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Gebhard Augendopler

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Dream destination Maldives

To be honest, all this is just incredible! 19 island groups with almost 2 000 islands rise between one and five metres from the sea. 220 islands are inhabited by locals – another 150 are open to tourism and once you arrive, you suddenly find yourself in paradise …

The peak travel season for the Maldives is during our winter. However, as I enjoy not being a part of the masses, I booked my flight for July. The prices are much cheaper and the weather is consistently great and warm. Any rainfall has quickly passed after 30 minutes and the sun beams down once more. I highly recommend the low seasons for the Maldives. I have set aside one week for my trip to paradise and therefore plan to quickly immerse myself in the island feeling.

SHERATON Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa

For me, the ideal hotel for this is the Sheraton Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa. After the long flight, I don’t want to get on a seaplane, but rather take a speedboat to my home away from home. It takes just 15 minutes and I have reached the spacious resort, which leaves nothing to be desired. At the Feast Restaurant, I treat myself to a breakfast with fresh fruit and a delicious buffet that is hard to beat for richness. This is what an optimal start to a holiday looks like for me.

My charming Island Cottage is perfectly equipped and has an open-air bathroom as well as a small front garden through which I can reach the sea in 30 seconds. There is so much choice about how best to spend my time here that I book my dive straight away, followed by massage and a tour of the island. At the «Coral Restoration Snorkeling Area», they explain to me how corals are re-bred and I am allowed to sink a basket with baby corals into the sea myself.

Choosing which of the 7 restaurants to have dinner at is not easy at all as I would like to try them all. Finally, I decide on a fresh fish at Masala Hut – and what a great choice it was! This very evening, the glass of Chardonnay tastes particularly good to me. Satisfied, I dip my head into the soft pillow.

The next day, the ring of my alarm clock gets me out of my cosy bed early. I am too curious about the morning yoga session in the pavilion right by the sea. After that, I do what the Maldives are best known for: chilling, swimming and snorkelling in the turquoise blue water waiting right in front of my villa. In a flash, a small shark swims past me. I squeal with joy as these moments are always the very highlights. A visit to the orchid garden, a drink at Sunset Point and an evening walk to watch the flying foxes make this day perfect.

Before I continue my journey to the next island, I make sure that the last night before my flight home will also be spent at the SHERATON Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa. Enjoying this again is something worth looking forward to. In addition, I can get to the airport in no time at all without any weather risk.

Le MÉRIDIEN Maldives Resort & Spa

But right now, it’s on to Le Méridien Maldives Resort & Spa. The seaplane flight is wonderful because you can see the beautiful resorts from above. 35 minutes of flight time later, I am greeted by the hotel manager and his crew at the dock. I feel welcome and enjoy my fresh cocktail. The island is exactly as you would imagine the Maldives to be. White sand with palm trees and dense vegetation surrounded by crystal clear turquoise water. The waves break on the offshore reef and create a natural spectacle.

At the Le Méridien Maldives Resort & Spa, I get to stay at an Oversea Villa. I feel like a king overlooking his kingdom when I enter the secluded terrace and look out to sea.

The resort is newly built with a lot of mindfulness. Generating their own electricity and treating their own water is just as much a part of the sustainability concept as the Greenhouse, where salads and herbs are grown. As a friend of the culinary arts, I make sure to savour every meal in a different one of the 6 different gourmet restaurants. Each and every single one of the dishes is just delicious.  Once again, I check my dive, rent a bike to explore the island, get pampered at the spa and listen to the young marine biologist doing her research at the resort.I’m also able to persuade her to accompany me dolphin spotting and snorkelling. As she knows the best spots around the island, we observe thousands of colourful fish, grazing sea turtles, manta rays floating by and some reef sharks. An exceptionally beautiful experience that makes me humble and grateful. As the day draws to a close, I treat myself to a Negroni at the Riviera Bar and chat with good-humoured guests from all over the world. Before I go to bed, I linger on my private villa terrace and lose myself in the starry sky reflected in the sea.

»Dreaming is beautiful, but living your dreams is even more beautiful!«

Photos Copyrights: SHERATON Maldives Full Moon Resort & Spa, Le MERIDIEN Maldives Resort & Spa

A boyhood dream becomes a reality for men

Dinosaurs may be extinct, but FORD has brought the Ranger Raptor back to life

As a child I much preferred scampering around in the garden than doing jigsaw puzzles at home. Then in adolescence I developed a passion for cars. Now as a grown man I have had the pleasure of experiencing the perfect symbiosis between the outdoor and a vehicle:
The FORD Ranger Raptor.

When I was 20 years old, my friend drove me to a quarry for the first time in his old off-road truck. Up the hills, down the slopes, climbing boulders, getting round the mud holes. We attempted to push the vehicle to its limits and finally sank up to the door handle in mud. We had fun and were also certain that even in an off-road truck not everything is possible.

30 years later and I was given the chance to drive the FORD Ranger Raptor – the flagship of the FORD Ranger line – and realized that I had been wrong. The broad front and the brawny appearance would enrapture any “petrol head“. The elegant interior is comfortable and has a very clear layout. Everything is in the right place and is easily accessible.
When accelerating you hardly notice the gear changes of the finely tuned 10-speed automatic transmission. Despite the pick-up‘s size and weight it provides an easy and uncomplicated driving experience.
But the real fun starts with the 7 perfectly designed drive modes for all terrains. Standing in front of a steep scree slope with large boulders, I think to myself: impossible! Then I put the vehicle into “Rock climbing“ mode (front and rear differentials are locked) and let the car do almost everything itself. With only slight corrections to the steering wheel, the FORD Ranger Raptor achieves the sheer impossible and climbs up the boulders unfazed. I cheer and grin – I’ve never experienced anything quite like this.

