"Airports of the rich and famous"

Saturday, September 6, 2003

Airports of the rich and famous
Actors, musicians and design gurus are drawn to airports with amenities such
as a massage centre, an indoor forest and even an on-site golf course. 
SIMONA RABINOVITCH tracks down 10 jet setters to talk about their favourites
Canada - The Toronto Globe and Mail

 
I first fell in love with airports at the age of 15, when my high-school
boyfriend worked the night shift at the luggage-storage counter at
Montreal's Dorval terminal. I don't know if I was enamoured, fascinated or
obsessed, but I used to adore hanging out at the airport. I still do.

The people rushing by all seem to have money and power. Further, the buzz of
travellers in perpetual motion serves as a reminder of the world's vastness;
of the many cultures and cities and experiences waiting to be discovered. 

But what really gets me is the rush of feeling as though you're nowhere.
Being at the airport is like being at the beach. You're on the edge of
nothing, frozen between earth and sky. I'm hardly alone in perpetuating
airport mythology. Art and popular culture are loaded with airport-inspired
works, which explore themes ranging from glamour to loneliness; love to
technology; time to mortality.

While on a layover in Paris in 2000, Irish pop stars U2 were photographed at
Charles de Gaulle airport for the cover of their album All That You Can't
Leave Behind. In 1962, director Chris Marker's exquisite short film La Jetée
strung together a series of photographs shot at Paris's Orly airport to tell
the story of a man's return to his past. In 2001, legendary Montreal
filmmaker Robert Lepage collaborated with Paul Simon on Zulu Time, a theatre
piece set in an airport.

Airports around the world have transcended their literal functions. Today's
airports appropriate the latest trends in design, leisure, food and drink,
architecture and technology. And who better to identify the cream of the
crop than those who travel as a way of life: jet setters, filmmakers,
musicians and performers with as many air miles as there are stars in the
sky.

Fasten your seatbelts, here are some of their favourites.

Tyler Brûlé, style guru

Copenhagen Airport

A marriage of design and convenience earns the Copenhagen Airport in Denmark
top marks from Wallpaper* magazine founder Tyler Brûlé. The former
Torontonian now lives in London and runs the Winkreative media agency. The
on-site facilities at the airport, founded in 1925, include a five-star
Hilton hotel and railway connecting to Sweden; the train platform is just
100 metres away from check-in. Yet design is the first thing to strike Brûlé
each time he walks in.

"It's just so exquisite, so uniquely Nordic, there's no mistaking you're in
Copenhagen," says Brûlé, whose agency's clients include the newly married
fashion designer Stella McCartney and companies such as Prada, Adidas and
Swiss International Airlines. "The floors are teak throughout, and the
signage is excellent: dark navy background with yellow text. There are
washrooms every 20 metres, so you never have to worry about schlepping down
the hall to find the loo."

Its duty-free shop also sells excellent gifts and food. "When I'm connecting
through London or Switzerland, I always bring home a big bag of groceries."

Gotham Chopra, producer

Kuala Lumpur International

Deepak Chopra's son, Gotham Chopra -- who produced this year's Chow Yun-Fat
martial-arts movie Bulletproof Monk and is a partner in New York's popular K
lounge -- adores K.L. International in Kuala Lumpur. 

Nestled among Malaysia's four main cities, the award-winning airport opened
in 1998 and is part of the country's "multimedia super corridor" of
high-tech industries.

Designed to blend with nature while remaining on the cutting edge of
technology, it features an actual forest within the airport, along with a
Formula One racetrack and a golf course.

"It's a beautiful new airport that is fully integrated technologically,"
Chopra says. "Wireless Internet is plentiful. Cellular service is smooth.
Great shops, spicy food, Malaysian beer, nice bars, and all in a very
tropical atmosphere with lots of foliage. It's worth a trip just to see the
airport."

Amy Sacco, club owner

ET Joshua Airport, Mustique

Amy Sacco, owner of upscale Manhattan joints Bungalow 8 and Lot 61, has a
soft spot for the ET Joshua Airport in Mustique. The privately owned,
570-hectare Caribbean island in St. Vincent and the Grenadines is renowned
for white sand, turquoise water and luxurious seclusion, making it a popular
stop for jet setters who can afford the average $10,000 (U.S.) weekly rates
for villa rentals. (Mick Jagger and Tommy Hilfiger are among the island's
homeowners.)

But with a runway measuring just 1,000 metres (despite being lengthened in
1999), the airport can't accommodate most private jets. "My best friend has
a home there that I have been vacationing in for 11 years," Sacco says.
"When I arrive, I'm greeted with their famous rum punch from L'Ansecoy house
[a landmark home overlooking L'Ansecoy Bay]. When you leave, all our friends
come to wave you off, and sometimes flash a moon or two to send you off with
warm memories of a fabulous time. It's never crowded, and customs are
friendly."

Jeff Klein, hotelier

East Hampton Airport, N.Y.

Jeff Klein, the socialite-turned-hotelier behind Manhattan's luxurious City
Club hotel, enjoys playing voyeur at New York state's East Hampton Airport.
The private facility serves as secret gateway to the Hamptons, the summer
playground to the East Coast party elite.

"Since I can't afford a private plane, I mooch off more fortunate and
indulgent friends," the 33-year-old quips. "You don't have to wait on lines
or be harassed at the gate. You get to see who's coming and going: industry
titans, famous celebs, rock stars, athletes and moochers such as myself.
Their guards are down because they're in a 'private' airport, and they
behave -- and misbehave -- accordingly. I also don't have to go through the
whole competitive, 'Is my jet bigger than yours?' thing because I don't have
one and, after working it through with my therapist, I am fine with that."

