Essential Magazine May 2022 by Essential Magazine

ANDALUCÍA - SPAIN

N º 270 - MAY 2022

essential CLICK TO VISIT

MARBELLA W

on-ATCH p VIDE age

VENICE

VIBES YOGA ON

THE COAST THE MARBELLA

GRAND PRIX ELIZABETH

OLSEN

FERRARI

SP3 DAYTONA CLUB MED

MAGNA MARBELLA

BREATHE MARBELLA

CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW

PAUL COSTELLOE 2022 SPRING/SUMMER - P154

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM I TRAVEL I TRENDS I CULTURE I LIFESTYLE I PROPERTY I GOURMET

contents

ESSENTIALS

22 Publisher’s Letter GO TO SPOTLIGHT

30 Venice

44 Chelsea Flower Show

60 Club Med Magna Marbella 68 Yoga on the Coast 82 Nostradamus 92 New Ferrari SP3 Daytona 96 The Marbella Grand Prix 104 Elizabeth Olsen GO TO TRENDS

132

112 Hot New Films 116 Cool New Series 120 New Book Releases 124 The Influence of AI on Music Production 126 What’s Cool

154

GO TO LIFESTYLE 132 A Stunning Villa in Cascada de Camoján 142 Stylish House in La Heredia 148 Design Trends 154 Paul Costelloe SS22 162 Essential Foods for Pets

GO TO SPA 120 Benefit Makeup 122 Cellular Treatment for Oxidative Stress

196

GO TO ENTERPRISE

176 Artur Loginov of Drumelia Estates 182 Enterprise 190 The Vibe 192 New Laws on Animal Rights

GO TO GOURMET 196 Breathe in Marbella 202 New Look Casino Marbella

204 Gourmet Bytes 208 Green Wine

Cascada de Camoján

8.950.000 € | E&V ID: W-02OLKP 6 BEDS, 5 BATHS | BUILT 1.310 M2, PLOT 5.190 M2

Hacienda Las Chapas

Nueva Andalucía

2.750.000 € | E&V ID: W-02OAWB

3.350.000 € | E&V ID: W-02ONUO

5 BEDS, 5 BATHS | BUILT 716 M2, PLOT 1.562 M2

5 BEDS, 7 BATHS. BUILT 691 M2, PLOT 1.042 M2

Elviria, Marbella West

Frontline Beach Puerto Banús

2.300.000 €| E&V ID: W-02ONNF

1.950.000 € | E&V ID: W-02JOWI

5 BEDS, 4 BATHS | BUILT 407 M2, PLOT 1.730 M

4 BEDS, 5 BATHS. LIVING AREA 360 M2, TERRACES 30 M2

www.marbella-ev.com | marbella@engelvoelkers.com

La Quinta

5.950.000 € | E&V ID: W-02NUHH 6 BEDS, 7 BATHS | BUILT 930 M2, PLOT 2.000 M2

Sierra Blanca

Marbesa, Marbella West

7.800.000 € | E&V ID: W-02NGNH

2.850.000 € | E&V ID: W-02O10B

6 BEDS, 9 BATHS | BUILT 882 M2, PLOT 2.168 M2

5 BEDS, 6 BATHS | BUILT 585 M2, PLOT 867 M2

Paraíso Alto

Monte Mayor

830.000 €| E&V ID: W-02K4Q8

4.900.000 € | E&V ID: W-02O7I2

3 BEDS, 2 BATHS | LIVING AREA 120 M2, TERRACE 130 M2

5 BEDS, 6 BATHS | BUILT 682 M2, PLOT 6.950 M2.

www.marbella-ev.com | marbella@engelvoelkers.com

NUEVA ANDALUCIA BED 6, BATHS 6+2, PLOT 2,104 M2, BUILT 921 M2

CERQUILLA 38 8.650.000€

DISC OV ER

M A R B E LL A ´S

L ARG E ST

S EL EC T I O N OF TU RNK E Y V I LL AS I N P RI M E LOCATI ONS

VILLA ROMA 4.495.000€

NUEVA ANDALUCIA BED 4, BATHS 4, PLOT 1,171 M2, BUILT 350 M2

CAMOJAN 40 9.000.000€

CASCADA DE CAMOJAN BED 7, BATHS 8, PLOT 2,021 M2, BUILT 1,022 M2

B L V D . P R I N C I P E A L F O N S O VO N H O H E N L O H E , M A R B E L L A C L U B H OT E L , O F F I C E 1 0 , 2 9 6 0 2 M A R B E L L A , S PA I N

LOS FLAMINGOS BED 12, BATHS 12+2, PLOT 3,223 M2 , BUILT 2,470 M2

OTTO 20.000.000€

E X C L U S I V E L Y

W I T H

P R O P E RT Y D E V E L O P E R S & A DV IS O R S

FLAMINGOS 88 9.500.000€

VILLA ROSAS 4.995.000€

LOS FLAMINGOS BED 6, BATHS 6+3, PLOT 2,108 M2, BUILT 1,002 M2

+ 34

9 5 2

7 6 5

0 6 0

LAS BRISAS BED 5, BATHS 5+3, PLOT 1,218 M2, BUILT 446 M2

M :

+3 4

6 27

813

545

IN FO @S O LVILL A .ES

SO LVILL A .ES

DON’T MISS OUR BEAUTIFUL STORIES ONLINE

Issue 270 – May 2022

STAFF

PUBLISHER & DIRECTOR IAIN BLACKWELL director@essentialmagazine.com DIGITAL & CREATIVE DIRECTOR ANDREA BLACKWELL andrea@essentialmagazine.com ASSOCIATE EDITOR MARISA CUTILLAS marisa@essentialmagazine.com DESIGN & LAYOUT ANDREA BLACKWELL, INMA AURIOLES design@essentialmagazine.com

DID YOU KNOW? THOUSANDS SIGN UP TO RECEIVE OUR NEWSLETTER EVERY MONTH WITH HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR LATEST STORIES KEEP IN TOUCH WITH MARBELLA!

OFFICE ADMINISTRATION MÓNIKA BÖJTI essential@essentialmagazine.com WRITERS IAIN BLACKWELL (JAMES SINCLAIR), ANDI BLACKWELL (MADDIE QUINN), MICHEL CRUZ, ALICIA DUGGAN, ADAM JACOT, RAYMUNDO LARRAÍN NESBITT, ANDREW LINN, DARIO POLI, MANUELA REISBECK, TONY WHITNEY editorial@essentialmagazine.com KEY ACCOUNTS MANAGER ADRIANA VILLA ACCOUNTS EXECUTIVE MARIANO JEVA cuentas@essentialmagazine.com STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER KEVIN HORN www.photographermarbella.com PRINTING JIMÉNEZ GODOY A. GRÁFICAS, MURCIA DEPÓSITO LEGAL D.L. MA-512-99

MEMBER OF

EDITORIAL & ADVERTISING OFFICES COMPLEJO LA PÓVEDA, BLQ. 3, 1º A, CN 340, KM 178,

CLICK HERE TO S IGN UP

29600 MARBELLA, MÁLAGA. TEL: 952 766 344. INFO@ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM

YOU CAN C ANC EL ANY TI ME

www.essentialmagazine.com CONDITIONS

CHECK US OUT NOW @ w w w. e s s e n t i a l m a g a z i n e . c o m

The publishers make every effort to ensure that the magazine’s contents are correct, but cannot guarantee the accuracy of any information published herein, or be held accountable for any errors, omissions, or claims for damages. Marbella Magazine cannot accept responsibility for the claims, goods or services of advertisers, or for the copyright of materials used by them. © Publicaciones Independientes Costa del Sol S.L. for Marbella Magazine. No part of this magazine, including texts, photographs, illustrations, maps or any other graphics may be reproduced in any form without the prior written consent of Publicaciones Independientes Costa del Sol S.L. Printed on recyclable paper, produced without wood and bleached without chlorine.

The benefits of a ‘Strategic Financial Plan’ for UK nationals in Spain Regulated and suitable advice | Why it is critical that your financial adviser is regulated in Europe. What makes Blevins Franks unique. Residency | Planning your departure from the UK and arrival in Spain – making the right choices at the right time. Tax Planning | Ensuring your affairs are structured to minimise your tax liabilities in Spain. Dispelling the myth that Spain is a high tax country. Investment Planning | Ensuring your investments are properly structured to provide protection from higher inflation and unexpected world events. Estate Planning | Structuring your affairs to ensure your wealth passes to your chosen beneficiaries in a controlled and tax-efficient manner.

Seminars

MARBELLA | Tue 7 Jun Hotel Don Pepe Gran Meliá 11 for 11.30am, until 1pm FUENGIROLA | Thu 9 Jun Hotel IPV Palace & Spa 11 for 11.30am, until 1pm

Please reserve your place online at

www.blevinsfranks.com For enquiries call freephone 900 670 047or email events.spain@blevinsfranks.com

The tax, pension and investment regimes in Spain and the UK create a series of challenges for wealthier British expatriates trying to legitimately minimise tax and protect and grow their wealth. Book your seminar place now and benefit from our 45 years’ experience providing bespoke, cross-border wealth management solutions.

S06-es

INTERNATIONAL TAX ADVICE • INVESTMENTS • ESTATE PLANNING • PENSIONS Blevins Franks Wealth Management Limited (BFWML) is authorised and regulated by the Malta Financial Services Authority, registered number C 92917. Authorised to conduct investment services under the Investment Services Act and authorised to carry out insurance intermediary activities under the Insurance Distribution Act. Where advice is provided outside of Malta via the Insurance Distribution Directive or the Markets in Financial Instruments Directive II, the applicable regulatory system differs in some respects from that of Malta. BFWML also provides taxation advice; its tax advisers are fully qualified tax specialists. Blevins Franks Trustees Limited is authorised and regulated by the Malta Financial Services Authority for the administration of trusts, retirement schemes and companies. This promotion has been approved and issued by BFWML.

Golden Mile

5 BEDS, 4 BATHS LIVING AREA 428 M² SOLARIUM 473 M2, TERRACE 64 M²

5.900.000 € | E&V ID: W-02OP75

www.marbella-ev.com | marbella@engelvoelkers.com

we lcome to e ar th

a ne w era of sus tain able and lux ur y l ivin g o n m a r b e l l a’ s g o l d e n m i l e

j u s t r e l e a s e d . L i m i t e d ava i l a b i l i t y .

28 ultra luxury apartments & penthouses on the Golden Mile close to the beach and the Puente Romano Resort.

Tel.: 951 49 25 49 earthmarbella.com info@earthmarbella.com

i n s p i r e d b y n at u r e

E xc l us i ve s a l e s a g e nt

D WORDS BY IAIN BLACKWELL PUBLISHER

MAY MAX OUT

elcome to the 23rd anniversary edition of Magazine. A lot is going on this month, as reflected in these pages. We embark with a sojourn in Venice – May being one of the best months to visit the island paradise before the mad crowds and heat of the summer. We look forward to the spectacular Chelsea Flower Show, set to take place later this month with the world’s poshest garden party. Closer to home, the much anticipated Club Med Magna Marbella is opening its doors on May 14 and the inaugural Marbella Grand Prix revs up on May 25. For some spiritual introspection, see our feature on Yoga Retreats on the Coast.

22 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

Elsewhere in this issue, take a look at the new Ferrari SP3 Daytona, with a price tag in excess of €2M, and read how Elisabeth Olsen has overcome many obstacles to become such a strong character actor. We also indulge our appreciation of style at spectacular properties in Cascada de Camoján and La Heredia, and savour a sumptuous evening out at Breathe. On a sad note, we say goodbye to David Wishart, a regular contributor of travel articles, who left this world on March 29.

go to CONTENTS

“ALL THINGS SEEM POSSIBLE IN MAY” 204

EDWIN WAY TEALE

142

68 148

DIRECT FROM OWNER

T: (+34) 606 272 719

VILLA MONTILLA Altos de Puente Romano

€3.995.000 ♦ 5 bedrooms ♦ 6 bathrooms

Bodega ♦ Cinema room Gym, yoga & steam room Garage for 4 cars ♦ Year build 2016 Build 609 m2 ♦ Plot 1.167 m2

antimahomes.com / @antimahomes

Antima is a family run property developer creating one of a kind private residences. — You can also follow our developments on instagram @antimahomes All our projects are exclusively listed by Solvilla.es. For information on current or upcoming projects, call +34 627 813 545

antimahomes.com / @antimahomes

e back to CONTENTS

spotlight

COME WITH US ON A LUXURIOUS HOLIDAY IN VENICE AND MARVEL AT THE SPECTACLE OF THIS MONTH’S CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW. GET READY FOR THE MARBELLA GRAND PRIX, STARTING ON MAY 25, AND TAKE A LOOK AT THE MUCHANTICIPATED NEW CLUB MED MARBELLA, OPENING ON MAY 14.

GO TO PAGE 68 FOR YOGA ON THE COAST

GO TO PAGE 82 FOR NOSTRADAMUS

GO TO PAGE 44 FOR THE CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW

GO TO PAGE 96 FOR THE MARBELLA GRAND PRIX

CULTURE TRAVEL HISTORY PEOPLE MOTORING 30 Venice 44 Chelsea Flower Show 60 Club Med Magna Marbella 68 Yoga on the Coast 82 Nostradamus 92 New Ferrari SP3 Daytona 96 The Marbella Grand Prix 104 Elizabeth Olsen

D SPOTLIGHT travel

back to CONTENTS

I challenge anyone who arrives in Venice not to be transfixed by their dramatic entry into a foregone world. No cars, just boats and water and stunningly and arrestingly beautiful buildings. All worldly concerns disappear as I take part on this historical stage, and it is always with a wistful heart that I depart.

LA SERENISSIMA

WORDS ADAM JACOT PHOTOGRAPHY COURTERSY OF THE AMAN HOTEL AND SHUTTERSTOCK

30 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

our nights is a good length. Don’t try and take in everything, as you won’t manage. It’s very rich visually and there is always more to see. It’s a holiday for the eye as it incessantly spots what it can in a neck-straining panorama. For my own enjoyment of Venice I need lots of room to sustain a true sensual experience. No crowds and

ideally I need to combine the central sites with the outer reaches, to contrast the cramped passageways that often result in dead-ends with the wide and walkable expanse of the quaysides and their exposure to the sea. For it’s easy to get claustrophobic and so important to maintain a sense of the expansive lagoon. The joy is in the lack of combustion, save

for the busying vaporettos and water taxis allowing for the unique quality of a city without permanent noise. The lapping ripples of the encroaching water, invasive at ‘aqua alta’ (high tide) reminds me of the ultimate fragility of the lagoon while the lulling of a ‘barcarola’ (gondolier's song) or a piano being played round any domestic corner is romantic to the extreme. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 31

D SPOTLIGHT travel

back to CONTENTS

As for my tips, get a city pass (www.veneziaunica.it/en) so that you can then travel freely. If you spot a green church door open seize the moment to look inside as often they are shut. Take the lift at San Giorgio Maggiore for a panoramic view of the lagoon as it’s quicker and cheaper than St. Mark’s campanile. From here I looked down upon the churches evenly spaced along the Giudecca, crowned with statues that seem to converse with one another on an altogether higher plane. I also recommend attending one of the many touristic evening classical music performances (especially the Pieta where Vivaldi taught). For the true romantic, come for Christmas and attend the midnight mass on Christmas Eve in St Mark’s

32 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

Basilica where the ‘smells and bells’ of Catholicism fuse with the Byzantine gilded décor and darkness is alleviated by lanterns and candles. No one writes about Venice more insightfully than John Ruskin and Jan Morris in their book The Stones of Venice and no guidebook can better that of Mitchell Beazley where I learnt little eyebrow-raising snippets such as Michelangelo spending three years exiled on the Giudecca from 1529 as well as the abandoned island San Giorgio in Alga, once a radical monastery and then a political prison, being a secret Nazi base. I stayed first at The Londra Palace (www.londrapalace.com), just behind St. Mark’s. How romantic it was to wake up and open the shutters to look out at

boating traffic criss-crossing the ‘bacino’ (the central waterway onto which the Grand Canal emerges). Not to mention the view across to the San Giorgio church. Furnished with Murano glass chandeliers and offering al fresco dining, this classic and traditional hotel cleverly blends its blue rooms into the water beyond. ›

D SPOTLIGHT travel

back to CONTENTS

The Venetian empire’s sobriquet is ‘La Serenissima’ and at night I love taking a vaporetto up and down the Grand Canal for only then can I look up at and into the true splendour of the gilded ceilings and expansive rooms of the opulent palazzos. And the church domes and their ‘campanile’ (belltowers) are lit up. Truly serene! Venice grew to power in the divide between East and West. This unique circumstance overwhelmingly conditioned her art. At first she was drawn naturally towards the East, as the stronger culture. But then, with the decline and eclipse of Byzantium, Venice acquired extensive

34 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

mainland territory, towards the West. For a thousand years the city kept her independence under an unbroken line of Doges, only to be upended by Napoleon who at least granted that the Piazzo St Marco resembled the grandest drawing room in Europe. Next I hopped on a vaporetto to stay at the resplendent Aman Venice (www.aman.com/resorts/ aman-venice). Where could be more romantic than this venue for George Clooney’s wedding night? I reached this late-Renaissance ‘palazzo’ by opening a discreet gateway tucked away down a ‘calle’. But the front entrance has its

own jetty and a glorious garden overlooking the broadest part of the Grand Canal. The ‘piano nobile’ (main floor) houses the ballroom with its silk wall coverings from the three Italian textile houses Bevilacqua, Fortuny and Rubelli. It’s extremely ornate with gilt corners on its frescoed ceilings. With only 25 rooms the hotel feels very spacious and a peaceful contrast to the main thoroughfare of Venetian frenzy that is the Grand Canal. The second floor is more contemporary, chic and light with long white silk drapes reflected in impressively large, grand mirrors. The bedrooms blend Venetian ornamentation

with fresh tones of grey, cream and white. Everything that happens in Aman Venice is done with immaculate and graceful ease. The service is telepathic, warm and friendly but not intrusive. I have been coming to Venice dozens of times, whenever

possible choosing to spend time on the Giudecca as it is cut off from the two main islands and, with only the Redentore church in the guidebooks, it’s as good as anywhere to be among the Venetians going about their daily lives in garrulous and gesticular fashion. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 35

D SPOTLIGHT travel

back to CONTENTS

I often visit the Campo San Polo, the largest of the city’s squares (the St. Marco one is a piazza) and watch children kick a football irreverently against the church wall. I eat with the locals at Trattoria alla Madonna (www. ristoranteallamadonna.com/en). It’s by the Rialto and has fresh crab and is close to the food market where seagulls are shooed away by the fishmongers. Similarly wonderful is the Trattoria Altanella on the Giudecca which is a real find, a lovely family-run fish restaurant. The Venetians are similar to the Cornish, rugged, seafaring, separatist and mercantile,

36 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

putting up with tourists if only for their spending. It is easy to forget the harsh ambition and blood spilt to make this city the empire it was and the aesthetic delight it remains. It’s tragic that the population is shrinking as the young look elsewhere for their futures and it’s true that Venice will need the advance of science to defy its impending sinking doom. Monet and Turner were drawn to the restless light, enhanced by the blues of the water and sky. Lord Byron swam across the Grand Canal with manly intent. Romantics and lovers, escapists all belong and thrive

in this unique city. For many the mysticism of the weather and light is intoxicating, for some there’s the sense of foreboding as in the film Don’t Look Now. I stayed finally at The Bauer Hotel (www.bauervenezia.com). The architectural façade is from the 1960’s while its luxuriant interior is adorned with local Seguso glass (from a Murano foundry belonging to a family now in its 23rd generation and dating back to the 14th century). The hotel also has the ultimate honeymoon ‘room with a view’ looking across the Grand Canal onto the Salute church. ›

