Alicante, Spain - tart our journeys from here

LAKE TAHOE, CALIFORNIA
IF YOU TALK TO THOSE WHO LIVE AROUND LAKE TAHOE, you ll quickly find a common thread —a love for the outdoors.
After a 35-minute drive from Reno-Tahoe International Airport, our visit started with a whirlwind tour of Martis Camp s 2,177 acres. Director of Sales Brain Hull showed off many of the 653 lots here. The developer, DMB/Highlands Group, sells just the lots (and has sold 391 of them already), and buyers build their own homes, subject to architectural review.
are going to see things that are very modern, yet mountain appropriate,”Hull says. He does not lie. We see floor-to-ceiling windows, metal roofs and facades of black zinc, along with more rustic materials. The guidelines focus on massing, color and texture —call it Tahoe Traditional. You see plenty of A-frame gables, but few heavy timbers.
A little late-season snow greeted us the next day, reminding us that the development is 5,900 to 7,100 feet above sea level; and the area averages more than 300 inches of snow per year. The powder is one of the main reasons folks buy here. Martis Camp is adjacent to the Northstar California ski resort; it has its own high-speed quad lift to the top of Lookout Mountain and a brand-new Lookout Lodge opening for the upcoming winter.
skiing is one of the main reasons we continue to do so well,”Hull says, as we inspect the almost-complete lodge. There also aren t many debt-free developers (such as DMB/Highlands Group). And the almost $100 million in amenities that already have been developed here over the past several years —including the award-winning Tom Fazio golf course —have a lot to do with Martis Camp s success.
We can vouch for many of the amenities, and we also can tell you that the members here make good use of them. The Family Barn has an old-fashioned soda fountain, bowling alley, pools, crafts and games; the Park Pavilion offers a full array of outdoor recreation activities, including a gorgeous 18-hole putting park; and the Camp Lodge boasts casual and fine dining, an extensive spa and fitness center, and amazing locker rooms and lounges. Members also can charter the development s own boat (with captain) to cruise Lake Tahoe, which is just 12 miles away.
GOING GLOBAL RARE CHANCE IN THE SWISS ALPS
Owning your own place in the Swiss Alps just got a lot easier. Purchase restrictions have been lifted in the new fully integrated five-star village, Andermatt Swiss Alps, opening the doors for 800 buyers.
And life will not be limited to swooshing down the slopes, as the village will offer year-round living, including an 18-hole golf course, horseback riding, paragliding and snowshoeing activities. Pricing tops out at US $60 million for villas, US $17 million for penthouses, US $8 million for apartments, and US $4.5 million for condominiums.
Swiss government, in seeing the value of this resort to Switzerland, granted a purchase exemption,”said Barbara Young, president of Henley Estates USA.
Within Andermatt, a former Swiss military center, Orascom Development Holding AG envisioned a high-end destination resort and secured an exemption to the Lex Koller law, which limits property purchases by foreigners.
believe in the lifestyle of Andermatt Swiss Alps —high-end luxury experiences with all-season sports and cultural activities,”says Tony Young of Henley Estates USA. are pleased to invite the world to own a piece of Andermatt Swiss Alps.”
TOURING TRANQUILITY
An exclusive look at lake Tahoe s crown jewel
Tranquility has been among the world s elite estates since its completion in 2000. But a recent opportunity to tour the home in person provided a new perspective on the most prized property in Lake Tahoe, Nevada.
Susan Lowe, senior vice president of Chase International, was our guide. Having seen many advertisements for Tranquility over the years, we were ready to see a grand estate. But what caught us by surprise were the stunning collections of artifacts and antiques so seamlessly and warmly enveloped into the home. There is a reason Tranquility is being sold completely furnished —some of the rooms literally were designed to showcase pieces of intricate handiwork discovered during the travels of owner Joel Horowitz, and his wife, Ann.
Our tour of the 26,000-square-foot main house began at the main entrance, graced with a staircase that precisely replicates that found on the RMS Titanic. Next, the grand hall features centuries-old artwork, gorgeous fireplaces mirroring each other, and a restored ornate 1879 Steinway piano.
The formal dining room provides a fantastic example of the detail that went into the home. All of the skylights and light fixtures in Tranquility are works of art, and here we found an antique sconce that Ann Horowitz loved so much that she asked artisans to copy it so this room could be adorned with rows of these lights. If Lowe didn t tell us, we would have never known which sconce was the original.
ve shown this house maybe 15 or 20 times, and every time I see something that I haven t noticed before,”Lowe says. s amazing.”
Such impressive details continue throughout, along with hand-hewn beams and architecture inspired by the grandeur of European chateaus. There s the floor patterned after the New York Public Library. There s the cigar lounge emulating that in the St. Regis in New York City. There s the master suite, which is basically an entire wing of the house. There s the underground tunnel to the conservatory. And then there s the tranquility.
Outside, on the Montana flagstone patios.
We were touring the home with a potential buyer from Brazil, Maria Christina Mendes Caldeira. In three words, Caldeira sums it up nicely. has soul,”she says.