For the first time since 1930 Steffani will be closing ... - Hotel Steffani

steffaninews_0708_E.qxp 11.12.2007 16:29 Uhr Seite 1
02 > CRESTA RUN 03 > THE BERGELL 04 > SKIING
365 DAYS A YEAR There is always something
going on. And there is something to suit every
taste in and around St.Moritz: cultural types,
sporty types, outdoor types and night owls.
The first electric light in Switzerland went on in St. Moritz in 1878. Since then this Alpine town has been in spotlight all year round.
ST.MORITZ The Alpine
city of premières
The list of milestones
that St.Moritz has taken
in stride on its way to
becoming the worldrenowned
resort of today
is extremely long – from
the first electrical light in
Switzerland to the first
telephone in the canton.
It was 1864 when Johannes
Badrutt made a wager with
the first English summer visitors
and managed to get them
to stay in St. Moritz through
the winter. And the English
loved it. They came back, and
they are still coming back. And
it was the English who really
made their mark on the sporting
face of St.Moritz.
In 1880 they held the first curling
contest on the Continent,
the first skating European
Championships in 1882 and
they built the Cresta Run in
1885. But their main passion
was to ensure that, even at almost
2000 meters, they could
still enjoy their beloved equestrian
sports. It was 1907 when
the first race took place on the
frozen lake. Of course, for all
of these activities to go ahead
there needed to be hoteliers
and politicians with some
forethought.
Hotel Kulm was the place
where the first electrical light
in Switzerland was switched
on in 1878. Twelve years later
the first telephone in the canton
was installed in St.Moritz.
So, even back at the end of the
nineteenth century, St.Moritz
had already established its reputation
as a premium Alpine
destination.
250000 VISITORS from
around the world, still including
several thousand Englishmen
and women, come to
St.Moritz over the course of
the year. In the winter, visitors
tend to stay an average of six
days, in the summer, three.
There is so much to experience.
Around 300 events take
place here during the year.
These include the famous
White Turf horse races, for
which the frozen lake is
turned into a racetrack for the
first three Sundays in February
and a veritable who’s who
turns out to watch.
Polo, cricket, golf, skiing, wind
surfing, inline skating, mountain
biking – just about any
sport you can think of can be
found in and around St. Moritz.
But, what was it Churchill said
about «no sports»? If that is
your motto, then you will still
find all you need in St. Moritz
with its Gourmet Festival, the
Music Festivals, museums and
shopping.
All of the big brands from Bally
to Bucherer, Jet Set to Prada,
can be found here. Museums
such as the Segantini, the Milli
Weber House and the local
public library provide insight
07 | 08 | WINTER & SUMMER
Hotel Steffani | CH-7500 St. Moritz | Tel. +41 (0)81 836 96 96, Fax +41 (0)81 836 97 17 | E-Mail info@steffani.ch
into the history of St.Moritz.
The first documented mention
of the village was in 1139. The
leaning tower also dates back
to this period.
Around four hundred years
younger is the oldest preserved
house, the Chesa Veglia from
1658. The original farm house
was bought in 1928 by the
Palace and is now a restaurant.
It really pays to shop in St. Moritz, and it is plenty of fun, too.
EDITORIAL
In the spring of 2008 the
Steffani is being renovated and
will be closed for several weeks.
Dear guests
This year the winter has arrived early. On 10 November
Mother Holle shook out her covers for the first time
and covered the Upper Engadine in a blanket of white.
The skiing season on our mountain, Corviglia, began
on 17 November. That delights us locals just as much as
it does our visitors.
«In winter there is nothing
more beautiful than crisp snow
beneath the boards»
Brigitte Märky
The Engadine truly has a lot to offer. It is not just the
magical landscape that has cast its spell over many an
artist (see page 3), the sun that shines about 322 days a
year, but also the never ending round of events on offer.
It starts off with polo on the frozen Lake St.Moritz
from 24 to 27 January. One day later, the Gourmet Festival
begins. And the first three weekends in February
are given over to White Turf.
We would love you to join us for the Gourmet Festival
at Le Mandarin. This year Ip Chi Cheung from Hong
Kong will be cooking. The season ends at the end of
March with «Snow and Symphony». And that will then
be about time for us to make an excursion or two into
the local area. To the Bergell, for instance. We introduce
you to the Val Bregaglia, as it is known in Italian,
on page 4 of Steffani News.