O U R C L I E N T S WA N T T O B U Y

PUENTE ROMANO SIERRA BLANCA N U E VA A N D A L U C Í A PUERTO BANÚS L A Q U I N TA L A Z A G A L E TA

S E L L YO U R P R O P E R T Y W I T H U S C O N TA C T U S + 3 4 676 9 0 15 19 I N F O @STRAND.E S ST R A N D.E S

D SPOTLIGHT travel

back to CONTENTS

The owner of The Bauers is the dynamic and engaging Francesca Bortolotto Possati who with her family has run the hotel since her grandfather acquired it in the 1930s. Chatting with her over dinner in her De Pisis Restaurant, I learnt more of her vision for the hotel, which comprises of placing guests at the very heart of the arts and culture of the city. She also has a personal passion for gardening, reflected in the gardens that offer real refuge in the summer months. They belong to the discreet 50-room Palladio hotel, another of the four Bauers complex which all differ in their architecture

38 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

and style, and a conversion of the original Zitelle on the Giudecca, which as a convent, used to house and protect the wellbeing of unmarried girls. And of course bang next door, told to me by a dickie bird, is Elton John’s own waterside house positioned above the hotel’s state-of-the-art spa. The staff at the hotel are dapper, attentive and dedicated to doing their utmost for the predominantly short-staying guests. But no matter how long the stay, be sure to request a room overlooking the waterfront. While steeped in history, Venice is nonetheless visually highly progressive, staging artistic and architectural

Biennales that are the envy and forums of the creative world. These are staged in the gardens, again a healthy walk north of St Mark’s. Many new concepts begun in Venice. The word for a public open-air swimming pool comes from the Italian Lido, the famous Venetian bathing beach. The original arsenal developed in the 11th century and was the heart of the naval industry. The

original ghetto was established in 1516 on the site of a foundry (‘getto’). The word quarantine itself originates from the Venetian dialect ‘quaranta giorni’ (forty days). At last and at least, and how reassuringly, Venice is offering herself not at a price but for what she’s really worth. Mindless mass tourism may well have had its day hopefully without any lasting damage. For recently

Italian ministers decided that large cruise and container ships could no longer enter the Giudecca canal which leads to St. Mark’s Square. Also the local police and civic units known as ‘angels of decorum’, installed in 2017 to restore dignity to the city, are finally clamping down on the louts and litterbugs whose bad habits include feeding the pigeons and sunbathing in bikinis by San Stae church, picnicking on the steps of the portico surrounding St. Mark’s Square, whizzing along the Grand Canal on a stand-up paddleboard or past Palazzo Cavalli on an electric scooter. Officers have also been clamping down on illegal trading, confiscating bracelets, selfie sticks, luminous darts and roses, especially in the area of the train station, the Rialto Bridge and St Mark’s Square: the three main hubs of the mass tourists, the three vital links of the yellowarrowed route along which they flock. These are critical steps in the right direction. I must return. Whenever but soon! g Adam Jacot de Boinod was a researcher for the first BBC television series QI, hosted by Stephen Fry. He wrote The Meaning of Tingo and Other Extraordinary Words from around the World, published by Penguin Books. WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 39

Charming Parking Lot for Sale in La Zagaleta, Along with a 6 Car Garage *(with Attached 12 Bedroom Mansion, Spa – Hammam Seating 11, Sauna Seating 15, Gym, 3 Heated Swimming Pools, Cinema, Billiards Room, 15 Bathrooms, etc.) PRICE GUIDE €9,995.000 Tel 952 856 844 Mo 672 050 503. info@casa-cascada-zagaleta.com

D SPOTLIGHT flowers D SPOTLIGHT flowers

back to CONTENTS

CHELSEA FLOWER POWER Fabulous floristry ©RHS/ Georgi Mabee

London is buzzing this month and it’s not just the sound of bees heading to Chelsea Flower Show. checks out the poshest garden party on the planet where the corporate hospitality tents are a heaving hive of humans soaking up the atmosphere of pollen, privilege and power.

44 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

“I just come and talk to the plants… they respond I find.” Prince Charles

t’s London Fashion Week for Plants, a living catwalk to the haute couture of horticulture where the world’s wizard growers and landscape architects showcase their spring/summer collections for gold medals, glory and, maybe, a commission from a sheik. The Royal Horticultural Society’s flagship flower show is back in bloom for its 109th season, having been nipped in the bud by Covid in 2020 and transplanted to autumn last year. It pops up in the splendid grounds of Royal Chelsea Hospital for just one week like a miracle, if you don’t count the team of 8,000 staff required to perform it. Tens of thousands

of plants all blooming in unison, and fantasy show gardens many a lord couldn’t afford with lakes, waterfalls and forest trees – 11 metres tall is the record; over 2,000 tonnes of soil is excavated for every show. There’s just three weeks to set it all up, complete with catering and plumbing, and 11 days to put the lawns back afterwards. Although millions watch it on TV, there’s only room for 160,000 visitors a year to experience this scented psychedelic spectacle and the RHS has no trouble charging £85.85 for every oversubscribed public ticket. July’s Hampton Court Palace show costs a third of that, and it’s bigger. But

Chelsea’s cachet is priceless. Falling between the Oxford v Cambridge Boat Race in April and Henley in June, Chelsea has been the horticultural highlight of the London Season since King George V and Queen Mary topped its pedigree guest list. Their granddaughter Queen Elizabeth has rarely missed a Preview Monday since she became RHS patron in 1952. The ensuing champagne-fuelled party is for invited celebrities, cabinet ministers, the titled and entitled who obligingly pop up between the greenery for press photos. The Charity Gala Dinner is even more exclusive. There’s a ballot for tickets and you have to be invited to enter it. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 45

D SPOTLIGHT flowers

back to CONTENTS The Queen in 2019 © RHS/ Luke MacGregor

There’s a pecking order for the rest of the week too, with RHS members-only days on the Tuesday and Wednesday, leaving three days for commonor-garden folk. Children under five, prams, pushchairs, dogs and garden gnomes (considered vulgar) are outlawed completely, although gnomes were reprieved for the 2013 centenary. Sponsors pay by the barrow load for an entrée to this elite sphere – £2.5m, according to one, for gala tickets, a show garden on Main Avenue and five days of schmoozing clients

46 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

King George V and Queen Mary, 1930s © RHS/ Georgi Mabee

over Champagne breakfasts and power lunches in perfumed garden settings. Regulars say they do more business in five days here than the rest of the year put together. McBeans Orchids, winner of 70 Gold medals, has been coming since 1913 and not just for the glory. You can get as seriously

horticultural as you like at Chelsea, right down to Latin names and roots, but it’s not all about the plants. According to the Society’s own research, the show has the highest CEO-count of any other event in the London Season, and most of them wouldn’t know an allium from an aspidistra. ›

D SPOTLIGHT flowers

back to CONTENTS

Posing among the peonies © RHS/ Luke MacGregor

As well as fulfilling its pledge to ‘inspire a passion for gardening’, the RHS also makes a tidy profit which funds its gardens, libraries, competitions, scientific research, training courses and school projects. Founded as a registered charity in 1804, there are now over half a million members entitled to add the letters MRHS after their names. Flower power entwines itself through the entire London borough during Chelsea Week. Every shop, café and bar from Kings Road to Sloane Square

Queen of Cakes Mary Berry enjoys Preview Monday, 2018 48 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

adopts the floral theme for the RHS Chelsea in Bloom competition and it’s hard not to get swept up in the floral frenzy. “There’s something about Chelsea with its amazing mix of spectacle and extreme expertise,” observes Sophie Campbell, author of A Summer Whirl through the English Social Season. “People who have been thinking only about peonies or grass varieties all their adult lives, TV cameras swooping around and gardening celebs… I love it and I don’t even have a window box.”

The Duchess of Cambridge worked on the first RHS ‘wild’ garden © RHS/ Luke MacGregor

GOING WILD WITH MR WEED Nettles, cow parsley and wayside weeds have equality with thoroughbred roses and rare hothouse hybrids for this year’s Chelsea theme. Designers were invited to ‘embrace the wild’ in their gardens with hedgerow plants and meadow flowers to create natural habitats that have wow factor for wildlife. It reflects a more naturalistic change of direction for the RHS whose new president, by pure coincidence, is a Mr Keith Weed. He started by striking slugs and snails off the official Top Garden Pests list on the grounds that they are vital to a balanced ecosystem. Instead of getting out the slug pellets, the RHS now recommends planting sacrificial species

Chelsea is going wild © RHS/ Neil Hepworth

that slugs prefer next to prize specimens.

SHOW STOPPERS Show gardens can feature as many as 8,000 plants, not including three ‘spares’ of everything to ensure the bee’s knees of perfection. Designer Bunny Guinness reckons on ‘£330,000 minimum’ for a Main Avenue ‘catwalk’ garden. “Nothing less would work, and that can easily go up to a million.” The Swiss Tourist Board, The Body Shop and Boodles the famous Bond Street jewellers are among this year’s deep-pocketed sponsors. The BBC, which broadcasts daily from the showground, has sponsored the Blue Peter Garden since the late great Percy Thrower designed the first in 1974. ›

ZEN Garden by Japan’s Ishihara Kazuyuki is a hot contender this year

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 49

D SPOTLIGHT flowers

The conceptual Plantman’s Ice Garden, a Siberian woodland encased in a 3-metre thick cube of ice, is sure to be one of this year’s crowd-pullers. It will drip away to the tick of a Doomsday clock to show how the melting permafrost create ‘drunken forests’ with dire consequences for the planet. Memorable creations down the decades have included a sky garden suspended from a crane, The Silk Road Garden, 2017

50 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

back to CONTENTS

a canal with working lock gates, an ornamental stream stocked with piranha fish and a cheat’s garden laid with artificial grass. In 2009 a riot over a Plasticine garden was averted by awarding it a Plasticine Gold Medal. But the RHS drew the line at scantily clad models who were evicted from a rock garden on the grounds that ‘livestock of any kind’ are not admitted to the show. ›

Trailfinders’ Undiscovered Latin America garden, 2019. © RHS/ Neil Hepworth

The Ice Garden should be pretty cool © John Warland

Reinventing Marbella’s boating heritage SAYMARBELLA.COM

D SPOTLIGHT flowers

back to CONTENTS

THE GREAT PAVILION Imagine 3,230 ‘average-sized British gardens’ laid out in a single greenhouse for an idea of the scale of this monster structure, which takes 50 staff 2,000 hours to put up. A showcase to fabulous floristry and botanical innovation, the olfactory overload inside from tens of thousands of

exotic blooms is equally overpowering. As well as oodles of ideas for patios, terraces and teeny container gardens, there’s a Discovery Zone delving into the science of gardening and its power over mental health; a House Plants Studios offering inspiration for every room in the

home; and 200 shops selling every kind of gardening gizmo, from posh boot scrapers to souped-up sit-on lawnmowers. Going round it all is no walk in the park. The 50 judges and four moderators who take three hours to allocate the awards would probably agree.

The Great Pavilion is a very long walk in the park

CHAMPERS WITH EVERYTHING The fizz starts flowing at 8am, as the flowers are waking up, accompanying eggs Benedict breakfasts, smoked salmon and caviar lunches and Dorchester afternoon teas in a replica of the famous hotel’s drawing room. In between meals, there are Pimms tents. Visitors to the last show, clearly hardy perennials, polished off an epic 10,823 flutes of Champagne and 7,720 glasses of Pimms, and no one fell in the flower beds. ›

Chelsea attracts a Champagne crowd ©RHS/ Georgi Mabee 52 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

back to CONTENTS

Gourmets make a beeline for Jardin Blanc where visionary French chef Raymond of Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons fame presides over five days of florally-themed fare. Le Poppy on the closing Saturday offers continental breakfast with pitchers of Bloody Marys, a threecourse lunch with fine wines and – if you’re not too pickled – a front row spot at the Great Plant Sell-Off, sharp at 4 o’clock. ›

D SPOTLIGHT flowers

Dame Judi Dench, a rose between two Chelsea Pensioners, 2021

CHELSEA PENSIONERS

It’s fun but this mad hat is a no-no

54 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

©RHS/ Georgi Mabee

These sprightly old soldiers outdazzle the flowers on Preview Monday when they don their ceremonial ‘Scarlets’ for the party in their own back yard. The Royal Hospital Chelsea has been a retirement home for the exmilitary since King Charles II hired Sir Christopher Wren to design it, and its magnificent Palladianmeets-Baroque style has formed the regal backdrop to the flower show since 1913. Those eligible to live out their days in this Arcadian setting must be exBritish Army veterans over 65 with at least 12 years of service in the ranks, and provided they ‘fit in’ after a trial stay.

FLORAL FORMALITIES Unlike Ascot’s toppers and tails and Henley’s pink blazers, there’s no longer a dress code for Chelsea. However Debrett’s Guide to Etiquette suggests that ‘skirts and blouses or frocks for ladies in preference to trouser suits are more in keeping with the sense of occasion’. Huge view-blocking hats and garish colours that clash with the flowers are absolute no-nos. But umbrellas and mackintoshes (posh waterproofs) are prerequisites for the perennially unpredictable British summer weather. e Chelsea Pensioner in his ‘Scarlets’ © RHS/ Luke MacGregor Don’t clash with the flowers © RHS/ Luke MacGregor

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 55

D SPOTLIGHT hotels

back to CONTENTS

NEW CLUB MED

MAGNA MARBELLA OPENS ITS DOORS ON MAY 14 This month, Marbella will be home to the brand new Club Med Magna Marbella, a luxury family holiday resort located in Sierra Blanca and boasting an impressive 14 hectares of gardens. This location is an ideal playground for families of all ages, who can enjoy a host of activities while soaking in the nature and culture of Andalucía. WORDS MARISA CUTILLAS PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF CLUB MED MAGNA MARBELLA

MAKING THE MOST OF THE SOUTHERN SPANISH EXPERIENCE Club Med Magna Marbella will invite guests to savour the Coast to the full, offering the services of their G.O. (Gentil Organisateur)

60 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

team. The team is highly experienced and passionate about sharing Marbella’s stunning landscape and varied cultural offerings with guests from Spain and all over the world.

A CAREFREE, ALL-INCLUSIVE HOLIDAY Arrive at Club Med and forget about work and responsibilities. The allinclusive tour operator takes charge of all travel details (from booking to returns, as well as transfers) so that you can simply make the most of your holiday. The all-inclusive package includes:

Z Stylish, comfortable accommodation Z Gourmet cuisine, snacks, and open bar service throughout the day in the resort’s restaurants and bars Z Various sports and activities Z Childcare from four months to 17 years old Z The services of the G.O. team

ROOMS FOR EVERY NEED Arranged in a single helixshaped building, the rooms are decorated in an Andalusian style and offer spectacular views of the sea, the mountains, or the city. There are 485 rooms in total, including Deluxe and Suites, as well as connecting rooms for the convenience of families. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 61

D SPOTLIGHT hotels

back to CONTENTS

THE FAMILY FUN ZONE The resort is home to a special space that is entirely dedicated to families. It features a playground, water park with slides and games, a mini-golf course, and a zipline. There is a full programme of activities for all ages. Kids and teens can discover the art of Andalusian music, flamenco, painting, sports, and more. Restaurants have a baby corner, plus special meals and services catered to the tiniest members of the family.

THE AMAZING FAMILY PROGRAMME Families can take part in a wide array of games and group activities and opt for tailor-made excursion programmes to places like the Ojén eco-reserve, the Sierra de las Nieves Natural Park ( a UNESCO World Heritage site), and the white villages of Mijas. 62 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

LOCAL FLAVOURS AND FINE CUISINE Be prepared to enjoy a host of tasty recipes made with locally sourced ingredients. The resort’s garden parties take place around an outdoor table lit by lanterns. On the menu are traditional delights like sangria and tapas, grilled octopus, and jamón, accompanied by a selection of Spanish wines. The main restaurant, Sueños (with a spectacular sea view) serves international cuisine, local specialities, and gourmet dishes prepared in front of guests.

Tierra Gourmet lounge, meanwhile, features live music, a dedicated wine cellar, and a boutique selling local products. This spot is ideal for a late breakfast, dinner, or a tasting. The resort is also home to three bars, serving drinks and snacks.

TIME FOR A SPLASH Club Med Magna Marbella has five swimming areas and many shady spots, so you can stay cool even in the summer. The selection includes an adults-only Zen pool, kids’ pools, and an indoor-outdoor heated pool. ›

TAKE A MOMENT

To view

A bespoke development of 44 private sea view residences, immersed in authentic Andalusia, bordering a protected nature area and conceived by a world class team. BY APPOINTMENT ONLY +34 951 255 255 info@oceanviewmarbella.com OCEANVIEWMARBELL A.COM A bespoke penthouse in cooperation with Aalto Design. Additional costs apply. Many of the components, amenities and place names of Ocean View and the surrounding areas depicted and/or described in this material are still in the conceptual planning stages and are subject to change without notice. This material is intended to encourage the sale of the residential units; however, it does not constitute an offer to sell or solicitation of offers to purchase in any state where prior registration is required.

D SPOTLIGHT hotels

back to CONTENTS

WELLNESS RETREAT The Zen Oasis, only open to adults, is immersed in the sounds of nature. Here, you can relax by the pool and sip freshly made juice at the Sierra Blanca bar, or take part in Pilates, yoga, or aerial fitness classes. Additionally, the Club Med Spa by Cinq Mondes, with indoor and outdoor spaces for relaxation and a Turkish bath, offers exceptional treatments in 14 cabins.

A PLACE TO MEET Club Med Magna Marbella has 15 meeting rooms and a large plenary / ballroom. The Resort can be privatised if needed.

SPORTS Stay active by taking part in the many sporting activities available, including tennis, archery,

64 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

mini-soccer, beach volleyball, basketball, table tennis and minigolf. The resort is also home to a circus and trapeze school, as well as a cardio room and classes, exercise equipment, and six paddle tennis courts. Group classes are offered in paddle tennis for all levels, from ages six and up. Finally, there is a golf driving range within the resort, plus group and private

golf lessons and dedicated golf concierges. Guests can also access some of the most beautiful golf courses in the area.

g C/ Padre Paco Ostos s/n, Trapiche, Marbella. Tel: 900 603 030. www.clubmed.es

CLICK TO

www.clubmed.com

e h t n o e a e Liv s e h t f edge o

#pureliving We

homes

info@NVOGA.com +34 952 813 333

READY TO MOVE IN

2.700.000€

D SPOTLIGHT retreats

back to CONTENTS

D SPOTLIGHT flowers

YOGA RETREATS ON THE COAST HEALING BODY, MIND, AND SPIRIT “Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self.” The Bhagavad Gita

68 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

Regardless of how mentally tenacious you are, you probably would agree that the past two years have been tough on human mental health. Professionals the world over have long predicted that once the peak of the pandemic was over and its physical effects reduced, the true impact of trauma would start to surface and the data speaks for itself. The pandemic has triggered a 25 per cent increase in anxiety and depression worldwide. In current times, holistic pursuits like spending time outdoors, mindfulness meditation, and yoga all have important roles to play. Numerous studies have shown that yoga is a powerful means to reduce stress hormone levels, boost concentration, increase energy, and tackle chronic pain. Yoga enables practitioners to exist in ‘the here and now’; and feel at one with the Great Outdoors, especially when it is practised in a green or blue setting. Whether you have been feeling a bit snowed under or you wish to hone your techniques, few experiences are quite as calming as taking part in a yoga retreat. This month, we bring you some of the very best retreats on the Coast. WORDS MARISA CUTILLAS PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF THE RESPECTIVE YOGA STUDIOS/ CENTRES AND AS INDIVIDUALLY INDICATED

MOLINO DEL REY Located in the lush nature reserve of the Sierra de las Nieves, Molino del Rey is internationally renowned as one of Spain’s top yoga retreats and it has been covered by media such as Vogue, The Times, and the BBC. Its driving force is undoubtedly the couple who owns and runs it: Anthony Arnold

(who built the retreat with his very own hands) and his wife, Lidiya Starov (who is one of the secrets behind its success). Lidiya, who is also a trained yoga teacher, masseuse, chef, and artist, has worked alongside Anthony practically from the beginning, turning Molino del Rey into an oasis that reflects her

passion for health and wellness. She has transformed the retreat into a place filled with artistry, designing the carefully manicured gardens, hand-painting all the rooms, running and managing the restaurant, and more. Indeed, Lidiya manages the retreat with zest and an authentic passion for her guests’ satisfaction. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 69

D SPOTLIGHT retreats

back to CONTENTS

i di y

a of

Molino del Rey

70 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

(which is aptly called the Waterfall Room). The highest part of the cave now embraces the retreat’s pool grotto. Its supreme acoustics make it the perfect setting for sound meditation sessions. The retreat also has a state-ofthe-art yoga hall, which was literally hand-cut into the mountain and which measures 100m2. Floor-to-ceiling windows make for stunning views of the valley and a door within the hall allows you to step into the stillness of the caves.

