The Eye Has To Travel: A Letter From Our Editor | Harper’s Bazaar Arabia May 2022
Life’s a journey, not a destination. Bazaar Arabia’s Editor in Chief, Olivia Phillips, shares why it is a necessity to buy the ticket and take the ride…
What’s the best trip you’ve ever been on? The one that changed you on a deeper level, filled your heart – or your stomach – gave you newfound energy, or courage, built a friendship, or even helped you find the way back to yourself?
One of my favourite travel-related stories began on a plane, where a friend got sat next to – unbeknownst to her at the time – the man who would turn out to be her future husband. Another was my 30th birthday trip to L.A. where my best friends surprised me with balloons, a convertible, a jaunt down the Pacific Coast Highway and a dinner at Chateau Marmont. I’d had a particularly hard, heartbroken couple of months and it was the holiday that began to fix my spirit – testament to the joint power of female friendship, sunshine and cake.
It’s certainly not the cure to all of life’s ills, but travel hits the reset button in a way that countless other tricks can’t, forcing you to view things through a different lens that can so often be that all-important perspective-giver. So as we head into our long, hot, Middle Eastern summer, we have dedicated this issue to packing your bags, putting your out-of-office on and making a journey – be that to somewhere far-flung and fantastical, or a down-the-road staycation to a spot otherwise undiscovered.
Post-Covid, we are now privileged enough to enjoy that freedom – so this month, we’re making the most of it. Read our picks of everywhere from Marrakech to the Maldives, via Edinburgh, Lisbon and Ras Al-Khaimah. In true Bazaar style, throughout the issue we’ve basically done your packing for you, with our pages overflowing (much like my average suitcase) with this season’s finest. We flew to Rome to shoot Fendi, to a chateau in France to shoot couture, to Hollywood to uncover Louis Vuitton’s latest fragrance, and got up painfully early to daytrip to Sharjah’s Khorfakkan Amphitheatre and capture cover star Carmen Bsaibes looking every bit the Lebanese goddess.
The famously private actress shares her very own journey, revealing where she’s been, where she’s at, and where she’s going. The takeaway? That in life, it is crucial to grab your own steering wheel. Do that, and we’re certain that the road will just appear before you.
From Olivia’s Desk…
Even if you have no travel plans in your near future, fear not – the sofa and comedy-whodunnit Only Murders In The Building is a fantastic alternative. Especially if, like me, you’re a sucker for a true crime podcast and Martin Short basically playing himself.
Editor’s Picks…
Photography: Frederico Martins. Creative Direction: Seher Khan. Styling: Cedric Haddad. Art Director: Oscar Yáñez. Market Editor: Nour Bou Ezz. Producer: Natascha Hawke. Hair: Ivanna. Make-Up: Michel Kiwarkis at MMG. Photographer’s Assistants: Nicole Leblanc and Benge Oluwasemire. Stylist’s Assistants: Rita Abi Antoun and Hajir Zaidan. Producer’s Assistant: Walaa Alaqra
From Harper’s Bazaar Arabia’s May 2022 issue.
