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SUNDAY, APRIL 15, 2012

Minorca A Spanish Island Idyll

PHOTOGRAPHS BY LOURDES SEGADE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

TOP Entrance to Parc Natural de S’Albufera des Grau. ABOVE FROM LEFT The island has about 120 beaches; prehistoric stone structures abound; Clara Mercadal lives in Mahon.

The nightclubs and yachts are somewhere else. Instead you find rural inns, timeless towns and a gloriously wild Mediterranean landscape. BY SA R AH WI LD M A N

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INORCA, the first place in Spain to see the sun rise, is aglow at the end of the day. As I pulled my suitcase down the cobbled, car-free lanes of Ciutadella, the island’s ancient capital, an ocher glow bloomed across the faces of residents who sat on the terraces of back-street bars, their voices echoing within a canyon of Gothic and Baroque buildings. The facades of rose and dusty yellow stone, and the narrow streets running past them have barely changed since 1722, the year British occupiers took the title of capital away from this town on the Mediterranean island of Minorca and handed it to the port city

of Mahon. Ciutadella, to this day, remains a paean to unaltered antiquity. The rest of the island is imbued with the same timeless quality. Though only 21 miles from the crowds and hustle of its high-profile neighbor, Majorca, the difference couldn’t be more profound. Unlike Majorca, with its sprawling hotel complexes, glitzy nightclubs and yacht-filled ports, this island 250 miles east of Barcelona offers something unusual for a Mediterranean resort: tranquillity. The entire 270-square-mile island is a Unesco biosphere reserve, a designation issued in 1993 for the rich flora and fauna that thrive in Minorca’s forests,

Searching in Lima For the Best of Pisco, Peru’s National Tipple.

Practical Traveler: When to Buy That Plane Ticket.

BY ANDY I SA AC SON 8

BY M ICHE LL E HIGGIN S 3

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gorges, wetlands, salt marshes and hillsides. In 2004 Unesco expanded its protective reach, including in its definition the island’s widely scattered prehistoric sites, effectively preventing the construction of highrise condominiums and hotels. Instead, rural hotels called agrotourismos are the hotels of choice outside the towns, and roughly 120 separate beaches— more than Majorca and Ibiza (Minorca’s other Balearic island sister) combined — remain largely unsullied by development. But there is also a cultural dimension to MiContinued on Page 6

In Lyon, River Walks, Gargoyles and Warm Foie Gras. BY S ETH SH ER WO OD 1 0

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THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, APRIL 15, 2012

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In Transit Highlights from In Transit, a blog on travel news, deals and tips written by the editors and reporters of the Travel section, at nytimes.com/intransit.

Letters The Flying Laptop

NICK BRIGGS/PBS, VIA AP

DANIEL KRIEGER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

On the Web

Starwood Rewards Offer: Bidding for Foodies

FRUGAL TRAVELER

Seth Kugel explores Pacific Islander culture in Auckland, New Zealand. nytimes.com/frugaltraveler GLOBESPOTTERS

Our correspondents report on an Art Spiegelman exhibition in Paris, the opening of Highclere, the castle used to film the series “Downton Abbey” (above) near London, and Culture Week in Rome. nytimes.com/globespotters ON FACEBOOK

Follow the New York Times Travel section on Facebook. facebook.com/nytimestravel WHY WE TRAVEL

Send us the best photos from your recent travels. Some will appear in the print edition of the Travel section, and in an online slide show. submit.nytimes.com /why-we-travel

MICHELE TANTUSSI/BLOOMBERG NEWS

Travel With the Tate To See the World’s Art The Tate galleries often display art from around the world. Now, the arts institution is hoping to take its visitors on the road, as part of Tate Travels, a series of 14 trips related to the arts organized in partnership with the Ultimate Travel Company. The first journey, in May, is a four-day trip to St. Ives, where the tour offers a private viewing of the summer exhibition at the Tate gallery there. (£895, $1,420 at $1.59 to the pound per person.) Among other trips: a visit to Paris and Champagne in September, accompanied by Tate’s wine buyer and a Tate Modern curator, and a five-night stay next year in Berlin, where visits include various galleries and the Brandenburg Gate, above. A goal beyond art is evident. “Every expert-led tour booked will benefit Tate financially, contributing vital funds to support our mission to increase public knowledge, understanding and enjoyment of British, modern and contemporary art,” Alex Beard, its deputy director, said in a MONICA DRAKE statement.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts (starwoodhotels.com) has introduced a slate of rewards for foodies who are members of its loyalty program. As part of a foray into culinary awards, the Starwood Preferred Guest program (spg.com) is offering the chance to bid on rewards like a sushimaking class with the chef Masaharu Morimoto or dinner with Thomas Keller at Per Se (diners, above). Rates vary, but in the case of a May 2 dinner with Daniel Boulud at Daniel restaurant in New York, bids currently start at 6,500 points for two diners. The program, which is free to join, awards two or three points per dollar spent on overnight stays depending on membership levels, which are based on the cumulative number of nights spent. Point-poor members may not be able to dine with celebrity chefs, but the new program also offers dining discounts of 10 to 30 percent at over 500 restaurants and bars around the world, in Starwood’s 1,090 hotels run under the St. Regis, the Luxury Collection, W, Westin, Le Méridien, Sheraton, Four Points by Sheraton, Aloft and Element brands. ELAINE GLUSAC

FAIRMONT HOTELS & RESORTS

Drinks for Bellying Up to The Bar With Less Belly Vacation isn’t the ideal time to start counting calories, but for hotel guests still preparing for bikini season, Fairmont Hotels & Resorts doesn’t see why you shouldn’t have your co*cktail and lose weight too. Its “skinny drink” initiative has encouraged bartenders at several of its hotels and restaurants to offer drinks with fewer calories and healthier ingredients this spring. In Vancouver, the Fairmont Pacific Rim’s lobby lounge is serving a Bali Hai (above), pear- and thyme-infused gin mixed with fresh lime, ginseng tincture, coconut water and agave nectar instead of simple syrup, making it less than 200 calories. The Royal York in Toronto has developed a series of “Skinny Sips,” each 250 calories or less, made from house-made sugar-free liqueurs, fresh herbs from its rooftop garden and honey from its beehives. “Let’s be honest, if you’re really counting calories, you probably shouldn’t be drinking,” Lori Holland, the executive director of public relations at Fairmont, said. “But that’s no fun. With these drinks, you’re getting your cake, just in a different way.” RACHEL LEE HARRIS

To the Editor: Regarding “The Mystery of the Flying Laptop” (April 8), my guess is that the T.S.A. “logic” dates from the days when laptops were thicker and the battery packs might, theoretically, have been replaced by explosives. This might explain why, at one point, they made passengers turn on laptops and phones to demonstrate they worked. However, both the shrinking thickness and lack of any evidence that anyone has been caught with a dangerous laptop render all this “security theater” moot. The absurd hysteria that has paralyzed the United States with fear since 9/11 is the source of this multibillion dollar waste of time, money and good sense. NORMAN McDOUGALL Thunder Bay, Ontario To the Editor: The rules are simple — take off your jackets, shoes and belts. Put your laptop and any toiletries in the bin, and you’re done. The only people I see who have problems with the T.S.A. are either totally unorganized or looking for trouble. JOHN TACKEFF Fairfax, Va. To the Editor: Rules that make no sense or are inconsistently applied always leave the door open for sudden and impulsive security measures, precisely what the bad guys hate. As one security agent told me, “If we were predictable, it would be very dangerous.” That’s why you’ll see the same rule applied differently at various airports. STEVE COURMANOPOULOS

Pointe-Claire, Quebec

CORRECTIONS A picture credit last Sunday with the 36 Hours column, about Mendoza, Argentina, misspelled the given name of the photographer. Nicolas Wormull, not Nicholas, took the pictures of a park, a couple dancing the tango and a wine tasting room. • The Check In/Check Out column last Sunday, about the Nun Assisi Relais hotel in Assisi, Italy, gave an incorrect Web site for the hotel. It is nunassisi.com.

THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, APRIL 15, 2012

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Q&A

PRACTICAL TRAVELER

A Hotel Insider Shares Secrets

Anthony Melchiorri of “Hotel Impossible.” HINK of Anthony Melchiorri as a capeless crusader for ailing hotels, swooping into troubled properties and conjuring cures. He is the host and driving force behind “Hotel Impossible,” a new show on the Travel Channel, and fixing what ails hotels is a skill he has been honing over decades in the industry. As general manager of the iconic Algonquin in New York, he oversaw a major renovation of the building and its image. He is also a former vice president of Tishman Hotels and is the founder of Argeo Hospitality, a hotel management and consulting firm. Here are excerpts from a conversation about how to find a great hotel and what to expect — and sometimes RACHEL LEE HARRIS demand — from it. Q. What’s the best hotel you ever stayed in? A. A clean one. Q. What are some of your favorites? A. I love the Venetian in Las Vegas, Shutters on the Beach in Santa Monica. The Waldorf-Astoria — what Eric Long, the general manager, has been doing there is just tremendous. And who doesn’t love the Plaza? When I left, I literally cried because I didn’t want to leave that building. Q. Any boutique hotels on your list? A. The Benjamin, here in New York, and any of the Kimpton hotels — they really know how to treat their customers and they are always on the cutting edge of conserving. For business travel, three-star hotels are doing a much better job. They’re getting better mattresses, they’re cleaner, and they are the ones giving you complimentary Internet and water. I still don’t understand why five-star hotels charge you for Internet, when that’s the biggest complaint corporate travelers have in the industry. I demand free Internet or I won’t go back. Q. What’s the best way to find a great hotel? A. Go online and look at reviews. I find them to be extraordinarily accurate. Go to third-party Web sites, oyster.com or TripAdvisor. Q. Will people get better deals through a third party? A. At the end of the day, book on the hotel’s Web site. If you find a deal on another site, you will rarely find it higher at the hotel’s, and you’ll have more flexibility with reservations. Q. Where can travelers find the best deals? A. Social media is big right now. Not a lot of people are booking there, but the good boutique hotels are doing promos on their Facebook sites and on Twitter. Q. Any tips for how to get a good rate? A. Check the competitors. If you check the rates at a comparable hotel and they are lower, the hotel will often meet their competitor’s price. Q. What’s the best way to get an upgrade? A. Always pack your smile. A front desk agent has a lot of control over what room you have, so always be polite no matter how bad your trip has been. They might try to up-sell you and offer a better room at a discounted rate. Or, if you’re really nice, they might give you a complimentary upgrade, with the hope that you’ll return. Q. Who and when should you tip? A. Tip your housekeeper every day because it’s not always the same person cleaning your room. If it’s a three-star hotel, give $3 or $4; if it’s a four-star, give a little bit more; if it’s a five-star you can afford $20 or $30 a day. A doorman makes an hourly wage and it’s less than anyone else’s in the hotel. If he does his job and is making my life easier, I always tip him. Q. Will you get better service if you tip the concierge? A. A good concierge does not expect a tip. In big cities, they won’t put you in a better restaurant because of a tip. If you’re trying to get into the best restaurant in town or get tickets to a Broadway show, a little tip up front doesn’t hurt.

