Tabla de contenidos para November/December 2017 en AFAR

1 GRENADIAN TREE BOA You’ll recognize this boa constrictor, aka Corallus grenadensis, by its large amber eyes. Don’t flip out if you spot one— they’re nonvenomous. 2 MONA MONKEY Fortune is on your side if you spot one of these endangered primates in Grenada. Telltale attributes include a full, gray beard and a banditlike mask around the eyes. 3 GREEN IGUANA These color-shifting, treedwelling herbivores can grow to more than six feet long. With few natural predators on Grenada, they’re found in abundance in the rain forest. MAKE A SPLASH In Grenada, life happens on, around, and in the water. Danny Donelan of Savvy Sailing Adventure (sailingsavvy.com) runs full-day, half-day, and sunset tours aboard a traditional sloop. Private charters fit 6 to 16 guests and can be tailored to a…

1 St. Bart’s At Le Barthélemy, the first new hotel on St. Bart’s in 20 years, the spa specializes in La Mer facials, and Hermès toiletries are standard in every room. Lavish sixbedroom villas come with wine cellars and 55-foot lap pools. lebarthelemyhotel.com 2 British Virgin Islands Rosewood Little Dix Bay reopens this December. A multimillion-dollar renovation restores the glamour established by founder Laurance S. Rockefeller more than 50 years ago. Seven new ocean-view suites have private plunge pools. rosewoodhotels.com 3 Anguilla The Four Seasons Resort and Residences Anguilla is a 181-room leisure palace with tennis courts, bocce and croquet lawns, a putting green, three swimming pools, and a half-milelong white sand beach. fourseasons.com/anguilla…

WHO KK Yeh WHERE Taipei, Taiwan I WAS BORN AND raised in Taipei. The city has changed so much over the last 20 years. My father loved nature and didn’t want his family living downtown. So when I was little, we lived on Guangfu Road, on the border of the Xinyi district. Back then, it was all farmland; now it’s the fanciest and most expensive shopping area in Taipei. As a teenager, I attended the Affiliated Senior High School of National Taiwan Normal University. It is known for its liberal atmosphere and energetic student activities. Some of the school’s most famous alumni are members of Mayday, which is now the biggest rock band in Taiwan. I went to school with them in the mid-’90s, when they were just getting started.…

Eat Puebla is one of three Mexican states that claim to be the birthplace of the rich, chili-based sauce known as mole. Reserve a table in the courtyard at El Mural de los Poblanos— named for its colorful mural of characters from local history— where chef Liz Galicia turns out five versions of mole, including the classic poblano, made with more than a dozen ingredients. See The stark white concrete exterior of the new International Museum of the Baroque, designed by Pritzker Architecture Prize winner Toyo Ito, contrasts with the opulence and ornamentality of the treasures inside. Undulating walls, a curving staircase, and circular skylights set the stage for exhibits on the exuberant architecture, visual arts, and music of the 17th and 18th centuries. Shop If you spring for just…

the air was black and the river was black and we sliced through it with a thin shush. It was one of the last nights of the cruise, and I’d taken my son up top. Basel to Amsterdam along the Rhine. The inky bulk of a dark old church eased by on the left, the struggle of a riverbank campfire on the right. Warm night wind rushed over us, startling after an afternoon of climate control. But then all of it was still startling: the ornate ship implausibly inhabited for a week, a floating bubble of tranquility and snacks, a blessed reprieve from everything going to hell more every day. The bubble’s shape is what strikes you first. The River Empress is a giant bowling alley, much longer than a football…

Explore further—and plan your trip—at afar.com/visit/bermuda. What’s it like to grow up in Bermuda? “It’s a very unique experience. There are fewer than 65,000 people in the world who can say they’re Bermudian. Because it’s a small island, we’re all very much connected with each other. We’re all trying to make it together on this rock in the middle of nowhere.” Where do you live? “I’ve been in St. George’s, a historic town in the East End, for 14 years. I fell in love with the charm, the history, and all the little winding alleys. A few years back, my husband and I purchased a bookstore that was closing. Now we’re turning it into a gift store and bookshop named Long Story Short. I also started Haunted History, a street…

Grenada comprises a trio of islands south of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and north of Trinidad and Tobago. The main isle of Grenada is 12 miles long and 21 miles wide, its territory carved into six parishes. Most travelers base themselves in the colonial capital of St. George’s, then spend a day exploring the ring road that circumnavigates the island. The route is narrow and winding throughout, so it’s best to hire a driver. The first stop should be La Sagesse Nature Center, a secluded reserve with mangroves and a pristine beach that’s good for swimming. Continue up the eastern coast, through Grenville, pausing for a 150-proof rum tasting at River Antoine Rum Distillery, operational since 1785. (It’s the oldest water-powered distillery in the Caribbean.) Farther north is stunning…

