My quest to find the locale of the swanky white villa in the movie “Zindagi na milegi dobara” continues. Every time the movie plays on TV, I wait until the scene when Hrithik, Abhay and Farhan drive in to Costa Brava to catch that breathtaking view of the villa dressed in white, with lush greens overlooking the sea. One such wanderings led me to CN Traveller’s 25 best villas in Europe. And, it comes as no surprise that a majority of them are located in the troubled economies of Greece, Spain and Italy – all with mounting debt and desperate for a bailout from the troika, for however long that continues. Little wonder Spain’s current economic condition is because of the real estate boom along its coastline and all the unsold units now. This Greek villa in Cephalonia and the ones in Spain and Italy top my list. Image courtesy: CN Traveller’s…
I read this somewhere: Germans need the Greeks because they have this zest for life that makes the Germans happy. It doesn’t matter if Madame Merkel reluctantly says Ja or Nein to fund troubled Europe. Sometimes it is also about knowing how to spend the money. And who knows it better than the Greeks, even if it’s borrowed money.
With PIIGS, eurozone and austerity hogging the limelight this week, I thought it befitting to take a sneak peek into a simple hotel in Mykonos, Greece built by two small town Germans. What caught my eye was its simplicity, the story of its owners, their dreams and the happiness that shines through their smiles as they do what they love to do. There is no sign of opulence; the decor is so rustic that it perfectly blends with the natural elements.
What is luxury to you? Couldn’t have been said better:
“What is luxury? Luxury for me is to say, okay, I’m doing what I really want to do.”
“It’s open air, the stars. Go five steps and you’re standing in sand. Everybody comes here on holiday—they’re in a good mood.”