Pursuits

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Striving to Experience

Exploring Chinese Luxury

For Blanc de Chine, history provides a wealth of inspiration and a path to the future; jewelry designer Michelle Ong talks about her passion for stones, and her jewelry line Carnet, and use your mother as an excuse to get the best tour of the Olympic city of Beijing

    Tea and a Hotel

    From tea tourism in Malaysia to afternoon tastings in Picadilly, the not-so-new brew is giving coffee a jolt and history meets hospitality in Sri Lanka

    Futuristic Guides and Farm Dining

    Al Fresco dining takes on new meaning when it's in farm fields, globetrotters have MP3 versions of Louis Vuitton's city guidebooks and a cool website offers detailed maps, reviews and even personal tours of over 25 cities

    Kids, Dogs, and a $2 Million Car

    French luggage maker Goyard caters to a faithful clientele, philanthropic parents are encouraging their children to follow their example, and it costs more than a house, roars like a jet engine and drives faster than anything on the road today

    Modern Classics

    Motorcycle companies are revamping the classic two-wheeler in surprising ways, Pier Luigi Loro Piana travels the world for the finest raw materials, and Connoisseurs of Finnish art glass can't get enough of Oiva Toikka's charming birds

    Asian Palate

    Premium sake is moving up in the beverage industry as more Americans discover new ways to appreciate an old drink and a reservation at one of Osaka's kaiseki restaurants is also a lesson in true luxury

    Royal Retreat

    A new wave of small hotels and guesthouses makes touring the subcontinent more intimate and director and choreographer Susan Stroman will take another bow this fall with Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein

    Wine Crafting

    Actor Sam Neill plays a vintner of star grape Pinot Noir and how at this DIY winery, making your personal blend is almost as pleasurable as drinking it

    Refined Tastes

    Luxury hotels offer over-the-top amenities to attract a seasoned and free-spending clientele, concierges who know how to service even the most outrageous requests, and Michelin-starred chefs are tapping into a long list of artisanal beers

    Functional Collections

    Limited-edition furniture has a whole new cachet, a renowned collector reveals the most important rules when buying art, and how to create your own nonprofit organization

    Luxury Speed

    Women are finally taking to the ski slopes, performance meets luxury in the sleek and supercharged XKR Jaguar, and a sprawling new novel explores life in the underworld of India