«For the first time since 1930
Steffani will be closing for a brief spell»
Peter Märky
This coming spring we will have a little more time for
excursions. The hotel will be closed from 7 April to
mid-May. We are renovating. A new lift, a new kitchen,
a new reception area, some new rooms.
We are looking forward to being able to welcome you
to the Steffani from spring on. But most of all we
are looking forward to spending a good snowy winter
season with you.
Yours, Brigitte und Peter Märky

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FLASHLIGHTS
Antonio Meneses:
Master string player
The year will draw to a
close in the company of
Antonio Meneses on
cello and Marc Andreae
conducting. The concerts
in the Sinfonia series will
be sold out in Pontresina,
Zuoz, Sils and Celerina.
This year works by
Brahms and Dvorak will
be performed. The Third
Symphony by Brahms,
composed 1883, is on the
programme. One of the
great admirers of this
symphony was Dvorak,
who said about the
piece,«It is pure love and
your heart just swells at
the sound.» The Czech
composer’s cello concerto
will also be performed.
Dvorak composed it in
New York in 1892.
Pontresina – Tirano: The world
cultural heritage in view
No railway in Switzerland takes you over
the Alps without any tunnels, with an
unrestricted view of mountain lakes and
Alpine scenery. No train can handle the
change in altitude from Bernina Hospice
at 2 253 meters down to Tirano in Italy at
429 above sea level without the aid of a
cog wheel. No wonder then that the railway,
together with the magnificent landscape
of Albula/Bernina, «because of its
extraordinary significance to the world»
as it says in the acceptance file, is set to
be added to the UNESCO’s world cultural
heritage list.
The narrow gauge railway running over
Bernina was completed in 1910. Today
the old locomotives still puff their way
over the mountains. Thanks to the support
Peter Märky has provided for the
restoration of the old engines, Steffani
and its guests are welcome on board on
those occasions. UNESCO will be making
the final decision to add the train and region
to the list in summer 2008.
IP CHI CHEUNG is considered one of the
best Chinese star chefs in the world. He has modernized
classic Chinese cuisine. His cooking
is light, not too hot and perfection for the eye.
The run between St.Moritz and Celerina gives the riders a shake down because they can feel every single bump in the ice; they lie flat on the toboggan with their nose 15 centimetres from the ground.
TOBOGGANING Head first through
the ice channel at 140 km/h
The addictive potential
and speed kick are both
enormous. Cresta riders
are brave and obsessed
by their sport.
The official name is the
St.Moritz Tobogganing Club,
but everyone knows it as the
Cresta Club. The first run, the
ice channel, was created in the
winter season of 1884/85, by
the English, of course. And
English is still the prevailing
language on the run: «Keep
dogs and women away» is the
message intoning from the
club house loudspeakers.
Women are only allowed on
the patio to applaud and once
a year as participants in the fi-
nal race. Cresta riding is for
tough men. The average speed
is 90km/h and on the fast
straights they can clock another
50km/h easily. The rider lies
on a hard sledge with no
suspension, no steering wheel,
head first with his nose just a
few centimetres above the ice.
He steers the sledge through
the corners with his feet.
THE 1214 METER ice track is
created by Italian specialists
by hand every year in early
winter and generally only
opens a few days before Christmas.
At the end of February it
is all over once more. The
biggest races all have names
such as Heaton Gold Cup, Cur-
zon Cup or Gunter Sachs Challenge
Cup.
THE MOST IMPORTANT
race of the short season
though is the Grand National.
Nino Bibbia and Franco Gansser
have won the Grand National
eight times each. On
16 February 2008 the big race
will be held once again.
The race is a great event for
spectators, too. There is no
other race where the stakes are
so high, no other that is so
much about honour and prestige.
The best place for viewing
is the Shuttlecock, the most infamous
of the ten corners. If
you come off here you become
a member of the Shuttlecock
BIRTHDAY The Gourmet Festival will be
blowing out 15 candles in 2008
Under the title «The
Original» the culinary
highlight of the winter
season will be celebrating
its 15th birthday.
And of course, as is the fate
of all originals, it has been
copied with the result that
there are now gourmet festivals
from Sylt to Mexico.