BELMONT ESTATE This historic plantation, restaurant, and working farm teaches visitors the island’s spicy history. A filling lunch of traditional Oil Down stew, made with breadfruit and coconut milk, is a must-try. THE BEACH HOUSE RESTAURANT Sweeping views of Portici Bay are just one reason this restaurant is such a people pleaser; the menu goes on for miles. Order the catch of the day, seared and topped with a bright fruit salsa. PATRICK’S LOCAL HOMESTYLE RESTAURANT Patrick’s serves Grenadian comfort food such as stewed conch and manicou (opossum) as part of its multicourse tasting menu or à la carte. The chocolate cake is made with locally grown cacao.…

half way to the coast, GENNY ANNOUNCED THAT SHE HADN’T BROUGHT A GUN. I glanced at the glove compartment of the Toyota Corolla with a sting of surprise and relief. Her nephew had given her shooting lessons for her last birthday, when she’d turned 76, but apparently she’d decided not to take up the offer of a pistol for our road trip. “They say you shouldn’t have a gun if you have any doubt whether you would shoot it or not,” said Genny, turning her eyes from the road to look at me. “I don’t own a gun, but the one thing I do know is: I would shoot.” We were only two hours into our trip, and I was already nervous about what else I might learn about Genny on our way. We…

Find a Family- Focused Sailing Just because kids may technically be allowed on a regularly scheduled river cruise, that doesn’t mean they’ll enjoy being there. You won’t hear choruses of “I’m bo-o-ored” if you look to lines that tout specialized portfolios of family-friendly itineraries, such as Tauck Bridges, Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection, Adventures by Disney, in partnership with AmaWaterways, and CroisiEurope. Their voyages offer special shipboard activities, dining, amenities, staffing, and excursions. Plan Now Among the lines that offer them, family-branded itineraries typically only run about 10 to 15 times a year, mostly during the summer or over the December holidays. With such limited inventory, it’s advisable to book ahead; summer 2018 season sailings, for instance, will start to fill up this fall. Leave the Littlest Tots Behind Even…

STOP 1 URBAN ADVENTURES Settle into San Juan’s La Concha, a renovated midcentury resort a shell’s toss from the Atlantic. Beach time is a must, but spend at least a day in the nearby Santurce arts district, where you can stroll mural-lined alleys, explore galleries devoted to Puerto Rican artists, and tour the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico ($6). Come sundown, head to the noreservations Jose Enrique for deliciously unfussy dishes made with local ingredients, such as fried fish with avocado, papaya, and batata, or yams. STOP 2 BEACH THERAPY The beauty of Puerto Rico is that it’s small enough that you can laze for a few hours at Luquillo Beach ($5), with its calm waters for swimming and chairs and kayaks for rent, and still spend half the…

PASTICCERIA Cucchi is protective of its panettone. The Milanese pastry shop has been baking the famous fruitcake—a traditional Italian Christmas treat— in a humble kitchen for more than 70 years. Laura Cucchi and her sister, Vittoria, whose grandparents founded the pasticceria in 1936, are thinking about expanding. But they fear that any change to the kitchen’s microclimate or production volume could upset il lievito madre, the revered mother yeast they use to make panettone. “It’s a very delicate decision,” Laura says. Pasticceria Cucchi’s panettone is a deliciously far cry from the supermarket versions that emerge every holiday season in both Italy and the United States. It’s pillowy and sweet, laced with high-quality vanilla, raisins, and chunks of candied citrus—and so good the pasticceria makes it yearround. Customers might stop by the…

You have opened two bars at the Mandarin Oriental. How do the Aviary and the Office differ? The Office looks to the past, and the Aviary looks to the future. The Aviary is progressive when it comes to flavor combinations, technique, custom serviceware, and the use of things like rotary evaporators and aromatic volcanoes [vaporizers used for infusing flavors]. At the Office, you’re going back in time: Drinks are served in antique coupes, and we try to use vintage and rare spirits. Micah Melton is the beverage director. What sets his drinks apart? Micah entered the restaurant business as a cook, so he comes to cocktails with a cook’s mind and understands nuances in flavor. For example, there’s a cocktail on the menu that involves banana and curry that we…

The Best New Way to Get Lit From his perch in the Jing’an neighborhood in Shanghai, Paris-born designer Thomas Dariel dreams up ideas for some of China’s best restaurants and clubs. You’d have to go there to see, say, Lady Bund, a fusion restaurant with chandeliers that look like cracked eggshells, created by his interior design firm, Dariel Studio. But with the click of a mouse you can deliver his East-meets-West style to the designloving traveler on your list. For his new blue candleholders, made of laminated metal and nearly two feet tall, Dariel drew inspiration from the Memphis Group, the Milanbased design organization credited with launching the wacky, Crayolahued look that pervaded the 1980s. Blue candleholders, $755. cappellini.it The Suitcase That Rolls Like a Ferrari Tumi’s International Carry-On is…

WHO: EXECUTIVE EDITOR JEREMY SAUM DURATION: TWO WEEKS SOUVENIR: SCULPTED GLAGOLITIC LETTERS Walking through the stone streets of Dubrovnik’s old town, where cruise ship passengers follow Game of Thrones tour guides, it’s hard to imagine that, in my lifetime, the city was under siege. Buskers’ melodies waft up the steep side streets, the lemon gelato from Dolce Vita is delicious, and the city’s fountain bubbles as it has for centuries. My family swam and kayaked in the Adriatic along the ancient walls. But then we looked up at the hills and realized those were the same hills from which shells rained down in the 1990s, when ethnic, religious, and nationalist strife tore the former Yugoslavia apart. How do you reconcile the region’s sad, confusing history with the natural and architectural…