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LEO ACADIA

When to Buy That Plane Ticket By MICHELLE HIGGINS

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HEN is the best time to book that flight? It’s one of the most fraught decisions travelers face, as ticket prices often fluctuate right up to departure time. Recent fare analysis by the Airlines Reporting Corporation seems to challenge the conventional wisdom that the earlier you book, the less expensive your fare will be. In January, the corporation, which processes ticket transactions for airlines and travel agencies, reported that over the past four years passengers paid the lowest price for domestic flights when buying just about six weeks in advance. To determine if that six-week sweet spot would hold true for international routes, I asked the company to analyze fares for several trips, like a summer vacation to Europe and a winter escape in

Last-minute deals are harder to find this year. the Caribbean. Not only did the six-week period fail to stand up, but the findings indicate that the window for booking the cheapest ticket for these trips has increased over the past three years; in some cases it’s up to 24 weeks. “Consumers have been getting the best prices a bit further out year over year,” said Chuck Thackston, managing director of data and analytics at the Airlines Reporting Corporation. Sure, it’s possible that if travelers pull back on spending, airlines will be forced to cut prices, allowing travelers to nab a cheap summer flight to, say, Barcelona, as little as three weeks out. “If they don’t see bookings materialize the way they’d like, they

will put the route on sale,” said Henry H. Harteveldt, a travel industry analyst. But Mr. Harteveldt and other travel watchers agree that booking well in advance is a safe bet. So far this year, airlines have raised rates three times, said Rick Seaney, chief executive of Farecompare.com, which tracks ticket prices. “I think pricing is going to be crazy,” particularly this summer, he said. So if you place stock in historical trends, the message is clear: act now. For guidance, here are the booking windows during which passengers paid the lowest price for flights to popular vacation destinations last year, based on data from the Airlines Reporting Corporation.

Europe in Summer LAST YEAR’S SWEET SPOT: 21 TO 22 WEEKS IN ADVANCE You may

already be too late to score a cheap flight to Europe this summer. The booking window for the cheapest tickets has moved further out, from 11 or 12 weeks in advance in 2009 to 21 or 22 weeks in 2011. (Average round-trip fares rose to about $1,500 last year from $1,100 in 2009; this year’s outlook is no better.) To boost your savings, take the least expensive route to Europe you can find. Then concentrate on getting to your ultimate stop cheaply. “I look into the cheapest fare into a hub like Berlin,” said George Hobica, founder of Airfarewatchdog.com, which scours the Web for bargains. “Then I figure it out from there.” He said this may involve taking the train or flying a budget carrier like easyJet or Ryanair to the final destination. Spanish airports like Madrid tend to be cheaper than London or Paris, he said. Dublin and Shannon also tend to be cheaper jumping-off points. Whatever you do, don’t wait until the last minute. Last year, average fares for tickets pur-

chased less than a week before travel were about $2,600, almost double the price of those bought at least 28 days in advance. And if you’re visiting London during the Olympic Games, July 27 through Aug. 12, expect to pay a premium.

Caribbean in Winter LAST YEAR’S SWEET SPOT: 11 OR 12 WEEKS In 2009 and 2010, the

cheapest airfares went to procrastinators who purchased tickets just two weeks in advance at a saving of about 8 percent. But last year, the pattern took a sudden shift, with the cheapest tickets bought much further ahead. “Certainly you’ll want to start shopping plenty early to get a gauge on pricing,” said Mr. Seaney of FareCompare, who recommended hunting for airfare as early as three months in advance, especially for hot spots like Costa Rica and out-of-theway islands, which lack the airline competition that tends to keep prices in check.

Business or First Class To Asia or Europe LAST YEAR’S SWEET SPOT: 23 TO 24 WEEKS While the majority of

premium travel is purchased by business travelers booking within six weeks of departure, leisure travelers with the flexibility to buy well in advance have been able to find bargains. Travelers paid about $3,113, or about 20 percent less than average, when buying premium tickets to Asia or Europe 23 or 24 weeks ahead last year. A good time to take advantage of low business-class rates is during peak vacation times like summer or the winter holidays. While coach class quickly fills up with leisure travelers, the cushy seats at the front of the plane can be empty. Rather than give those seats away as upgrades, airlines often try to fill them with sales, according to Joe Brancatelli, publisher of the travel Web site JoeSentMe.com, which alerts

members to such sales. For travel to Europe in summer, for example, “it looks like all gateways and all destinations between the United States and Europe are on sale,” he stated in a recent newsletter, with roundtrip business class prices as low as $2,327 from Newark to Brussels and $2,359 from New York to Frankfurt, if booked by May 31. But, he warned, “Fares seem to be higher in August than in July, and there are some days when prices soar above $4,000 round trip from the East Coast.”

General Tips Beyond historical trends, there are also some useful online tools that can help you evaluate fares. For example, Bing.com offers a Price Predictor that uses algorithms to determine how likely a fare is to rise or fall during the next seven days. It applies to flights from more than 250 cities in the United States and to top domestic destinations and major hubs in Europe. If you decide to wait in the hopes of a price drop, sign up for fare alerts offered by practically every travel site, from American Airlines to Travelzoo. Yapta.com, another price-tracking service, alerts travelers when the price of their plane tickets drop after purchase, allowing travelers to request an airline voucher for the price difference. For the cheapest dates to fly, go to Itasoftware.com, which allows you to scan an entire month’s worth of fares. To buy, you must go to the airline’s Web site or online agencies like Travelocity. Finally, buying two one-way fares on separate airlines can be cheaper than the best round-trip price. Kayak.com calls such tickets “hacker fares.” A recent search on the site for a flight from Boston to San Juan, P.R., turned up a fare of $313 on Delta to San Juan, returning on US Airways, compared with $349 round trip on US Airways alone. Æ

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Check In /Check Out

HEADS UP

MONTREAL Hôtel Chez Swann THE UPSHOT Featuring furniture by local designers, periodic art and fashion events, and a diverse playlist of music-making guests — Jon Bon Jovi, the WuTang Clan — this playfully naughty boutique hotel tries, mostly successfully, to infuse some boho chic into Montreal’s slightly stiff downtown. Rates from 235 Canadian dollars (about the same in U.S. dollars). BASICS Almost everything is homegrown and stylish, from the lobby’s huge colored-chalk mural (a mashup of contributions by artists, guests and staff members) to the ’30s-retro-futuristic lamps (by the local outfit Lampi Lampa) in the halls. Though it opened in late 2010, the 23-room hotel made a splash in November when it took over the brasserie next door, Le Pois Penché, reopening it with a gala party.

ANA OTTONI FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

An exhibition of the Venezuelan artist Carlos Cruz-Diez is at the Galeria Raquel Arnaud in São Paulo, Brazil.

Art Comes of Age in São Paulo By SHIVANI VORA

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RT galleries might be a mainstay in most large cities, but in São Paulo they have always been in short supply, catering to a small elite. But as Brazil’s economy has rapidly expanded over the last decade, a new social class has more disposable income to spend on luxury items like art. A spate of galleries have opened in response to a growing clientele: the number participating in SP Arte, the city’s Brazilian art fair, for example, has grown to 109 this May from 41 in 2005. These new spaces, concentrated in Vila Madalena, the city’s bohemian hub, and the neighboring Pinheiros area, have also redefined the art scene. “Art in São Paulo used to be elitist, and going gallery-hopping wasn’t a common practice,” said Paul Irvine, a co-founder of Dehouche, a Latin-America-based travel specialist that plans individual art tours around the city. “The rich would go to galleries, often by appointment, and by car, as it wasn’t safe to wander the streets. These new galleries are helping make art more accessible to the general public.” One of the most notable is Galeria

Raquel Arnaud (Rue Fidalga 125; 55-113083-6322; raquelarnaud.com/en /artistas), a three-story space of more than 10,000 square feet that opened last year. Its owner, Raquel Arnaud, had had one of the oldest art galleries in São Paulo, which she opened in 1973. But as the art scene expanded, she needed more space to showcase the works of the nearly two dozen artists she represents, who range from established names like the late sculptor Sergio Camargo to hot new ones like Frida Baranek. Baixo Ribeiro is another gallery owner who was an anomaly when he opened his first space, Choque Cultural, nearly a decade ago. “Back then, I was a renegade, and there was no interest in art,” he said. When the art movement started to gain traction, however, he opened a second location (Rua Medeiros de Albuquerque 250; 55-11-30612365; choquecultural.com.br), which highlights the new wave of eclectic artists who create immersion art, like videos and installations. The gallery itself resembles an immersion art experience: the bilevel stark white space feels like being inside a white cube. Galeria Jaqueline Martins (Rua Dr.

