip the first one you showed was like Weezer, which is probably the most famous you know as a destination in itself people will come to Jose Ignacio just to eat in language and I always recommend to have at least two meals one during the daytime at lunch and one in the evenings because it's completely different. It's again it's right on the sand and it's on the rough side of the beach and hosting NASCIO so you can go for the beach and you're just dressed in beach clothes and it's there's a wonderful beautiful atmosphere. Most everything is caught is fished on the grill and so the catch of the say the deserts are to die for you know due to the lychee and chocolate, the volcanoes the savich is everything is up the pizzas that come from the oven everything is very simple and delicious. But then Peter logo is the you know the man behind also originally a pupil of Francis Malamud, but this is a restaurant that is about with 50 Best in South America, Latin America, San Pellegrino list and it's a destination in itself. Do not miss language at anytime you go to Jose Ignacio and the next one you showed is mighty small, which is all outdoors and it's all cooked over fire with a biography. So it's very, very romantic. And the chef there is for the for the center, which is a wonderful, wonderful chef and it's an it's destination in itself too. You cannot miss going to Jose Ignacio are not eating one evening in Moneysmart.

Mimi Lichtenstein 39:53
Right now if our show was six hours long, we could talk about all the other amazing places but since it's not we will transition To shopping tell us a little bit about someone near and dear to you. And this next photo

Maita 40:06
well I have to say that shopping and all this area is amazing. There's great were interior designers, clothing designers, leather, all the pottery, the crafts, the jewelry, I mean, you can really spent hours going to beautiful stores and what I love about all this area, that there's a true love for returning to the bases or anything that is done by hand in the old way. Well, this is a little bit embarrassed, but this is the brand of my daughter Cioffi c hu FY, if you Google her or if you go on Instagram, she is amazing person, she moved to the Paris and New York some decades ago to duck married to a wonderful French designer. And her brand. I love it because it's inspired in travel destinations. So she's done. Like she feels that she asked to help the local communities of the destinations she visits. So she gets inspired on the prints on the you know, like, for example, you go to Kenya or to go to Morocco and you bison or Thailand, and you buy some things that are indigenous and then you go back to your own place and you want to wear them you know, like the beads in Kenya or wherever and you don't really find how to wear them. But she thought on how to make those beautiful designs and helping the local communities make them like war wearable anywhere in the world. And also her her idea is that when you travel to a destination you want to fit in. So it's lovely to travel to any of these destinations system, Peru, Japan, Morocco, Dubai, Arizona. The last one is Patagonia for first one was Argentina. This one that I see here is Romania. So this is a photo shoot in Jose Nasir with those beautiful flowers by the sea. And there's a shop that sells of course, a first store in London to Alice Cioffi. And also she does some pop ups also in housing NASCIO. So it's I don't know if you enjoy this kind of clothing. Yeah, that's something that I have dear to my heart to feet, see Hu FYI. But anyway, there are other great designers. I mean, they do things with the needs. Well, she's also done a wonderful cashmere collection, but there's some great other artisans and designers in the area that do wonderful things that I can give you a list of accommodations.

Mimi Lichtenstein 42:13
Yes, well, there's just so much I mean, I know that you and I could talk for hours about it. So we will we're obviously the resources for people when they're planning their trips. So lots more information to come if you're planning a trip to Iroquois so the Vic properties which they have three of I know right in this area near Jose Ignacio but they're all quite different. Do you want to give us a little bit of an overview we'll start with a Stancy avec which is the one that's internal, not on the beach.