Anthony, who also teaches overtone/ breathing singing at the retreat, is a former British Secret Service agent who arrived in the Andalusian hamlet of Jorox (in the Sierra de las Nieves nature reserve) in 1993. Back then, Jorox had a local population of just nine people. He bought a rundown mill and began to literally build a road to it. “I have always been very good with my hands,” he says, adding that he made many fascinating discoveries during the construction of this palatial healing retreat. While digging a hole for the resort’s pool, he discovered a cave. He kept digging and found its exit, which now leads to one of the resort’s rooms

The resort serves delicious, healthy meals (typically made with vegetarian ingredients) at its restaurant, headed by Chef Simón. Owing in no small part to its privileged setting (it is surrounded by verdant gardens, orange trees, and bubbling mountain streams), Molino del Rey is booked year-round. Indeed, some of the other studios mentioned in this article book it for their courses. In May, various retreats will be taking place, including yoga retreats and sound meditation therapist training courses. Additional events can be found on their website. i www.molinodelrey.com

D SPOTLIGHT retreats

back to CONTENTS T h e ma

gnif ice

ri S

oll

em a

RADIANT YOGA MARBELLA

Radiant Yoga has been one of Marbella’s favourite studios since as far back as we can recall. Its heart and soul is its founder, yoga teacher extraordinaire Lori Sjollema. She has dedicated over four decades of her professional life to helping others heal body, mind, and spirit through the millenary practice of yoga. Lori is just about as knowledgeable as can be, having trained extensively in various yoga schools – including Vinyasa Flow, Iyengar, Anusara, and Rasa Yoga. She is also passionate about Ayurvedic healing and helping others overcome trauma through tools such as controlled breathing, meditation, Yoga Nidra, and selfunderstanding.

72 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

Radiant Yoga’s Co-Founder, Arianne Pieper, has been teaching yoga since 2006. She is certified in Hatha Yoga and has completed the renowned Anusara teacher training course. She has also trained in disciplines that have been her passions for several years: Iyengar Yoga, Thai massage, and Ayurveda. In addition to offering classes at Radiant Yoga’s studios, Lori and her passionate team also host ‘Radiant Retreats’, taking groups to scenic spots like the Molino del Rey Retreat Centre, Huerta

Belinda in Tarifa, and La Posada Romana in Gaucín. One thing all these places have in common are the beautiful natural landscapes that surround them. Huerta Belinda, for instance, is a beautiful mansion in bohemian Tarifa – where powdery beaches, majestic promontories, and views of Morocco inspire tranquillity and spiritual reflection. From June 12 to 18, Lori and Arianne will be hosting a six-night retreat at Molino del Rey, entitled Awaken to the Flow of Prana. It will include Dynamic Hatha Yoga Practices, Pranayama, Restorative Yoga, and meditation. It will additionally offer an introduction to the Five Vayus (these are movements or functions of prana known literally as ‘winds’ that govern different areas of the body and ideally function in harmony). The retreat will include healthy vegetarian meals and plenty of free time to enjoy the natural surroundings, massage therapies, swimming, and relaxation beneath the sun. i Further information, info@yoga-in-marbella.net www.yoga-in-marbella.met

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 73

D SPOTLIGHT retreats

back to CONTENTS

SURYALILA RETREAT CENTRE Suryalila is a composite of two Sanskrit words: Surya (which refers to an ancient Sun God) and Lila (the cosmic play of the Gods). The centre, which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary, was built on a renovated olive farm in a large open valley at the foothills of the Sierra de Grazalema. The retreat comprises eight houses that form a cortijo with two inner courtyards, one of which is graced with the energising presence of orange and lemon trees. The property, which offers views over a majestic mountain range, sits on 50 acres of land and has an active olive farm with 800 trees. Through its onsite sister project, Danyadara, a non-profit permaculture farm, they grow organic fruits and vegetables

74 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

and keep chickens for their eggs. One of Suryalila’s most striking features is its breathtaking vista, which extends in all directions and comprises sunflower fields, lakes, and rolling hills. The luxury of being in the midst of such an expansive natural site is uplifting and very fitting, indeed, for a retreat. ›

the year. Check out these upcoming retreats: From May 16 to 21, Yoga, Nature & White Villages fivenight retreat featuring rejuvenating Restorative Yoga, re-energising Vinyasa Flow sessions, wine tasting in a local bodega, a visit to Arcos Lake beach, dinner in the whitewashed hilltop village of Arcos de la Frontera, and more. Additional speciality holidays offered in May include the Connect Balance Retreat (with movement, breath, massage, and mindfulness) and the Movement & Breathwork Retreat (which will help you start your journey into natural movement and breathwork). In June, guests can explore the power of writing through ‘True Essence: A Storytelling Retreat’ and learn about sustainable living through a permaculture course. Another highlight of the year is the Summer Sanctuary Retreat, which will be taking place in August and

featuring yoga, meditation, sound healing, breathwork, swimming, Yoga Nidra, hilltop hikes, and more. The centre also welcomes independent guests – those who want to enjoy the retreat facilities and beautiful surroundings without booking a specialised retreat. Moreover, during the pandemic, their ‘vanlife’ area has grown in popularity enabling travellers on the road to park up in a rural paradise in the mountains. i www.suryalila.com

©Gianluca Iacopini

©Joshua Hiatt, Big Box Visuals

The Director of Suryalila is Vidya Jacqueline Heisel, who co-founded Suryalila alongside her business partner, Peter Simmons. Vidya has been practising yoga for over 40 years and has a fascinating life that includes a trip to India in 1975, which she undertook to find a guru. She started practising yoga in Pune at the Shree Rajneesh Ashram and fell in love with India, Eastern philosophy, and yoga. When her teacher left, she went from student to teacher, heading Iyengar Yoga classes for four years. Since then, she has trained across the globe in a host of styles, including Ashtanga, Vinyasa Flow, Kundalini, Sivananda style, Hatha Yoga, and Forrest Yoga. Vidya developed her own yoga teacher training along the way. Two decades ago, her yoga school, Frog Lotus Yoga International, was born, and now she successfully runs courses along with retreats at her homebase, Suryalila. Suryalila offers various retreats, trainings, and courses throughout

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 75

D SPOTLIGHT retreats

back to CONTENTS

EYWA MARBELLA Eywa Marbella is located in Puerto Banús, just 100 metres from the beach. The studio was founded by Silvia Zorraquino, who shares good energy and years of experience with her students. For Silvia, yoga is a means to connect with oneself and with the environment, and she ensures that every session is enriching and enlightening. From a very young age, Silvia was interested in wellbeing. When she became a mom, she sensed the

76 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

importance of touch and delved into massage for newborns, shiatsu, reflexology, reiki, and Thai massage. Sylvia has completed a host of courses and is certified in the US and UK. Among her specialities are Hatha Yoga, yoga for children and families, Yoga Nidra, and Aerial Yoga (she is trained in the renowned Yoga Aéreo Unnata method). In Aerial Yoga, practitioners rely on the support of a soft, aerial hammock made of fabric. The latter

is suspended from the ceiling to enhance and refine traditional floor yoga practice.

or r aZ

in o a qu

M of Ey wa arbella

Eywa yoga specialises in private retreats (with one to six persons) lasting from three to seven days, though it also hosts small group retreats (for up to 10 people). A typical four-day retreat includes a host of activities – including three hours of private yoga lessons on the beach, eight hours of private yoga lessons at the Eywa centre, a massage, Turkish bath, aromatherapy, reiki, meditative walks, yoga and chakra harmonisation sessions, and more. Silvia tells me that although many of her regular students are from Marbella, the vast majority of those who book her retreats hail from abroad. “Private retreats are ideal because they enable us to create bespoke programmes that are in line with our student’s wishes and needs,” says Silvia. Eywa Marbella has a dedicated partnership with Meliá Hotels & Resorts, where guests usually stay for the duration of their retreat. i www.eywamarbella.com

Sil

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 77

D SPOTLIGHT retreats

back to CONTENTS

ANANDA LAIE Ananda Laie has a studio in Fuengirola welcoming styles and teachers from different schools across the globe. Here, students of all levels can discover and hone their abilities at Ashtanga, Vinyasa, and Iyengar Yoga, to name just a few styles. The studio offers a host of fun classes, including beach yoga; yoga for kids; beach Tai Chi; embodied dance; Kundalini Yoga; and Pranayama, Meditation, and Hatha Yoga classes – all in English and Spanish. Practitioners can also indulge in an array of massages and treatments such as reiki, shiatsu, shiatsu acupuncture massage, and other means of holistic healing. Also available are teacher training sessions covering techniques and practice; anatomy and physiology; history, philosophy, and ethics; and professional knowledge. Ananda Laie was founded by Francesca Jerez, whose family migrated from Spain to Sweden to escape Franco’s dictatorship in the 1960s. Francesca’s inspiration has always been her father, an entrepreneur and adventurer who sailed around the world and instilled a love

78 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

for travel in his daughter. Francesca worked as an airline steward and real estate broker and developer before falling in love with the holistic arts. In 2017, while on a trip to Bali, she discovered the transformational power of yoga and meditation. ›

From June 1 until the end of August, Ananda Laie will be offering a camping retreat in Valencia de Alcántara, Cáceres, with students being able to choose their length of stay and accommodation type (mobile home, tent, apartment, bungalow, and more). The event includes two yoga classes per day, meditations, and participation in a host of weekend workshops (including an exciting anti-ageing face yoga workshop). An array of classes will also be offered, including paddle yoga on the water, diving with breathwork, Yin and Hatha Yoga, Pranayama, and meditation. The retreat will have an onsite restaurant serving vegetarian and vegan cuisine. Ananda Laie will also be hosting urban retreats, in which students can attend classes at the Fuengirola studio or on the beach while staying at one of its partner hotels on the beach frontline. Students

can attend various classes per day, including Hatha, Vinyasa, and Ashtanga Yoga, plus sound healing. Workshops will also be offered and renowned teachers from Miami will be attending to teach workshops such as zen coaching. Both retreats are part of a new concept called ‘vacational yoga holidays’. They differ from typical retreats, says Francesca, because “Students can create their own tailor-made course, choosing the activities they attend.” The retreats run throughout the summer, which offers students plenty of flexibility in terms of booking their holiday. The slogan behind both retreats is ‘Spend time together’. Francesca explains, “We encourage our students to come to our retreats with their sisters, friends, or family members. The aim is for them to enjoy a stay on the Coast or in the midst of beautiful natural surroundings while connecting with their

loved ones.” Francesca invites those with an interest in yoga to call her so she can help them create a personalised ‘yogacation’. g Tel: 601 985 120. www.anandalaie.org

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 79

D SPOTLIGHT nostradamus

back to CONTENTS

NOS TRA DA MUS 82 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

VISIONARY OF OUR TIMES Early morning of 1791, hundreds of ragged, hungry Republican soldiers descend upon the picturesque Provencal market town of Salon, while the unsuspecting inhabitants are asleep. A wild orgy of terror ensues, as the undisciplined soldiers smash down doors to steal food, drink and valuables before intimidating the terrified populace. WORDS AND ILLUSTRATIONS DARIO POLI

he violence drinking and destruction continues throughout the day until the soldiers reach the church and come upon the tomb of Michel de Nostradame, the famed prophet. One soldier recalls the local superstition that anyone who drinks blood from Nostradamus’s skull will attain his psychic powers. Roused by the news, the drunken guards use picks to get to the coffin. The dismembered skeleton of Nostradamus is scattered around the church and a soldier, ignoring the warning, picks up the skull, fills it with wine and to loud cheers of his men, drinks from it. The mayor of the town terrifies

the guards by telling them the accuracy of Nostradamus’ predictions. In panic, the bones are hurriedly collected and reinterred. The following day, Royalist cavalry ambush and wipe out the same guards and the soldier who drank from the skull is killed by a single shot through his head. Michel de Nostradame, born on December 1503 in St. Remy, France, was the eldest son of a Provencal family of part-Jewish descent that previously converted to Christianity. One of his grandfathers commenced his education in the rudiments of Latin, Greek, Hebrew, mathematics, astrology and secrets of the Kabbalah. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 83

D SPOTLIGHT nostradamus

Young Nostradamus was sent to Avignon to study philosophy and in 1522 began training in medecine, gaining his degree at the University of Montpellier. To practise his skills, he travelled the countryside for four years, visiting towns, experimenting with herbs and ministering to the sick. His successful treatments were unorthodox, especially when dealing with the plague that ravaged Provence. Few people survived ‘le charbon’, yet Nostradamus’ rose pills – containing large doses of vitamin C – often miraculously cured this fatal condition and, with each success, his fame began to spread, much to the displeasure of the Faculty Doctors. Nostradamus felt stifled by

84 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

back to CONTENTS

the orthodoxy of the medical practices in Montpellier and toured the region, dispensing his own medical hypotheses. There he met and married a beautiful girl of high born estate in Agen where, with her family’s generous dowry and connections, he established a comfortable practice that became famous and profitable. His wife bore him a son and a daughter and his life appeared blessed until the plague broke out again Nostradamus fearlessly tended to the sick and dying, managing to save scores of townspeople. Tragically, however, the plague infected and killed his wife and two children. His world collapsed and to make matters worse, his

patients deserted him because he had been unable to save his own kin. His in-laws sued him for the return of the dowry, insinuating he had deliberately allowed his family to perish and when accused of heresy by the inquisition, Nostradamus fled France. He spent the next six years roaming around Italy, the epicentre of business and intellectual life, gaining valuable knowledge and expertise in numerous skills, associating with apothecaries, as noted in his book, Traite des Fardmens, learning to make various cosmetic creams, love potions, and alchemy. In Sicily he studied the mysteries of Egypt and read The Elixir of Bliss with Sufi mystics. ›

D SPOTLIGHT nostradamus

During this period Nostradamus’ prophetic powers began to manifest, including one legendary tale in which he approached a group of monks and, upon seeing one of them he knelt down and called the monk ‘Your Holiness’. In 1585 that monk – Felice Peretti – became Pope Sixtus V. In 1554, Nostradamus while settled in Marseilles experienced the worst recorded flood and virulent outbreak of the plague in its history; polluted corpses floating in the water, reached Aix and Salon and all the local doctors fled, leaving Nostradamus to fight this epidemic alone. For his dedication to the sick, he often received valuable gifts, which he invariably gave to the poor. The plague abated and Nostradamus married another rich woman – the widow Anne Ponsart Gemelle and in his home with an attic, Nostradamus, deliberated on astrology, contemplated the stars and discovered a method of entering into a trance-like state in which he was able to foretell 86 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

back to CONTENTS

the future. As he received visions, he carefully wrote all he saw and prepared the material for his future forecasts. His Almanac was published in 1552 featuring monthly predictions based on these prophetic insights. Craving wealth, he expanded his entrepreneurial output, creating recipes for jams, preserves and cosmetics for the rich, who believed that his cream contained magic ingredients that made them irresistible. In 1555, the first editions of The Centuries were published in groups of a hundred quatrains, written in four line verses, each containing a prediction. Nostradamus arranged the quatrains into ten ‘centuries’ of 100 verses that totalled 965 verses, as Century VII was incomplete with only 42 verses. To avoid persecution, he deliberately confused the time sequence of the prophecies, by writing in code form. They became an immediate success with the upper classes, however the superstitious common folk

declared them the work of the devil. In 1556 he was summoned to meet a worried Queen Catherine de Medici to explain Century 1. “The young lion will overcome the old one, / On a field of combat in a single fight, / He will put out his eyes in their golden cage, / two wounds from one he will die a cruel death.” His prediction came true when the Queen witnessed her husband being unhorsed while jousting and dying painfully after ten days, killed by the young Earl of Montgomery – Captain of the Scottish Guard – whose lance had pierced the king’s golden visor. Both men’s shields were embossed with lions. The Queen made him Counsellor and Physician-in-Ordinary to the court. In line with biblical Old Testament prophecies, most of the quatrains deal with disasters, including plagues, famine, earthquakes, volcanoes, floods, wars, invasions, murders and bloody battles. In a letter dedicated to Cesar, his son, dated March 1555, Nostradamus wrote: “...in many countries there shall be such a scarcity of rain and such a great deal of fire, and burning stones shall fall from heaven, that nothing unconsumed shall be left.”

Nostradamus is commonly believed to have predicted the Great Fire of London in1666, World War II and the September 11 attacks on New York and Washington. More amazing, perhaps, is that he may have also written about UFOs and humans encountering extraterrestrials in the not-too-distant future. Nostradamus may well have the last laugh; all the meanings that have been placed on his forecasts may prove completely erroneous as he predicted that his code would not be broken or fully understood until the year 2055 – 500 years after the publication of The Centuries. Taking his predictions at face value, enthusiasts are wasting their time attempting to unravel them, as we have a further 33 years to wait: “For five hundred years more no notice will be taken, Of

him who was the ornament of his time, Then suddenly a great revelation will be made, Which will make people of that century most pleased.” Nostradamus spoke of a time when there would be a change in consciousness that would lead to a happier and more fulfilled existence among humankind. Before that golden age occurs, humanity has to suffer the horrors mentioned in his quatrains. As scientific warnings on the dangers of global warming increase weekly and the horrors that we have subjected our planet – and each other – to for centuries take their toll, it is perhaps this universal warning from Nostradamus that is the most significant: “Time is running out – the future salvation of humanity and of the planet is in our own hands.” e

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 87

D SPOTLIGHT motoring

back to CONTENTS

FERRARI

SP3 DAYTONA

Even the loftiest of carmakers dusts off an old nameplate now and again to use on a new product and Ferrari is no exception. This time it’s ‘Daytona,’ a name that dates back to the 1968-1973 model years and a sleek grand tourer coupé or convertible that was very right for its time, using the long nose and stubby deck configuration of the then current Jaguar E-Type and other rivals. Ferrari endowed its new road car with the Daytona name after its racers took 1st, 2nd and 3rd at the fabled 24-hour race in 1967, one of the greatest triumphs in Ferrari history. The Daytona was a reasonably successful car for Ferrari and today, fine examples just break the US 1-million mark at auction. WORDS TONY WHITNEY PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF FERRARI

92 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

ne thing to get clear about the 2022 Daytona SP3 is that in no way does it set out to be a reimagining of the old car. In fact, it’s fair to say that it looks nothing like the ’68 model

at all and if it can be compared to any historic Ferrari, it would be the superb sports prototype racing cars of the 1960s. Often described as the most beautiful sporting machines ever built, those cars boasted the slipperiest bodywork ever raced and delivered performance

to match their looks just about everywhere they took to the track. The Daytona SP3 is one of Ferrari’s special edition Icona models and will thus be sold only to selected customers and collectors of the great cars. Even so, every car appears on the open market at some time of another but getting one of these beauties may take a little patience – and a seven-figure price tag. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 93

D SPOTLIGHT motoring

back to CONTENTS

The carbon fibre bodywork of this stunner from Maranello outdoes even the most eyecatching of recent styling efforts from the fabled purveyor of luxury sports cars. Like those 60s racers, it’s all compound curves and appropriately placed vents and inlets. The rear strakes look like they were borrowed from the 1984 Testa Rossa, but the company points out

94 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

that they have a beneficial aerodynamic effect. The SP3 is a harmonious feast for the eyes from any angle and will undoubtedly stay that way for decades to come. Credit goes not to an outside coachbuilder but to Ferrari’s Flavio Manzoni and his team. With so many of today’s ‘hypercars’ using hybrid or pure electric power, Ferrari’s use of a very traditional V-12 will

come as a pleasant surprise to hard-line enthusiasts of the marque. It’s an amidships 6.5-litre unit mated to a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission and it produces a hefty 840-horsepower. Such is the Daytona’s off-the-mark prowess, it’ll take you to 200km/h in a scant 7.4-seconds. On the way to that figure you’ll reach 100 km/h in less than three seconds. Suspension was developed to match the car’s capabilities and it’s worth remembering that Ferrari has its own test track to refine handling not only on road models but also on the company’s winning F1 cars.