Virgílio de Carvalho Pinto 74; 55-11-26281943; galeriajaquelinemartins.com/en), which opened last year, features the works of new and veteran artists at the same time instead of having just solo exhibitions. “Our goal is to create a discussion around emerging artists and artists who have been around a while,” said the manager, Guido Hunn. The current exhibition, for example, has works from two artists who do collages: the better-known Hudinilson Jr. and upand-comer Nino Cais. Nearby is Ateliê Fidalga (Rua Fidalga 299; 55-11-3813-1048; ateliefidalga.com .br; by appointment only), a space that goes beyond the traditional gallery. It’s a collective and atelier run by the husband and wife artists Albano Afonso and Sandra Cinto. There, emerging artists meet one another during group classes, and the public can attend talks and view exhibitions by newcomers and also have a chance to meet with them. “This is where we work, but it’s also a place for interaction between artists and the people who come see their art,” Ms. Cinto said during a recent visit. “We feel that there should always be a dialogue around art, and that’s what we Æ hope we are helping to start.”

THE BATHROOM The expansive bathroom’s marquee attraction was the large black-tile stand-up shower designed for couples that featured not one but two futuristic silvery multifunction water columns. Each one was equipped with a traditional shower head, a hand-held sprayer, rows of horizontal water jets, and five different knobs and dials. Thanks to the glass wall and some overhead blue lights, the theatrical shower is ready to accommodate anyone eager to stage a sexy singing-inthe-rain performance for a partner in the bedroom. AMENITIES Le Pois Penché serves a solid French menu (gooey onion soup, succulent duck breast) but is marred by

LOCATION If you want to get educated, cultured, outfitted or body-checked, Chez Swann is walking distance to McGill University, the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, the boutiques of Rue Ste.-Catherine and the Bell Centre — home of the Montreal Canadiens hockey team. COEY KERR The Peel station of the A film still from “Sin City” is projected in the metro system is a few reception area of Chez Swann. blocks away; the airport express bus (No. 747) tacky décor, harsh lighting, a distractstop is almost as close. And Old Monting television set and a charmless mureal (see Page 11) is also within walksic selection that veers haphazardly ing distance. from techno to soul to rock. To work off the rich cuisine, your only option is THE ROOM a small bright room filled with four My room, No. 304, was one of the stationary bicycles, intended for spin“Boudoir” rooms, the basic double. ning workouts. Some wheatgrass True to theme, the space had a sultry juice with a chlorophyll supplement red-and-black color scheme and confrom Liquid Nutrition, a juice bar that tained a queen bed with a tufted gothadjoins the lobby, can also help. ic-baroque headboard that seemed to await some louche marquis. More draBOTTOM LINE matic, plush floor-to-ceiling crimson The hotel has much to like, notably curtains parted to reveal a glass wall its dedication to local art and design, a looking onto the bathroom. The partiplayful sensibility, generous bathtion, a marvel of voyeuristic engineerrooms, and proximity to downtown ing, is transparent enough to offer full hangouts and transportation. But if views of the vast black shower area. Chez Swann wants to soar, the hotel Cool locally made decorative objects deserves a correspondingly chic res— raw wood block end tables by Eputaurant, a fitness center worthy of the ré-Ebénisterie d’Art, an ersatz Dename, and perhaps a lower price tag. pression-era lamp by Lampi Lampa Chez Swann, 1444 rue Drummond; — mingled with high-tech conven(877) 568-7070; hotelchezswann.com. iences like a digital docking bay for SETH SHERWOOD two iPods and a Cisco IP phone.

THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, APRIL 15, 2012

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JOURNEYS

Where Amish Snowbirds Find a Nest By MIKI MEEK

ROM December through April, Amish travelers pack charter buses making overnight runs from Ohio to Florida. Stiff black hats are gingerly stowed in overhead bins as the bus winds its way through hilly farm country, making pickups in small towns with names like Sugarcreek, Berlin and Wooster. On a recent afternoon, I boarded one of those buses, full of grandparents, neighbors, sisters and childhood friends. They talked into the night, using conversation as entertainment instead of movies and music. I sat up front next to two boisterous bishops named Roy J. C. Yoder, 75, and Andy Miller, 65. They peppered me with questions: “Are you married?” “Will you have kids?” “Do you believe in Christ?” But they mostly killed time on our 19hour ride by ribbing Lee, one of two bus drivers on board, and then each other. “When Roy became preacher, he was a little bit of a slow learner, so we sent him to seminar school,” Andy told me. “They asked him ‘Where was Jesus born?’ And he says ‘Pittsburgh.’ So they say ‘Nope, Bethlehem.’ And then Roy says, ‘I knew it was some place in Pennsylvania.’” The rows behind us exploded in laughter. We were headed to Pinecraft, a village on the outskirts of Sarasota, on Florida’s gulf coast. What started out as a tourist camp around 1925 has evolved through word of mouth into a major vacation destination for Amish and Mennonites from all over the United States and Canada. Some 5,000 people visit each year, primarily when farm work up north is slow. On the bus, older passengers reminisced about going down to Pinecraft as children when roads were just sand and dirt. One man wistfully recalled a greatuncle who hitched a ride down in a Model T. But I didn’t fully understand the town’s popularity until we reached the end of our 1,222-mile drive, at a small church parking lot, where we were greeted by more than 300 people under a hot Florida sun — bus arrivals are a community event in Pinecraft. Walking around Pinecraft is like entering an idyllic time warp. White bungalows and honeybell orange trees line streets named after Amish families: Kaufman, Schrock, Yoder. The local Laundromat keeps lines outside to hang clothes to dry. (You have to bring your own pins.) And the techiest piece of equipment at the post office is a calculator. The Sarasota county government plans to designate the village, which spreads out over 178 acres, as a cultural heritage district. Many travelers I spoke to jokingly call it the “Amish Las Vegas,” riffing off the cliché that what happens in Pinecraft stays in Pinecraft. Cellphone and cameras, normally off-limits to Amish, occasionally make appearances, and almost everyone uses electricity in their rental homes. Three-wheeled bicycles, instead of horses and buggies, are ubiquitous. “When you come down here, you can pitch religion a little bit and let loose,” said Amanda Yoder, 19, from Missouri.

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Shoofly to Key Lime GETTING THERE

From Ohio: Pioneer Trails Bus (800-458-2554; pioneertrailsbus.com). One-way tickets $137, round trip $258). From Indiana: Crossroad Tours (260-768-7549; crossroadtours.blogspot.com). One-way tickets $134, round trip $250. WHERE TO EAT

Yoder’s Restaurant (3434 Bahia Vista Street; 941-955-7771; yodersrestaurant.com). Southern fried chicken, $9.95. Yoder’s Fresh Market (3434 Bahia Vista Street; 941-556-7684; yodersrestaurant.com). Soups, $2.95; whoopie pie, $1.25. Troyer’s Dutch Heritage Restaurant (3713 Bahia Vista Street; 941-955-8007; troyersdutchheritage.com). Country breakfast buffet, $7.99. WHERE TO STAY

AmericInn Sarasota (5931 Fruitville Road; 941-342-8778; americinnsarasotahotel.com). Rooms from $99. Hampton Inn Sarasota (5995 Cattleridge Boulevard; 941-3711900; hamptoninnsarasota.com). Rooms from $129.

Bites TEL AVIV Mizlala by Meir Adoni Meir Adoni, the chef at Mizlala, sees the restaurant as the “crazy younger sister” of his haute-dining, white tablecloth establishment, Catit. “This one is supposed to give you a good night out,” he said. Indeed, Mizlala by Meir Adoni, which Mr. Adoni opened last June near Tel Aviv’s Carmel Market, can sometimes seem more like a well-designed club

PHOTOGRAPHS BY MIKI MEEK

“What I’m wearing right now, I wouldn’t at home,” she said, gesturing at sunglasses with sparkly rhinestones and bikini strings peeking out of a tight black tank top. On the outskirts of the village, she boarded public bus No. 11 with six other sunburned teenagers. They were bound for Siesta Key, a quartz-sand beach about eight miles away. After a couple of days, I started to pick up the rhythms of a seasoned Pinecraft traveler, thanks to tips from a chatty Amish-Mennonite woman. I had rented a private room from her for $40 a night. (Most visitors rent homes, which often book up a year in advance, though there are a couple of modest hotels in the area as well.) Breakfast starts as early as 6 a.m., when men start settling into booths at the back of Troyer’s Dutch Heritage, a sprawling restaurant about a half-mile from the village center. They trade news from home over mugs of coffee and plates of bacon, eggs and biscuits submerged in sausage gravy. I chose to join a slightly later-to-rise crowd around 7:30 a.m. at Yoder’s Restaurant, a small and homey spot that serves sweet-tooth-friendly peanut-butter-pie pancakes topped with homemade whipped cream. Yoder’s also has two adjacent markets that sell fresh produce and baked goods like whoopie pies in a variety of flavors (red velvet, oatmeal, pumpkin). On a Friday morning, I followed yellow fliers to the backyard of the Miller family, where I found that most Amish of activities: a yard sale and auction. Throngs of shoppers inspected long rows of plastic tables overflowing with an eclectic mix of household goods that included a 1979 book on “Modern Refrigeration and Repair.” An auctioneer standing in the back of a pickup truck sold off a box of shoes for $2 and a bunch of wrenches for $42. When the auction started to wane, foot traffic migrated over to the shuffleboard court at Pinecraft Park in the southwest corner of the village. It’s open every day but Sunday, and the first lane, according to a sign, is always “Reserved for Ladies.” Miriam Lehman, 60, from Shipshewana, Ind., sat on the sidelines dispensing advice after playing two games in flipflops. “Knock her out of there!” she

than a restaurant. A young, T-shirt-clad crowd dines on the chef’s creative take on pan-Middle Eastern cuisine amid a minimalist décor, with the pulse of the latest dance tracks as a backdrop. A “good night out,” though, wouldn’t be possible without Mr. Adoni’s inspired food. During a recent visit, his Palestinian tartar offered a splendid take on a classic dish: instead of using the traditional trio of egg yolk, anchovy and capers, he blended chopped steak with tahini, pine nuts and charred eggplant purée. The evening’s standout dish was another ingenious variation, this time