Maita 42:41
Exactly. There are three VIP retreats they're called Vic because of the founder Alex Alex vehicle Xander Vic and his wife Carrie Alexander is Norwegian. But he grew up between Sweden and the Canary Islands. And then he went to study in Boston and well in Harvard and met Carrie his American wife, and had this dream of coming to Uruguay because his mother was from Uruguay. So they bought first the first property that Mimi showed which was the Stancy epic which is a farm which is inspired in a Spanish colonial architecture and me by an architect Uruguayan architect Volkmar Silla Dalio and as you see has this beautiful terrain of you know, Greenland as far as the eye can see and that lagoon you can look I mean, that stream that waters into the causing NASA lagoon, and it's all inspired around art it they they summoned all these Uruguayan artists to in to intervene each room in a different way. This is how you see ostensibly a big from the inside you have all this artwork which is really quite amazing. The the beach, the pool in Jose Ignacio in Vegas and the next one you will show which is planning to make our very special well this is Playa Vista and this was a contraption, this wonderful building designed by Carlos asked who was the same one who did the magnesium look, it looks almost like a spacecraft but it's called the sculpture. It's very interesting because it's made of glass and titanium. And inside it has this amazing pool that juts into the ocean and it's black granite and in that there you see it and then the bottom. It has these fiber optic lights copy the constellations in the sky so it's very beautiful to see that like the bulk of the spool and it has well as Heidi the furniture and it has seagrass on the rooftops and it has a Spitfire it's just a beautiful place to enjoy the sunsets and the next one that you're showing now is by year week, which is walking distance these are both on the con ocean of the housing NASCIO peninsula, and this is like more sprawling and has these bungalows that are on the sand dunes and they're all made of different materials from wood from steel or black zinc and all intervene by artists or you have your own little villa on the beach and it has it can be one bedroom, two bedroom, three bedrooms and so on. And it has four in men's swimming pools. It has a great yoga shack it has a great beach club that is called less of Santa great restaurant on the deals to watch the sun sets is really amazing,

Mimi Lichtenstein 45:02
beautiful well and again, very cool architecture and shows such a variety. So then to look at another property, Fasano, punto, Dallas day, tell us a little bit about this. I think this is maybe one of one of the best spas and Uruguay.

Maita 45:17
Exactly. And this is in a different location because all that we talked before, you know, the three big properties are in Jose Ignacio. This is an X seaside villages that you come well, if you're coming from the airport, if you're coming from Pune is the proper, you cross these camel bridges. So we have two very interesting bridges that cross over to La This is called LaBarbara. McDonnell. This is the main building of the hotel that has this beautiful views in great restaurants overlooking the surrounding area. This is up on a hill, and it looks down until this stream and where there is a beach club as well. And there's these little cabins that were designed but this amazing resilient architect fold is a waiting field. So for any design lover, there's also a new tennis court, they are in this beautiful setting the sunsets and the spa. You know, for wellness, this is a place to go because it's beautiful spa with a great pool and overlooking very you see it with this beautiful countryside all around olive trees, vineyards. Yeah, respect.

Mimi Lichtenstein 46:18
For many people, just looking at those photos makes me want to come. And they love hearing all of the wonderful stories behind it. And you know the richness of your relationships and your experience in Uruguay. Before we wrap it up, let's talk a little bit about some tips for people who might want to come maybe starting with best time of year to be there. I know, obviously, you guys are in the southern hemisphere. So your opposite summer from us and North America. But I also know that a lot of people down there on their summer vacation you know, in January, February, which is a popular time to come home. So if somebody's thinking of coming at that time of year, let's say over Christmas, because so many of us have vacation, then how far in advance do people need to think about it? And would you say it's a good time of cut to come? Or isn't this kind of too crowded with a whole bunch of South Americans? Well, yeah,

Maita 47:07
the peak season is that week festive, wait to spring, I mean, Christmas and New Year's, for a lot of people is the time to be because there's a lot of great parties and all these pop up dinners and things that are going on that you don't want to miss. There's a great art festival in the film festival, the Art Festival. It's at the end of December in Barcelona is that beautiful little village where Francis has a restaurant and a nice hotel. And it all dresses up for this great art and food festival. And there are some really great parties and nightlife. But if you want to be out away from the crowds, the two main summer months are January, February where the weather is warmer and there's but there's more people to I tend to love the pre and post, you know, November and December and even October and then March and April are super beautiful right now even when the fall is beginning. Remember that this part of the world for the beach like the water is swimmable. But it's not warm. It's not the Caribbean. It's not even like Brazil, it's a little more chilly. So you walk into the water and you really start you know Anwar sunny days, you swim as much as you can. But the first start is a little bit fresh. But I would say all the shoulder seasons even have better, you know, rates for these great hotels. So I would go November, December. And then if you want to be in the big nightlife and the big parties and everything Yeah, you can't miss New Year's, but if you want to get avoid, avoid all of that, then families tend to go more in February, January is more younger people March and April are more relaxed, like more low key and just enjoying the atmosphere with no not having to reserve restaurants so far in advance, and so on. So I would say October to April are fascinating. But I have to date say that this beach resort that started as a only summer destination is now a year, people go anytime so many Europeans and Americans have taken it like a second home or even retirement place or a place to live because they're very good schools. There's a great campus and university being designed and built. And there's restaurants and things that are opening around. So this especially during the pandemic, there's been a big, big change, lots of origin ties moved there to live you around. So it's a place where you can go anytime, but if you want to enjoy the sun and the good time good weather, I would say November to April.