Interestingly, Ferrari says that the cockpit of the Daytona was developed to reflect vintage design cues but this is not easy to spot. The dashboard is, after all, digital and those vintage rows of circular dials are long gone. There are some nods towards older Ferraris with an unbroken line between the upholstery of both seats. From all standpoints, the cockpit with its racecar ambiance is a great place to get on with enjoying one of the world’s finest sports cars. Sadly, not many will get to enjoy this remarkable new Ferrari as production will probably not exceed 500. It will certainly become one of the classic Ferraris and anyone fortunate enough to secure

one at list price is unlikely to lose any money on it in the years ahead. Another factor contributing to this car’s blue chip investment status is the inevitability that V-12 internal combustion power units will almost certainly fade into history in the decades ahead. e

Z ENGINE: 6.5-litre V-12, 840-horsepower. Z TRANSMISSION: 7-speed F1 dual-clutch (rear-wheel drive). Z ACCELERATION: Zero to 100 km/h in 2.85-seconds. Z TOP SPEED: 340-km/h. Z I LIKED: Impressively nostalgic tribute to racing Ferraris of the 1960s. Awesome performance. Outstanding styling. Z I DIDN’T LIKE: Huge price. Two-wheel drive only. Z MARKET ALTERNATIVES: Lamborghini Veneno, Bugatti Veyron, Pagani Huayra, Koenigsegg One. Z WHO DRIVES ONE? Wealthy Ferrari enthusiasts/collectors with influential contacts in Maranello, given that the Daytona will only be sold to ‘elite’ buyers. Z PRICE AND AVAILABILITY: Selective distribution. Priced at an estimated €2.047.500.

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 95

D SPOTLIGHT grand prix

back to CONTENTS

INTRODUCING THE

MARBELLA GRAND PRIX

For those who love the finer things in life and know how to enjoy themselves, this region offers so much in the way of unforgettable experiences. The Marbella Grand Prix provides the perfect opportunity to discover some of the best of all. WORDS MICHEL CRUZ

uilding on a long-standing tradition of classic car rallies and luxury car tours in countries such as France, Belgium, Great Britain and the USA, the organisers of the Marbella Grand Prix are bringing this elegant way of enjoying beautiful vehicles to our coast – and more specifically, the rolling hills and mountain ranges of its hinterland. In so doing they are combining several of the

More than enough scenic opportunities along the way

96 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

most joyful things in life: touring with luxury sports cars through the lovely and varied landscapes of Andalucía, followed by fine dining, outdoor drinks in evocative settings and stays at luxurious country resort hotels.

MAY 25TH

The four-day programme sees the international participants arrive at the Hotel Anantara Villa Padierna in Los Flamingos, the starting point of a rally that is not a racing competition, but rather an ode to the sheer enjoyment of cruising through country roads en route to the region’s finest beauty spots. Those gathered at the hotel will rendezvous at a cocktail event overlooking the collection of Porsche, Ferrari, McLaren and Audi sports cars that they will be using during the Grand Prix, before enjoying dinner at La Veranda. ›

Classic driving through a classic countryside

Porsches feature prominently at this year’s Marbella GP

The kind of country routes the participants will follow

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 97

D SPOTLIGHT grand prix

back to CONTENTS

Coursing through the countryside is one of the ultimate forms of driving

MAY 26TH

Such views of cars and lofty golf courses will be exchanged for mountain scenery, as the 20 participants set off into the Sierra de las Nieves in the direction of Ronda. Clear blue skies and deep valleys surround you as you climb into the mountainous interior with receding but spectacular sea views behind. Each car will be

Entering the long driveways of private country estates and resorts

taking the trip at its own pace, arriving at the Reservatauro Ronda for lunch and a stroll through this bullfighting stud farm dotted with the olive trees and cork oaks so typical of this region. As afternoon sets in, the second stage of the day’s rally leads through rolling vineyards in the wine country around Ronda, looping back towards

the coast later to take in the now ever expanding views of the Mediterranean Sea. The outlines of Gibraltar and North Africa are prominent as the participants descend towards Marbella for a short rest, refreshments and dressing to impress for the Champagne cocktail and dinner at Mamzel, one of the most emblematic restaurants in Marbella right now. ›

Seeing the region’s beauty spots up close

98 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

LA VERANDA RESTAURANT

For the ultimate dining experience, indulge in the elegance and old-warm charm of La Veranda, which is going ‘back to its roots’ by serving its most iconic dishes and guests’ all-time favourites 20 years ago.

Information and reservations: E: laveranda.villapadierna@anantara-hotels.com T: +34 952 889 150

LIFE IS A JOURNEY. Visit anantara.com

D SPOTLIGHT grand prix

back to CONTENTS

Sharing unforgettable moments with friends

MAY 27TH

Friday sees the convoy of luxurious sports cars leave their hub at the Villa Padierna for what is the longest day of driving, from Marbella through the Montes de Málaga range to the undulating landscape of the La Bobadilla, a Royal Hideaway Hotel that is in effect a famously luxurious spa getaway with the feel of a landed country estate. Popular with Spanish and Hollywood celebrities, it is also the stunning backdrop for the end of the day’s tour, which on most days averages out at 200 kilometres in all. Lunch consists of a sampling of choice local products, later also including a tasting menu of the Rio

100 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

Frio caviar produced nearby, which serves as an aperitive for the gastronomic dinner specially prepared by Michelin two-star chef Pablo González. The evocative ambience of the evening will also provide the setting for a private flamenco show that concludes day three of the grand tour.

Though it’s not a race, racing cars form part of the field

Classic cars are also welcome at the Marbella GP

MAY 28TH

As your weekend begins, the participants in the Marbella Grand Prix will be enjoying a leisurely breakfast amid the magnificent natural scenery of La Bobadilla. They will open their powerful cars up on the motorway, travelling between mountain peaks and passing traditional villages on the way to Málaga, the coast and Marbella, where they will be let into the harbour parking to add further lustre to the yachts moored along the quay. The gathering of 20 luxury sports cars in such an iconic spot will certainly produce some photographic opportunities as the drivers and their partners relax at a private cocktail party and lunch in the port. Saturday evening is spent at the Las Dunas 5*GL Health & Spa, a luxurious health-based beachside hotel and spa where the fellow travellers will stay after a memorable barbecue dinner and white party at the Polynesian-inspired Tikitano restaurant right upon the

sands of a panoramic curve in the shoreline. From here, the eye traces it all the way past Estepona to Gibraltar and Africa, behind which the setting sun will create a spectacular backdrop for the party and glamorous conclusion to the first edition of the Marbella Grand Prix – a stylestudded event that takes in many of the finest elements of this region within a full yet leisurely four-day programme. The inaugural version of hopefully many more Grand Prix to come, the Marbella GP brings international refinement to Marbella and helps to solidify its position on the map for luxury motoring events – a factor further aided by the engrossing scenery and luxury diversions of Marbella and its Andalusian interior. For those interested in taking part there is still an opportunity to join the select grouping of luxury car owners about to embark upon a lifetime experience or to participate in the closing party at Tikitano. More information by email. e

i info@marbellagrandprix.com www.marbellagrandprix.com Luxury dining and elegant parties are also an integral part of the Marbella GP

Reliving the art of motoring in the Andalusian hinterland

CLICK TO VISIT

www.marbellagrandprix.com

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 101

published editions [270] published pages [over 50k] published copies [over 5 million] monthly readership [over 50k] digital reads per issue [over 20k] issuu* impressions [over 15 million] issuu* unique reads [over half a million] instagram followers [over 17k] facebook followers [over 22k]

@essentialmarbellamagazine

E SSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM

WE DELIVER SUNSHINE

and entertainment all over the world... featuring luxurious cosmopolitan lifestyle on the Costa del Sol, Spain and further afield. From editorial to advertising, thousands of affluent readers see, source and purchase products directly from essential’s pages. If you included, email us today!

D I R ECTOR @ES S EN T I ALM AG AZ I N E. C OM

social media updated daily with awesome content that will make you happy! :)

would like your business to be

D SPOTLIGHT people

back to CONTENTS

ELIZABETH

OLSEN

AND THE POWER OF COLLABORATION 104 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

Elizabeth Olsen stars as Wanda Maximoff / the Scarlet Witch in this month’s blockbuster release – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness. Marisa Cutillas discovers why she is the perfect actor to give life to characters that blend power and mercy.

lizabeth Olsen has the classic fearlessness and confidence of a youngest child. As the ‘little sister’ of two veritable icons of the 1990s – Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen (of Full House fame), you would think the last thing she would want to dedicate her life to, was acting. Her sisters turned their backs on show business at a very young age, burned out by the industry and the media’s obsession with their personal lives. Mind you, they didn’t exactly fade into the ‘nothingness’, as many people assume. In fact, they have amassed a fortune much larger than they ever did as actors thanks to the launch

of two fashion lines and their own company, Dualstar – a big success in ‘straight-to-video’ productions. Elizabeth is only three years younger than her iconic siblings but it seems like at least a decade separates them. If the twins were victims of an industry that shines on screen but reeks of abuse backstage, Elizabeth seems to be free of the pressure they were exposed to – or more skilful at evading it. She has the buoyant confidence required to play roles as powerful as that of Wanda Maximoff (the Scarlet Witch) and a thick skin that she grew while watching her sisters crumble under the heat of the stage lights. Although she is

known for her positive, friendly attitude, she is fiercely protective when she needs to be. When told by paparazzi once that she was “so much nicer than her sisters,” she answered, “Because you guys have been bothering them their whole lives.” What would make Elizabeth want to become a film star? Were there not a bevvy of alternative careers to pursue? The truth is that while we were heavily fixated on the twins and John Stamos in the 1990s, Elizabeth was busy honing her acting skills. She appeared in her sister’s homemade videos when she was a tot and trained in ballet and singing (as many wellrounded Hollywood actors do). ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 105

D SPOTLIGHT people

back to CONTENTS

She was only four when she began acting and by the age of 11, she had scored various roles, including one in the straight-tovideo series, The Adventures of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. There was only one small hiccup in her career; it occurred during the time in which her sister, Mary-Kate, was battling an eating disorder and being subjected to intense media scrutiny. In the same way that her Marvel character, the Scarlet Witch, was forged by fire, this tough time set Elizabeth on a path that would lead her to become the woman that she is today. Elizabeth may be in her 30s, but she is no longer ‘just an actor’. If her sisters taught her one thing, it was the power of diversification. In addition to being busy nonstop as an actor, Elizabeth currently works as a producer. Indeed, she says that her passion lies in “assembling people” in a way that fosters respect and egalitarianism. In interview after interview, she speaks of the importance of collaboration. In an interview with BUILD Series for her Facebook Watch series, Sorry for Your Loss, she

106 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

explains her management style: “The thing that I really wanted as a producer on a set was to lead by example of how you should treat people. I wanted to make sure that everyone felt collaborative and that everyone felt they were being treated with respect, regardless of their position in the production. That, to me, is a really exciting place of leadership to be in and that is what I really love about the combination of being an actor and producing.” If, as a leader, she prefers a democratic rather than a totalitarian style, as an actor, she believes in the power of the team as opposed to the individual. In an interview for Variety with actor Kaley Cuoco, she said that after working as a producer for the first time, she understood “the ridiculous amount of money that goes into productions… you should be ashamed if you show up to work without knowing your stuff.” As a producer, she knows, first-hand, how much energy each department invests in their work and how important commitment is. Another lesson Elizabeth learned from watching her older

sisters, was the importance of compartmentalising one’s life. She works hard, but has many other passions awaiting her when she leaves the set at the end of the day. Her main interests are travel and her home garden, which is inspired by the beauty of Tuscany. Elizabeth grows lavender, rosemary, and wildflowers – whose resilience and beauty reflect her own As an actor, Elizabeth (who completed her studies at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts) has shone in many TV and big screen productions, including the 2011 film Martha Marcy May Marlene, which garnered her critical acclaim. However, the role that made her a familiar face across the globe was that of Wanda Maximoff in the Marvel series of films and the series, Wanda Vision. If you have seen this series, then you know that this role is incredibly difficult to pull off. It requires the actors to play characters from iconic series of the past such as I Love Lucy, I Dream of Jeannie, and even (take note, Mary-Kate and Ashley) Full House.

The character, Wanda, is both appealing and frightening. In Wanda Vision, she sequesters the minds of an entire town, just to keep a fantasy alive – one in which her husband, Vision, continues living (the real Vision was killed by Ultron in Avengers: Endgame). The crazed Wanda decides to live her illusion by casting herself and her husband as characters

from the beloved series she watched as a child. The result is a comical yet partly scary series, complete with canned laughter that appears at inappropriate moments. Having binge-watched this series in a few days, I concluded that it was no less than a masterpiece. Olsen and her costar, Paul Bettany (who plays Vision) are at the top of their game. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 107

D SPOTLIGHT people

back to CONTENTS

The good news for Wanda fans is that Elizabeth will be playing an important role in this month’s hotly awaited blockbuster – Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, co-starring Benedict Cumberbatch. In Wanda Vision, we learned that Wanda has an incredible amount of power, and that she has been able to use Chaos Magic since birth. In fact, in Avengers: Endgame, Thanos realised he was no match for her at her full strength and she was presented as the only Avenger who could destroy him singlehandedly. Although the plot of the new Doctor Strange film is heavily guarded, admirers are afraid that this may be Wanda’s last

108 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

appearance (bearing in mind her erratic behaviour in Wanda Vision). However, before fans start grieving her demise, they should remember that Doctor Strange has a unique ability to bring out the best in his allies by turning their vision inward. To put it succinctly, Wanda is simply too appealing a character to ever do away with completely. Although she will never be ‘all-good’ (and we wouldn’t have it any other way), she can potentially learn to control her fearsome powers. It takes a great actor to pull off a character like that with such confidence. And we have no doubt that whoever cast Elizabeth Olsen as Wanda

deserves a raise. She is sheer brilliance onscreen. Could any other actress have exuded such magnetism and eeriness all at once? Somehow, I doubt it. e

www.boconcept.es

BoConcept & PlusStore Mijas

BoConcept & PlusStore Marbella

BoConcept El Corte Inglés

malaga@boconcept.es

Ctra. de Mijas km 3,5

Ctra. N-340 km 176,

Calle Ramón Areces S/N

marbella@boconcept.es

29650 Mijas, Málaga

29602 Marbella, Málaga

29660 Puerto Banús, Málaga

ecibanus@boconcept.es

Tel. +34 951 242 092

Tel. +34 951 492 727

Tel. +34 659 388 226

Essential.indd 30

www.plusstore.es malaga@plusstore.es marbella@plusstore.es ecibanus@boconcept.es

21/04/2022 11:20

w back to CONTENTS

trends

MANY FILMS WHICH WERE PREVIOUSLY DELAYED ARE FINALLY READY TO BE PREMIERED THIS YEAR. CHECK OUT SOME OF THE BEST RECENT RELEASES AND SELECTED NEW SERIES THAT ARE IDEAL FOR BINGE WATCHING. FIND OUT ABOUT HOW AI IS REVOLUTIONISING THE PRODUCTION OF MUSIC.

GO TO PAGE 116 FOR NEW SERIES

GO TO PAGE 120 FOR NEW BOOKS

GO TO PAGE 112 FOR HOT NEW FILMS

GO TO PAGE 126 FOR WHAT'S COOL

CINEMA SERIES MUSIC NEWS 112 Hot New Films 116 Cool New Series 120 New Book Releases 124 The Influence of AI on Music Production 126 What’s Cool

w TRENDS movies

back to CONTENTS

HOT NEW

MOVIES WORDS MARISA CUTILLAS

DOWNTON ABBEY: A NEW ERA

» Genre: Historical Drama » Director: Simon Curtis (Woman in Gold) » Actors: Maggie Smith, Michelle Dockery, Tuppence Middleton In this, the second Downton Abbey feature film, Dowager Countess of Grantham inherits a villa from “a man she met in France” and the Crawley family goes on a grand journey to discover more about her mysterious past. Many actors from the series and first film will return, including Elizabeth McGovern and Hugh Bonneville as Cora and Robert Crawley. There will be some new faces as well, played by Hugh Dancy, Dominic West, and Laura Haddock. The producers promise that the script is “very funny” so this film is definitely a must if you are after a ‘feelgood’ viewing experience.

112 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

DOCTOR STRANGE IN THE MULTIVERSE OF MADNESS

» Genre: Superhero Film » Director: Sam Raimi (Spider-Man) » Actors: Benedict Cumberbatch, Elizabeth Olsen, Rachel McAdams This film follows on from Spider-Man: No Way Home. When Doctor Strange casts a forbidden spell that opens a portal to the multiverse, he must pay a hefty price: facing a new adversary with powers he has never seen before. He is joined by helpful allies, including Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch), a woman with amazing telekinetic and energy manipulation powers.

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 113

w TRENDS movies

back to CONTENTS

FIRESTARTER

» Genre: Horror » Director: Keith Thomas (The Vigil) » Cast: Zac Efron, Sydney Lemmon, Ryan Kiera Armstrong Based on the novel of the same name by Stephen King, Firestarter is the story of a husband and wife who are desperately trying to hide their daughter from a government agency that wants to exploit her ability to set things on fire and use it as a weapon of mass destruction. Her father teaches her to keep her ‘gift’ under control but when she turns 11, her fire becomes more difficult to control.

114 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

TOP GUN: MAVERICK

OPERATION MINCEMEAT

» Genre: War Drama » Director: John Madden (Shakespeare in Love) » Cast: Colin Firth, Matthew Macfadyen, Kelly Macdonald, Penelope Wilton This remake of The Man Who Never Was (1956) is the true story of a successful British deception operation that took place in WWII. The year was 1943 and the Allies were ready to invade Sicily. They had an almost impossible challenge at hand: that of fooling Hitler into thinking they were actually attacking Greece and Sardinia. The allies dressed a deceased homeless man as an officer of the Royal Marines, placing items on him that would identify him as a fictitious Captain. They also placed fictitious correspondence between two British generals on his body to outwit the Germans.

