Rocco Forte’s Hotel Amigo: Home of the Gregarious Belgians

Hotel Amigo - Belgium

Hotel Amigo – Belgium

My favorite company that I have marketed was a high-profile architectural design studio based in Europe. I reported directly to the Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing; a warm, gregarious, and charismatic Belgian man.  He always had a story about snow days in his hometown, near-death sales calls, or the misadventures of an overzealous family member.  We always left our weekly sales and marketing meetings wide-eyed in disbelief.

Even though I know most of his stories are highly exaggerated, that still doesn’t diminish my desire to find out once and for all whether eating the snow in Belgium would burn all excess body fat.  I’d do it in style in Brussels, with the help of Rocco Forte.

Known for classical luxury and elite extravagance, Rocco Forte Hotels is a family of 13 highly individual properties spread out all over Europe; each hotel features the unique style and ambiance from which the local city inspires.

Located in the heart of Brussels sits one of the thirteen: Hotel Amigo.  Rated as the best luxury hotel in Brussels, Hotel Amigo enjoys the view of the Grand Place and within easy walking distance to the artistic antiques district of Le Sablon.

In celebration of the much anticipated Steven Spielberg film, “The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn,” Rocco Forte’s Hotel Amigo and Moulinsart are rolling out the red carpet for Belgium’s favorite comic book hero and his loyal sidekick Snowy with two new exciting Tintin experiences.

Armed with a detailed Tintin map provided by the hotel, guests would begin their adventure tracing Tintin’s steps around the Belgian capital and walk through the Brussels’ park depicted in King Ottokar’s Sceptre, visit the concert hall that inspired the Hippodrome in The Seven Crystal Balls, and browse antiques at the daily flea market on the Place du Jeu de Ball – the setting for the film’s opening scene in which Belgium’s national hero buys his best friend Captain Haddock a model ship.

Guests can also visit the Hergé Museum, located 30 minutes from Brussels’ city center.  With tickets included in both of Hotel Amigo’s Tintin experiences, guests can explore this astounding piece of architecture which contains more than 80 original print plates along with a plethora of documents and photographs, highlighting the work and life of the comic book mastermind.

I encourage you to visit Hotel Amigo in Brussels.  If not for Tintin’s adventures, the scenery, or the bliss of opulence, then surely for the rumored fat-dissolving snow, however little there are.



Ode to Valmont Luxe Swiss Skin Care: A Hypocrite’s Confession

Valmont Hong Kong Spa

Valmont Hong Kong Spa

Growing up in an Asian family, you learn to accept unsolicited advice on everything you can see, hear, touch, feel, and smell in life.  “You have stress-prone skin.  Must moisturize, or you age faster.  Look like 40 when you only 25,” criticized my great Aunt Pei-Pei as she shook her newly dyed curly hair.

My response to criticisms to appearance has always been, “meh, physical beauty is only skin deep.  I strive for inner beauty.”  I lied.  I have been lying for the past 15 years.  The truth is, I’m always on the prowl for good skin products, which is how I stumbled upon Valmont.

Valmont is a Switzerland-based luxury boutique that artistically marries skin care with beauty.  They specialize in anti-aging products designed to help you correct and minimize the signs of aging.

Their elite, made-to-order the Valmont L’Elixir des Glaciers line is derived from highest quality DNA, RNA, and essential plant extracts; while their Nature line is created to infuse skin’s natural, youthful glow.

Raved by Vanity Fair magazine, Valmont has multiple spa, “Beauty Lounge” location, in Hong Kong, Barcelona, Verbier, and Montreal, designed to pamper and give beauty advice.  A lavish new Beauty Lounge recently opened in Taiwan this past November and a second spa location was added in Hong Kong.  The sprawling 5,300 square foot, two-story Beauty Lounge features nine cabins, including a wet room, a hair repair room, and a diagnostic room.

If you want a royal treatment, look no further than Valmont.  They have treated aristocrats and royalties, as well as iconic figures like Charlie Chaplin, Ingrid Bergmann, and the queen of haute couture: Coco Chanel.

Try these new, luxury skin care products from Valmont:
HYDRA3REGENETIC – Hydration Activating Concentrate – Sérum hydratant tenseur anti-âge – 30ML bottle, retail price: $275
This water-based gel like serum goes on easy and reconciles opposites. It quenches the skins while providing a tensing effect that aids the skin’s fight against aging.
HYDRA3REGENETIC – Prolonged Hydration Cream – Crème hydratante repulpante anti-âge – 50 ML jar, retail price. $315
Provides the skin with a genuine water reserve thanks to the DNA liposome and high concentration of hyaluronic acid.

Before visiting one of their Beauty Lounges, you can first try out their products at their newly established Valmont eboutique store, http://www.boutiquevalmont.com/us/.