I experience the same level of perfection when driving down a descent. The engineers have done a fantastic job. In the “Baja Mode“ the sound, chassis tuning and the shock absorber tracks change. I courageously accelerate on my way to the small hill and quickly take my foot off the accelerator again at the top, then all 4 wheels are airborne and I gently land back on the ground a moment later.
Until now I thought that there is a limit to everything, but after one day in this perfectly constructed work and fun machine FORD has proven to me that nothing is impossible.

Thank you for letting me live this dream!

The new Ranger Raptor extends the powerful Ford Performance model family.
Fans in North America will be acquainted with the model name “Raptor“. Ford uses this name for selected high-performance pick-ups and commercial vehicles – beginning with the F-150 SVT Raptor of the first generation, which was specially tuned for high speeds off-road. The Ranger Raptor, developed by Ford Performance, was launched onto various global markets, including Europe, in 2018 and gained a new fan base among the hard-core friends of off-road flatbed trucks.

Photo Copyrights: Ford Motor Company (Switzerland) SA
www.ford.ch

Erde. Feuer. Wasser. Luft.

No one can escape the power and beauty of the four elements.

An austrian business family has transformed the four elements into a unique relaxation hideaway and made four houses named “fire”, “air”, “water” and “king fisher” a living experience of the highest standards. High above the wild, romantic Salza river luxury houses hang on the rock face. Standing in front of the panorama glass wall, the turquoise coloured water thunders by under our feet and entices us to dream of adventure.

In the Styrian Gesäuse, Hermann Berger, who was born into the building trade on his father’s side, has created something exceptional. He translated the forces of nature from the four elements into stylish luxury houses „Four Elements – Living by Berger“, fulfilling every heart’s desire. To escape the hectic everyday life in the big city, we booked into house „Water“ for several days. Generous and well thought out rooms, high quality materials, comfortable furniture and smart style thrill when we first enter the house. However, the absolute highlight is the tremendous natural view through the panorama window – a natural work of art that could not be captured as impressively by any painter in the world. We enjoy a glass of Champagne on the terrace and observe the play of colours in the turquoise-blue-green Salza, cutting its bed through stone 30 metres below us.

Inspired by the thundering river we relax in the whirlpool beside the panorama sauna and relish in the sensation of being surrounded by trees as part of this wonderful natural beauty. In this environment, it is easy to get rid of anything that is weighing you down and to concentrate completely on oneself. The anticipated relaxation is immediate. We go for a short walk to the bank of the Salza and observe the fish dancing in the crystal clear water.
Three of the four houses represent an element – which is reflected in the materials, the colours and the decoration, with the King Fisher house fusing all four. The King Fisher flies with FIRE in his heart through the AIR and creates an EARTH-bound retreat on the WATER. The positioning of the houses provides a high degree of private space and intimacy. Although the recommended restaurants are only a stone’s throw away, we have our delicious dinner delivered to our house, to enjoy every minute in this oasis of peace and tranquillity. My companion has made herself comfortable on the soft sofa in front of the window, while I, sitting on the terrace, lose my thoughts in the meandering river valley. In nature, the four elements are immense forces, which Hermann Berger has skilfully transformed in his FourElements into well-being of the highest standards!

Fotos: Four Elements Living by Berger

Getting back in touch with my inner self

The past few months have been shaped by a particularly challenging situation. Initially I felt I was locked away and could only think of getting out! Therefore, the first travel experience again should be well thought out. My only thought: headfirst into PURELife.

In my world, everything that happens always has a positive side as well. The “isolated year” inspired me to contemplate what is really important to me. And the answer is crystal clear: I am important to me. So my attractive companion and I booked into one of the PURESLeben premium houses in the beautiful Austrian Südsteiermark. Dietmar Silly and his brother Gerald have created a veritable dream hideaway. Twelve old winegrowers‘ houses were removed and lovingly reconstructed on beautiful mountainsides with a breathtaking view. Furnished with a fireplace, panorama sauna, pool and in the style of PURESLeben, the houses are the perfect location to get back in touch with oneself. No hectic distractions, but the force of breathtaking nature enticed us to take romantic strolls. Our Tablets, TV and social networks were immaterial and we instead enjoyed good conversation over a delicious dinner, which was delivered to the house. The comfortable sofa in the bay window quickly became the favourite spot and my mobile was exchanged for an exciting book. We lit the open fire, which could be seen from both the living room and the bath in the neighbouring room, every night. I found myself exploring the course natural wooden wall with my fingertips, as the look of the materials used was fascinating. Charming details and old tools as a decoration inspired me to redesign my own garden shed. Simply the sight of my loved one exchanging her stressful working life for a relaxing and pleasurable time for several days in „Stadl Wuggitz“ confirmed that it had been the right decision to start the new travel period after the pandemic in a „PURESLeben“ house. These PURESLeben houses bring you back to your own SELFat the highest level.

The south Styrian wine route is particularly enchanting during mid-season in spring and autumn. Maybe we can buy the highest level of quality on holiday, but the heart and love that the Silly brothers have put into their houses can only be found. If you love yourself, you should enjoy Pure Life!

5 reasons for PURESLeben:

  • The Silly family has managed with the premium, superbly located houses to create an unspoilt destination that is unrivalled and consistently places the guest at the heart of their focus
  • The Silly family provides service of the highest level
  • They are synonymous with quality and conduct sustainable management
  • They work with products from their own agricultural sources or acquire food from selected organic, regional partners
  • They are passionate hosts and fulfil your heart’s desire

Fotos: PURESLeben , Günter Standl, Vera Prinz