» Genre: Action/ Adventure » Director: Joseph Kosinski (Only the Brave) » Cast: Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly Top Gun: Maverick takes us back to the flight academy where Maverick, Iceman, Goose, and other young pilots first tested their mettle. At the request of Iceman, Maverick returns to his origins to train a young squad of graduates for a dangerous mission that demands the greatest of sacrifices. e

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 115

w TRENDS series

back to CONTENTS

TOP SERIES

TO CATCH THIS MONTH

One of the hottest series of the millennium, Stranger Things, is back for Season Four and we can’t wait to see what Eleven and her friends have in store for us. We preview this and other top releases that will keep you entertained in the lead-up to the summer season. COMPILED BY MARISA CUTILLAS

STRANGER THINGS S4

Netflix

» Genre: Mystery/ Adventure » Creators: The Duffer Brothers (We All Fall Down) » Actors: Millie Bobby Brown, Winona Ryder, David Harbour Six months have passed since the Battle of Starcourt, which brought devastation and mayhem to Hawkins. Struggling to leave their traumatic experience behind, the teens do their best to adapt to the challenges of high school while trying to stay alive in the midst of gun fights, explosions, and the presence of ominous men in suits.

116 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

ANATOMY OF A SCANDAL

Netflix

» Genre: Legal Drama » Creators: Melissa James Gibson (Producer of House of Cards) and David E. Kelley (Big Little Lies) » Actors: Ben Radcliffe, Rupert Friend, Michelle Dockery, Sienna Miller Sophie’s perfect life as the spouse of a prominent politician is shattered when scandalous secrets surface and he is accused of committing a heinous crime. Barrister Kate Woodcroft has her own motivations for prosecuting the case – she is disappointed that her last case didn’t go as planned and she hopes to make up for it by ensuring justice prevails this time.

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 117

w TRENDS series

back to CONTENTS

SHINING GIRLS

Apple TV+

» Genre: Thriller » Creator: Silka Luisa (Executive Producer of The Wilding) » Actors: Elisabeth Moss, Wagner Moura, Jamie Bell, Phillipa Soo, Amy Brenneman Based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Lauren Beukes, Shining Girls follows Kirby Mazrachi (Elisabeth Moss), a Chicago newspaper archivist whose journalistic ambitions are cut short after she endures a traumatic assault. Years after her brutal attack, Kirby discovers that a recent murder is linked to her own assault. She agrees to help veteran reporter Dan Velazquez (Wagner Moura) catch the criminal, but it will involve facing the pain of a past she simply wants to forget.

118 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

HARD CELL

Netflix

STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS

Netflix

» Genre: Science Fiction » Creators: Akiva Goldsman (Screenwriter of Batman Forever), Alex Kurtzman (Co-Writer of Transformers), Jenny Lumet (Screenwriter of Rachel Getting Married) » Actors: Anson Mount, Rebecca Romijn, Ethan Peck This series, a prequel to, follows the crew of the USS Enterprise as they soar through the galaxy under the command of Captain Chris Pike. If you loved the original series starring William Shatner, then you may recall that each episode was a closed-ended story that encapsulated important philosophical, political, legal, romantic, or ethical dilemmas the crew aimed to solve. The new series will recapture a little of its questioning spirit.

» Genre: Comedy » Creator: Catherine Tate (The Catherine Tate Show) » Actors: Catherine Tate, Christian Brassington, Jola Olajide This documentary-style comedy is set in the fictional female prison, HMP Woldsley. Series writer and creator, Catherine Tate, plays multiple characters – including Laura Willis (the Governor who believes that creativity is the key to rehabilitation) and Big Viv (a psychopath who’s in prison for life). The humour is deadpan and irreverent, yet there are many heartfelt moments that highlight the unique nature of female friendship. e

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 119

w TRENDS reading

back to CONTENTS

AS THE WEATHER HEATS UP, FIND A WARM SPOT AND ENJOY SOME INTRIGUING NEW ARRIVALS. WORDS ALICIA DUGGAN OF THE BOOKSHOP IN SAN PEDRO DE ALCÁNTARA , CC LA COLONIA LOCAL 21, SAN PEDRO DE ALCÁNTARA. TEL: 951 779 785. WWW.THEBOOKSHOP.ES

THE HOUSE OF MARVELLOUS BOOKS BY FIONA VIGO MARSHALL The House of Marvellous Books is a publishing house on the cusp of going bankrupt. Housed in an old, almost derelict, library The House is coping with leaking roofs, a rat infestation and other publishers trying to poach their successful clients. There are rumours that there is a valuable medieval manuscript somewhere on the premises that The Vatican would pay handsomely for. If only they could find it! As things deteriorate, a dubious company takes over The House with promises of turning everything around but the changes they instigate may well spell the end for them. A quirky, eccentric, and humorous read.

120 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

OCEAN STATE BY STEWART O’NAN

M IS FOR MUMMY BY KATY COX

In the opening lines of this compelling novel, we learn that a high school student was murdered, however this is not a whodunnit. We are also told who the murderer is. “When I was in eighth grade my sister helped kill another girl”. Set in Rhode Island in 2009, Ocean State explores the events that culminate in the murder of Birdy and the aftermath of the tragic event. The story is told from the perspectives of Birdy, the victim, Angel, the murderer, Carol, Angel’s mother and Marie, Angel’s younger sister. It is a beautifully crafted look at sisterhood, family, and the dangers of jealousy.

Lucy has given up her career as a cellist, to focus on raising her two young boys. The romance in her marriage is non existent and it is becoming increasingly likely that her eldest son, Stan, is Autistic. However, without a diagnosis and little support Lucy must deal with his obsessions and meltdowns alone. She is exhausted and feels like she has lost her identity. Something has to change. With help from her besties, Lucy comes up with a plan to get her life, career, and marriage back on track while helping the extraordinary Stan find his place in an ordinary world. A funny and heart-warming look at motherhood and love.

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 121

w TRENDS reading

back to CONTENTS

WRONG PLACE WRONG TIME BY GILLIAN MCALLISTER Jen’s life has become a complete nightmare. Her happy and loving teenage son, Todd, has been arrested for murdering a total stranger. Wracked with worry and concern, Jen wakes the following morning to discover that she has woken up on the morning of the murder – not the morning after! There could still be time change what happened. As each day passes, Jen wakes up a day earlier but she is no closer to figuring out how to stop the tragedy. She needs to fight her growing despair, find clues, and uncover secrets if she is going to prevent her son from committing a terrible crime. A compelling, imaginative, and unexpected thriller.

THE GAME BY SCOTT KERSHAW The person you love most is in danger: if you lose, your loved one will die. Welcome to the game. You’ve just started playing. Five complete strangers in three different countries all receive the same text message. The person they love most is in danger and to save them they must play The Game. There can be only one winner and the losers will watch their loved ones die. They can’t involve the police and have no way of knowing who has targeted them or why. The only thing they do know is the game has already started and they are running out of time. What unfolds is a dark, chilling, and suspenseful thriller. e

VISIT THE BOOKSHOP 122 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

w TRENDS technology

HOW IS

back to CONTENTS

WORDS MARISA CUTILLAS

REVOLUTIONISING

THE MUSIC INDUSTRY? A rtificial Intelligence (AI) is an important part of our daily lives, with approximately 91 per cent of leading businesses having ongoing investment in this technology. AI can improve work productivity, create more jobs than it destroys, and boost human safety (for instance, in the realm of selfdriving cars). AI is also being used in the creative arts – including architecture, science, the fine arts, and music. Such is its importance in this realm that Ramón López de Mántaras of the Artificial Intelligence Research Institute in Bellaterra, says, “Rather than just seeing the computer as a tool to help human creators, we could see it as a creative entity in its

124 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

own right.” For Bellaterra and many others, the concept of ‘computational creativity’ indicates that a creative idea does not have to arise from ‘inspiration’ or ‘intuition’. There is no reason why a creative work cannot arise from a scientific procedure. Let’s take a look at just a few ways AI is making musical composition and enjoyment more accessible, fun, and practical.

COMPOSING MUSIC WITH AIVA When it comes to AI-based music composition, one of the top applications is AIVA, which allows you to choose a predefined style (for instance, Old School Rap, Jazz, or Fantasy) or upload inspirations in MIDI

or MP3 formats for use as the basis of a new musical composition. Creators usually start by choosing a style then customising their tracks, clicking on their chosen duration, pacing, instrumentation, and more. The Instrumentation button alone is one that merits serious experimentation. For instance, if you choose the Modern Cinematic style, the range of instrumentation offered is wide. It includes Epic Orchestra, Symphonic Orchestra, String Ensemble, Piano & Strings, and many more options. You then press ‘Create Track’ to generate a composition, and add the result to your tracks list. The app also allows you to file your different compositions in an organised fashion.

additionally used to mix and master music with greater ease. It can generate chords based on a sample, or offer a variety of suggested beats.

APPS TO TRY

The magic of the app doesn’t end there. You can also view your track and edit it, making changes to the chords, bass, melody, tempo, instrumentation, and more. When you’re satisfied, download your piece and share it with the world!

JUKEBOX BY OPENAI Having downloaded and experimented with a few AI music apps, I have to say that this one was particularly entertaining and I did end up spending a few hours on it. Jukebox allows you to feel a little closer to your favourite musicians of all time. Simply choose a genre, artist, and lyrics, and the app outputs a completely new sample. As such, you can choose songs in the rock genre that sound like an Elvis Presley

song, a heavy metal tune

Instrument Data Interface,

in Metallica style, or a pop song similar to one by The Weeknd. What makes this app different is that it is able to capture human voices, as well as the expressivity and subtle timbres that give songs their unique makeup. This is made possible by using an autoencoder that compresses raw audio to a lower-dimension space by discarding bits of information it deems irrelevant. Once a new audio track is generated in this compressed space, it is upsampled back to raw audio space. Before working on Jukebox, the Open AI team had devised MuseNet, which synthesised music based on large amounts of MIDI data (MIDI. or Musical

is a specific language that allows computers, musical instruments, and other hardware to communicate). What makes Jukebox so unique is that it uses raw audio (which has a longer range structure and much greater diversity) to understand and make music.

ADDITIONAL USES OF AI AI is not only being used to compose music. It is also improving the listening experience and helping music producers in various practical ways. For instance, Spotify uses big data to influence your listening habits. Through dedicated algorithms, it analyses musical releases and matches them up to potential listeners. AI is

In addition to AIVA and Jukebox, you can experiment with apps like Amper Music, Ecrett Music, and ORB Composer. Ecrett is particularly great for creating soundtracks for your videos. Just upload your video file and select the type of scene and its mood (choose from Travel, Fashion, and Party, to name just a few scenes). When you have made your choice, click on the Create Music button and enjoy your professional sounding video! One question that may come across your mind is: who owns the copyright to AI-generated music? The answer, says the US Copyright Office, is that any creative work made via AI cannot be copyrighted because the law only protects works “founded in the creative powers of a human mind.” The EU still lacks a unified framework regarding this matter, though some countries, like Portugal, agree with the American viewpoint. e

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 125

w TRENDS what’s cool

back to CONTENTS

? l o o c s ’ t wha COMPILED BY IAIN BL

ACKWELL

D RI D G IN KO G A RD EN M A vated Having completely reno d its spaces, decoration an in Madrid furniture, Ginko Garden isite has relaunched its exqu an expanded gastronomic offer with and menu focused on Spanish o thematic Asiatic cuisine. With tw ils and corners featuring cockta enda every sushi and a live music ag to Sunday, afternoon from Thursday visit venue. Ginko Garden is a must rid.com i www.ginkoskybarmad

126 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

M A RR IOTT M ASA I M A R A LO D G E s signed Marriott International ha ka Lodges an agreement with Bara ry Ltd. to open the first luxu faris in accommodation with sa a National Africa at the Masai Mar . Plans Reserve in Kenya in 2023 super for this project include 20 rant and stylish tents, a bar, restau ts will spa. From this base gues hopefully be able to go on safari, Five’ – to see some of the ‘Big rhinos lions, leopards, buffalo, natural and elephants – in their habitat. i www.marriott.com EL A RT S SE V EN H O ST CA PS U LE S hotels of Inspired by the capsule in Madrid Tokyo, A7H has arrived se the promising to revolutioni ique offer way you sleep with a un rience. of an unforgettable expe 36 The futuristic hostel has doubles single capsules and 20 rooms, distributed over themed e living staging nights that are lik e Runner in a Matrix, Avatar, Blad or Star Wars movie. com i www.planetofhotels.

U R ANT A M B IV IU M R ES TA PEÑ A FI EL Ambivium in Renowned restaurant, its fifth birthday Peñafiel, has celebrated new bodega replete with the opening of a 0 bottles of wine with a capacity for 7,50 . The two new floors, within its installations restaurant, unite open to visitors of the y, displaying some design and functionalit es available on a of the most iconic win nal level. national and internatio bivium.com i www.restauranteam

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 127

w TRENDS what’s cool

back to CONTENTS

HOMAGE TO VELÁZQUEZ Renowned artist, René Mäkelä has created a stunning work of art honouring the great painter Diego Velázquez for Milbby, the largest chain of fine arts, crafts and creativity stores in Spain. The talented artist has worked with the brand, paying homage to different icons of the cities where it opens a new location, this time in Seville at C.C. Lagoh. i www.milbby.com

VOLVORETA REOPENING Located on the 30th floor of the emblematic Eurostars Madrid Tower 5* Hotel, the Volvoreta offers spectacular 360º views across the capital’s skyline. Recently reopened, and also welcoming external guests, the restaurant has returned with a new menu based on a classic recipe book featuring exquisite traditional dishes adapted to each season of the year. i www.restaurantevolvoretamadrid.com 128 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

NEW CARTIER INDOMPTABLES COLLECTION This extravagant new collection from Maison Cartier dares to be different, featuring impressive items with jewellery hybrids. Entirely original, under the principle of face-to-face jewellery, the bracelets, necklaces and watches playfully confront two species of the Cartier fauna, with faithful reproduction of their heads but with their bodies reversed. i www.cartier.com PARADOR DE RONDA RENOVATION Merry Design Studio has been appointed to oversee the refurbishment of the iconic Parador de Turismo de Ronda, which sits atop the El Tajo gorge alongside the Puente Nuevo Bridge. The Creative Director of the project is Paul Heredia, whose work at the Parador de León in 2021 was recognised by the International Hotel & Property Awards. i www.merry.es / www.paradorderonda.es WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 129

d back to CONTENTS

lifestyle

STEP INSIDE A CAPTIVATING VILLA IN CASCADA DE CAMOJÁN AND SEE HOW A DEDICATED OWNER HAS TRANSFORMED HIS HOUSE IN LA HEREDIA. CHECK OUT SOME COOL NEW DESIGN TRENDS AND FIND OUT WHAT MAKES QUINTESSENTIAL DESIGNER, PAUL COSTELLOE’S COLLECTIONS SO SPECIAL.

GO TO PAGE 142 FOR A STYLISH HOUSE IN LA HEREDIA

GO TO PAGE 148 FOR DESIGN TRENDS

GO TO PAGE 160 FOR PAUL COSTELLOE SS22

GO TO PAGE 162 FOR ESSENTIAL FOODS FOR PETS

INTERIORS ARCHITECTURE ART FASHION

132 A Stunning Villa in Cascada de Camoján 142 Stylish House in La Heredia 148 Design Trends 154 Paul Costelloe Spring/Summer 2022 162 Essential Foods for Pets

d décor d LIFESTYLE LIFESTYLE décor

back to CONTENTS

VILLA OLYMPUS THE PRIDE OF CASCADA DE CAMOJÁN If ever there was a complete Marbella villa that truly embodies the best of what this region offers in terms of lifestyle, luxury and refinement, it is Villa Olympus. More than a villa really, this nine-bedroom mansion occupying almost two acres of private land in a prime Cascada de Camoján spot with panoramic sea views ticks so many boxes it is hard to beat. WORDS MICHEL CRUZ PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF SOLVILLA

132 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

property that measures over 2,000m2 in built space and offers nine luxurious bedroom suites each with its own ambience, detailing and magnificent vistas is rare even in Marbella. Usually mansions of this kind are to be found in La Zagaleta, but in the case of Villa Olympus

the immaculate setting is the select gated villa community of Cascada de Camoján. From this very private location a little above Sierra Blanca, the property is an open window to coastal, mountain and sea views, while also being just five minutes from Marbella town and the Golden Mile. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 133

d LIFESTYLE décor

back to CONTENTS

Inside the property, you’re ensconced within 4,673m2 of parkland greenery, but a short stroll takes you into the protected nature of the Sierra Blanca mountain range, at the foot of Marbella’s iconic La Concha Mountain. It’s a very natural and tranquil environment considering how centrally located it is – one of several prime USPs of this top Marbella address. Superlative in most every way, from location to detailing, Villa Olympus was designed by ARK Architects and decorated by GC Studio; it is a property where every element, including the gardens, is an expression of style and design. ›

134 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

E INTERIOR DESIGN

C .

L U S

V E D

BESPOKE CARPENTRY

E S .

Benalús SHOWROOM MARBELLA Opening hours

FURNITURE COLLECTION

by Aalto Design

A V D A . B LV. P R Í N C I P E A L F O N S O D E H O H E N L O H E . U R B . C A R O L I N A P A R K Mon-Fri: 10:00-14:00 16:00-19:00 Sat: upon appointment w w w. a a l t o e x c l u s i v e d e s i g n . c o m

d LIFESTYLE décor

back to CONTENTS

IMPRESSIVE FROM THE START People speak of a sense of arrival, but this property takes your breath away the moment you enter its grounds, winding through parkland greenery before the home takes shape before

136 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

your eyes. The villa imposes, impresses and enthrals the visual senses, added to by the gentle sound of cascading water. Here you become aware of tranquillity, of being in the midst of a private estate in the heart of Marbella.

Enter the villa and your sense that this is a very special address is confirmed. It has many of the things a luxury home in this region features, but somehow more.

Perfection is about detail, and Villa Olympus is rich in elegant details and the perfection of their execution, be it in materials and the artistry of their use, lighting, home technology or architectural design features. The same is true of the layout, which flows seamlessly from one ambient living space to another to create a living environment that is a Marbella jewel. The pool deck offers sublime luxuries and style while providing a perfect panorama of the surroundings, but inside, the pool, spa and gym conjure up comparisons with resorts, not other villas. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 137

d LIFESTYLE décor

back to CONTENTS

The same is true of the sumptuously comfortable screening room, the entertainment areas and the beautifully finished bedroom suites. The bodega wine cellar blends modern glass and lighting style with the classic feel of natural rock, thereby enhancing the authentic sense of a space dedicated to the art and enjoyment of wine. Impressive

138 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

measure décor and views that draw in the Mediterranean. The dressing rooms come with a coffee bar, the large bedrooms have their own unique lounge terraces with personal views, some just off a private putting by day, the mansion sparkles green. Other outdoor areas by night, when ambient lighting include dining spaces, a kitchen beautifully highlights so many with a cocktail bar, a fully fitted gorgeous natural features and BBQ area, and a self-contained design details, creating an pool space surrounded with enchanting atmosphere in the greenery. The lower floor feels process. like a gorgeous spa resort with natural light and views flowing A PRIVATE DOMAIN IN MARBELLA into it, completing a home that Stand-out features include belongs to the very cream of the majestic front door, grand Marbella. › entrance, elegant made-to-

Two decades of transforming our clients’ ideas, needs and dreams into a three dimensional reality. We believe this synergy is the key of our success.

