The New York Times International - 28.09.2019

..

16 | WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 28, 2019 THE NEW YORK TIMES INTERNATIONAL EDITION

trav e l

Clockwise from top: The pools at the National Hotel, with its Art Deco aura; at the Villa Casa Casuarina, Gianni Versace’s former mansion; and at the Biltmore Hotel.

PHOTOGRAPHS BY ROLANDO DIAZ FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

One of the enduring pleasures of sum-

mer is a trip to the beach — the blankets

and umbrellas, the briny air, the rhyth-

mic water. Who among us doesn’t love

digging our toes into the sand and loung-

ing in the waves?

Lots of people, it turns out. For many

vacationers, the beach is an inconven-

ience: Sand gets everywhere, waves

knock you down and the prospect of en-

countering one of the two million un-

known species lurking in the water can

be terrifying.

For those who fear the ocean or who

are unable to access the beach because

of disabilities or medical reasons, pools

can be an exciting alternative. And for

some, being in a pool rather than the

ocean simply feels safer because they

can rest their feet on the bottom and see

what’s down below.

We visited four of the most storied

and iconic pools in Miami to see what life

can be like for people who go to the

beach to go to the pool.

AGILDED OASIS

THE VILLA CASA CASUARINA

When Gianni Versace bought 1116

Ocean Drive in 1992, he transformed the

24-apartment building into a private

mansion with eight bedrooms, two

kitchens, three living rooms, a bar, a li-

brary and 10 bathrooms. A year later, he

bought the adjoining Revere Hotel and

added a garden and a 54-foot pool.

Mr. Versace could not have predicted

that his house, where he was murdered

in 1997, would become a popular tourist

destination, largely because of its swim-

ming pool.

The mansion, officially called The

Villa Casa Casuarina, is now a hotel, and

the “million mosaic pool” that Mr. Ver-

sace designed remains the centerpiece.

Built with more than a million tiles

and surrounded by large palm trees and

chairs and tables from the hotel restau-

rant Gianni’s, the pool is a perfect spot

for people looking to rest and take a dip.

AMEDITERRANEAN ESCAPE

THE BILTMORE HOTEL

Holding 600,000 gallons of water and

measuring about half an acre, the pool at

the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables

seems as big as an ocean. So why go

there, and not the beach?

The pool isn’t as intimidating as the

beach for children learning to swim, said

Brian Phoenix, who stayed at the hotel

with his wife and two daughters in July.

Recent reports of flesh-eating bacteria

in the ocean also helped turn his family

toward the pool.

When the Biltmore was built nearly a

century ago, its pool was the largest in

the world. Intended to evoke the Medi-

terranean, the hotel’s architecture is a

combination of Italian, Moorish and

Spanish styles, and Roman sculptures

line one end of the pool.

ART DECO BY THE OCEAN

THE NATIONAL HOTEL

The National Hotel, which opened on

Christmas Eve in 1940, has the quintes-

sential Art Deco aura that people vis-

iting Miami often seek. With nods to that

era placed throughout the lobby, bar and

halls, one would expect the hotel’s his-

tory and culture to be the main draw for

guests — but it’s not.

The real attraction here is the hotel’s

205-foot-long swimming pool. The pool

is not heated or chilled and is open 24/7,

unlike most hotel pools.

Guests in the Cabana wing have a

clear view of the pool, which makes

those rooms, especially those on the

first floor, popular among parents who

want to keep an eye on their children.

SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE

THE FONTAINEBLEAU

Even if you’ve never been to the Fon-

tainebleau, there’s a good chance you’ve

seen at least one of its many pools in a

movie or a music video. Frank Sinatra,

Justin Bieber and 50 Cent are just a

handful of the musicians who have per-

formed at the hotel in its 64-year history.

With 11 pools of varying sizes, the ho-

tel has a little something for everyone.

And thanks to the hotel’s famous pools,

guests tend to not realize that it also has

direct access to the beach.

On a recent Friday afternoon, one

pool — for adults only — had a live DJ

playing Akon, Rihanna and DJ Khaled,

Drake and other popular artists. At an

adjacent cabana a group of women in

their twenties were throwing a bach-

elorette party, while another nearby

group celebrated a birthday.

At the same time, a few hundred feet

away, at the hotel’s most iconic pool,

which is shaped like a bow tie, dozens of

families, couples and groups of friends

swam and rested at chairs and cabanas.

Forget the beach and hang poolside in Miami

BY TARIRO MZEZEWA

Ken Price was hired 36 years ago as the

director of public relations at the Palmer

House Hilton. But it’s his other gig at the

renowned Chicago property that speaks

more to him: That of hotel historian, an

official title he has held for 11 years.

Mr. Price is the go-to guy for anything

relating to the history of the hotel, which

opened its doors on Sept. 26, 1871 — and

promptly closed them 13 days later,

when the Great Chicago Fire tore

through the building.

