City Style and Living - Summer 2008 - (Page 3) wel FROM TOP DOWN: GUY FLANEUR, DERRICK WOO, RIELY STEWART, SMYTHSON Inside City Style & Living FROM THE EDITORS come FROM tOp, dOwn: A late night at Clos des Capucines in dijon, France, one of CSL’s HIddEn EUROpEAn dEStInAtIOnS (p. 47-52); e irresistible barbecue pineapple ready for the grill. AnAtOMY OF A BARBECUE (p. 17); A vintage inspired look from MEMORIES OF A pInUp (p.34-38); A bright robins egg blue Smythson Jewellery Box with travel tray, (www.smythson.com)- just one of the exciting nds in our AIRpORt REpORt: Heathrow terminal 5 (p. 42-43) In the age of the green movement, could there be more to it than simply reducing our consumption in favour of ‘greener’ alternatives? LIKE FLURRIES, THE SOFT, WHISPY, COTTON-LIKE THREADS OF the ceiba tree floated in the air over the ocean where the sun was setting. It reminded us of a photograph we once saw of a tree under which a girl was playing with what appeared, at first glance, to be snow, but, upon closer inspection, revealed itself to be Japanese cherry blossom petals. It was a glorious moment – as families who had come to the beach for the long weekend stopped to observe the curious tree. They would first look at the ceiba tree whose leaves had fallen off, and then at the pods resembling cacao in which tufts of fluff lay tucked inside. Their attention would then turn to the ground below where the fluff had fallen, and when a gust of wind finally dislodged the feathery seed from its pod, their gaze would follow it toward the ocean. Modern uses for the ceiba fluff include life jackets and bed linens. What it was used for in ancient times we know not. For the Mayans though the ceiba tree was the sacred tree and they planted them near their most sacred sites. It is said that if one finds oneself in the jungle of Central America, one need only look for the ceiba tree to find an ancient Mayan site. Great swaths of the Caribbean were at one time covered with ceiba trees. The legend of their sacred power had moved south and had been passed down through the generations from Mayan to Spanish to French to African and to Indian, so that each new conqueror knew the power of the tree and respected it. “It brings bad luck to cut down a ceiba tree,” said those who had received the message. So it is that even to this day a ceiba tree is regarded with a reverence that defies logic. It is ultimately this that is at the centre of the environmental movement – a tree. It is not solely in consuming new green products, or changing a light bulb or using sustainable energy. It is as simple as beholding the glory of a sacred tree. CSL Kailash and Shivana HAVE A QUESTION, COMMENT OR SUGGESTION FOR CITY STYLE AND LIVING? WRITE TO US AT: editors@citystyleandliving.com. WE’D LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU! citystyleandliving.com | SUMMER 2008 | 3 http://www.smythson.com http://citystyleandliving.com
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