Facts speak for themselves - 1,680 satisfied customers in the last 20 years

- 3 premises

- 32 staff members

- In house team of architects, interior architects and 3D artists

- 17 international projects in 9 different countries

- 1,800 m2 warehouses

- 3 times award winner in the last 5 years

- 3 installation teams

ambiencehomedesign.com

d LIFESTYLE décor

back to CONTENTS

The heated saltwater indoor pool is the focal point of an area that embodies what Villa Olympus is all about. Meticulously crafted noble materials such as the finest stone, marble, wood and smoked glass are backlit to great effect, creating a sensory ambience in the villa that works in unison with its fragrant atmosphere. Together, they create a very unique feeling that makes living – or even visiting here – a profound experience. “Villa Olympus takes design and detail to a new level of special,” says Stacy Welch of Solvilla, the sole agency for the property.

140 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

He believes a property of this standing is rare even in Marbella, and constitutes the masterpiece of Cascada de Camoján, one of the finest gated communities in the region and also an area that is rising further in stature, with the construction of homes like this. “This property just has

everything you would ever wish of a Marbella home, and so much more… It provides all the exquisite luxuries – including a master suite, bathroom and dressing room area that sets new standards of luxury and design – with an ease of style that is not easy to accomplish.

“Villa Olympus comes with a price tag, but for the buyer in this category it offers the kind of living environment that puts this Marbella mansion in an international A-list category of real estate.” g Blvd. Alfonso von Hohenlohe S/N, Hotel Marbella Club, Oficina 10, Marbella. Tel: (+34) 952 765 060. info@solvilla.es stacy@solvilla.es www.solvilla.es

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 141

d LIFESTYLE homes

back to CONTENTS

riginally conceived by local architect Francisco (Paco) Parladé, La Heredia is a stylish gated community of townhouses and apartments with all the charm of a classic Andalusian village. Unlike many residential areas, it was born of an artistic, utopian vision for living that blends beautifully into its green surroundings, and from this hillside position near the country club estates of El Madroñal and La Zagaleta, the views across the golf course of Los Arqueros down to the coastline and the sea are quite spectacular. ›

142 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

CAPTIVATING CHARM IN

LA HEREDIA

We’ve come full circle in style terms, with many now favouring a blend of modern living infused with traditional design elements. For those who do indeed enjoy charm as well as sophistication, La Heredia is an idyllic gated community in Mediterranean village form.

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 143

d LIFESTYLE homes

back to CONTENTS

The village feel creates a sense of community, further enhanced by a Dutch bakery, butcher’s shop and a cosy bistro bar at the entrance to La Heredia. From here, peaceful cobbled streets and intimate little squares follow the contours uphill in what is one of the most timelessly fashionable developments in the

THE ART OF LIVING

greater Marbella area. It falls within the municipality of Benahavís, but for all the peace and privacy is also just ten minutes from the beaches and amenities of Marbella. In many ways, La Heredia blends the best of Andalucía and the Costa del Sol.

townhouse, but with five bedrooms en-suite and a total built area of well over 400m2, this home looks and feels like a villa – an architectural villa with modern refinement and comfort coupled with the Andalusian inspiration of La Heredia and the artistic flair of its creators.

144 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

The property occupies a privileged position at the higher end of La Heredia, where it borders the rustic villa suburb of El Madroñal yet still finds itself ensconced within the cosy embrace of a community where it is a delight simply to stroll through leafy lanes and take in the views. The owners speak of a

Built not as a development but lovingly crafted as a stylish home, it is distributed over three floors that follow the natural gradient. Detail is everything in this villa, yet a knowing touch avoids over-styling, allowing for a wonderful blend between

decoration and space, as well as modern and classical design elements. The feeling of entering a special home – one that ignites the senses – is upon you as you enter, for unlike many modern ‘boxes’, this is a property that offers a beguiling sensation of

discovery as you follow its flow from room to room, floor to floor. Ambient lighting, discreet architectural detailing and art works positioned within sleek recessed walls set the tone for this embodiment of stylish living. From here, a door opens to the garage; normally a sombre affair, but here enjoying the same loving care and artistic flair to be found throughout the home. From the floor to the walls, it feels like a gallery for a prized possession. Following the main course of the entrance you come to the heart of the home, the open-plan kitchen that leads to the living area and terrace. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 145

d LIFESTYLE homes

back to CONTENTS

Here too, any sense of repetition or boredom is immediately dispelled, as the kitchen matches high-end modern appliances and functionality with a touch of rustic elegance that holds true to the founding spirit of La Heredia. The kitchen island looks out over the lounge, but also a heated plunge pool and Jacuzzi whose green Balinese tiles give it a sense of Zen. In the evenings, atmospheric lighting creates an evocative effect, further enhanced by the vertical garden, a sun deck that slides open and a roof that slides automatically to let in fresh air and sunlight. ›

146 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

STYLE AND HOME COMFORTS Natural light and views are cleverly built into almost every corner of this gorgeous La Heredia villa, whose vaulted ceilings add a further sense of space and style. A spacious terrace with dining and lounge areas, as well as a classic stove extends from the living and dining room amid spectacular views over La Heredia and greenery that flows down to the sea. In the distance, the silhouettes of Gibraltar and North Africa stand dark against the orange-pink of sunsets that mark this region. The bifolding doors open up to create one flowing indoor-outdoor lifestyle area.

A stylish contemporary wine cellar forms a visual design feature visible from the main living area and the stairs that descend down to the lower floor, where a study with engaging views, a cleverly contained laundry room and a luxurious modern sauna and steam room share the ample space with three luxurious guest suites – complete with boutique style bathrooms and dressing areas. The property also features a wonderfully cosy TV room and an immaculate machine room with top-end equipment. Crowning a truly unique Marbella home is the master suite, which occupies the top

floor and can therefore boast the most imposing views of all from its private terrace with Jacuzzi. An open-plan bedroom, bathroom and dressing room where once again architectural design is as engaging as it is discreet, this area features one of three modern fireplaces to be found in the villa. Lovingly created by people with a feeling for the art of living, this is a property for those who appreciate the importance of style, proportions, ambience and well-being. i This villa is currently for sale. For information, please contact Tel: (+31) 643 378 526. www.th5.es

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 147

d LIFESTYLE décor

back to CONTENTS

DESIGN TRENDS DISCOVERED BY MADDIE QUINN

SUMMER STYLING WITH FRESH BEDDING DESIGNS

Summer is on its way, the flowers are blooming and the birds are singing, so if this is your style, it’s the perfect time to update your bedroom décor with some fresh colourful florals. Heading to M.M Linen we picked Carry, this brand new bedding design that features a mass of hand-brushed meadow flowers scattered delicately over a soft pastel – so pretty, it will transform any bedroom into an elegant dreamscape in which to relax and unwind. This digitally printed 220 thread count cotton sateen bedlinen set is printed on one side with an ivory reverse and is thoughtfully presented in a fabric bag, as all M.M Linen products are packaged without plastic. i www.uk.mmlinen.com

148 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

GET THE BRIDGERTON LOOK! Inspired by the regency era, these flamboyant contemporary wallpapers by Divine Savages are a great way to update walls to achieve the beguiling Bridgerton aesthetic. Our pick, the Portobello Parade, is inspired by London’s most unusual pets. This detail-rich wallpaper revisits a bonkers, bygone era where you could encounter an array of exotic animals not just at the zoo, but on the streets! Beautifully illustrated, you’ll discover something new each time you look. Lions, leopards and lemurs stroll casually through Regency inspired streets and parklands as they cross paths with other bewildered pets for a playful, pictorial print. i www.divinesavages.com

FASHIONABLE SEATING Collabs are becoming common not only in the fashion world, and if industrial is your style, there are some brand new chair designs out now that you might like. The armchair, dubbed DRESS_CODE is a result of a partnership of innovative Italian designers

studio from Viareggio known for its unique approach that mixes design, graphics and architecture to give life to refined industrial design projects. With versions for indoors and outside, DRESS_CODE is inspired by the canons of haute-couture, playing with the combinations of colours, the textures of indoor and outdoor

S•CAB and gumdesign, aka Laura Fiaschi and Gabriele Pardi, a

fabrics as well as with their processing, adding square quilted and waveshaped padded varieties for greater comfort. ›

Available in many trendy colours. i www.scabdesign.com/en/

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 149

d LIFESTYLE décor

back to CONTENTS

A BOLD MOVE TO THE OUTDOORS Kettal’s newest venture, the Pavilon H, could add beautiful free flowing covered spaces to your outdoors with an architectural context. The ultimate streamlined aluminium structure is on offer, large or small, with a wide variety of personalisations. Your ceilings can be waterproof, polycarbonate, venetian, electric bioclimatic, aluminium, or wood for example, while you can

150 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

opt for the laterals to be sliding panels in fabric, wood or aluminium. You can also go for fixed panels with shelves, aluminium or wooden adjustable blinds, stone and glass side panels, curtains and the list goes on. The Pavilion H range also

includes various models of spotlights for lighting, power sockets, TV stand and floor. They present more than 30 aluminium colours and more than 50 fabric options in the Terrain Fabrics and Parallels collections. Wow! i www.kettal.com ›

d LIFESTYLE décor

back to CONTENTS

WORK FROM HARMONY

be customised to complement

With a workspace set to become a part of the fabric of the home, BoConcept’s Cupertino is something of a go-to piece. With its clean, minimalist aesthetic, it doesn’t compromise on style either, bringing an air of sophistication as well as a feeling of calm to any office, study or designated work station. Whether integrating into a large and airy space or a small, citystyle apartment, Cupertino can

any home and is now available in two additional colour combinations: dark oak with matte black and oak with ash grey. Avid writers will be pleased to learn that the Cupertino also features a scratch-resistant surface, inviting you to scribble at will without fear of damage. Pull up a chair for another day at the home office, in elevated style. i www.boconcept.com

152 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

PULL UP A STOOL Looking for smart bar stools for your kitchen, diner or outdoor bar? Say goodbye to mediocracy! Stools are enjoying a lot of innovative attention lately, as they have become a staple in any modern home project. Try the comfortable Ella Bar Stool, a statement piece inspired by glamorous American Art Deco interiors or the distinctive Alveare Counter Stool with laser cut hexagonal detailing, teal velvet seats and a rose gold steel finish. You can get inspired by lots more beautiful designs at i www.my-furniture.com

EXCLUSIVE DECORATIVE HARDWARE FOR LUXURY YACHT INTERIORS Over the years, PullCast has developed a few contemporary collections that are in perfect sync with the characteristic lifestyle known to the yachting industry. New on the market, the Ocean Collection draws inspiration from the versatility of sea life and its extraordinary vistas whereas the Limited Edition collection seeks to provide a unique sense of rarity and legacy with each design. It includes a myriad of ornamental pieces with coastal and nautical inspirations that were designed to add a subtle layer of luxury to any interior, including yachts, superyachts, boats, among others vessels. i www.pullcast.eu

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 153

d LIFESTYLE fashion

back to CONTENTS

A long established name in British and Irish fashion, with a colourful career including designing for Princess Diana as well as well known high-street brands, Paul Costelloe has also rocked the LFW catwalk with his own personal Collections for 37 years. For Spring/ Summer in 2022 his work was inspired by no less than Ancient Celtic Art and the illuminated manuscript of The Book of Kells.

154 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

PAUL COSTELLOE 22 SPRING/SUMMER DISCOVERED BY MADDIE QUINN PHOTOGRAPHY IMAXTREE.COM

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 155

d LIFESTYLE fashion

back to CONTENTS

sing his interpretation of the scroll work designs and microscopic detailing, Paul used bespoke linen fabrics to evoke the feel of the Celtic tradition and a culture long past. Turning dark times into lighter hopes for the future, the designs work organically with his use of natural fabrics such as printed and woven linens from Ireland's oldest fabric mill, William Clark, Emblem Weavers in Wexford, and opulent cotton and woven blends from Italy, all highlighted in magnificent

156 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

translucent blues. The new Paul Costelloe bags are presented as large printed linen weekend bags with soft leather belted accessories bringing an everyday, functional touch to this exquisite collection. As a designer who works entirely by hand, from his initial hand drawn sketches, hand designed fabrics and patterns, the comparison of the entirely hand-produced Book of Kells and this collection, brings Paul's trained eye and his inspiration together in a masterpiece of fashion.

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 157

d LIFESTYLE fashion

back to CONTENTS

158 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 159

d LIFESTYLE fashion

back to CONTENTS

160 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

i PAUL COSTELLOE www.paulcostelloe.com/collections

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 161

d LIFESTYLE pets

back to CONTENTS

ESSENTIAL

FOODS

IMPROVING AND EXTENDING THE LIVES OF PETS

Around 95 per cent of pet owners consider their pets to be part of the family, according to a recent Harris Poll. Many take their pets into account in decisions such as travel, child-rearing, and home-buying. If you are one of these people, the question remains: what food are you feeding your pets? Could you do better for your beloved four-pawed family members? WORDS MARISA CUTILLAS PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF ESSENTIAL FOODS

162 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

A PROJECT BORN OF PASSION

Christian Degner-Elsner, the Danish founder of Essential Foods, had one thing in mind when he founded his company: to improve and prolong the lives of dogs and cats through good nutrition. He tells me, “I was 25 years old when I started an online pet food store in Denmark. The business grew to be successful and I sold food made by various brands, so I got to know their products from inside-out. I started feeling unhappy because I felt more like a manager. In 2010, I sold my business and made it my mission to make a real difference to the lives of pets. I immersed myself in research and told myself that I would make something that excited me. I meticulously planned everything from the food content to the packaging and product names. In 2013, Essential foods was born.” Christian’s hard work paid off. The brand consistently scores top percentile on online rating sites (including www.allaboutdogfood. co.uk ). Today, he is an international globetrotter whose food is sold in various countries. He also lives in Marbella for part of the year, as he has a second home here.

CAN PET FOOD BE SEXY?

Christian hits the nail on the head when he says that dog food is often a boringly marketed brand, with stock imagery, overdone names, and little care for design and packaging. Essential Foods, he decided, would be a sexy, optimally designed brand that prioritised both the quality of food and the tiny details that make all the difference.

All food is grain- and corn-free, which helps to keep blood sugar levels healthy, reflecting the natural diet and habits of dogs and cats. Christian explains, “By feeding dogs grain-free food, we can prevent the physical and mental fluctuations that arise when blood sugar is too low or high.” That is, a dog’s behaviour is influenced by the foods they consume.

FOOD THAT SUSTAINS AND LENGTHENS LIFE

THE RANGE

Christian stresses that Essential Foods makes meals, not just food. The brand's products are produced following the BOF (Behavioural Optimising Foods) principle. “This means that a meal should reflect a pet’s natural diet and eating habits, while helping to stabilise blood sugar.” Dogs and cats (like humans) benefit from obtaining the vast majority of their proteins from fresh, unprocessed meat. Approximately 75 per cent of the ingredients used to make their dog foods, for instance, are obtained from top-ofthe-range sources like Gressingham duck, Ross & Cob chicken and Scottish salmon.

The company has a range of foods that includes Essential the Beginning (for pups and young dogs), Essential Superior Living (for adults, containing chicken and duck), Essential Estate Living (for adults, containing British lamb and deer), Essential Nautical (with fresh salmon, trout, herring, and seasonal fish, for adults), Essential Contour (ideal for dogs who need to lose weight), Essential Older (for senior dogs), Essential Stamina (for dogs with high-energy lifestyles), Essential Highland Living (featuring Norfolk Black turkey, Aberdeen Angus beef, pigeon, partridge and Scottish salmon), and Essential Balance (a single-protein food for

dogs with allergies, digestive issues, or medical conditions requiring a low-protein food source). The brand also has versions of their foods in small-sized kibble (for smaller dogs).

FARE FOR FELINES

The company has a range of foods and snacks for cats and the names are delightful – The Jaguar (for all breeds), The Lynx (made of cod and haddock), and Tiny Delights (snacks consisting of whole, dried fish from the Baltic). Newly released is The Panther – featuring over 70 per cent salmon, haddock, white fish, and Essential Omega-3. The Panther is specially made for indoor, inactive cats that are spayed or that need to lose a little weight.

ACCESSORIES

In the Accessories section, you will find two incredible products: the Omega 3 Oil (containing 100 per cent Norwegian salmon oil) and Essential the Mobility Blend (containing cartilage, MSM, and coconut oil). The first oil is ideal to boost heart, brain, and skin health. The second can help dogs with joint and mobility issues. › WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 163

d LIFESTYLE pets

back to CONTENTS

TRIED AND TESTED BY MARISA For an independent rating of Essential Foods, check out Trustpilot UK, whose site gives the brand a 4.5 out of five stars. I tried and tested four products and can highlight the following: » The packaging is arguably the most attractive I’ve seen. It bears appealing illustrations (including sketches of a tree of life, vintage ingredients, and the silhouette of a dog) instead of standard stock images of Fido with the family. I tried the Essential Older (Small Size) food and the package opened and closed with ease, unlike with my usual food, which usually takes time to reseal. » The Essential Older Small Size kibble was, thankfully, much easier

for my little dog, Ella, to consume. I appreciate the fact that they make food for larger and smaller breeds; my usual brand does not do so and my dog sometimes struggles with the large-sized kibble. Ella loved it and gobbled up every last piece of kibble (again, a first for her, bearing in mind that older dogs can lose their appetite owing to dental and other issues). » The Essential The Omega 3 Oil was the star product for me. I drizzled around half a tablespoon over my dog’s kibble, which I believe is the reason why she licked her bowl clean! » My dog went literally crazy over the snacks. She tried the Essential Beef Delights (100 per cent

dried beef strips for dogs) and the Essential Finest Venison & Duck Sausages (which is handmade in England, air-dried, and made with super-fresh ingredients). They were a hit! The one downside was my pet continually standing next to me (hours later) making “sad eyes” because she wanted more. Well, I never…! As a dog owner who views my pet as 'just another child,' I highly recommend Essential Foods. The quality of the content,

packaging, and oilbased supplements are a clear indication of a passion for the longevity and wellbeing of pets (and of Christian’s perfectionism). Lest I forget, this year alone. Essential Foods donated €25.000 to animal-based projects in Marbella and Málaga, one of which is the Galgos 112 Shelter in Málaga. For further information on their charity projects, see https://www. essentialfoodsgb.co.uk/ the-charity-program

g Essential Foods can be bought at dedicated stores close to you (check out their website to discover them) though as of this month, you can also order via their online site. www.essentialfoods.es www.essentialfoods.com

CLICK TO VISIT

www.essentialfoods.es

164 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

n SPA beauty buys

back to CONTENTS

Mention the word ‘Benefit’ among beauty lovers and their minds will immediately conjure up images of thick, lush, beautiful brows. Indeed, Benefit first went ‘worldwide viral’ in 2001, when it opened its inaugural Brow Bar – a dedicated stand where women could have their brows plucked, filled, and shaped to natural-looking perfection. The timing was impeccable. In the 1990s, many consumers had done untold damage to their brows by over-plucking them to achieve the pencil-fine brows donned by beauties like Nicole Kidman and Britney Spears. The 2000s saw thick, bushy, Brooke Shields-style brows make a comeback and Benefit was there right when we needed it most, with pomades, gels, and special brushes that enabled customers to paint their brows back on – sometimes, literally hair by hair! WORDS MARISA CUTILLAS

pigment whose use dates back to the Aztecs in the 1500s) to Benefit was founded in 1976 by produce an appealing, longidentical twin sisters, Jean and lasting product. It was a hit Jane Ford. The talented siblings among the original group of wanted to start a business and dancers it was made for, though they flipped a coin to make a the product soon became a choice. Heads, they would open nationwide sensation favoured a café, tails a makeup shop. by beauties like Nicole Kidman Fortunately for Benefit fans, and Amy Adams. tails prevailed and the sisters launched The Face Place – A FUN, FRIENDLY APPROACH a shop that specialised in The sisters sought to break free fulfilling customers’ demands. from the idea that all makeup Their very first product was the had to be ultra-glam. In fact, Benetint Lip & Cheek Stain – a their motto was, ‘Who says nipple tint for exotic dancers makeup has to be serious to be that would lend this part of the good?’ and their packaging was anatomy a more appealing hue.! quirky, kitsch, and colourful. Jean and Jane blended boiled Their products also bore unique rose petals and carmine (a red names, as is the case today.