Mr. Price knows when the property

reopened (Nov. 8, 1873); its role in the

creation of the brownie (The owner’s

wife, Bertha Palmer, asked the hotel’s

pastry chef to create something port-

able for the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair);

and what Phyllis Diller, the last per-

former in the hotel’s Empire Room

nightclub before it closed in 1976, was re-

ally like. (“Great. She became a good

friend.”)

“I immersed myself for eight months

in the stacks of the old Chicago Histori-

cal Society and got involved in the mi-

crofiche and clippings and stuff in

boxes,” said Mr. Price, who won a life-

time achievement award last year from

the Historic Hotels of America. “I got in-

volved in the blood and guts and DNA of

the personalities of the people. I began

to realize that the story was remark-

able.”

Part reference librarian, part gossip

columnist, distinct from a concierge, the

historian has become an increasingly

popular figure in high-end hotels or inns

with actual history. Some are employees

who take on the role for love (if not a

paycheck), while others do it for fun.

Still others are real-world professionals

who find it a worthwhile project. As

such, they’ve taken it upon themselves

to learn, in elaborate detail, the back-

ground of their favorite lodge, resort, re-

treat or inn.

It makes sense: Hotels are not just

places to lay one’s head. They’re also

about the history of a particular city or a

particular time period.

“It’s important to share its stories

with the guests, the people who work

there and the city as a whole,” said Pilar

Pérez de Sevilla, who helped to research

the history of Casa Gangotena, in Quito,

Ecuador. Her work led to better under-

standing of the hotel’s location at a cor-

ner of the San Francisco Plaza — the his-

tory of the plaza stretches back to the

time of the Incas, and according to early

Spanish chroniclers, during the 15th

century the plaza was surrounded by

palaces and temples.

Fintan Gorman is the unofficial histo-

rian of Ashford Castle, in Mayo, Ireland.

His mother worked at the castle mainly

in housekeeping, and was there when

John Wayne filmed “The Quiet Man” on

the estate in 1951. A former primary

schoolteacher and high school principal,

Mr. Gorman began conducting tours of

the castle after retiring in 2014. When-

ever a guest wants a tour of the prop-

erty, he’s the man to talk to.

“I try to outline the historic develop-

ment of the castle in the context of na-

tional and international events,” he said.

“While highlighting the social and eco-

nomic importance of the estate to the

area, I get to meet, chat with and learn

from very interesting and pleasant peo-

ple from all over the world.”

For David Pupo, learning about Blan-

tyre, in Lenox, Mass., was about re-

claiming his own past. Mr. Pupo grew up

about half a mile from the luxury hotel,

which was built in 1902.

As a teenager, Mr. Pupo, who doubles

as Blantyre’s director of membership

and concierge services, spent his sum-

mers swimming in the grand pool be-

hind the main house, back when it was a

swim club for locals. Mr. Pupo wanted to

know more about the 110-acre estate

that played such a prominent role in his

youth.

So he read everything that had been

written on the place. He now leads daily

history tours in the mansion, which was

once briefly owned by the filmmaker

D.W. Griffith.

“We show how the house was used in

the Gilded Age period, and compare and

contrast it to how it is being used today

as a five-star hotel,” he said.

Others are utilizing the property’s his-

tory to help inform the present.

When the real estate developer An-

thony Champalimaud took over Trout-

beck, a country estate-turned-guest-

house in Amenia, N.Y., in 2016, he and

his wife, Charlie, spent two years ex-

haustively researching the history. (Mr.

Champalimaud is the former managing

director of Champalimaud, a design

firm that has overseen renovations and

redesigns at many hotels and guest

properties, including the Singapore Raf-

fles.)

Troutbeck was built in 1765 by Myron

Benton, a farmer, poet and writer. In

1902, the property was purchased by

Colonel Joel Spingarn and his wife, Amy.

Mr. Spingarn, who founded the publish-

ing house Harcourt Brace & Company,

entertained the likes of Ernest Heming-

way, Sinclair Lewis and Theodore

Roosevelt. (Roosevelt, the 26th United

States president, favored Room 8.) Lat-

er visitors included Justice Thurgood

Marshall of the Supreme Court, W.E.B.

Du Bois and Langston Hughes.

Through her research, Mrs. Champal-

imaud made some amazing discoveries,

like letters to Amy Spingarn from

Hughes and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The Champalimauds used some of

their findings to shape the property’s

aesthetic. “We recreated a new font and

logo that derived from Joel Spingarn’s

personal stationery,” said Mr. Champali-

maud.

His Ex-Libris art nouveau style de-

sign is on every room’s key card, while

copies of Dr. King’s letter hang in the

inn’s 37 guest rooms.