Casey Spooner, musician

Charles de Gaulle, Paris

and London Heathrow

"I love so many airports for different reasons," muses Casey Spooner of
Fischerspooner, the popular New York-based electro band. Spooner appreciates
the design of the Air France terminal at Charles de Gaulle International
Airport. Just 10 minutes by train to Disney World, the airport handles
200,000 passengers daily. "It's really beautiful and vast, with an outer
shell made of glass and an inner shell of moulded concrete. They have this
lighting grid that feels like a huge shark fin, with tiny little points of
light that are completely useless; an example of decorative, useless, but
fantastic lighting design."

For duty-free shopping, however, Spooner heads to the world's busiest
international airport, London Heathrow, which sees 63 million passengers a
year. "When touring, I never had a chance to even buy toothpaste or a
souvenir for my mother. Now, I'm hooked on buying biscuits, crumpets, jams
and teas. I got Pour Monsieur Chanel cologne, a watch, and these kick-ass
Bulgari sunglasses. This was right after we signed our record deal, so I
indulged my capitalist urges."

Rob Heydon, filmmaker

London Heathrow

Toronto filmmaker Rob Heydon, who is busy co-directing, co-writing and
co-producing the screen adaptation of Irvine Welsh's novel Ecstasy, also
loves Heathrow, but his reasons are personal. "When I arrive there I am
reminded that I am safe and angels are smiling down on me and blessing my
travels," says Heydon, who also worked as a cameraman on Go Further, a film
scheduled to screen at the Toronto Film Festival today and next Saturday.

Connecting through Heathrow en route to Glasgow to meet Welsh, Heydon lost
his wallet but continued on his journey nonetheless. "I check my e-mail and
a woman has already e-mailed me [that] she found my wallet. The meeting with
Mr. Welsh is fantastic, although I have to leave before the sun rises as I
have to deal with my passport for [a subsequent trip to] Egypt. I pick up my
wallet with everything intact, including all the cash. There are no
mistakes, only lessons."

Paul Van Dyk, DJ

Changi Airport, Singapore

For travelling DJs whose passports contain as many stamps as their crates do
records, considerations such as food, shopping and convenience make or break
an airport. Singapore's Changi Airport is the favourite of British DJ Paul
Van Dyk. "They have a little bar where they make absolutely stunning
Singapore fried noodles," he raves. "Due to the country's strict laws, the
airport is very clean, more than any other airport I've seen, so the food is
very fresh. They mix thin Asian noodles with shrimps, meat, chicken and lots
of chili, all together in a wok. Amazing."

Yet this major Asian-Pacific aviation hub stands out for more than cuisine.
With an annual capacity of more than 60 million passengers, Changi has been
officially recognized by the International Air Transport Association for
helping the world's airlines cope with both SARS and the aftermath of 9/11.

DJ Tiga

Tegel Airport, Berlin

and Schiphol, Amsterdam

Montreal-based DJ Tiga digs Berlin's Tegel. "It's small, it's old and it has
no good shops," he admits. "But Tegel is the fastest, smoothest airport in
the world. It takes about five minutes to get from check-in to plane, and
two minutes to get your luggage. Nothing goes wrong, it's close to the city,
and that city happens to be the best: Berlin."

In contrast, he also likes Amsterdam's Schiphol, an über-modern hub that
handles 100,000 passengers a day. It offers a silence centre, a massage
facility and an on-site annex of Amsterdam's famed Rijksmuseum. Yet, for
Tiga, the highlight is the Holland Casino. "Even though it is a bit busy,
and luggage does get lost, Schiphol has amazing shopping, Wi-Fi [wireless
Internet] access for laptops, sushi restaurants and, of course, the casino.
Nothing's better than winning some cash and buying a gadget between
flights."

Shaun Majumder, comic

Vancouver International

L.A.-based Canadian comic Shaun Majumder is taken by the beauty of Vancouver
International. "The design is very complimentary of the landscape of
Vancouver itself," explains Majunder, who this fall will be joining the cast
of TV's This Hour Has 22 Minutes. "The mountains, ocean, and Douglas firs.
Inside, the art and high ceilings make you forget you're in an airport."

Mary Walsh, actor

St. John's Airport

Ultimately, though, the best part of any trip is coming home. Newfoundland
actress and CBC personality Mary Walsh couldn't agree more. "It's always an
event when you land at St. John's Airport," says Walsh, who plays Lina
Paventi in the movie Mambo Italiano, which is screening this weekend at the
Toronto International Film Festival. 

"There are always 10,000 people waiting to greet their friends and families,
people are shrieking, bawling, leaping into each other's arms. You can't
help but feel joyful, there's just so much goddamn joy at the airport."

10 jet-setting airports

ET Joshua Airport, Mustique: http://www.mustique.com

Changi Airport, Singapore: http://www.changi.airport.com.sg

Portland International, Portland: http://www.portlandairportpdx.com

Tegel Airport, Berlin:

http://www.berlin-airport.de/PubEnglish

Schiphol, Amsterdam:

http://www.schiphol.nl

Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia: http://www.klia.com.my

Copenhagen Airport, Denmark: http://www.cph.dk

Charles de Gaulle Airport, Paris: http://www.paris-cdg.com

London Heathrow:

http://www.heathrow.co.uk

Vancouver International Airport: http://www.yvr.ca

St. John's Airport:

http://www.stjohnsairport.com


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