But none of them is the
St.Moritz Festival, and certainly
none is like the 15 th
edition in 2008. It begins on
Monday, 28 January with an
Club. Famous club presidents
have included Gianni Agnelli
and Gunter Sachs, and many
more. The run gets more dangerous
as you approach Celerina.
The Shuttlecock is a kind of
emergency brake.
THE RIDER who has managed
to handle the corners the
best throughout his career is
Nino Bibbia.
He is 85, lives in St.Moritz
and, up until a few years ago,
had a food shop. He has celebrated
231 victories in all. On
7 December this year a book
was published in his honour:
«Fascination Skeleton – Nino
Bibbia. St. Moritz, Cresta Run».
After a hard day at the run, the
Opening Cocktail Reception.
Then there are two
highlights, the Kitchen Party
on 30 January and the
Grand Gourmet Finale on
the lake on 2 February.
IP CHI CHEUNG from
Hong Kong will be in attendance
for all the festivities.
He is considered a star
among Chinese chefs. His
cooking is a firework of aromas,
colours and tastes and
has little to do with the Cantonese
cuisine we might
know from our countries.
riders gather in the Stübli Bar
on the first floor of the Steffani
Hotel.
THEIR DAY BEGINS at a decidedly
unchristian hour, well
before the ice is soft. Here, at
the bar over a single malt or a
beer, the Cresta legends are
spun.
The sledges ride on in the
Stübli Bar. a few kilometres
faster perhaps, the falls a little
more painful, the start a bit
speedier than a few hours before.
But it is the rankings list
that hangs in the club house
and in the bar that really
counts, and of course the enthusiasm
of riders, spectators
and listeners alike.
The kitchen parties are not just culinary feasts, but also wonderful social occasions.
Ip Chi Cheung will be cooking
at Le Mandarin at Steffani
for the duration of the
festival. Ip Chi Cheung is
just one of many stars at
this year’s festival. Dieter
Müller is being hosted by
Suvretta House.
THIS GERMAN CHEF has
collected three Michelin
Stars at home in Garmisch.
And he was awarded 19.5
points by GaultMillau. This
makes him one of the best
chefs in the world. Good
competition then even for
Dangerous: Nosediving
into straw
The speeds are high, but so
are the adrenaline levels of
the riders. And, of course,
there are always crashes.
But the Cresta Run is not
considered a dangerous
sport. Despite spectacular
falls, there are very few
injuries. The corners are
well padded and beginners
are given plenty of careful
guidance by experienced
members.
www.cresta-run.com
two-star Austrian chef Andreas
Mayer from Zell am
See and Frenchman Emmanuel
Renault from
Megève. Mayer will be guest
chef at Schweizerhof hosted
by executive chef Gotthold
Seifried and Renault will
be hosted by Hans Nussbaumer
at Kulm Hotel.
CHEUNG will have competition
on the Asian front
from David Thompson from
London. The Englishman
swears by anything edible
that comes from Thailand.

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ALBERTO GIACOMETTI was born in Stampa in the
Bergell in 1901, son of the painter Giovanni Giacometti.
His father achieved world renown as an impressionist,
but Alberto taught himself the art of sculpture.
From top left to bottom right: village of Bondo, Waterfall in Piuro, the city of Chiavenna, the Southern gateway to the Bergell.
THE BERGELL
Bellezza in the shadow
of the Engadine
The Bergell begins in
Maloja at 1815 meters
and ends in Chiavenna
at 300 meters above sea
level in Italy. The valley
descends from the Maloja
pass in three stages.
The Northern Italians take the
route through the Bergell over
the Maloja pass to get to the
Engadine, the Engandines
take the reverse route to Chiavenna
to escape the long winter.
But very few ever pause
between Chiavenna and Maloja.
«Soglio is the threshold to
paradise». Those were the
words of Giovanni Segantini.
The famous artist should
know. He spent a great deal of
time with his family in Soglio
where it is much warmer in
winter than in Maloja, where
the artist lived.
THE STORY IS TOLD that he
was sitting in the baroque rose
garden of the Palazzo Salis at
the time. Soglio is perched on
a sunny mountain terrace at
1073 meters, surrounded by
chestnut forests. The narrow
road that winds its way up to
the 176-inhabitant village
leads by the «cascine», the
chestnut houses. The chestnuts
are dried there. The nut is
called the «bread of the poor»
in the Bergell. Today it is a delicacy
that is sold primarily in
the shops of Soglio and Castasegna
in flour form.