FROM TOP On the beach on Siesta Key in Sarasota, Fla.; shuffleboard at Pinecraft Park in Pinecraft, long a popular winter spot for Amish visitors; the parking lot of Tourist Church in Pinecraft.

yelled as a Pennsylvania woman named Ida slid a yellow puck down the court and scored. They had met that afternoon and had become fast friends. Set against a backdrop of giant oak trees and Spanish moss, Pinecraft Park is a melting pot of Amish and Mennonite America. Old order, new order and nontraditional congregate. Clothing choices clue you in to hometowns: Men from Tampico, Ill., wear denim overalls; girls from Lancaster, Pa., cover their dresses with black aprons; and women from northern Indiana have neatly pressed pleats on their white bonnets. “All these groups can mingle down here in a way they wouldn’t at home,” said Katie Troyer, 59, a year-round resident who left the Amish church but still embraces the culture. “That’s a puzzle people have been trying to figure out for ages.” Just over three feet tall and always riding around on a bike with a camera, Ms. Troyer is a beloved fixture in Pinecraft known for discreetly taking pictures of daily life that she posts on her blog, Project 365. Evenings in Pinecraft almost always culminate in music. The Chuck Wagon Gang, a gospel and bluegrass band, often plays a patch of grass between two mobile homes that’s been dubbed Birky Square. More than 400 people turned out on the night I visited, overflowing into the surrounding streets and causing mini traffic jams. A giant cast-iron pot of elk stew simmered over an open fire while the barefoot lead singer of the Chuck Wagon Gang harmonized with his wife: Beyond the sunset Over the sunset in that better home Angels are waiting to carry me home One audience member, Alva Yoder, 67, from Elnora, Ind., has traveled to Pinecraft almost every year since 1972. “You’ll never find another place in the world that’s like this one,” he said. Æ

on the sort of fare you’re more likely to find in Brooklyn than Israel: pork belly slow-roasted in whiskey and maple syrup, blended seamlessly with barbecued butter-flavored corn, celery, ginger and fennel sausage. Although most items on Mizlala’s menu are not kosher (did the pork belly give it away?), there are several nods to the Jewish kitchen, as in an expertly prepared entree of fried chicken livers, portobello mushrooms and polenta. The menu also draws on the cuisine of Morocco, where Mr. Adoni’s mother was born, and from Iraqi Jew-

ish tradition. An Iraqi version of kibbeh, the traditional Levantine dish, was filled with shrimp and gray mullet and served in a toothsome — and decidedly unkosher — stew of pancetta, mussels, beet and okra. Despite the lounge-like atmosphere, Mizlala does better with food than co*cktails. The Grey Fizz (gin laced with Earl Grey tea and lemon juice) was quaffable, but the oddly named Rosie O’Donnell — “I think she’s a famous woman in the U.K.,” offered our waitress — with vodka, Aperol and grapefruit juice, was too peppery.

Fortunately, the restaurant’s creative spirit was much in evidence when desserts arrived. A playful standout was fudge that arrived in a terra-cotta planter, alongside an eyedropper of raspberry sauce for the diner to add — a gimmick, perhaps, but like the restaurant, a bit of quirky fun. Mizlala by Meir Adoni, Nahalat Binyamin 57; (972-3) 566-5505; mizlala .co.il/en. Open daily for lunch and dinner. A three-course meal for two, without drinks or tip, is about 330 shekels, or $90, at 3.65 shekels to the dollar. RACHEL B. DOYLE

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FROM LEFT Heading home from school along the cobbled, car-free lanes in Ciutadella;

Minorca, a Spanish I From Page 1 norca’s ecosystem. The island isn’t Spanish exactly, nor simply Catalan (though Menorquin, a dialect of Catalan, is the lingua franca). This pocket of old Mediterranean culture was shaped by an array of colonizers — Romans, North Africans, Spanish and, for a brief period, the Turkish. Then the island was passed back and forth for 200 years between the Spanish, the British and the French, until finally the Spanish claimed the island for good. Architecturally, the result is a legacy that includes Art Nouveau, Gothic, Baroque and even Georgian styles. Cuisine ranges from a modified version of meat pies and gin (à la England) to the potato-and-egg tortilla of Spain, to good old mayonnaise — ostensibly a twist on a local sauce championed by the Duke of Richelieu when the French (briefly) conquered Mahon. Last June, my partner, Ian, our daughter, Orli, then 2, and my parents arrived for a week, hoping to get a sense of Minorca’s singular identity. We flew in to Mahon, the island’s biggest town, where we rented a car and then wove our way to the opposite side of the island, stopping for lunch in Fornells, a fishing village on the northern coast where old men dried manzanilla, or chamomile, in enormous piles. A few tourists strolled the old port, stopping to eat the island’s hearty lobster stew so delicious the king of Spain is rumored to sail here just for that. O N that first day we quickly discovered the island’s rather basic, but effective, protection against rampant tourism: though the main highway from Mahon to Ciutadella is well paved and commodious, many of the smaller roads that swerve into the countryside are barely wide enough for one car. We persevered, and drove on, past fishing villages that dot the island’s coves like pearls — towns that are a riot of color, with magenta bougainvillea crawling up white limestone, blue-shuttered homes that overlook the sea. Between the villages, road signs tempt with directions toward hidden beaches. Unlike Palma de Majorca, which, by early summer, is already packed with vacationers from Germany and Britain, Minorca was still waking from its offseason slumber. At times, we couldn’t help but feel a bit like interlopers. While people we met — hoteliers, restaurateurs, shopkeepers, shoemakers, dairy farmers — were certainly friendly, there was a protective feel to Minorca, a reticence, which, for us, ultimately resulted in a deeply authentic travel experience. It was clear that this was not a place that was preening itself for tourists. SARAH WILDMAN is a frequent contributor to the Travel section.

The biosphere designation enhanced the feeling of protectiveness. Everywhere there were signs indicating natural parks, with careful instructions on where one could park, camp, even walk. Property demarcations between farms were not fences but layers of rocks that formed low stone walls, which have been in place since antiquity. And in the ancient city centers, there was a sense that modernity had been purposefully kept at bay. In Ciutadella we parked at the Plaça del Born, a square marked by 19thcentury buildings carved from that magnificent rose-colored sandstone. Cars are not allowed in the historic city center without a special pass, so we walked the four long blocks to our hotel, peering into the bishop’s garden and glancing up at the 13th-century Gothic Balearic Sea

Fornells Ciutadella

MINORCA

Mahon FRANCE

Barcelona SPAIN MINORCA MAJORCA IBIZA

BALEARIC ISLANDS

Mediterranean Sea

5 MILES THE NEW YORK TIMES

cathedral. It wasn’t long before we found Hotel Tres Sants, an eight-room, year-old hotel in an 18th-century town house, tucked at the intersection of three streets named, like many in this city, for saints. Sant Sebastià, San Cristòfol, San Joseps — each street was protected by a small statue of its namesake, housed in a glass box above our heads. Our hotel room was sponge-washed in faint reds and blues, and the bed was dreamily swathed in mosquito netting. José Carretero, the proprietor, has lately opened a second hotel, the five-room Marquès d’Albranca, a few blocks away. Both are family-run. His niece showed us around our hotel; his nephew worked the desk; his sister managed the housekeeping and breakfast. True Menorquines, the family dates back to at least the 15th century. In the morning, Orli ran gleefully through the cobbled streets. She dashed into the Pastisseria des Centre, which has sold the flaky Balearic powdered sugar pastries called ensaimadas since 1881, and, later, was keen to taste homemade almond ice cream at Sa Gelateria de Menorca. At one of the ubiquitous

sandal shops, with stacks of shoes piled to the ceiling, she tried on a pair of abarcas, the simple leather shoes Minorca is known for and which are sold in a rainbow of colors. One evening we came upon a costumed crowd: women with castanets wore 19th-century dresses with white, billowing shirts and long, wide skirts; the men wore knickers. There was a full band of guitars and a female singer who barked in Menorqui like a square dance caller as the group performed. The crowd was entirely local; we were the only tourists observing. The scene was a window, we realized, onto what life has been like here for generations. Walking home we stumbled upon Ulisses, a whitewashed watering hole facing the Mercat des Peix, a 19thcentury fish market. Lighted almost entirely by candles, the bar is known for its dozens of gins. A vestige of the English domination, gin on ice, we were told, is the island’s drink of choice. Xoriguer, the best-known indigenous brand, tastes of juniper berries. José told us that most of his clients stay up to a month with him, but we were due elsewhere. So, reluctantly, after only two nights, we bade him farewell. Within moments of leaving the city limits, we were surrounded by unpopulated, wild land. The Minorcan soil seems to revel in its ability to make things grow, from a bounty of aromatics — rosemary bushes, thyme, lavender and chamomile — to yucca trees, blackberry bushes and succulents that shoot up through the rock crevices. Everywhere we saw trees heavy with fruit, and a robust species of wild olive trees locals call ullastres. As Ian drove, I read that the island is home to about 220 species of birds, 14 varieties of orchid and 1,000 species of plants, some 60 of which are endemic to the island. Along the way, signs pointed out paths to mysterious prehistoric burial and prayer sites called talayots and navatas, from the Bronze Age and earlier, built of stones arranged into T-shaped monuments or igloo-like structures. There are, I was told, more of these ancient ruins on Minorca than anywhere else in the world. Our destination was the village of Es Migjorn Gran for a one-night stay in the upscale agrotourismo Binigius Vell. The road that led there seemed unintended for cars of any size, let alone our large vehicle, but the payoff of that treacherous drive was worth it: an infinity pool, a lovely restaurant, horses on the grounds and an hourlong hike to the distant sea. In Es Migjorn Gran we met my friend Baruc Corazón, a fashion designer from Madrid, who has been coming to Minorca since childhood. His aunt moved

Six Biospheres Worth a Trip There are 580 Unesco biosphere preserves in 114 countries, which means you could spend a lifetime hopping from one to the next and never quite reach them all. Last year, the 40th anniversary of the program, 18 new regions around the globe received the designation, each chosen to promote sustainable development as well as cultural and environmental protection. Some of the sites are already highly touristed areas, and it is hoped the designation will help control, maintain and direct that visitor-based industry. That’s certainly true of the Baa Atoll, Maldives, which has only 12,000 full-time inhabitants but welcomes some 350,000 tourists annually, many of them divers and snorkelers. With the new biosphere designation, the Maldives hope to continue a tradition of sustainability focused on the islands’ extensive coral reef system.

