Beckhams Borrow Clooney’s Lake Como Villa
- George Clooney is quite a pal. According to Hello magazine, the movie star just lent his lavish $6 million villa on Italy’s famed Lake Como (above) to soccer superstar David Beckham and his wife Victoria. Beckham, whose taste for the finer things in life has been often noted here, is being fought over by two soccer teams, the LA Galaxy and Italy’s AC Milan. The Beckhams will take some relaxing time out at the villa while waiting to see the if LA Galaxy will release him from his contract and allow a transfer to AC Milan, the magazine reports. ’George has really taken David under his wing since the transfer trouble started,’ they note. The luxurious villa, which has played host to many of Clooney’s superstar pals, is just half an hour away from the Beckhams’ base in Milan. Clooney, 47, and Beckham, 33, became friends after being introduced by Giorgio Armani, (whose underwear ads the Beckhams star in), at the Met Ball in New York last May. Luxe Lake Como, where scenes from the last two James Bond movies were shot, has long been a favorite retreat for Italy’s rich and famous and the international jetset. As we mentioned last month, the contents of late designer Gianni Versace’s villa there are being auctioned off by Sotheby’s in March.
Sunseeker’s sleek and sexy Predator 95!
- This Performance Yacht combines comfortable accommodation with an enormous interior, an extraordinarily large deck area and excellent performance. The exceptionally spacious top deck includes a covered saloon, opening on to an unusually large aft terrace, with steps down to the bathing platform. The flexible interior arrangements provide for a large saloon and adjacent galley, with a variety of accommodation options to suit your preference. Inspirational design of this stunning yacht combines all the individual flexibility of a custom yacht with the proven dependability of tried and tested construction methods, and the use of the finest equipment and materials. Although surely destined to become an English classic, it is superbly practical as well as supremely stylish. Choose layout you prefer, with up to five cabins plus crew quarters. Design your yacht for your own needs, whether for personal use, chartering or extended global travel. When there is no place for compromise, the choice of the true connoisseur!
Richard Branson (U.K. $2.5 billion)
- is a flamboyant British entrepreneur with a seemingly insatiable appetite for starting new businesses. His internationally recognized brand ’Virgin’ is splashed across everything from credit cards, to airlines and music ’megastores’. Branson is continuously seeking new business opportunities and loves a good challenge, especially when he enters a market that is dominated by a few major players. Soon after opening a record store on Oxford Street, London, Branson began a recording label in 1972, Virgin Records. This was to be the first major success for the British entrepreneur as he started the label with a hit record. The instrumental artist Mike Oldfield’s ’Tubular Bells’ released in 1973 was a cash cow for Branson’s Virgin Records and it stayed in the UK music charts for 247 weeks. The record label went on to sign top music artists like ’Genesis’, ’The Sex Pistols’, ’The Rolling Stones’ and ’Simple Minds’. The Virgin Records Group was sold in 1992 to THORN EMI for $1 billion USD. Richard Branson obviously wasn’t finished with the music recording business as he went on to start V2 Records in 1996. The V2 Music brand has a stable of artists that include ’Stereophonics’, ’Powder Finger’, ’Mercury Rev’ and ’Tom Jones’. Continues to expand businesses; plans to change his two private Caribbean islands, Necker and Mosquito, into renewable energy meccas. Son of a barrister and flight attendant got his start with a mail-order record business almost 40 years ago, then turned it into retail chain Virgin Records; now empire spans air travel, rail, health care, finance, telecommunications and entertainment.
Top 10: Most Expensive Wines
- There’s more to wine than two-dollar Night Train. In the mid-’80s, billionaire Malcolm Forbes paid approximately $155,000 at auction for a bottle of wine. The bottle, which was believed to have come from Thomas Jefferson\\\'s own collection and dated back to 1787, was then put on display under strong lights and at the wrong angle. These conditions eventually made the cork fall into the bottle, and the wine lost its value and was thrown away. Yes, it\\\'s true that you don\\\'t have to pay a fortune for a bottle of wine, but keep in mind that you usually get what you pay for. If you really want to impress that special lady, show her your cellar of fine wines -- or at least display your knowledge of them. Read on to discover the ten most expensive wines available on the market. Note that all prices are in US dollars and were evaluated on the basis of a 750 ml bottle from a retailer. Number 1: Dom. Romane Conti 1997 - app. $1,540…… This French red Burgundy smells of berries, spices and leather. Dark in color, it hints at flavors of soy sauce, flowers and licorice. The aroma is rich and penetrating without being too profound. The Romane Conti is a rare wine that has carved a niche for itself along the years. At over fifteen hundred dollars a bottle, it no longer has anything to prove. Consistently, the Romane Conti fetches prices around the thousand dollar mark no matter the vintage.
Welcome to Four Seasons Resort Great Exuma at Emerald Bay.
- Tropical beauty beckons to the secluded Exuma cays – quiet calm just a short flight from Florida. The Hotel setting upon the Crystal-clear Bahamian waters and ivory sand beaches, an open-air spa with private spa garden, and a Greg Norman-designed ocean-side golf course in an undiscovered and unforgettable Four Seasons paradise. Four Seasons Resort Great Exuma at Emerald Bay offers 183 guest rooms and suites. Designed for spacious comfort and privacy, all guest rooms and suites have furnished terraces or balconies, many with scenic vistas of Emerald Bay. The spacious Residence Suites face the beautiful waters of Emerald Bay, with separate dining areas, as well as private balconies or a terrace furnished for outdoor dining.
Excellence in Yacht Making!
- With offices in London, Monte Carlo, Los Angeles, Mexico City, Golfe Juan and Antibes, as well as new offices opening in Dubai and Malta, Edmiston is one of the pre-eminent names in yachting. With industry experience that runs to over 35 years, Edmiston’s expertise and specialist knowledge in the large yachting business has confirmed our reputation as a world leader in yachting. Edmiston sells some of the largest yachts in the world, has a charter division of enviable reputation, and is involved with spectacular new construction projects, working with the world’s best designers and shipyards. As part of our commitment to excellence, Edmiston has partnerships with a select group of companies, all of whom are world leaders in their respective fields. Picture, TIA MOANA (sister ship of TU MOANA) is an elegant and distinguished 69m (226 feet) yacht, offering, on five decks, different private lounges, two external Jacuzzis, a fitness suite and an ‘a la carte’ spa service. A nice cozy library presents a number of Polynesian art and culture books awaiting those seeking enrichment and calm. Charter from Euros 240,000 per week
The Hotel setting upon the Crystal-clear Bahamian waters and ivory sand beaches, an open-air spa with private spa garden, and a Greg Norman-designed ocean-side golf course in an undiscovered and unforgettable Four Seasons paradise. Four Seasons Resort Great Exuma at Emerald Bay offers 183 guest rooms and suites. Designed for spacious comfort and privacy, all guest rooms and suites have furnished terraces or balconies, many with scenic vistas of Emerald Bay. The spacious Residence Suites face the beautiful waters of Emerald Bay, with separate dining areas, as well as private balconies or a terrace furnished for outdoor dining.
