The Curation: Volume 48
The Albania Short List, Good Greek Rentals, 55 hotels in Italy, Special Retreats, and Industry Updates.
What a week to put everything in perspective.
No, I do not live in LA, but a lot of people I love do and I have lived there, twice, and it’s entirely devastating.
Because I’m fortunate to have a readership in nearly every US state and dozens of countries around the world, I’d like to share some insight that I haven’t seen on all the major media narratives.
LA is a huge city. It’s made up of areas within that. It’s a city that can feel lonely for some, as it is so spread out and yes a lot of time is spent in the car. But then, there are communities – microcosms of culture and everything human – that are the opposite of lonely. They operate in ways more typical to fly-over states or suburban areas. Two of these, on entirely opposite sides of the city, are the Pacific Palisades (and Malibu) and Altadena. Places where you know most neighbors and where houses are passed down for generations and where togetherness is really valued. Yes, Tom Hanks (among many) lives in the Palisades and Mandy Moore in Altadena but they are the minority, I want to make that clear. The vast majority are normal people. Many, who saved up everything to buy that house. Or, they bought it decades ago and now would never be able to afford it. Lots of apartments! Some only could stay in the neighborhood because the house stayed in the family. Kids! So many kids. Many who lost their schools.
The reality is living in LA is damn expensive and way more people than you realize are just getting by. Also, insurance companies have been vile with Californians, across the board. So yes, many homes were uninsured or underinsured.
The memories and the routines and the pieces of material comfort cannot be replaced.
But these are a few ways to help if you feel inclined, within my orbit.
This is my niece Hazel’s best friend, Lily, and her family. They are important to the people most important to me, if you have the means, please consider helping them rebuild.
Marta had always wanted to live in Malibu, right on the beach, and she did, with her fiance. And then she saw it over and over again on global TV along with her shriveled former car. Her home was deemed “uninsurable” by insurance companies. Let’s help them? I know they’re already over the limit but Marta goes above and beyond for anyone she touches and has gone through a lot in life before this.
Martine Syms is someone I worked with at Nasty Gal and really, really admired. She’s one of the most talented creatives in LA, truly. Her family and childhood home is gone. And if you didn’t know, Altadena was one of the first neighborhoods that allowed Black people to purchase property, not long enough ago.
The Reel Inn was a Malibu and PCH mainstay, let’s help them support their staff and rebuild if they can.
And yes please do stream Heidi Montag’s music. It’s the least we can do. Hazel and her brother’s jiu jitsu instructor posted this on Instagram about/with Spencer Pratt, and, my god.
Los Angeles, I am so sorry.
Today’s Agenda
Answers to the AMA from Instagram at the beginning of the week
55 hotels in Italy that I have never stayed at and are at the top of my Spring/Summer travel list
21 retreats to have on your radar
The Albania Hotel Short List
All the industry everything, new openings, promising openings on the horizon, expansions and renovations
8 Special hotels that have recently either been top of mind or added to my mental lists
Good and affordable rentals in Greece, mostly on very Special Pieces of Earth
Things I Consumed This Week, of Note
The answer to “why didn’t they just leave right away?”
Joan Didion explained the great LA fear in Slouching Towards Bethlehem.
I read two very good new releases this week, by two favorite authors. The first is A Sea of Unspoken Things by Adrienne Young, it’s a mystery, but also about family and friendship and growing up in Northern California. 5/5. The second is by one of my favorite authors, and I suspect I may have given it the final star if I hadn’t read it during the darkest days of uncertainty this week. It’s historical fiction mystery of sorts, set at The Met and Egypt – The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis.
The Shopping Section
All here!
Thank you so much for being here. What would I do without you?!
Answers to the latest AMA
Last Sunday (or was it Monday?) I had an ask me anything on Instagram Stories and didn’t get to all the answers. I still won’t, but I wanted to answer a few more, before the paywall.
Q: Best luxury/boutique hotel in Saint Tropez
A: Airelles Château de la Messardière is where I would stay if I didn’t have a budget!
Q: London hotel! Cool vibes but less than $300 a night!
Zetter Townhouse, The Princess Royal and The Portobello Hotel in Notting Hill, Batty Langley’s, to name a few! So many are on The UK Hotel List, which is getting a fresh update soon.
Q: Solo travel tips for 2025?
A: You know, it’s funny, I don’t have many solo travel tips because I know that many do it totally differently. For me, it’s to always stick with my gut. Be patient, with myself and others. Financially plan for things to go wrong. Meet and talk to people that you come across and are drawn to naturally. Don’t pre-plan too many activities. Remind yourself that no one cares that you are by yourself. Be most aware and cautious on public transportation. Personally, I don’t wear anything with a logo, but I don’t really do that anyway. Don’t feel like you have to exchange contact info, only if your gut says yes. Enjoy your own company and take moments to specifically remember what all your senses are feeling in that moment, when you’re struck with a moment you want to have as a memory forever.
Q: Affordable honeymoon hotel in Rome and Florence?
Hii I’m just going to use this as an example for how it’s so hard to answer these questions without a rough budget. Affordable is so subjective – help me help you!
Q: Chile and Argentina recs plz!! For our honeymoon next fall :)
A: The Chile Hotel List is here, but I’ll share a good Argentina curation!
Pristine has two really epic luxury properties, a bubble experience in Patagonia, Pristine El Calafate, and Pristine Iguazú Luxury Camp.
Also for Patagonia, EOLO is most definitely honeymoon-worthy. Or really at the end of the world, Los Cauquenes.
In the Esteros del Ibera wetlands, Rincón del Socorro is incredibly charming.
For an estancia/farm experience, Estancia La Bamba de Areco is a top choice for me, or Estancia House of Jasmines, or Estancia Don Joaquin.
For a winery experience, Bodega Colomé in the Salta Province or Cavas Wine Lodge in Mendoza.
For a total wild card but memorable experience, you could go to the North to Purmamarca and stay at a hotel that I was going to gatekeep but I won’t, Los Colorados Cabañas, which isn’t luxurious but is unique. From there, you can visit the Salinas Grandes (salt flats) as well.
Q: Any Australian hotel recommendations?
A: I’ve mentioned a handful before and am working on a much bigger curation, but some that immediately come to mind are Qualia, Southern Ocean Lodge, Island House, and Longitude 131 as bucket list hotels, The Sunseeker and Sun Ranch in Byron Bay, Paramount House Hotel in Sydney and of course so many more - such a vast country.
55 Hotels in Italy I’d Like to Stay At, Spring and Summer
Well, my friends, it looks like I will likely be spending Spring and Summer in Italy at the very least. YAY. I will be apartmenting, not just Happy Hoteling, but of course there has to be both. In an ideal, fictional world where a brand sponsored me to stay at 55 (my lucky number) hotels that I have yet to stay at in Italy, throughout the Spring and Summer, this is what I would choose. Keep in mind, I have stayed at a lot of hotels in Italy. Some of these I have been for visits or to eat, but haven’t stayed the night. Others I would love to stay but not in the Spring or Summer, or they’re not at the tippy top of what I want, right now.
If nothing else, I think this is an answer to a lot of your questions of “hidden gem hotels in Italy.” Plus, adults don’t play pretend enough.