UNESCO

Mao’er Mountain rhododendron. Tourists also already visit Mujib, Jordan, in the Dead Sea basin and the Jordan Rift Valley, which includes the lowest spot on earth (1,370 feet below sea level) and dozens of indigenous plants. Mao’er Mountain, China, another 2011 grantee, is a mountain of gorgeous vistas and home to ethnic

groups like the Han Chinese. The area was chosen for both its cultural and environmental diversity and to acknowledge a growing cultural interest among travelers to this once remote area. In Africa, Songor, Ghana, is a large swath of coastal land with both marine and freshwater ecosystems. Ghana is hoping to develop and enhance the area’s eco-tourism industry, which has only, cautiously, just begun. In Eastern Europe, the largely agricultural region of Zuvintas, Lithuania, was chosen for its wetlands and lowlands. On this side of the world, St. Mary’s, on St. Kitts and Nevis, with its cloud forests, mangroves and coral reefs, is one of the first biosphere reserves in the Caribbean. SARAH WILDMAN

The Cami de Cavalls is a trail for hikers, bikers and hors

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PHOTOGRAPHS BY LOURDES SEGADE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

the harbor of Ciutadella; the day’s catch for sale in Es Grau, a village north of Mahon.

Idyll

On an island free of velvet ropes and mega-yachts, the land and a way of life are uniquely preserved.

eback riders that goes around the perimeter of Minorca.

to the small town of Sant Lluis in the 1970s in a fit of hippie anti-establishment glee and never left. Her friends were a collection of expats: Spaniards, Germans and Americans. Baruc told us we must visit a site that we later called the “lighthouse at the end of the world.” The landscape, he promised, was unlike anything else on the island. The next morning we did as told, driving back up toward Fornells, steering our car into the preserve marked “Parc Natural de S’Albufera des Grau” and navigating a narrow paved road. We passed a dozen groups with backpacks, sturdy shoes and walking sticks. Within a few miles, fields filled with cows, and scrubby trees gave way to a lunar landscape of black and gray slate on one side, wetlands on the other. We parked and walked out to the edge of Cap de Favaritx, where we found a black-and-white-striped lighthouse out of central casting, surrounded by smooth-rock beaches. On the way back, we picked up Baruc, who directed us down a side road toward the sea. “There are two restaurants in this village,” he said from the back seat of our Citroën. “One has a fantastic view. The other has the most amazing food. Let’s go there.” Soon we emerged over a hill and took in a collective breath. Before us lay the tiny village of Sa Mesquida (“the Mosque,” a nod to the town’s long-ago North African residents), a handful of whitewashed houses along a one-lane road that led to a wide beach with fine white sand and a path stretching off to more coves. “The British and the French used to hide in this bay, before they attacked Mahon,” the proprietor of Bar Sa Mesquida said to us, as we ordered a bottle of crisp, white Galician wine, a whole dorade, grilled and dressed with lemon and salt, and a tray of fried ortigas de mar, a sort of anemone with a taste like a burst of the sea itself and eaten only in early summer. After lunch, we took a short hike. On the beach in Sa Mesquida, paths led from beach to sandy beach. There were no snack shacks, no beach chairs, no hawkers. After we wove our way through the marshy path, and then back to our car, Baruc directed us toward the town of Sant Lluis, where his aunt was celebrating her 60th birthday.

S

ANT LLUIS, founded by the French, is a tidy village with a neatly laid out grid of streets and a photo-worthy windmill. But the roads surrounding the town were minuscule and haphazard. We were stuck in one lane, trying to turn around, when a horse-drawn carriage came upon us, its driver demanding we back up as he cursed us in the local dialect. Somehow, after 15 sweating minutes, we were able to escape. That night, in honor of Baruc’s aunt, we ate and danced with a motley group of expats. An American couple, Dick and Patrick, who have owned an old farmhouse on the island since 1971, were a font of Minorcan historical knowledge. “Do you know the history of Admiral Nelson here in Minorca? Did you know Americans trained here before Annapolis?” Dick asked. “And that there is a cemetery in Mahon filled with Americans?” I did not know these things, I told him. He parried with another question: “Did you know that St. Augustine, Fla., was settled by Minorquines?” That one I looked up. The Minorcan group consisted of 1,400 indentured servants brought over in 1768. Those who survived the journey and a decade of hardship became a vibrant community in St. Augustine that still celebrates its Minorcan roots. As we learned the history of the island, we also discovered something useful for the rest of our stay: an inexpensive underground network of sublegal rooms for let. We took a gamble and allowed ourselves to be led to one house that had five gorgeously appointed

LOURDES SEGADE FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Planning Your Trip WHERE TO STAY

The eight room Hotel Tres Sants in Ciutadella (Calle Sant Cristòfol, 2, Ciutadella; 34-971-48-22-08; hoteltressants.com), above, is a dream world of sponge-colored walls and billowing curtains. A full, delicious breakfast is included in the high-season rate of 150 euros (about $196 at $1.30 to the euro). The owners have a few apartments for rent as well. There are several dozen agrotourismos on Minorca; some encourage children, others eschew them. We stayed at the (child friendly) Binigaus Vell (Cami Malagarba, kilometer 0.9, Es Migjorn Gran; 34-971054-050; binigausvell.com) outside of the town Es Migjorn Gran, which has horses on site, an infinity pool, an excellent kitchen and an easy hour-hike to the beach at the ready. A double room starts at 187 euros in early summer. Just slightly south of Mahon, there are word-of-mouth rooms to rent and lots of small boat tours to take for those who don’t want to hike to far beaches. Sandy Larsen ([emailprotected]), an expatriate American, can tell you more about where to go about finding such untraditional lodging and tours. Hotel Xuroy (Cala Alcaufar, Sant Lluis, 34-971-15-18-20; xuroymenorca .com), a 1950s-style family-owned hotel on a gorgeous little inlet, offers

rooms, a pagoda with lounge chairs, an endless breakfast, drinks all day, American bluegrass on the iPod. We spent the next morning happily swimming at a municipal beach peopled by a few tourists and locals. We were content, but Baruc insisted that we move away from the easy-to-reach shoreline. Soon we were hiking across parkland, heading for a set of coves in an area called Binisafua. This time the landscape was flat scrub brush that reminded me of Israel. With a 2-year-old in tow, I was daunted by the jagged cliffs it seemed we had to traverse to get to the water. Fortunately, many, many years ago, someone had cut rough steps into the stone, and as we picked our way down the rocks, there, spread out before us, was the largest cove we’d yet come across. The “beach” here wasn’t sand at all, just smooth rock platforms dotted with tanning locals, most of them nude. Like some of the other best spots on this island, this corner — which faced a warm, calm sea that was the most intense blue I have ever seen — was unmarked. Some locals picnicking there told us we must go to Mahon, the capital, to make our island tour complete. So the next morning we set out, wandering the streets, and admiring the Art Nouveau architecture around the cathedral and the magnificent views of the port.

46 clean and basic rooms and a baby-friendly tiny cove beach — all for about 50 euros a night, depending on the season. WHERE TO EAT

A visit to Minorca is not complete without a healthy portion (or several) of the flaky pastry called ensaimada. Try the ones at Patisseria des Centre, a staple in Ciutadella since 1881 (Ses Voltes 8; 34-971-3806-40). For picnics, Pere and Lola Mosco sell roast chicken with vegetables (6 euros), lentils with ham (4 euros) and croquetas (4 euros) from their tiny shop Es Gust (Calle de Sant Pere 7, Ciutadella; 34-971-48-17-33). On the way to the other side of the island, Restaurant Migjorn (Avenida de la Mar 1, Es Migjorn Gran; 34971-37-02-12; migjorn-canapilar.es) is worth a detour for the locally raised lamb and the cod, a Spanish staple, done well. An enormous lunch for two will run 80 euros. Bar Sa Mesquida (Calle d’en Fonso, 2. Sa Mesquida; 34-971-18-83-54) is known for its grilled fish and paella, Josefa Ortuño, the proprietor, runs the tiny kitchen. Dinner for two runs about 70 euros. If it’s just good old fried sardines and a pint of beer you’d like, try the beachfront plastic chairs of Bar Es Moll, in the village Es Grau (Moll Magatzems. 17, Es Grau, 34-971-359167).

