FEATURES

Can you build a dynamic, authentic culture by government diktat? In Singapore, the answer seems to be yes. By Joe Yogerst.
Photographs by Darren Soh

73 Compass: There are dozens of ways to have a Singapore fling.

A photographer in India discovers a new kind of vacation— laughter tourism—and decides to make a movie about it. More restorative than lying on a beach, group laughter has become an infectious global phenomenon. Text and photographs by Neil Davenport

80 Compass: Where to get the giggles in India. Plus, the cameraman records the hysteria.

In the ocean off South Korea, women with superhuman lungs and centuries of history bring home the bacon by diving for the catch of the day. Will the next generation continue their traditions? Don’t hold your breath. By Joel McConvey. Photographs by Ian Baguskas
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92 Compass: Make a splash on Jeju-do, South Korea’s largest island.
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When the poet was 21, he went wandering through Java, then vanished in the mist. A fan tries to fill in the blanks. By Jamie James. Illustrations by James Taylor

99 Compass: Java jive—where to stay, eat, and soak in the tropical insanity.

Scottish hotelier Gordon Campbell Gray had big plans for the Lebanese capital, once known as the Paris of the Middle East. Then Beirut went boom. Campbell Gray kept going exactly as before. By Heather Smith MacIsaac. Photographs by Andres Gonzalez

108 Compass: CampbellGray Hotels past, present, and future.

How better to see Thailand than by playing polo on an elephant? A writer grabs a mallet and gets carried away by her lovable 7,000-pound host. By Heidi Julavits. Photographs by Masato Seto

116 Compass: Commune with elephants and buy a pair of Manolo Blahniks.

DEPARTMENTS

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Tokyo through the lens of a master, China through the eyes of 12 authors, luggage in the hands of a minimalist, and other arts and travel highlights from around the world.

Entertaining yourself in Australia’s second city once you’re done seeing the contemporary works at the Melbourne Art Fair.

Fuzzier China As starchitects’ buildings defy gravity in Beijing, a more earthbound group of young, homegrown talent is quietly changing the Chinese cityscape. By Michael Webb

A bespoke tour company fulfills moguls’ every travel wish, then slyly turns them into dogooders. By Joe Dolce

52 Compass: Off-the-beaten treks for the rest of us.

Have you heard the one about the premium coffee that’s made from the poop of a jungle animal? A java junkie ventures to a secret location in Sumatra to get to the, um, bottom of it, and the end result looks a lot like … peanut brittle? By Joe Yogerst

Remember that rare, authentic Turkish rug that you found in Istanbul? The one that you then saw in New York and that turned out to have been massproduced in China? Here’s an artful guide to artifacts—from how to know what you’re looking at to where to buy the best in class to how to keep from getting hosed. By Bradley W. Bloch and Karen Lehrman Bloch

64 Compass: A shopper’s paradise— where to spot the best Asian crafts. Plus, traditional textiles to dye for.

At a flight-attendant school near Mumbai, the sky’s limited.
By Marina Cashdan