SISTERS ARE DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES

166 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

Take their highlighter called High Beam; their primer, Stay Don’t Stray; or the under-eye brightener called Ooh La Lift.

REACHING FOR THE SKY In 1989, Benefit developed a product catalogue and began distributing their wares in big department stores. By 1990, the company had a new name: Benefit Cosmetics. In 1997, the brand went international, with a presence in Harrods and a new product website. In 2008, Jean’s daughters Annie and Maggie joined the company, opening stores across the globe.

i www.benefitcosmetics.com

BENEFIT BROWS TO DIE FOR

BENEFIT BROW BARS IN MÁLAGA

If you would love to give your brows a more modern look, head to one of Benefit’s three brow bars in Málaga. There is one bar in each El Corte Inglés Málaga and Marbella, as well as a stand at Sephora in La Cañada. Assistants can help you achieve the brow shape you’re after through the use of brush-and-pomadestyle products as well as ultra-fine and angled brow pens, and tinted and transparent gels. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 167

n SPA beauty buys

back to CONTENTS

ICONIC BENEFIT PRODUCTS

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO EXPERIENCE THE BENEFIT BRAND AT ITS BEST, WE RECOMMEND THE FOLLOWING PRODUCTS.

1 – PRECISELY, MY BROW PENCIL If you have very fine eyebrows, then filling them in requires a super-fine pen; one that enables you to literally draw individual brow hairs. This pen is perfect for the task, as it is ultra-precise and highly pigmented. 2 – GOOF PROOF BROW PENCIL This angled brow pencil is also ideal for drawing on individual brow hairs, as it can instantly fill patchy spaces and create the perfect brow tail.

3 – FOOLPROOF BROW POWDER Add density to your brows with this longlasting powder. 4 – HIGH BROW PENCIL Highlight your brows with this creamy pen, which gives brow arches an attractive lift. 5 – 24-HOUR BROW SETTER A transparent gel product that sets your brows after you have filled them in. 6 – KA BROW! A cream gel product that is perfect for building soft or dramatic brows. It comes with its own brush, which makes it a steal for the budget-conscious. e

4 6

168 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

n SPA health

back to CONTENTS

AL Amyloidosis starts with oxidative stress: the imbalance between reactive oxygen species and the cellular ability to detoxify (break down) these reactive molecules or to repair the damage caused by them. This phenomenon was first described more than 50 years ago and since then is linked to all physical decline that we experience throughout our life: ageing, chronic disease, psychiatric disease and degenerative disease, even cancer. We have also focussed on antioxidants of any molecular sort, which should counteract the oxidative stress created and help us restore optimal functionality. If it was just that simple! WORDS MANUELA REISBECK

OXIDATIVE STRESS AGEING, CHRONIC DISEASE AND THE MUCH TALKED ABOUT CELLULAR NUTRITION

170 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

ree radicals are natural metabolic products which play an important role in several acute repair processes inside the cells, e.g. removing newly formed mutations from a part of our DNA or triggering specific activities of the immune system in the battle against an acute infection. However, in case of unnecessary accumulation, they will cause damage to cellular lipids, proteins and even the DNA, interfering with genetic function and signalling pathways. This occurs when our protective system, which functions as a free radical scavenger, is unable to cope with the task, either

because the oxidative stress is far too high or because the system itself is too weak.

WHAT CAUSES AN OVERPRODUCTION OF FREE RADICALS DURING THE NATURAL PROCESS OF METABOLISM? The culprits are the same as always and arise from our lifestyle: smoking and alcohol but also environmental pollution are strong cellular toxins altering the natural metabolism process causing more free radicals to form. Physical and psychological stress, lack of physical exercise and sleep deprivation are important factors. When it comes to nutrition, it is the

processed food which mostly should be held accountable for the damage as well as high concentrations of saturated fats. On the other hand, a fruit and vegetable rich diet seems to help maintain the necessary balance.

WHAT CAN WE DO AND HOW DOES CELLULAR NUTRITION APPLY? Cellular nutrition is the mix of all necessary nutrients provided to the cell at an optimal level so our cells can pick what they need to improve cellular function. The goal is to strengthen the anti-oxidative system producing sufficient free radical scavengers to re-establish balance.

These so-called micronutrients are molecules of all sorts: minerals like zinc, iron, selenium and calcium, amino acids like arginine and lysin but also proteins and Vitamins with antioxidative properties. They work like a symphony orchestra, each single instrument playing its part creating one harmonic piece. The natural source of all these micronutrients is our diet. So, the question has been if, due to increased oxidative stress that we experience every day, we should increase and supplement the intake of micronutrients, especially in the form of antioxidants? ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 171

n SPA health

back to CONTENTS

Besides the obvious positive answer, we should be cautious. The body can produce a large volume of protective molecules itself, given it possesses the ‘ingredients’. Making these available in sufficient amounts follows the concept: we supply to the cell all that it needs for optimal production. This is particularly true for small molecules like minerals and amino acids. Unfortunately, there are some antioxidant compounds which the body cannot produce, the so-called exogenous antioxidants. Vitamins like C, E, A and the large B-Complex are good examples. CoQ10 and its active form Ubiquinol have stepped up from facial cream ingredients to become famous supplements as well as glutathione, alpha-lipoic acid and curcumins. NADPH molecules are necessary in all chemical reactions of reduction (‘de-oxygenation’) and are part of detox regimes. All these molecules can scavenge free radicals and promote each other in a symbiotic fashion. But should we regularly take them in for supplementary protection? Here we must act with caution. Too much antioxidant effect inside the cell is not always better. As mentioned 172 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

before, it is the balance between pro-oxidative and anti-oxidative effects that matters. Further, some of the supplemented antioxidants are difficult to metabolise and remove from the body and they build up inside the cells. Paradoxically, alphatocopherol, a potent antioxidant, becomes a pro-oxidant at high concentrations. The same applies with Flavonoids. The key is to design a combination that suits your needs optimally without the risk of overdosing. We must be especially careful with the Vitamins A and E, since they have been linked to the development of cancer in a few independent clinical studies. The bottom line is, if you want optimal cellular nutrition to optimise your antioxidant system and to reduce oxidative stress, you must start with your

macro-nutrition and remove unnecessary toxins from your lifestyle. If you wish to give it a helping hand you may opt for supplementation. The choice of your supplements is individual depending on your metabolism, underlying diseases and daily needs based on your activity, age and other circumstances. And remember, more is not always better, and it is important to consult with someone who does understand the risks as well as the benefits. I am happy to share my experience and help design individually tailored programs. g Dr Manuela Reisbeck, Consultant Internist at ReisbeckMedical, Marbella. www.reisbeck-medical.com

By the pool, in bed, on the table, the bedroom floor or the kitchen counter...

@essentialmarbellamagazine

W W W.E SSE NT I A L M A G A Z I NE .C O M

E SSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM

LOOK UP OUR DIGITAL EDITION!

social media updated daily with awesome content that will make you happy! :)

you can enjoy reading essential magazine in a screen friendly format enhanced with interactive digital features and on-page videos. Check out all the fab bonus content!

z back to CONTENTS

enterprise

DYNAMIC ARTHUR LOGINOV OF DRUMELIA ESTATES ENLIGHTENS US ON HOW HIS SALES APPROACH IS SO SUCCESSFUL AND MARBELLA LAWYER, RAYMUNDO LARRAÍN NESBITT EXPLAINS THE PRINCIPALS ENSHRINED IN THIS YEAR’S NEW LAW PROTECTING ANIMAL RIGHTS.

GO TO PAGE 190 FOR THE VIBE

GO TO PAGE 192 FOR ANIMAL RIGHTS

GO TO PAGE 182 FOR BUSINESS NEWS PRODUCTS BEAUTY SPA HEALTH 176 Arthur Loginov of Drumelia Estates 182 Business News 190 The Vibe

GO TO PAGE 176 FOR DRUMELIA ESTATES

192 New Laws on Animal Rights

z ENTERPRISE property

back to CONTENTS

WHAT MAKES US DIFFERENT

ARTUR LOGINOV One of the youngest business leaders within the real estate sector of the Costa del Sol, Artur Loginov is the CEO of Drumelia, a company known for its success in the upper segments of the luxury market. Here, he shares a philosophy that has led to this success.

Artur Loginov, CEO of Drumelia Real Estate

176 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

rtur has made waves in the Marbella property market; first as one of the youngest-ever CEOs of an established real estate company, and then as the head of a team that has achieved an impressive tally of sales in the top segment, focusing on properties worth over €10 million. These include, among others, the most exclusive

mansions in Sierra Blanca: Villa Symphony, Villa Serenity and Villa Ricotta that was valued by Forbes at €40 million, and the highly publicised €32 million La Zagaleta mansion Villa Cullinan, one of the most luxurious properties ever sold on the Costa del Sol. However, success was not a foregone conclusion from the outset. Artur moved to Spain

with his parents at the age of five and received a trilingual education that includes Spanish, English and Russian. Later, a family friend, Sergey Sinichkin, offered him a starting position at his property agency, Drumelia. “He must have seen something in me, as he taught me the ins and outs of the business and allowed me to grow within it,” says Artur. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 177

z ENTERPRISE property

back to CONTENTS

All journeys have their tough parts, and when Artur started in the business it was during the depths of the 2008 financial crisis, but he gained valuable experience, selling his first mansion much sooner than one might have expected under the circumstances. At €13.5 million, 178 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

Villa Romana was an important property to sell, and it formed the beginning of his road to success with Drumelia.

DEVELOPING A CULTURE OF INNOVATION Several years later Drumelia built a successful young

team of dynamic and vibrant professionals and began experimenting with new advanced forms of digital marketing. They were among the first to do it in Spain. “We realised that this was going to be the way of the future, so we invested our resources in

developing the capacity and skills to promote properties in a way that was new on the Costa del Sol. Remember, when Henry Ford made his first car, people asked, ‘What’s wrong with a horse?’ But he made a huge bet, and it worked.” This decision would create a culture of innovation within Drumelia that continues to this day. “The new technologies and methods are evolving in an on-going way, so you can’t sit back and rest on your laurels but have to develop along with them if you want to remain fully up-to-date and as effective as you can be.” From this mind-set came a desire to think out of the box and look at the marketing of luxury Marbella homes from a

fresh perspective. To future proof a business, you need to predict future demands and take a risk. “We decided to take this risk, and approach the sale of a property such as Villa Cullinan differently, focusing less on the location and more on the belief that this kind of home would appeal to a younger high net worth buyer, and we adapted our marketing strategy accordingly.” It was a huge leap of faith, as no one had ever really done this before, and certainly not with a property of this kind, but it paid off, and produced the most spectacular sale of 2020. Artur describes it as a ‘breakthrough concept’ that delivered unprecedented results. ›

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 179

z ENTERPRISE property

back to CONTENTS

CLICK TO VISIT

www.drumelia.com

He and his team have continued to develop in this direction, following the latest trends in the upper segment and using social media to create cool ‘physical’ experiences. “Our narrated video content attracts upwards of 100,000 views from all over the world, or significantly more, and our website took first position in Google with over 50,000 monthly visits. Drumelia’s YouTube channel has become the leading real estate channel in Europe, with hundreds of thousands of followers on Instagram, Drumelia is the agency with the largest audience in Marbella.” The future is bright. The ambitious leaders of Drumelia continuously want to reach higher levels for themselves and their company. The brand has an outstanding international

180 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

team fluent in almost ten languages. With over 25 years of experience, it continues to pursue a very bold, primed for victory marketing strategy through digital innovation and increase its digital marketing department. “When it comes to advertising and promotion, Drumelia offers the best in terms of marketing and online presence, doing what no one else does on the coast. No wonder more and more highend property owners enter into an Exclusive Listing with us,” says Artur, who received a property industry ‘Oscar’ as ‘Best Real Estate Agent in Spain’ 2021-2022, from the prestigious International Property Awards. “In addition to being forwardlooking and keeping abreast of the latest developments, I also believe that what you put into

life in general, and personal relationships in particular, is what you get back,” says the young executive. “In our work this translates to an open, transparent approach, a very personal involvement by the whole team, and the willingness to share our know-how with clients and peers alike.” He believes good business is built upon strong relationships. “We don’t focus so much on selling – the people who contact us already know they want to buy a property in Marbella, so our company’s task is to help them find what they are looking for and make their experience smooth and pleasant. In essence, we don’t sell properties so much as the door to the life of your dreams, because that is what Marbella is about.”

This philosophy is bearing fruit. Drumelia has anchored its position in the market and aims to be ahead of the competition. It continues to grow, blending digital experiences with physical ones. To foster the culture of innovation, you need to create a favourable environment for it. That is why this autumn the company will

open a new business location, an innovative and energypositive office near Puerto Banús. Renovated to the highest standards and decorated by renowned designers, it will be the start of another chapter in Drumelia Real Estate’s history and an opportunity to grow the brand. There, Artur and his

creative team will be leading from the front in a fast-evolving sector that is increasingly influenced by state-of-theart technology but just as dependent upon the personal touch as it ever was. i www.drumelia.com Instagram: @artur_drumelia | 139K Youtube: Drumelia Real Estate | 175K

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 181

z z ENTERPRISE business

back to CONTENTS

business news WORDS BY MARISA CUTILLAS

AN HISTORIC START TO THE YEAR FOR LA ZAGALETA La Zagaleta is breaking new records, having registered €44 million in sales in the first quarter of 2022. In 2021, it had already tripled its total number of transactions (up to 45 from an average of 15 per annum in the two years prior to the pandemic). With the reactivation of residential tourism due to the end of the pandemic and the new macroeconomic context, forecasts indicate that the firm will close 2022 with more sales than it recorded in 2021. i www.lazagaleta.com

182 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

FIRST INTERNATIONAL RECRUITMENT & JOB FAIR AT THE MIUC UNIVERSITY CENTRE IN MARBELLA The first edition of the International Recruitment & Job Fair took place recently at the MIUC University Centre in Marbella. The event was aimed at international professionals and companies with a foreign target market and multilingual employees. The organisers stated that the business fabric of the Coast is no longer exclusively focused on tourism and hospitality. More companies from various sectors are establishing themselves here and they require professional staff that is fluent in English and specialised in technology, marketing, and other relevant skills. i www.miuc.org

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 183

z ENTERPRISE business

back to CONTENTS

BUSINESS MEETS CHESS & KIDS MARBELLA Los Naranjos Golf Club was the venue for the recent Business Meets Chess & Kids Marbella, an incentive that paired up a child with a business executive to form a team of two. They then played against other duos, alternating their moves, with the aim of helping an underprivileged child from an inner-city community. The winners were Ricardo Rubio and Ariana from Club Miraflores who beat Club Los Naranjos Golf with Piotr and Ajnni in an exciting final. i www.businessmeetschessandkids. com

184 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

HIGUERÓN RESIDENCES & COLLECTIONS PRESENTS NATURE COLLECTION Higuerón Residences & Collections is pleased to announce that it has delivered its turnkey project, Nature Collection, comprising 40 spacious ‘Garden Homes’ with plenty of natural light and beautiful sea and mountain views. This development is located in the Sierra de Mijas and it involved a €24 million investment. Nature Collection marks a total of 50 promotions that Higuerón Residences & Collections has undertaken in Andalucía. i www.higueronresortrealestate.com

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 185

z ENTERPRISE business

back to CONTENTS

WAVESHARK PRESENTATION IN SOTOGRANDE

LA TRAVIATA PLAYS LIVE IN MÁLAGA CINEMAS The Royal Opera’s recent rendition of La Traviata, performed at Covent Garden was broadcasted live across seven Cinesur cinemas in Málaga, 80 cinemas in Spain, and 800 cinemas across the globe. The impressive production was directed by Richard Eyre and featured the highly acclaimed South African soprano Pretty Yende in the role of Violetta. Also performing were American tenor, Stephen Costello and Greek baritone, Dimitri Platanias. i www.cinesur.com

186 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

WaveShark recently presented its new motorised jetboards at La Reserva Club Sotogrande’s beach club. Famous motor freestyle surfer, Maylow Silver showed off his skills and demonstrated the many things you can do atop boards of this calibre. The company presented the WaveShark Jetboard (which reaches a maximum of 60 km/h) and the electric E-foil, which floats over the water, quietly propelled by a potent motor located beneath its mast. i www.waveshark.com

FROM STRESS TO SELF-BEING Author and certified Personal Coach, Lucía Toro, has written an ideal book for those who are facing stress daily. Entitled From Stress to Self-Being, it is a practical manual that encourages readers to understand the limitations that trap them and prevent them from leading a happy, fulfilled life. The book provides a host of original tools to help you learn how to ‘be in the here and now’ so you can view stressful situations in a new light. It also highlights the inexorable link between our thoughts and behaviours. i Available on Amazon. www.luestudio.es

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 187

z ENTERPRISE business

back to CONTENTS

NEW DIRECTOR AT LES ROCHES MARBELLA Les Roches Marbella is pleased to announce that it has a brand new campus Director: Mano Soler, who took over from Carlos Díez de la Lastra (who is now the global CEO of Les Roches). Soler had served as Director of Operations and Student Support Services at the school since 2012 and he is a key player in the professional and personal development and wellbeing of students. i www.lesroches.edu

FUERTE GROUP DONATES €12.000 TO PROMOTE SPORTS AND EQUALITY AMONG OUR YOUTH The Fuerte Group, keen to promote the practice of sport and equality among young adults, has made two sizable donations. A total of €10.000 was given to Horizonte Proyecto Hombre Marbella to finance its PIVESPORT program, and €2.000 went to the Grazalema Women’s Basketball Sports Club. These funds were obtained from the Group`s Euro Solidario Campaign, in which guests donate €1 to charitable causes when they check out of their hotel. i www.fuertehoteles.com

188 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

SEVENTH MARBELLA ALL STARS SUMMIT AT THE DON CARLOS RESORT The seventh edition of the Marbella All Stars Summit will be taking place on June 6 and 7 at the Don Carlos Beach Club and the Don Carlos Resort. It will focus on the latest trends in tourism in Spain and feature an innovative programme inspired

by techniques obtained from the world of coaching, networking, mentoring, and think tank organisations. Marbella All Stars’ founder, María Asenjo, told the press, “We are currently progressing to a new kind of ‘excellent tourism’ that is active, healthy, sustainable, and focused on gourmet offerings.” i For further information on the event, www.marbellaallstars.es

TODOS LOS CABALLOS DEL MUNDO NOW HAS AN ONLINE SHOP Todos Los Caballos del Mundo, the charity dedicated to helping abandoned and abused horses, now has an online shop, dedicated to much-needed fund-raising. The shop sells T-shirts, mugs, hoodies, accessories and more. If you want to support its hardworking team, you can also adopt a horse or make regular or ad hoc donations. i www.tiendaparalosanimales.es

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 189

z ENTERPRISE social

back to CONTENTS

PACASO HOME CENTER MARBELLA Pacaso, specialists in the co-ownership of luxury properties, hosted a lively cocktail party to inaugurate the new Pacaso Home Center on the Golden Mile with the presence of the Mayor, Ángeles Muñoz. The event brought together prominent Marbella Real Estate agents, potential clients, and members of the media. i www.pacaso.com

“Real Estate is the purest form of entrepreneurship” – Brian Buffini

PHOTOGRAPHY KEVIN HORN 190 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

LA RESERVA CLUB SOTOGRANDE La Reserva Club Sotogrande celebrated the reopening of The Beach with a Cuban Party, featuring cocktails, sunbeds and live music. Residents of Sotogrande and visitors enjoyed the first day of the season at this iconic venue, replete with a lagoon, water sports, a beautiful beach and a top rated restaurant. i www.lareservaclubsotogrande.com

“Don’t grow up too quickly, lest you forget how much you love the beach” – Michelle Held

PHOTOGRAPHY KEVIN HORN WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 191

z ENTERPRISE law

back to CONTENTS

NEW LAW PROTECTING

ANIMAL RIGHTS

Spain’s social-communist government approved a new law for the protection and rights of animals. The new draft law came into force on the 5th January 2022. WORDS RAYMUNDO LARRAÍN NESBITT

his key law, which amends several other laws, is the latest addition to a general legal framework that is gathered in an Animal Codex (Código de Protección y Bienestar Animal) devised for the protection of animal welfare. Updated as of 27-01-2022. This was a trend that was started long ago by one man, a proto-ecologist called Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente in the 1970s who, over time, shaped Spanish modern society changing its mindset, even to

192 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

our day, and has coalesced in this Animal Codex. No accolade can honour enough what this man achieved in benefit of us all. Almost four decades after his tragic death, he is still mourned and credited as the Father of Spanish Environmentalism. Spain’s historical disposition towards animals’ rights has been hazy at best. This situation has changed dramatically post-Constitution as new openminded generations, imbued by democratic ideals, seize

power to enact laws in line with the core values that behove a modern society. This new law, which extends jail terms to those who would abuse animals, is a clear victory for animal rights in Spain which have (finally) become a core tenet of our society and which may now be legally upheld. Kudos to our government for making such a great effort to protect our pets and wildlife. Credit where credit is due. Gracias Félix.