The enormous port has drawn visitors and traders for centuries. As a result, Mahon feels more open to the world than Ciutadella. It is still nothing like the bustle of Palma on Majorca or the crowds in other Spanish seafront cities. For one thing, as Sandy Larsen, an American expatriate who helps arrange tours of the island explained to us, yachts are not encouraged. It is far more expensive to dock a yacht in Minorca than in other Mediterranean ports, she said, so the yachters don’t come. It is another way the island keeps its cities for its citizens. On our last day, we ventured out into the countryside once again. We steered north, past Mahon, to the park that abuts Es Grau, a tiny fishing village. When we parked we saw off to one side a marked path that meandered through the protected salt marshes. In front of us was a wide, shallow-water cove, filled with that exquisite aquamarine water, perfect for wading. A few beachfront shacks offered fried sardines and beers. An eco-tour kayaking outfit offered friendly, and environmentally safe, tours of nearby coves and deserted islands. We opted for neither swimming nor boats, just a plate of fried sardines by the sea. Then we stared out at the landscape, windswept and purposefully, gloriously Æ wild.

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PHOTOGRAPHS BY ANDY ISAACSON FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

FROM LEFT A pisco co*cktail with golden berry at Huaringas Bar, a Chilcano at Maras in the Westin hotel and El Verdecito, front, at Cala are among those drinks that showcase the spirit’s revival.

PURSUITS

In Lima, Capturing Peru’s Native Spirit Cala

By ANDY ISAACSON

P

ISCO, the national spirit of Peru, is a trickster: it appears so clear and pure — yet before long, you are under the table. Peruvians like to say that good pisco will never give you a hangover, although after a recent night in Lima, I beg to differ. Pisco is made from a single distillation of young wine that holds the varietal qualities of one of eight different grapes from which it can be made. And like Champagne or tequila, Peruvian pisco is an official appellation; to be bona fide, it must adhere to strict, traditional production methods. Nothing — not even water — can be added. Pisco has been made in the dry coastal valleys of southern Peru since at least the early 17th century, and has become inextricably linked to the country’s identity. The spirit must be served at Peruvian diplomatic functions around the world. The national drink, the pisco sour, is an indigenous marriage of pisco, the distinctive Peruvian lime, egg white and bitters derived from the bark of a Peruvian tree. (It even has its own national day of celebration.) As Peru’s fortunes have gone, so have those of pisco, reaching a golden age during the flush mineral boom of the late 19th century, when an influx of Italians introduced refined winemaking techniques. In Lima’s bars, pisco flowed copiously back then, though it was Chile that first established the spirit as a denomination of origin in 1931, staking a marketing claim. (Chilean pisco is an altogether different product, with different ingredients and processes that yield a different flavor.) Bleak times followed: amid Socialist land reforms and often violent political conflicts that plagued Peru for most of the last century, the quality and reputation of pisco sank. Limeños defected to foreign whiskey and vodka — anything but pisco, then considered the tipple of old-timers and drunks. In the last few years, though, as Peru’s circ*mstances have reversed, dedicated pisqueros are now producing excellent piscos, and the mixology renaissance that has touched many of the world’s cities has also landed in Lima’s bars. Here are four spots in the capital city that, in their own distinctive way, reflect how Peruvians have rediscovered their native spirit.

On a recent late Friday afternoon, this swank beachfront spot felt like Malibu: from a back patio suspended over the sand, welltanned patrons sipped co*cktails in view of surfers. The co*cktails in hand are the creations of Enrique Vidarte, widely considered the city’s most inventive pisco mixologist. His well-balanced concoctions are a perfect showcase for the different pisco varietals: El Verdecito, a delicious green slurried co*cktail served in a margarita glass, blends pisco Italia, with a bright citrus and sweet floral nose, together with mint leaves, sugar and Peruvian lime juice (22 nuevos soles, or $8 at

Bar Inglés, Country Club Lima Hotel No Peruvian co*cktail is more classic than the pisco sour. Invented, paradoxically, by an expat Mormon from Utah named Victor Morris, the recipe was canonized in the 1930s at the Hotel Maury in Lima. These days, the Maury serves a warm, overly sweet version to tourists who don’t know it is not the real thing. For that, I headed to Bar Inglés, a wood-paneled retreat inside the grand Country Club Lima Hotel, where the drink (26 nuevos soles) is mixed by Roberto Meléndez, and is a direct transmission of the original. (Mr. Meléndez’s father worked

at Hotel Maury in the 1940s.) Mr. Meléndez reached for Pisco Qollqe, one of the new-wave artisanal brands, and measured out a precise ratio: four parts pisco to one part lime, one part simple syrup and an egg white. Shaken and poured into a chilled wine glass, it ended up with a lovely topping of foam. He also added a few drops of bitters for fragrance. “This,” he said with confidence, “is the same pisco sour that was served at the Hotel Maury.” Bar Inglés, Los Eucaliptos 590; San Isidro; (51-1) 611-9000; hotelcountry.com.

Mayta This contemporary bar and restaurant, which opened three years ago, was still quiet when I arrived for dinner at 8:30. “It’s early yet,” said Jaime Pesaque, 32, Mayta’s rising-star chef. I came not only for Mr. Pesaque’s innovative new Peruvian food, but also for his traditional macerados — infusions of fruits, roots and herbs that Peruvians have prepared for centuries using pisco. Over a hundred clear glass bottles are set up behind Mayta’s bar, like an apothecary, filled with piscos vibrantly infused with local ingredients like camu camu, yucca, ginger, rose petals and litchi, eucalyptus, mandarin and

PISCO GINGER (A K A CHILCANO) Adapted from “The Pisco Book,” by Gregory Dicum 2 ounces pisco, preferably Oro Quebranta 1/2 ounce fresh Key lime juice 3 ounces ginger ale, preferably Fever-Tree 3 or 4 dashes Angostura bitters. Combine pisco and lime juice in a Collins glass. Add ice and juiced lime and fill with ginger ale. Stir gently and top with bitters. Yield: One co*cktail.

2.73 nuevos soles to the dollar). The 42 co*cktails on Mr. Vidarte’s menu are mostly his own, but there are a few classics, like the Capitán. A dry mix of pisco and red vermouth (the drink’s white and red stripes conjure a Peruvian naval captain’s insignia) and amaretto, the drink is a throwback to the spirited scene of the 1920s at Lima’s Gran Hotel Bolivar, where it was popularized — some believe in response to the drought of American whiskey during Prohibition. Cala, Avenida Circuito Vial Costa Verde; Playa Barranquito; Espigón B2; Barranco; (51-1) 252-9187; calarestaurante.com.

Huaringas Bar This lively Miraflores bar is arranged in a series of elementally themed spaces, from the ground room (earth) to an attic (air). By 11 p.m., all the elements were populated with chattering young professionals drinking pisco co*cktails. “The younger generation has developed a pisco culture,” said Rosario Alcorta, 33, the bar’s bohemian owner. “Ten years ago, they weren’t even aware of it.” Indeed, Huaringas was the first to take the pisco sour in a modern direction by adding fruit flavors, like passion fruit. “When I opened, older barmen

would tell me, ‘What are you doing, this isn’t a pisco sour!’” Ms. Alcorta recalled. “Now you can find them in Chile.” The co*cktail (21 nuevos soles) was a bit too tangy for my taste, but I enjoyed a refreshing coca leaf Chilcano (20 nuevos soles), before deciding I had imbibed enough pisco for one day. “Peru has gone through very difficult periods,” Ms. Alcorta said. “But Peruvians have found through our food, our pisco quality, a way to be proud.” Huaringas Bar, Calle Bolognesi 472; Miraflores; (51-1) 447-1133; huaringasbar.com.pe.

coca leaves, used to flavor variations of Mayta’s most popular co*cktail, the Chilcano (20 nuevos soles). The tall, refreshing drink, purportedly introduced by 19th-century Italian immigrants, combines pisco with ginger ale, bitters and a splash of lime juice. After sampling a flight of five small Chilcanos (50 nuevos soles), I retired to the dining room to enjoy a delicious, nine-course tasting menu (tuna ceviche, guinea pig confit; 160 nuevos soles). An hour later, the joint was humming. Mayta, Avenida 28 de Julio 1290; San Antonio; Miraflores; (51-1) 243-0121; maytarestaurante.com.

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OVERNIGHTER

A Lofty Retreat From Sweltering Shanghai By JUSTIN BERGMAN

OLLOWING in the footsteps of foreign missionaries, Chinese gangsters and Chiang Kaishek, I traveled to the mountain outpost of Moganshan looking for a breather from fullthrottle Shanghai. Before I reached my destination, however, I had an intimidating set of stairs to climb. “It’s 84 steps,” said a smiling Tiger, the manager of House 2, the restored, early 20th-century villa where I’d be staying, as we peered up at the rickety stone staircase shaded by drooping branches of bamboo. Arriving at the top short of breath, I realized to my dismay it was another 37 steps to my room on the third floor. Though the climb was a challenge, the journey to Moganshan from Shanghai was a relatively easy one: a three-hour trip by train and car. That proximity, along with new lodging options that have reinvigorated the area, has begun to attract foreigners in recent years, more than a century after its original heyday. The main draw, however, is what awaits at the top of those stairs: dense forests of bamboo and pine crisscrossed by hiking and biking trails, a lovely, tranquil respite from the crowded streets of Shanghai. Indeed, outside of those new accommodations, Moganshan has changed little since it served as the Hamptons of this part of eastern China. Moganshan was first settled in the late 1800s by missionaries and their families desperate to escape the heat and disease of swampy Shanghai summers. By the early 20th century, it had become a haven for that city’s foreign elite, who built sprawling stone mansions and whiled away their days playing on lawn tennis courts or lolling in the many swimming pools that dotted the mountainside. It wasn’t long before a less reputable sort turned up, including Du Yuesheng, also known as BigEared Du, and Zhang Xiaolin, two gangsters who ran Shanghai’s opium trade. Zhang kept pet tigers behind his villa and is rumored to have fed a mistress to one of them. Moganshan also attracted powerful couples of a different stripe. The drug dealers summered next to Huang Fu, a Kuomintang foreign minister, who hosted the Chinese Nationalist leader Chiang Kai-shek and his wife, Soong Mei-ling, on their honeymoon in 1927. The fun didn’t last for long. Though Moganshan was spared destruction during Japan’s invasion in the late 1930s, the Communists soon took control and appropriated the mountain’s stately stone villas for themselves. (Mao Zedong was reportedly another visitor.) It has taken decades for the spot to return to its place as a popular summer retreat. Mark Kitto, a British author and the former publisher of a magazine in Shanghai (where I once worked), was the first foreigner to move back to the mountain in the mid-2000s. Mr. Kitto served as my guide in Moganshan, and as we zipped along the area’s curving roads on his motorcycle, his dog Charlie in the sidecar, he commented on the history of the homes, some of which have been renovated by developers and turned into guesthouses. At Huang’s villa, which is now a museum, Mr. Kitto pointed out a tree planted by Madame Chiang. “She taught Chiang Kaishek to dance underneath it,” he said. Inside, the honeymoon suite still has a wedding photo of the couple on a side table. Down the hall is another preserved bedroom, with black and gold Shanghai Deco-style beds, where Zhou Enlai, the future first premier of Communist China, spent time during his secret meetings with Chiang to discuss a possible united front against the Japanese in-

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PHOTOGRAPHS BY DANIEL GROSHONG FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

LEFT The Naked Stables Private Reserve. TOP A woman

exploring the bamboo forests and abandoned homes near Moganshan. ABOVE A worker building a fire in House 23, a small hotel and one of a handful of renovated structures in the area.