“There was also so much tangible her-

itage there which I think is unusual,”

said Mrs. Champalimaud. “Troutbeck’s

history was one of the central reasons

we found it so attractive.”

Hotel historians on call

Part reference librarian,

part gossip columnist

at select high-end locales

BY ABBY ELLIN

David Pupo, the resident historian at the Blantyre, in Lenox, Mass. He grew up about

half a mile away from the luxury hotel, which was built in 1902.

LAUREN LANCASTER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES

Hotels are not just places to lay

one’s head. They’re also about

the history of a particular city

or a particular time period.

‘CanegrassStation’viaMorgan,SouthAustralia

•Expansive52,000ha*Australiansheepstation

•Lowlabourinput,primeorganiclambproductionenterprise

•Outstandingimprovementsincluding2qualityhomesteads

•Excellentlocation250km*Adelaideand170km*Barossa

Valleywineregion

•Wellplannedwatersystem,pipelinestostrategicwater

points,recentlycleaneddams

•Independentpowersystemcomprisingsolar,batteriesand

generatorback-up

•8baymachineryshed,enclosedworkshopandoperations

of†ce

Auction

Friday4October

20192pm

PullmanAdelaide

16HindmarshSquare,

Adelaide,SA

GeoffSchell

+

DanielSchell

+

RayWhiteRural

SouthAustralia

*approx.

CanegrassPerformsInAllYears

raywhiteruralsouthaustralia.com.au

RELEASED

tory of the plaza stretches back to the

RELEASED

tory of the plaza stretches back to the

time of the Incas, and according to early

RELEASED

time of the Incas, and according to early

Spanish chroniclers, during the 15th

RELEASED

Spanish chroniclers, during the 15th

century the plaza was surrounded by

RELEASED

century the plaza was surrounded by

palaces and temples.

RELEASED

palaces and temples.

BY

ner of the San Francisco Plaza — the his-

BY

ner of the San Francisco Plaza — the his-

tory of the plaza stretches back to thetory of the plaza stretches back to theBY

"What's

the history of Casa Gangotena, in Quito,

"What's

the history of Casa Gangotena, in Quito,

Ecuador. Her work led to better under-

"What's

Ecuador. Her work led to better under-

standing of the hotel’s location at a cor-

"What's

standing of the hotel’s location at a cor-

ner of the San Francisco Plaza — the his-ner of the San Francisco Plaza — the his-"What's

News"

with the guests, the people who work

News"

with the guests, the people who work

there and the city as a whole,” said Pilar

News"

there and the city as a whole,” said Pilar

Pérez de Sevilla, who helped to research

News"

Pérez de Sevilla, who helped to research

the history of Casa Gangotena, in Quito,the history of Casa Gangotena, in Quito,News"

vk.com/wsnws

Ecuador. Her work led to better under-

vk.com/wsnws

Ecuador. Her work led to better under-

standing of the hotel’s location at a cor-

vk.com/wsnws

standing of the hotel’s location at a cor-

ner of the San Francisco Plaza — the his-

vk.com/wsnws

ner of the San Francisco Plaza — the his-

tory of the plaza stretches back to the

vk.com/wsnws

tory of the plaza stretches back to the

time of the Incas, and according to early

vk.com/wsnws

time of the Incas, and according to early

Spanish chroniclers, during the 15th

vk.com/wsnws

Spanish chroniclers, during the 15th

century the plaza was surrounded bycentury the plaza was surrounded byvk.com/wsnws

TELEGRAM:

Spanish chroniclers, during the 15th

TELEGRAM:

Spanish chroniclers, during the 15th

century the plaza was surrounded by

TELEGRAM:

century the plaza was surrounded by

palaces and temples.

TELEGRAM:

palaces and temples.

Fintan Gorman is the unofficial histo-

TELEGRAM:

Fintan Gorman is the unofficial histo-

rian of Ashford Castle, in Mayo, Ireland.

TELEGRAM:

rian of Ashford Castle, in Mayo, Ireland.

t.me/whatsnws

Pérez de Sevilla, who helped to research

t.me/whatsnws

Pérez de Sevilla, who helped to research

the history of Casa Gangotena, in Quito,

t.me/whatsnws

the history of Casa Gangotena, in Quito,

Ecuador. Her work led to better under-

t.me/whatsnws

Ecuador. Her work led to better under-

standing of the hotel’s location at a cor-

t.me/whatsnws

standing of the hotel’s location at a cor-

ner of the San Francisco Plaza — the his-

t.me/whatsnws

ner of the San Francisco Plaza — the his-

tory of the plaza stretches back to the

t.me/whatsnws

tory of the plaza stretches back to the

time of the Incas, and according to early

t.me/whatsnws

time of the Incas, and according to early

Spanish chroniclers, during the 15thSpanish chroniclers, during the 15tht.me/whatsnws