THE CHESTNUTS provide a
transition from the Alps, the
Sopraporta with the villages of
Casacchia, Vicosoprano, Borgonovo
ending at Stampa, and
the Sottaporta that stretches
from Stampa via Castasegna to
Chiavenna.
The high route to Castasegna,
running along the Swiss-Italian
border begins in Soglio.
The route is aptly named «La
Panoramica». The views are
spectacular. The Bergell is a
deep-cut valley between the
Bergell Alps, with the spectacular
Piz Badile and Piz Cengalo,
in the South and the Rhetic
Alps to the North.
THERE ARE many villages
like Bondo that see no sun all
winter. But it was precisely
Bondo that exercised such a
magical attraction on Willy
Guggenheim, the Swiss artist
known as «Varlin». He died in
1977 in Bondo. His daughter
Patrizia still lives there today.
His last work «Die Leute
meines Dorfes» (The people of
my village) can be admired in
the Museo Ciäsa in Stampa.
Other pictures hang in the famous
Kronenhalle in Zurich.
Varlin’s love for the Bergell
placed him firmly in the footsteps
of the Giacometti artistic
dynasty and the painter Giovanni
Segantini.
SEGANTINI was not just an
admirer of Soglio. He wrote,
«I have taken ownership of
the place. It is a veritable treasure
trove for my art». Many
Segantinis are exhibited in
the Segantini Museum in
St.Moritz.
In 1874 Segantini met the
painter Giovanni Giacometti.
A deep friendship began between
the two men that was also
grounded in their shared
love of the Bergell. The Giacometti
dynasty hails from
Stampa. Giovanni, the father,
was one of the greatest impressionists
of his time, his son Alberto
became world famous
for his sculptures.
From top to bottom: The Bergell artists
Varlin, «Winter in Bondo»;
Giovanni Segantini, «La Morte»;
Giovanni Giacometti, «Herbstabend».
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AGENDA 07 | 08
A SELECTION OF TOP-EVENTS
WINTER AND SUMMER 07 | 08
31 DEC – 6 JANUARY
Men and women compete for
the title of Swiss Champion
in the two and three-man
bobsleigh.
10 – 12 JANUARY
In the 5 th Winter Raid of vintage
cars, it is not just about
speed, but also who can prevail
in the face of ice and
snow.
28 JAN – 2 FEBRUARY
The gourmet festival is going
to be 15 years old this year.
That is sufficient reason to
celebrate with a good meal,
a kitchen party or a gourmet
safari.
3/10/17 FEBRUAR
White Turf! The horse-racing
spectacle featuring the
highest prize in Switzerland
on the last racing Sunday.
3 – 29 MARCH
The 11th «Snow and Symphony»
Music Festival, organized
by Peter Aronsky, will once
again be enchanting audiences
in 2008 with a wide
range of symphonic and
chamber concerts. Artists
such as the conductor Marc
Andreae, the soprano
Barbara Hendricks, tenor
Thomas Quasthoff and
orchestras such as the
Salzburg Camerata are expected
A SELECTION
OF TOP-EVENTS
IN SUMMER 2008
29 JUNE
The start of the summer
season is unthinkable without
the inline skaters. The
marathon route from Maloja
is once again this year the
highlight of the inline calendar.
10 – 12 JULY
The lovely English vintage
cars conquer the hearts of all
spectators. But it is not just
about fine appearances. On
Friday and Saturday a rally
takes the vehicles for a demanding
mountain spin.
JUNE AND JULY
More than 100 concerts are
played during the summer
months by the popular spa
and salon orchestra of
St.Moritz.
30 JUNE – 5 JULY
The St.Moritz Gold Cup
Week, held at the 18-hole
Samedan course, is an annual
draw for golfers to spend a
week in the Engadine.
24 AUGUST
The Engadine summer race
goes from Sils to Bever. Last
year over 800 runners took
part, setting a record for the
race.
SHOW JUMPING
It’s a very special
birthday for the
Winter Concours Hippique
from 13 to 20
January. The riders
will be meeting for
the 50 th time on the
polo field.
POLO
This gathering of
beautiful horses and
beautiful people
takes place from
24 to 27 January on
the frozen lake of
St. Moritz.
ART ON ICE
The top Swiss skaters
Sarah Meier and
Stéphane Lambiél
will work their magic
on 15 February with
Art on Ice performed
on the lake.