200 MILES

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Moganshan Hangzhou ZHEJIANG

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vasion. The tennis court at Zhang’s old villa is now overgrown and the tiger cage is long gone, but an elaborate Chinese temple that he built remains, with red-painted lattice windows and nature scenes and flowers carved in the wood beneath the eaves. Both villas are on the itinerary of guided tours of the mountain provided by Mr. Kitto, who chronicles Moganshan’s history in his book “China Cuckoo” (“Chasing China” in the United States). His wife, Joanna, originally from Guangzhou, is also an area enthusiast, having renovated three other villas that she rents out — called House 23, 25 and 2 — in an attempt to recreate the feeling of the resort’s early days. Ms. Kitto said the dilapidated mansions had walls when she leased them from the People’s Liberation Army, the current owners, but little else. She rebuilt the floors in House 2 using recycled wood from old houses in the area and copied the mosaic patterns she saw in a neighbor’s bathroom that hadn’t been touched since the early 1900s.

If You Go Round-trip tickets on the high-speed train between Shanghai and Hangzhou start at 154 renminbi ($24 at 6.45 renminbi to the dollar). Joanna Kitto can arrange for a driver between Hangzhou and Moganshan for 250 renminbi each way. Naked Stables also has a weekend shuttle service between Shanghai and Moganshan for 230 renminbi each way. There is an 80 renminbi entrance fee to the mountain. Le Passage Mohkan Shan (86-1865-728-5900; lepassagemoganshan.com). Doubles from 1,500 renminbi a person, per night, including

all meals. Moganshan House 23, 25 and 2 (86-572-803-3822; moganshanhouse23.com). Doubles from 650 renminbi per night. Moganshan Lodge (86-572803-3011; moganshanlodge .com). Offers breakfast, lunch and dinner. Naked Stables (86-21-64318901; nakedretreats.cn). Earth huts from 1,725 renminbi per night; tree-top villas (with two bedrooms) from 5,290 renminbi per night. A sister property, Naked Home Village, has doubles from 1,219 renminbi per night.

She also runs the Moganshan Lodge, the only spot on the mountaintop where visitors can unwind with wine after a day of stair-climbing or mountain biking through the bamboo forests. The lodge has maps for self-guided hikes around the top of the mountain or down the slopes into the surrounding valley, and visitors can also rent bikes from the Chinese-run Songliang Hotel next door. Despite the efforts of the Kittos, development on the mountain has been slow, thanks to resistance from the provincial government and the army, which owns a fifth of the old villas. Nearby, though, fewer bureaucratic hurdles have allowed foreign entrepreneurs to embark on far more ambitious projects, like the eco-resort Naked Stables Private Reserve, which opened last fall several miles from the mountain after a 200 million renminbi (about $31.7 million) investment from Grant Horsfield, the South African owner, and his architect wife, Delphine Yip. For Mr. Horsfield, it wasn’t so much the history of the area that attracted him, but the proximity of such unspoiled countryside to Shanghai. His goal was to build a luxury property that was also sustainable, a new concept in China, where high-end hotels are a dime a dozen but eco-tourism is still in its nascent stages. If all goes according to plan, the operators of Naked say it will be among the first resorts in the world to achieve LEED-platinum certification.

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T hasn’t been easy, Mr. Horsfield added. He and his wife, the site’s master planner, worked with engineers and designers to create a resort that incorporated green building practices but didn’t sacrifice style or amenities. There are 40 rondavel-style villas — essentially westernized versions of African huts — with environmentally friendly rammed earth walls, as well as design features like thatched roofs, raw wood furnishings and cowhide rugs. Another 30 villas nestled at treetop level were built with energy-efficient, prefabricated panels, though guests may be most impressed by the personal butler service and balcony hot tubs with panoramic views of the mountains. There were some missteps, like the pool lights that cost Mr. Horsfield a point toward LEED certification because of light pollution, and smart innovations. Each room has consumption meters that track water, electricity and gas usage. Guests receive a discount if their consumption is below the average by their stay’s end. “We’re not just going the first step of trying to be green by building an earth wall,” he said. “What we’re trying to do is show you that you can make a differ-

ence, too.” Mr. Horsfield isn’t the only foreigner enticing well-heeled guests back to Moganshan. Christophe Peres, a native

Frenchman, and his wife, Pauline Lee, spent nearly five years building the upscale 40-room hotel Le Passage Mohkan Shan. The property, which also is an organic tea plantation, partly opened in December, with the rest scheduled for completion by October. Mr. Peres said that he, too, was inspired by the manor houses on the mountain, which is why he

chose century-old, recycled wood and handmade French-style tiles for the floors. He also built a saltwater swimming pool with views of the tea-covered hills and planted a 12,000-bush rose garden. The Shanghainese chef has been well trained in French cuisine, and the wine cellar is stocked with biodynamic French wines and Mr. Peres’s homemade pear brandy. It has taken some time, but decadence is slowly returning to Moganshan. “When Chinese started to travel, they wanted to go far,” Mr. Peres said. “Now you have some people who have money to travel far, who’ve been to Europe — they want weekend escapes.” There are a few differences from the old days, however. Political bosses may still drop in, but they leave their exotic pets at Æ home.

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THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, APRIL 15, 2012

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36 Hours

Lyon, France

PHOTOGRAPHS BY REBECCA MARSHALL FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

FROM LEFT At the Soda co*cktail bar; a barge on the Saône River; Le Théâtre d’Ombres (“Shadow Play”) display at the Institut Lumière, which pays homage to the early history of moviemaking.

By SETH SHERWOOD

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know of only one thing that you can do well in Lyon, and that’s eat,” the 19th-century French novelist Stendhal remarked. Two centuries later, the image of France’s third-largest metropolis is still buried under a heap of food. No surprise. France’s most celebrated chef, the octogenarian Paul Bocuse, hails from Lyon, and the city’s bouchons — homey restaurants serving rustic, traditional cuisine — are famous countrywide. But once you shovel off the tons of blood sausage and St. Marcellin cheese, you find far more than a picturesque feeding zone. The gateway to the Alps enfolds Roman ruins, Renaissance-era architecture, abundant art spaces, talented young designers, renovated riverfronts and a fast-rising neighborhood of futuristic architecture. Better, a new generation of chefs is bringing Lyonnaise cuisine into the 21st century. Even Mr. Bocuse is adapting to the new millennium: He recently opened his first design hotel.

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• Head Upriver 1

An ambitious plan to renovate the banks of Lyon’s rivers, the Rhône and the Saône, kicked off in 2007. Exhibit A is the promenade along the Rhône on the Rive Gauche, a favorite of walkers, runners, cyclists and loafers. For lovely views, start at the reflecting pools along Quai Claude Bernard and head north. Along Quai Victor Augagneur, check the posters outside floating nightclubs like Ayers Rock Boat for the weekend’s agenda. Beyond Pont Wilson, the boat-cafe called La Passagère (Quai Victor Augagneur; 33-4-72-73-3698) is a cozy spot for hot chocolate (3 euros, or $3.90 at $1.30 to the euro) or a Kronenbourg (6 euros). From there, walk or take the 171 bus (1.60 euros) up to Parc de la Tête d’Or, with ponds, gardens and forested trails.

5 p.m.

• 2

Trash and Treasures

Oversize refuse welcomes you to the

If You Go Opened last fall near the main train station, All Seasons Part Dieu (54, rue de la Villette; 33-4-72-68-2540; all-seasons-hotels.com) has 99 nonsmoking rooms, a brasserie and a bar. Doubles from 75 euros ($98). One of Paul Bocuse’s most recent concoctions is DockOuest (39, rue des Docks; 33-4-78-22-34-34; dockouest.com), a design hotel with 43 rooms and suites outfitted with Ligne Roset furnishings. Mr. Bocuse’s Ouest Express (ouestexpress.com) restaurant is two steps away. Doubles from 75 euros.

Musée d’Art Contemporain de Lyon (Cité Internationale; 81, quai Charles de Gaulle, 33-4-72-69-17-17; mac-lyon .com), which abuts Parc de la Tête d’Or. Wang Du’s “World Markets” is a silvery interpretation of a crumpled financial newspaper, while Olivier Mosset has taken old stone slabs — thought to be remnants of Paris’s Bastille prison — and piled them like discards awaiting the junk heap. The Art Deco building, modified by Renzo Piano, displays topnotch contemporary shows. A retrospective devoted to the cartoonish paintings of the French artist Robert Combas runs through July 15; 8 euros.