Mimi Lichtenstein 49:24
And so if you're coming there with you know, maybe couples who are more active and maybe a family with teenagers or college kids, what would you say with a typical week vacation eight days maybe that an American typically has? How would you break it up? Clearly we're going to spend some time in Jose Ignacio what else would you add to it?

Maita 49:45
Okay, I think you have to fly into one video and then enjoy maybe a night or two at the city. The city as I mentioned briefly has a lot of culture and life and despite the water as well and has great hotels and restaurants and cultural life great art, some some I greet artists that have museums in themselves. And and then we'll move on to the coast, which would be, maybe spend a night in Sacromonte in that beautiful wine hotel, you want to have a wine experience or in godson, and then move on to visit Ignacio for the last three nights. So enjoy all the lifestyle on the beach and so on. But I would always consider doing a side trip to Buenos itis, which is so near you know, you're going all the way south and you haven't been to one aside is it's a stone thrown away, you should cross.

Mimi Lichtenstein 50:31
Absolutely. And then what I love is flying into one place and out of another so perhaps have your arrival or your departure out of Buenos Aires and the other one out of Montevideo and you get to see both without having to backtrack and I love so Buenos Aires is actually very easy to get to from or away flight a little tiny What 30 minute flight yeah a ferry if you have a car you can actually take it on the ferry with you. And so it really is if you've never been there you know such a great beautiful South American city.

Maita 50:59
You can cross a water from one side is even if you rent a car and take it over across if you crossed without a car. Every hour ferry to Montevideo or a one hour Ferry to Colonia Colonia is one of the three UNESCO heritage sites that your wife has and what is that beautiful colonial village that is worth visiting all cobblestone streets and beautiful that small little hotel called charcoal is admissible. Nearby you have another wind Creek Creek area called columella. We have like three beautiful there is a very nice relationship tool called in Ghana, Ghana and there is a hired by car metal that has beautiful you know, really, really wonderful spa and a great place to enjoy food and wine and nature. And and yes and those. That's the easiest way of crossing one hour across on a ferry from when Osiris or doing the video or just fly to your wife. 30 minutes and you're there and you have several flights a day for the season.

Mimi Lichtenstein 51:53
Easy. Well, amazing food, lots of outdoor adventures, beautiful architecture, great art, cool lifestyle, lots of nightlife. There's no reason not to go to Uruguay in my opinion. So thank you so much. Right. You agree? What are you going to be back there? By the way? When is your trip to Patagonia done

Maita 52:14
for Patagonia right now I'm going back to bonus ideas. But I have to act as a grandmother and go and take care of my grandchild in Paris in a few days, but then hopefully be in Uruguay after that.

Mimi Lichtenstein 52:26
Okay. Very nice. Well, thank you so much for spending your morning with us. We so appreciate it. And I look forward to working with you many times in the year ahead and we'll be in touch.

Maita 52:37
So be very happy to help and thank you for everybody who's been listening. Please consider your way as Mimi said as a wellness nature lifestyle, food artsy destination, and that degree very well combined with Argentina and even with Brazil as well. Right? This beautiful year round.

Mimi Lichtenstein 52:54
And I think that for people who just have never had it on their radar now you have lots of reasons to put down your list. All right, well, thank you so much. Bye to take care. If you enjoyed today's show and don't want to miss an episode, you can subscribe and follow the show wherever you listen to your podcasts. And if you haven't already, I would really appreciate it if you can leave a rating and review to let me know what you think and to help others find adventures in luxury travel. I want your honest feedback so I can create a podcast that shares lots of insights to help travelers have more amazing adventures. Visit true Bay travel.com backslash podcast launch for step by step instructions on how to subscribe, rate and review adventures in luxury travel today. See you next time. Thank you for listening to this episode of adventures and luxury travel. If you want more travel tips, go to tube a travel.com where you can sign up for our newsletter that shares more inspiring travel ideas around the world. See you here next week.