RECAP OF THE NEW POINTS BROUGHT BY THIS LAW As per usual, I will collate the main 25 amendments as bullet points, simplifying where necessary. Z Animals cease to be ‘things’, in legal terms, and are now regarded as living, sensitive beings. As a consequence, they may no longer be repossessed or embargoed in insolvency procedures. Z Animals can no longer be sold in pet stores. They will be sold only by licensed animal breeders. Z Animal exchanges between private unlicensed individuals must be free of charge, no money can be exchanged. Z Animal breeders are under a legal obligation to identify and tag animals in a national animal registry before being sold. Z Some animals will be neutered prior to

being sold to avoid their unwanted reproduction. Z Animals may no longer be freely sacrificed unless there are valid reasons. Z Prohibition to mistreat them physically or psychologically. Z Animals may no longer be abandoned by owners in open or closed spaces, e.g. terraces, cars, etc. Z No mutilations are allowed, i.e. for aesthetic reasons. Z Animal fights are forbidden. Z Banning of public shows that use animals and may cause them any kind of pain or suffering. Z Beggars may no longer use animals to beg. Z Certain jobs, that are deemed too stressful for their wellbeing, may no longer use animals. Z Banning of animal accessories that cause them harm, i.e. spiked collars for dangerous dogs.

Z Banning of pets to be eaten (sic)! Z Banning of capturing wild birds to force them to sing. Z Banning of certain foods for animals not considered apt. Z Banning of animals as prizes in draws or lotteries. Z Banning of animals (i.e. pets) released into the wild. Z Banning of animal traps unless legally authorised. Z Cats can no longer be left alone for more than three days; dogs no more than 24 hours unsupervised. Z The adoption of non-tagged or identified animals is expressly banned. Z Publicity with animals is banned except for their own purposes, i.e. animal food. Z Articles 332 to 340 of Spain’s Criminal Code apply. Z The new amendment will increase jail terms from

the current 12 months to two years in prison.

CONCLUSION The majority of animal lobbies consider that the new amendment of two years falls short of what’s required. They are lobbying hard to increase it to three or five years. Given the changes in the mindset of our society, I find it highly likely this increase in jail terms will be achieved in the future. I very much welcome them. There is still much work to be done to extend these rights and protection to animals in the wilderness. “The greatness of a nation, and its moral progress, can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” – Gandhi. AKA Mahatma (‘Great Soul’) Gandhi. g Larraín Nesbitt Lawyers. Tel: (+34) 952 192 288. info@larrainnesbitt.com

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 193

b back to CONTENTS

gourmet

IN COMBINATION WITH ITS ARTISAN BAKERY AND CAFÉ, GROUND, AND THE ROOFTOP COCKTAIL BAR, AIR, BREATHE IN MARBELLA IS TRULY UNIQUE. CHECK OUT THE NEW LOOK CASINO MARBELLA, AND LEARN MORE ABOUT WHAT MAKES WINE GREEN.

GO TO PAGE 208 FOR GREEN WINE

GO TO PAGE 204 FOR GOURMET BYTES

GO TO PAGE 202 FOR CASINO MARBELLA

GO TO PAGE 196 FOR BREATHE

NEWS GASTRONOMY CHEFS WINE

196 Breathe in Marbella 202 New Look Casino Marbella 204 Gourmet Bytes 208 Green Wine

b THE GOURMET restaurants

back to CONTENTS

BREATHE MARBELLA

CARBON FREE DINING

Having opened in October 2018, Breathe has grown to become one of the most popular dining venues in Marbella. With its three concepts in one, there is simply nowhere else quite like it. WORDS JAMES SINCLAIR PHOTOGRAPHY KEVIN HORN

196 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

RESTAURANT GASTRO BAR & GARDEN Our visit to Breathe began by parking in their dedicated car park – there are two levels under the building open to the general public and customers of the restaurant receive a discount. Having safely installed our vehicle, we took the elevator up to the principal entry where we were received at the reception and shown to our table. The main dining room sets the tone with its great expanse, grand open kitchen and spacious bar. The solid tables are nicely spread beneath the verdant canopy of hanging

plants and lights in wicker shades. Large floor-to-ceiling windows run the full length of the front side, affording panoramic views of Marbella, Puerto Banús and La Concha. On the opposite side, there is an extensive covered terrace that can be enclosed and a sublime garden with chill-out areas and impressive water features. Foliage is everywhere, as is noble wood, stone and marble. You immediately feel in harmony with nature, before you even get round to ordering.

TRENDY, CHIC AND ENVIRONMENTALLY RESPONSIBLE The ambience here is chic with a live DJ every night maintaining the vibe and the many diners are of all ages: trendsetters, groups of young friends and older couples. In keeping with the organic sustainable theme the brand is built around, the menus are printed on recyclable disposable paper, and the restaurant has a stated mission of eliminating single-use plastic › WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 197

b GOURMET restaurants

BREATHE LIFE We really enjoyed this dining experience, starting with Spicy Tuna Tartare, Grilled Calamari, Goat’s Cheese Salad and a Wagyu Kebab. Amazingly, they arrived on our table in under 10 minutes, showing the prowess of the well-run kitchen, which is headed up by Executive Chef, Tim van Buchem, who has an impressive CV, having worked at Finca Cortesin, Puente Romano, Mugaritz and Taiko in Amsterdam. Tim says, “Wherever you go, wherever you are, you learn something new. All the flavours and ideas I picked up all over the world, I try to use for my dishes.” We followed up with Seafood

198 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

back to CONTENTS

Tagliatelle, Grilled Turbot, Roasted Marinated Corvina and a Grilled Wagyu Fillet. The portions were ample and all four of us were happily praising our individual choices. We accompanied these delights with Menade Sauvignon Blanc, which is fittingly organic and vegan. We could have also selected from an eclectic list of Cocktails, Champagne, Cava, Spanish and World wines. To finish off what had been an excellent meal, we indulged in Lemon and Lime Cheesecake, Chocolate Fondant, Sabayon Tiramisu and Roasted Pineapple. The waiters added to the experience with friendly and attentive service. ›

Tel: 952 818 392 www.thaigallerymarbella.com

ALL OUR RESTAURANTS ARE OPEN ACCORDING TO REGULATIONS, WITH FULL SAFETY MEASURES!

Puente Romano Hotel, Plaza Village, Marbella.

IN ES E R ES TA U R A N T PO LY

NEW TAI PAN

Marbella

ES IA N BA R

Tel: 952 777 893 / 952 775 500 www.taipanmarbella.com Puente Romano, Fase 2, Marbella. Open Daily for Dinner from 8:00

SUKHOTHAI Exquisite Royal Thai Cuisine Tel: 952 770 550 www.sukhothaimarbella.com Marbellamar, L-3A, Marbella. Open Daily for Dinner from 8:00

b GOURMET restaurants

GROUND SWELL Beneath the restaurant is Ground, an artisan café bakery which serves full breakfast and lunch menus, speciality coffee, freshly baked bread, pastries and healthy sandwiches from 8:30 to 18:00 daily. You can also enjoy a light lunch in the bakery, on the garden terrace or to takeaway. There is even a homemade food products store to check out here.

IN THE AIR Completing the trio of magnificent concepts so well epitomised by their names is Air, the rooftop cocktail bar. This is in another dimension entirely, with regular parties under the night sky – it’s the perfect place to socialise with friends and to extend an evening out in style. Expect to be entertained with great music from the resident

200 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

back to CONTENTS

DJ, world-class entertainment, classy cocktails, a sushi bar, comfy seating and outstanding views. This year’s Opening Party is on Saturday 21st May, from 19:00 with resident DJ SO&SO and you can enjoy the remainder of the season every night until the small hours at this top-notch venue with their trademark UNDER THE STARS events. Breathe is open from 18:00 to 1:00 from Sundays to Thursdays and until 2:00 on Fridays and Saturdays. Diners receive subsidised parking in the underground car park, which is equipped with free electric car chargers, Eco car wash service, CCTV cameras, and has disabled parking spaces. g Reservations are recommended: Tel: (+34) 952 036 494. www.breathe.life

CASINOMARBELLA.COM PUERTO BANÚS

JUEGO RESPONSABLE

b GOURMET news

back to CONTENTS

A NEW LOOK FOR

CASINOMARBELLA The Casino Marbella now boasts a new games hall and bar, plus more games and fun! Marisa Cutillas fills you in on the latest. PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF CASINO MARBELLA

asino Marbella is a veritable icon in Marbella, having first opened its doors in 1978. Boasting over 3,500m2 of space, it entices clients with a wide range of activities, including slot machines, sports betting, American roulette, blackjack, a

bevy of poker types, and a VIP lounge. Far from resting on its laurels, the Casino is constantly looking for new ways to entertain both regular and new clients. In 2017, it underwent extensive renovations, and recently, management also

decided to improve the Jackpot Paradise area. The latter boasts a cutting-edge design, plus a new bar and more games. This zone saw many lucky players win over €330.000 in 2021. The new slot machine area has 82 different slots, including a wide array of progressive

“All the evidence shows that God was actually quite a gambler, and the universe is a great casino, where dice are thrown, and roulette wheels spin on every occasion” Stephen Hawking

202 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

jackpots with big prizes, plus an electronic roulette, and classic favourites. It also has a Sportium sports betting area with high-quality screens broadcasting live events. In between games, clients can tuck into a nice range of snacks at the bar, which stays open throughout the Casino’s opening hours (11am to 4am). Like the rest of the interior, the bar and slot machine area boast an innovative style, designed to appeal to discerning clients from across the globe. Casino Marbella is open nearly all day and night and from 8pm onwards,

clients can order food at the restaurant. Check out the Gastrobar, which serves Okonomiyaki: a Japanese dish made of mochi dough and other ingredients, cooked over a griddle. The Casino’s Chef, Agustín Román, adds a touch of Andalucía to this traditional dish with local and regional ingredients like Payoyo cheese and oxtail. The restaurant also serves various Mediterranean tapas dishes, plus classic Spanish recipes with a fusion of Hawaiian, Asian and Moroccan flavours. Diners can opt for a group, tasting, or à la carte menu. e

ABOUT CASINO MARBELLA Casino Marbella is run by the CIRSA Gaming Corporation, a worldwide leader in the games and leisure sector. The organisation has over 15,000 employees and comprises 31 traditional casinos, 82 electronic casinos, 31,314 recreational machines, 80 bingo halls, 154 games halls, and 550 sports betting centres. It also owns 2,008 lottery terminals and 2,583 video-lottery terminals in Spain, Italy, and Latin America. g At the Hotel H10 Andalucía Plaza, s/n, Marbella. Tel: (+34) 952 814 000. www.casinomarbella.com

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 203

b THE GOURMET news

back to CONTENTS

BIBO BEACH HOUSE TARIFA

DANCES TO MUSICAL RHYTHMS Bibo Beach House Tarifa by Dani García has renovated its chill-out area and is ready to celebrate the joy of music with unplugged sessions, DJ-spun sets, and an exciting new menu. For this purpose, it has partnered up with Marenostrum Fuengirola – one of the most spectacular open-air venues on the Coast. The line-up will include performances by an eclectic group of musicians of all genres. Visit Grupo Dani García’s website for a full programme of events. i www.grupodanigarcia.com

NEW GOIKO RESTAURANT OPENS IN MÁLAGA Málaga’s Plaza Mayor shopping centre is now home to a brand new Goiko restaurant, featuring a 219m2 dining space and a 100m2 terrace. The locale is graced with touches of Andalusian culture, including a customised wall designed by Córdoba-born designer, Paco Tuercas. For a treat with a Malagueño touch, try La Piccasa – a juicy burger named in honor of Pablo Picasso. The restaurant has dine-in, takeaway, and delivery services. i www.goiko.com

204 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

b GOURMET news

back to CONTENTS

GOXO FOOD TRUCK AT EL CORTE INGLÉS

El Corte Inglés in Puerto Banús is now home to a brand new GoXo food truck by renowned Chef, Dabiz Muñoz. Just a few items on the menu are the double cheeseburger with matured beef, XO french fries, and the famous La Pedroche cheesecake. You can also cool down with cocktails such as the Japanese shiso mojito and the mezcal Thai margarita. i www.elcorteingles.es

GRUPO MOSH TEMPTS YOUR TASTEBUDS

STARBUCKS PRESENTS NEW DRINKS LINE-UP AND VEGAN DELIGHTS

If you are accustomed to the excellent food and friendly service offered by the MOSH team, you now have four different venues to choose from on the Coast: Playa Padre at Playa del Cable in Marbella (featuring Mediterranean/Mexican Caribbean food), NIDO Estepona (a beach club that is ideal for families and groups of friends), Momento (a chic electronic dance music club in Marbella serving Nikkei cuisine and beautiful cocktails), and Mosh Fun Kitchen (Grupo Mosh’s first establishment in Marbella, offering fantastic seasonal food and cocktails). i www.grupomosh.com

The Spring season has arrived and Starbucks has responded with a new selection of iced coffees and vegan drinks that will tempt even the most stoic consumer. The new Iced Blonde Shaken Espresso beverages are shaken and stirred simultaneously to bring out the full sweetness of Starbucks Blonde Roast – a subtle toasted espresso with a citric flavor and a creamy texture. Also on offer are vegan drinks made with oat milk, as well as vegan sandwiches featuring soy protein products by Garden Gourmet. i www.starbucks.es

206 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

WITH FOUR ESTABLISHMENTS ON THE COAST

b GOURMET wine

back to CONTENTS

ines used to be red, white, and rosé, period. Yet recently our lives have become more complicated by the addition of a new colour spectrum: orange, blue, and green, but it is only this last that causes confusion. Is it reasonable to assume that ‘green wines’ are those that, in common with many manufactured products, are eco-friendly? Portuguese Vinho Verde is not green, despite its name, and confusion often arises from ‘green’ being used here to describe a fizzy wine. Spanish terms don’t help either, as such wines are known as

vinos de aguja – ‘needle wines’ (e.g. Blanc Pescador) conveying the slightly prickly effect of the first taste. Better to stick with the good old Anglo-Saxon idea that if it’s green it’s fresh. Single variety, red and rosé Vinho Verde wines also exist, just to complicate matters. It is not surprising that wine drinkers are becoming confused by the new categories of wine that have been trickling down lately. Anyone reluctant to continue with the same drinking habits they may have known for the last five decades will find themselves with a quagmire

of bewildering choices. Wine is no longer simply wine, ergo, fermented juice of grapes, as it has been since the first qvevri was filled in Georgia. It is natural, organic, sustainable, and vegan. The bottom line is that these confusing terms have not been introduced to enlighten drinkers. They have been introduced to sell them more wine. Offshoots of what can be called the main business, specifically organics, only account for around 6 per cent of overall world consumption, but the trade’s idea is to increase their significance and as a result their overall sales figures.

CAN WINE BE GREEN? WORDS ANDREW J LINN

208 / MAY 2022 ESSENTIAL MAGAZINE

Organic wines must be made with grapes that are grown organically, although there is nothing to stop a vintner using non-organic materials in the post-fermentation process. Ideally the production eschews the use of chemicals and fertilisers – to varying degrees. If a bodega wishes to officially convert to organic winemaking it must go through an extended adaptation process that may take as long as three to five years, with no income from sales during that time. Sulphites are not allowed to be added, but of course occur naturally, so any clandestine introduction of additional sulphur is hard to detect. Since it helps prolong bottle life, it is a desirable extra. Because of the costs and inconvenience and the need for certification by official organisations, it is understandable that many wineries claim to produce their wines organically but prefer not to spend money being certified as such. Biodynamics is considered by many to be a load of codswallop, but if proof to the converse is required, witness the many wellknown French Bordeaux chateaux that have opted to follow this route: high single figures and increasing yearly. Notably, Gérard Bertrand has thus far

converted 600 of his 800 hectares Languedoc vineyards across 12 of his 14 estates to the earthfriendly method, not only because he believes in it but because he swears it yields better wine. Vegan and vegetarian wines speak for themselves, and most wine ever drunk in all history meets today’s criteria – except when it comes to additives used for fining, or clarifying the wine – originally egg whites and fish bladders, until these items became too expensive and were replaced by a type of clay made from volcanic ash. Natural wine is a minefield and there is as yet no clear definition as to what can be classified thus. Ideally the only raw materials used are grapes and natural yeasts, period, and supporters argue that any wine made with additional materials cannot be termed natural. In a

2019 Financial Times article, wine writer Jancis Robinson posed a provocative question: ‘Why is natural wine so divisive?’ She meant why is there such a deep rift between those who drink, produce, and sell wine made without pesticides or additives and traditional wineries? Most members of the natural wine movement will accept that the process requires the use of organic or biodynamic farming techniques, fermentation without added yeast or sugar, and no filtration. Logically there are also those who believe the use of minimal sulphites can be considered ‘natural’. Many uphold that only zero-zero wines are really natural, resulting in the use of the term ‘low-intervention’, that accepts that a light touch from the vintner is needed to produce the final product, but not how this is done. e

WWW.ESSENTIALMAGAZINE.COM / 209

REAL d e L a Qu i n ta

Untitled-1 1

21/4/22 10:56

Untitled-1 2

21/4/22 10:56

Artur’s Instagram | 138k

artur_drumelia

Weekly Property Tours | 170k

Drumelia Real Estate

artur@drumelia.com | www.drumelia.com | +34 952 76 69 50

Essential Magazine May 2022

Articles inside

New Look Casino Marbella

Gourmet Bytes

Green Wine

Breathe in Marbella

New Laws on Animal Rights

The Vibe

Artur Loginov of Drumelia Estates

Enterprise

A Stunning Villa in Cascada de Camoján

Stylish House in La Heredia

The Influence of AI on Music

Design Trends

Cellular Treatment for Oxidative Stress

Chelsea Flower Show

Club Med Magna Marbella

Elizabeth Olsen

Hot New Films

Venice

New Ferrari SP3 Daytona

Cool New Series

The Marbella Grand Prix