Tired of the over-the-top folly of Monaco, the star-spotting excesses of Cannes, and the fashionable frenzy of Saint-Tropez? The south of France has long been synonymous with glitz and glamour, but it’s only a tiny sliver of a wonderful region.

Think Costa Rica and think beach. With both Pacific and Caribbean coasts, this little country wins bragging rights to 1,100 miles of some of the most beautiful sun-drenched shorelines in the Western Hemisphere.

We sped north and over the eastern ridge of the mountain range that shelters Quito and as we descended to the valley below, the netherworld fog that enveloped the busy city melted away. Gorgeous green foliage and multi-colored flowers of every shade and hue lined the road.

Stand on a street corner in Hanoi and sooner or later a Mercedes-Benz, a Porsche or a Lexus will glide past. Twenty years ago, this place was all bicycles. Now it’s all scooters and imported cars.

I first got hooked on investing in strong currencies in the 1970s. I invested in Swiss francs at about 25 cents and by 1980 the franc had risen to 75 cents.

At first when people asked why I bought a one-way ticket to Santiago, Chile, I told them it was because I’d never been there, didn’t know anyone and didn’t speak the language. Perfectly logical reasons for me in my search for adventure.

When my husband Jurg and I first moved to Nicaragua, we planned on a three-year stay. But its 10 years later and we’re still here…and we’re not leaving anytime soon.

Costa Rica is one country that may truly have it all: A year-round tropical climate, modern cities, Caribbean beaches, Pacific coastline, rain forests, lush valleys, and majestic mountains.

My butler, dressed in a gold-leafed, mandarin-collared waistcoat, hands me a Jim Beam and Coke on the rocks. A woman wearing an elaborate silk gown bows her head as I enter the restaurant. A crooning piano player launches into “As Time Goes By” in a dimly-lit lounge bar next door…

It sounds like an unpronounceable curse or even a blessing, but in fact uisce beatha is neither; it’s Scots Gaelic for the “water of life.” That’s whisky to you and me.