It's a noisy and distressful world, pressing on senses in all directions. You travel for a changeable environment — peace, relaxation, calm — and avoidance of annoyance. I think that is proper description of luxury stated by Wilde.

Villa Nova is a classic hotel outpost of considerable desideratum that is ensconced in sugar hills of Barbados, recently capturing these awards: "Hottest Hotel in World", from Conde Nast Traveler Magazine; Tattlers' "Prestige Hotel of Year"; and in 2003, "Boutique Hotel of Year" from World Travel Awards.

But award I would give Villa Nova is "Best Hotel For Solitude". After spending four days in retreat, I never heard one airplane overhead or a single motorcycle backfire; no cars rushing by, or senseless boom boxes or any other annoyance. The only fidelity was JVC CD-player in my room, stocked with classic standards. What I did listen to was softness of morning rain on bocage of palms — Fishtail Palms, Lady Palms, MacArthur Palms, Chinese Fan Palms, and Prickle Palms. While peering out Caribbean-style shuttered windows I heard a hummingbird's wings buzzing a flower. My biggest offense was leaving property at all. The counterpoise to all this silence is peaceful sleeping. With ozonated negative ion air and comfy plushy pillowy mattresses, I never slept better anywhere I have ever traveled. If you have any type of sleep disorder Villa Nova will put your nocturnal abberations back into proper sync with absence of any mental power of your own.

The entrance to Villa Nova is a drive bordered with cascading ferns and thickly shaded by mature mahogany trees. Near entrance to house (it is billed as a Hill Country Manor) are three cabbage palms towering over premises. Just arriving is a prerequisite to halcyon.

Shrubs and flowering trees of greatest variety and fragrance give beauty to Villa Nova year around. The resort boasts Barbados' largest Queen of Flower Tree (Lagerstroemia Speciosa); flamboyant or flame trees (Delonix Regia) and yellow pouri (Tabebuia Serratifolia) and frangipani (plumeria) add a coat of many colors. African tulip trees (Spathodea Campanulata) and ylang-ylang trees (canaga odorata), whose blossoms are used as a base to many perfumes, add aromatics. The enormous bearded fig tree (Picus Citrifolia) by swimming pool terrace is national tree of Barbados and it has pride-of-place on nation's Coat of Arms, as well as on Royal Standard of Elizabeth II, Queen of Barbados.

The fig and tall stately mahoganies and Spanish Ash (Lonchocarpus Benthanriamus)

Just below al fresco dining terrace rests beautiful blue tiled pool that is paved all around with a cool-to-the-foot coral stone courtyard. I was in middle of pool that is as dark (at certain angles) as any hidden local shady swimming hole, gazing at foliage splendor, when The Birdman seemed to appear right out of bush. The Birdman is Villa Nova's resident gardener, but he should have his own CD pressed for bird whistles and trills he mockingbird mimics. "All birds know me; they build nests in gazebo where I go." He kept me entertained with bird calls of Pee Witter, Cane Sparrow, Yellow Bust, Morning Doves, and Wild Pigeons, and I bet he could imitate buzz of a hummingbird!

"I am determined to travel through life first class." — Sir Noel Coward

The international jet set has discovered Villa Nova. Mick Jagger once flew over from his private home on Mustique. Liv Ulman graced terrace with her grace. Boyance has made a dramatic and flamboyant entrance. Even Tony Blair, Prime Minister of England, stayed here. In fact Villa Nova once was owned by Sir Anthony Eden, former Prime Minister of England. He retired here, but Winston Churchill sought him out and even Queen of England slept here, staying no doubt for solitude. Noel Coward must have penned his motto while poolside.

The true luxuries of Villa Nova are gardens wrapped around coral stone cliff rural landscape. Eden found his "Eden" while gardening and raising mango and papaya trees and vegetables and herbs. Villa Nova is an oasis set on a hillside that provides for complete privacy 900 feet above sea level, with temperatures five degrees lower than on Platinum Coast to west. Trade winds blow thousands of miles across Atlantic Ocean and up over uplands keeping nights even cooler. Warm duvets on bed keep you warm throughout night.

An open verandah runs around three sides of main reception rooms to north, east, and south of Villa Nova, keeping these rooms delightfully cool and shaded. The east and south verandahs look out onto lush lawns with flowerbeds, fine old mahogany trees, and some of tallest cabbage palms (roystonea oleracea) on island. To southeast from gazebo distance sugarcane fields testify to area's continuing agricultural wealth, a panoramic view across seven miles of rolling green Uplands country to Atlantic. In foreground is pool copse and beyond is Moncrieffe Plantation.

Villa Nova presents a very interesting southern façade broken by a curved wall (apse) with a portico supported by fluted columns, projecting beyond verandah, and a wing to west. The ceiling of portico and verandah is vaulted; a door with a pleasing fanlight leads to dining room.

The music room is a long room of 31 feet with apse bearing to south. The piano was once owned by Rupert Murdoch of worldwide media fame. In Private Dining Room 1890 mahogany dining table is from Queen's Park House, headquarters of British Regiment that was once stationed in Barbados. This table bears "scars" of officers' spurs as they literally put their feet up on table to relax with their glass of port. The table is of local mahogany and creates a fine balance to room.

Nestled nicely between Pacific Ocean and Santa Ynez Mountains is 101 Freeway, known primarily for its scenic route along California coastline.

It's dark, about midnight to be exact. The darkness blankets sea's rippling waves and little puffy clouds that dot sky like little gray cotton balls between stars. They're low enough for me to see them flowing backwards as I drive onward to famous town of Santa Barbara, California.

I use word famous because many Hollywood stars come here for a getaway. I once saw Frazier drive by me in a purple Prowler. He was wearing sunglasses and what was left of his hair blew in convertible's wind. It's only about an hour or so drive to Los Angeles, so it's a good place to star gaze.

Let's Book Hotel Santa Barbara Most of buildings here are Spanish-style, about three stories tall. The architecture echoes adobes built by Spanish settlers in early 19th century, and gingerbread structures built here during Victorian era. I'm not exactly sure what I'm going to do here, all that matters is that I'm away from home, somewhere beautiful. I hang a right onto State Street.

It's quiet now, but I imagine hustle and bustle of wealthy vacationers buying up a storm in gentle breeze of daybreak. I'm excited but tired, so I make a quick turn onto Cota Street, and into parking lot of famous Hotel Santa Barbara.

Apparently, in 1925 there was a huge earthquake that leveled town and then called Santa Barbara Hotel. The owner constructed a new hotel, Saint Barbara, to specifications far exceeding those required at that time. The entire building - including all floors and stairways - was constructed of reinforced concrete tied together by hundreds of steel beams. Boasting exterior walls over a foot thick and a foundation more than five feet wide, entire structure was built on rollers to allow for movement in event of an earthquake, a unique innovation in those days. It also was redesigned with soundproof windows so that its guests could get a good night sleep despite insane partygoers lurking outside.

Book Hotel Santa BarbaraThe Saint Barbara, as it was renamed, soon became getaway for many of Hollywood's brightest stars. Clark Gable and Carol Lombard were frequent guests, and eyewitnesses claim Leo Carrillo rode his horse around lobby on several occasions. The Saint Barbara was not always quite a saint though. Local legend has it that liquor was always available in hotel during Prohibition, and that for years, a "secret" gaming room flourished somewhere near lobby.