Finding The One isn’t always fairy-tale straight-forward. It takes patience, searching (and soul-searching). It means experiencing the not-so-right, the you’ve-got-potential, the what-on-earth-was-I-thinking?! But they always say, ‘You know when it's The One’. And I knew.
The smiles struck me first.
Sunshine smiles, happy-to-see-you smiles, there’s-such-a-treat-awaiting-you smiles.
Greetings as heartwarming as the jasmine tea brought to us as we checked in, followed by the pop and bubble of champagne because, why not?
Before we’d even stepped into our superior suite at Cape Town’s The 12 Apostles Hotel and Spa, I knew I was going to find it very hard to leave.
Gautier Cognac is regarded by the French as one of the very best in France and therefore the world. The Gautier Extra 1755 is quite magnificent and well worth the price tag.
Project SHU has successfully concluded her final sea trials in the Baltic Sea. Her delivery is planned for autumn of this year.
The British airline ‘2Excel’ is the only globally accredited airline that is licensed to perform aerobatics.
To gain that unique accolade every aspect surrounding the airline has to meet the highest standards; the pilots are not only all RAF war zone veterans with over 25,000 fast-jet flying hours, but former members of the Red Arrows team. Their aerobatic ’planes are the German built Extra 300 LPs certified to +/- 10g. with the same power to weight ratio as the new Ferrari 458.
Hong Kong has such a romantic aura surrounding it, rich in history, boys own tales and block buster movies. An island that served as the nexus for trading between two mighty empires for hundreds of years and celebrated for its grand casinos, towering modern sky scrapers, beaches, markets and now the world’s longest sea crossing bridge.
Pendennis Shipyard recently completed the restoration and repair of the stunning Mariette superyacht, built in 1915, this 42 metre, twin-masted schooner sailing yacht is one of the world’s most historic yachts. We asked the Captain, Charlie Wroe, what life is like on a luxury superyacht.
How long have you been the Captain on the Mariette?
Since 2005
What was your career background/ history before coming on board as Captain?
How do howler monkeys generate so much noise? They are actually the second loudest animal in the world after the blue whale and release their voluminous, plangent magic by using the wind?
The tropical exuberance of animal life was utterly enchanting with new species offering up a daily surprise. From the fishy, to the furry and the feathered. I felt immersed in the natural wonder of the many birds and animals.
As a little girl, with an imagination larger than my wildly untamed hair (my hairbrush refusal was my mother’s morning battle), I often wondered what it would be like to skip right into a kaleidoscope. An imagined sugar-rush, spinning-tea-cup-ride surge of delight as every kind of colour and shape danced their flamboyant, unrehearsed, flamenco routine.
I’ve been to enough weddings to know that rain on your wedding day doesn’t necessarily a happy bride make. But ask a superstitious Italian, and instead of cursing the rain clouds, you’ll embrace the special day downpour – your soaking instead believed to be a symbol of fertility and cleansing, luck and love drenching you from the skies.