DockOuest

Musée d’Art 2 Contemporain de Lyon

Cité Internationale

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ONLINE: READERS’ THOUGHTS

See a slide show of Lyon, and share your suggestions on where to stay, where to eat and what to do.

PARC DE LA TÊTE D’OR

travel.nytimes.com/lyon

Basquiat and other style icons.

La Croix Rousse

Magali et Martin NKLIN 3 URS FRA

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L’Antiquaire Terre Adélice Cathedral of St.Jean-Baptiste 7

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Phone and reserve at Magali et Martin (11, rue des Augustins; 33-4-72-00-88-01; magalietmartin.fr), named for the young French-Austrian couple who own this quietly stylish little restaurant. A former cook at Paris’s renowned Taillevent, Martin Schmied changes the menu constantly, mixing the rustic and the modern. Wild boar? It appears as terrine with marinated mushrooms. Pheasant? Makes cameos in a consommé with foie gras. Special mention goes to the blood sausage served in small pastry-like shells and to the guinea fowl that is poached, then roasted, imparting an exceptional succulence. Dinner for two, without wine, is about 70 euros.

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1 La Passagère All Seasons Part Dieu RUE DE LA VILLETTE

Marché St.- Antoine QUAI CLAUDE BERNARD

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8 p.m. Lyon

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11 p.m.

• 4

Food claims the spotlight in Lyon, but drinks are doing their own diva act, thanks to a nascent co*cktail scene. James Brown and Frank Sinatra haunt Soda (7, rue de la Martinière; soda-bar .fr). Their jailhouse mug shots and others’ decorate this dark, plush den, where 9 euros gets you a spicy Slum Dog Millionaire (Bombay gin, cherry jam, lemon juice, red vermouth and cardamom) or smooth Globetrotter (pisco, elderflower liqueur, lemon juice and Aperol). Nearby, the strains of old American jazz fill L’Antiquaire (20, rue Hippolyte Flandrin; 33-6-34-21-54-65; theantiquaryroom.com) where bowtied bartenders serve up seasonal co*cktails like Marco’s Bacardi Fizz (Bacardi rum, green chartreuse, lime juice, lemon juice, sugar syrup, cream, egg white and soda), a foamy citric blast.

Saturday 10 a.m.

• Celluloid Heroes 5

The street name says it all: Rue du Premier Film. There, on March 19, 1895, Louis Lumière activated the “Cinématographe” that he had designed with his brother, Auguste, and recorded a 50second film of employees leaving their family’s photo-plate factory. And so cinema was born. The Institut Lumière (25, rue du Premier Film; 33-4-78-78-1895; institut-lumiere.org) pays homage

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10 p.m.

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Lyonnaise Libations

FLORIDA

Take Tramway line T1 to Montrochet, walk west on Rue Paul Montrochet and head toward the postmodernist building resembling a block of orange cheese. This is La Confluence (lyon -confluence.fr), a formerly downbeat docklands that is now sprouting futuristic new structures. The best food is found at Rue Le Bec (43 Quai Rambaud, 33-4-78-92-87-87; nicolaslebec.com), a sprawling restaurant with a wine bar, bakery and fine-food boutique. It comes courtesy of Nicolas Le Bec, the headliner of the new generation of Lyon chefs. The menu is a global journey that starts in Lyon — andouillette sausage, tête de veau — with stopovers in Spain (Iberian ham with tomato bread), Italy (eggplant topped with mozzarella), Japan (wagyu beef tappanyaki) and North Africa (lamb with mint and souk spices). Three courses for two, about 90 euros.

to the early history of moviemaking. The brothers’ Art Nouveau mansion is now a museum (6.50 euros) that shows original Lumière films and displays the famous Cinématographe and other early filmmaking devices, including a boxy wooden Edison Kinetoscope. Next door, the former factory is now a theater with a roster of international film classics.

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• Frapanese Food 6

Like a love hotel bedroom, mirrors line the ceiling of Au 14 Fevrier (6, rue Mourguet; 33-4-78-92-91-39; au14fevrier .com), a tiny jewel-box restaurant that opened in 2009. And, as in a love hotel, those mirrors reflect near-org*smic reactions from the delighted clients below. The stimulation is provided by the chef Tsuyoshi Arai, a Tokyo transplant who landed a Michelin star this year for what he calls “la cuisine Française Made in Japan.” The menu changes daily but recently included blood pudding sheathed in dark chocolate tubes, warm foie gras with strawberry vinegar and cooked figs, and roasted pheasant with colorful vegetables cut to resemble gumdrops. Nine courses for 75 euros.

3 p.m.

• Gargoyles and Lard 7

A Renaissance-era, Unesco-listed balade digestive — digestive walk —

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awaits in the cobbled alleys of Vieux Lyon. Built when the city was a rich silk-making center, the neighborhood is known for the Cathedral of St.-JeanBaptiste (8, place St.-Jean; cathedrale -lyon.cef.fr). The facade is decorated with 25 gargoyles, 36 prophets and patriarchs, 36 martyrs and saints and 72 angels — but who’s counting? — while the interior contains a towering astronomical clock topped by automatons of humans and angels. (The whole ensemble goes into motion when the clock strikes 12, 2, 3 and 4 p.m.) If your stroll makes you hungry, the artisanal ice creams at Terre Adélice (1, place de la Baleine, 33-4-78-03-51-84; terre-adelice .eu) come in unexpected flavors.

Follow the scent of after-shave and D&G perfume to Docks 40 (40, quai Rambaud, 33-4-78-40-40-40; docks40 .com). Opened in 2010, the industrial chic restaurant-lounge is a sea of barstools, tables and rushing servers until midnight. Then, the furniture gets cleared, the dancing starts, and the D.J.-spun music — soul, disco and house — explodes. If a magnum of Cristal Roderer (1,100 euros) is too steep, a glass of Tattinger bubbly (10 euros) also gets the party started.

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5 p.m.

• 8

Time to Get Creative

With its steep staircase-streets and Bohemian vibe, La Croix Rousse recalls Paris’s Montmartre district. The neighborhood’s creative heart is the Village des Créateurs (Passage Thiaffait, 19 Rue René Leynaud, 33-4-78-27-37-21; villagedescreateurs.com), an alley of local design boutiques. Morgan Kirch (morgankirch.fr) makes sophisticated dark-hued women’s wear like black minivests sprouting feathers (230 euros). Mixing the sensibilities of Pop Art and graffiti, the T-shirts (39 euros) at the Blue Mustach Shop (bluemustach.com) sport playful images of Karl Lagerfeld, Jean-Michel

The aromas are fresh at the lively and crowded Marché St.-Antoine (Quai St.Antoine and Quai des Célestins): ripe cheese, baked bread, pungent fish, steaming roasted chickens, briny oysters. Jouvray (33-4-74-01-16-85) can furnish hockey pucks of St. Marcellin cheese (1.80 euros for two) and local dry salami (19 euros per kilo), while Côté Desserts (33-4-78-45-19-45) does excellent quince tarts (1.95 euros). After, feed your mind among les bouquinistes — outdoor book dealers — along the adjacent Quai de la Pêcherie. You’ll find hometown authors like Antoine de Saint-Exupéry as well as vintage maps, postcards and LPs. You might even chance across works by Stendhal. In Æ Lyon, he’s never far from the food.

THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, APRIL 15, 2012

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FORAGING

Old Montreal Looks Beyond The Tourists OR decades, period architecture and pristine cobblestone streets have kept Old Montreal well trodden by tourists. But this gracious waterfront area, dating back centuries, is regaining cachet with locals, and high-end retail has followed. A western stretch of narrow Rue St. Paul, where souvenir shops once hawked Québécois kitsch, has become an unlikely hub for high fashion. Huge picture windows in restored stone buildings now showcase of-the-moment looks to rival the hippest that New York or Paris have to offer — all with an insouciant Montreal twist. MICHAEL KAMINER

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SSENSE BOUTIQUE

90, rue St. Paul Ouest (514) 289-1906 ssense.com This locally based online destination for label hounds now has its first boutique. Industrial steel accents and reclaimed-wood floors highlight high-ticket wares from Marc Jacobs, Proenza Schouler, Kris Van Assche and Lanvin. Prices from 150 to 5,000 Canadian dollars (about the same in U.S. dollars).

Montreal RUE NOTREDAME OUEST

SSENSE Boutique RUE ST.PAUL OUEST

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231, rue St. Paul Ouest (514) 499-8549 reborn.ws Brigitte Chartrand’s pint-size boutique casts a giant shadow, with unerring radar for next-bigthing designers like Boris Bidjan Saberi for men, and Raquel Allegra for women. From 250 to 5,000 Canadian dollars.

Boutique Denis Gagnon

Reborn Quai 417

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Z UANDI 215, rue St. Paul Ouest

PHOTOGRAPHS BY YANNICK GRANDMONT FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

(514) 508-7704 boutiqueuandi.com Updated Americana from labels like Polo Ralph Lauren, Engineered Garments, Penfield and Levi’s Made & Crafted fills this small, spartan shop. From 115 to 1,475 Canadian dollars.

BOUTIQUE DENIS GAGNON

170B, rue St. Paul Ouest (514) 935-6360 denisgagnon.ca The entirety of Denis Gagnon’s hard-edged but sensuous collection, including leather-accented evening wear, is produced in this bunkerlike store-cum-workshop beneath the chic Le Petit Hôtel. From 120 to 1,300 dollars. QUAI 417

417, rue St. Pierre (514) 419-3848 quai417.com Philippe Dubuc, known for including subversive details like slashed shirt cuffs in his designs, opened this multibrand boutique a few steps north of the St. Paul strip in November. His creations share yellow cube-shaped “racks” with European labels like Jean Colonna, AF Vandevorst and Premiata. From 195 to 995 dollars.

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THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, APRIL 15, 2012