OTELLO
Rossini’s opera
«Otello» will be performed
during the
St. Moritz opera
weeks. From 28 June
to 12 July there will
be a performance
every day at the Kulm
Hotel.
SAILING
Regattas for all
classes of boats are
held on Lake
St. Moritz every
year and there is
regatta week
on Lake Silvaplana.
«Engadine Wind»,
this year from
4 to 8 august, with
a marathon on the
saturday.

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SKIING WITH VIEW
In St. Moritz, the
white sport enjoys
a glamour factor
It is not uncommon to
share a ski lift with
Princess Caroline and
her daughter Charlotte or
to see the millionaire
Abramovitch tucking into
caviar at the next
table at Reto Mathis’.
St.Moritz’ pistes attract
anyone who is anyone.
White perfection reigns for
kilometers on the mountains
around St.Moritz. Everyone
wants a piece of that, the rich,
the beautiful, the sporty and
the true skiing fanatics. And
that last group is the one for
whom the first ride from
St.Moritz is intended, at 7.40
in the morning. Making quiet
tracks in the virgin snow is
compensation enough for
weary eyes at such an early
hour. The ski lifts calls this early
service «White Carpet».
And even if you come later
there are 100 km of pistes on
the Corviglia side, 23 units
that were renovated to the
highest modern standard in
2003 for the Alpine Skiing
World Championship. The Piz
Nair train runs right up to
3057 meters.
TAKE A DEEP BREATH if
you want to look around before
that first run down. The
view is breathtaking across
the Engadine lakes and the
Bernina Massif. And this
unique experience of nature is
no doubt what attracted the
first skiers to the mountains at
MORE SPORT
Engadine: Golfing paradise
in the mountains
In the summer golf is one of the top sports
played by Engadine visitors. With two
18-hole courses in Zuoz and Samedan, a Golf
Academy in Kulm Park in St. Moritz, a par
6 course in Sils, there is an enormous range
on offer. And all of them set in the midst of
the stunning mountain landscape of the
Upper Engadine. During the summer
months on two large courses in Zuoz and
Samedan many major tournaments are
played and, of course, there are professionals
on all courses who are there to provide
support to beginners.
TIP
For the summer calendar featuring exact
dates of the tournaments on the two 18-hole
courses, go to:
www. engadin-golf.ch
You will also see plans of the courses and all
information relating to green fees, costs of
membership and courses.
the turn of the century, without
the aid of a lift, let it be
noted.
Today, the Engadine-St.Moritz
region with its seven ski areas
offers pure nature, but also
pure enjoyment.
IN 1925 the first Mountain
restaurant in the Engadine
was built on Salastrains. Today
skiers and snow-trekkers alike
meet there for a drink or a local
speciality.
The list of restaurants and bars
in the ski area is almost endless
and there is truly something
for every taste. In the
Corviglia Marguns ski area
alone there is pizza at Chadafö
in Margus and a potato with
caviar at «Mathis Food Affairs»
– new, with 13 GaultMillau
points, or a cool drink outside
in the tent, or a plate of
spaghetti on the Alpina at
2550 meters above sea level,
truly everything a skier’s heart
could desire.
BUT THE TRUE SPORTING
types will be happy, too. They
can take courses to learn the
Telemark technique, with
which the Norwegian Sondre
Norheim back in 1860 laid the
foundation stone for the way
we ski today. They can learn
snowshoeing, snow boarding
or carving. That is the technique
that gave new impetus
to skiing at the turn of the century.
The shaped ski was invented
by the Pole Matthias
Zdarsky way back in 1896.
Cycling:
Fit on wheels
Singles treks and
family tours, and
so much more
than we could list
here. A tour
around the national
park, a race
high up on
Corviglia, a course
with Mountainbike
World Champion
Thomas
Frischknecht, a
«Top of the world
ride with top
chefs» – the possibilities
for cycling
fun are endless
in the paradise of
Engadine.
WHETHER IT IS THE TRUTZ, the Alpina or
Corviglia, there is an amazing selection of ski chalets
and restaurants. Pizza and caviar, barley soup and
GaultMillau points; the visitor could not want for more.
Skiing –
sport and
leisure
The mountain
world is only
breathtaking
from up on a
mountain –
moving around
in snow is the
only way to
move.