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Hotel Maraica in San Pancho, Mexico (officially known as San Francisco) looks like a tropical laptop screensaver but IRL. While its pristine, palm tree-lined beach, off-the-grid vibes, and picturesque jungle views are that of a classic relaxation oasis, the seaside hotel has much more to offer than just that. Hotel Maraica is a 100 percent sustainable property where nature, harmony, and sophistication collide. The eco-friendly hotel makes for a dreamy tropical getaway for eco-tourists, health-conscious foodies, and anyone looking to totally unplug for a few days as WiFi here is scarce.

I’d argue that this colorfully eccentric combination beats the over-touristed beach resorts in Cabo San Lucas any day (although I love those too). The area of San Pancho is an under-the-radar destination that more young travelers should know about. The low-key beach town is along the Pacific coast of Nayarit, just over an hour outside of Puerto Vallarta and 15 minutes from the surfer’s party destination of Sayulita.

As one of Nayarit’s best-kept secrets, San Pancho is the ideal spot for anyone wanting to break away from the busyness that has unequivocally returned to our everyday lives over the past year. It’s the kind of place I picture myself going to write a book one day. San Pancho is packed with heavenly stretches of sand complete with nearby beach bars, artistic cultural traditions, and environmentally conscious community efforts that make it well worth a visit.

Hotel Maraica is walking distance to the heart of town yet still off the beaten path enough to feel like you’re worlds away. If you’re not convinced yet, my review of the property below might persuade you to book your flight sometime soon.

WHY IT’S AWESOME:

What I loved most about Hotel Maraica is the eco-tourism aspect of the property. When they say 100 percent sustainable, they mean it. Rather than uprooting nature, the property is built within nature to inspire guests to, “walk the path towards reconnection with the earth.” You’ll notice the property’s earthy architecture created out of palm ceilings, Parota furniture, and other natural resources, creating an open-air ambiance from the guest rooms to the dining area.

From Hotel Maraica’s water refill stations and healthy food menu to its renewable energy sources, eco-travelers can feel good about booking a stay here. In fact, the hotel generates its own energy with solar panels, recycles waste, and it even reuses wastewater as an irrigation system for its ornamental gardens.

With the ocean on one side and a mountainous jungle on the other, the hotel truly reminded me to respect and connect with nature. Spending only a couple of days here was enough to feel like I was letting out one big “ahhh…” exhale.

IN-HOUSE FOOD + DRINK:

The hotel’s sustainable lifestyle extends to its food options, too. The restaurant, Muvieri, offers a variety of fresh and organic meals that are made with local ingredients, many of which are grown on the property’s own garden. The upstairs dining area has a stunning ocean view, an undeniably romantic spot to watch the sunset. Of course, chips and fresh guacamole are a must for every meal, but the restaurant’s menu offers more than just classic dishes.

For breakfast, order the blended açaí bowl for a refreshing start to your day. Muvieri’s healthy lunch and dinner items pack tons of veggies into every dish. My go-to option was the shrimp bowl with rice, which came with a heaping of zucchini noodles and perfectly spiced prawns. As far as cocktails, you can’t go wrong, but my favorite was the blueberry margarita. The sweetness of the fruit combined with the strong kick of tequila is the ultimate post-beach day pick-me-up.

AMENITIES:

• Saltwater pool
• Renewable energy
• Tropical fruit orchard
• Pet-friendly
• Ocean views
• WiFi in restaurant and pool area
• Water refill stations
• Gym
• Yoga retreats
• Balancing activities (at an additional cost), such as yoga, surf lessons, paddle boarding, canopy tours, boat tours, horseback riding, or an in-room massage

ROOM TYPES:

The rooms at Hotel Maraica are designed to create an atmosphere of wellness and reconnection with nature. I almost felt like I was sleeping in a luxury treehouse, and it was awesome. The rooms are effortlessly minimalist and come with a hammock on the balcony that overlooks both the jungle and ocean (it was serene, to say the least). Basically, Hotel Maraica executes the outdoor-indoor aesthetic tenfold.

There are three different lodging options to choose from: Bed and View (king-size bed with an ocean view), Bed and View Plus (king-size bed plus a divan or extra space with ocean view), and 2 Bed and View (two double beds, plus a divan or extra space with ocean view).

THE BEST THING TO DO WITHIN A 15-MINUTE WALK:

Of course, spending time lounging on the beach with a margarita or two is a must throughout your stay. A short walk down the beach leads you to a few classic resort-style hotels with bars and restaurants right on the sand. This is a good place to hang out on weekends when you want to get a little tipsy and socialize in the sun.

If you find yourself in San Pancho on a Tuesday, the best thing to do is hit the weekly Tuesday market in the Plaza del Sol. Here, you’ll find a slew of authentic local artisan crafts, organically-grown produce, live music, and a lively crowd of both locals and visitors enjoying each others’ company. You can walk to the market on the main streets or by way of the beach. Make sure to come with cash (and make room in your luggage) for all the souveniers you’ll want to take home.

THE BEST THING TO DO WITHIN A 15-MINUTE CAB RIDE:

Hotel Maraica is like a wellness retreat meant to help you unplug. However, sometimes a day of downright fun is just as essential. San Pancho is only a short cab ride away from Sayulita, a colorful beach city where surfers, partiers, and tourists of all kinds gather. This is where all the action happens, and you’re sure to find your dose of adventure. There are a variety of boating tours (whale watching is a must!), packed beachside bars, diverse shopping, and restaurants all within walking distance of each other. If you really wanted to, you could even walk all the way down the beach from San Pancho to Sayulita. But a quick cab ride is your best bet.

BED GAME:

Even though Hotel Maraica’s decor makes it feel like you’re sleeping outside in the jungle, the beds certainly don’t feel like it. Maybe it was just the sunburn and heat exhaustion, but I fell right to sleep the second my head hit the pillow each night of my stay. The king-size beds give you plenty of room to spread out, and the mattress is that perfect combination of firm yet comfortable. My bed at Hotel Maraica was a luxurious haven for every mid-afternoon nap.

Rating: 8/10

SEXINESS RATING:

I mean, what’s not sexy about a secluded beachside hotel? The property basically screams romance but in a sweet understated way. The calming, nature-infused essence at Hotel Maraica creates the most quintessential setting for a steamy make-out sesh while you watch (or don’t watch) the sunset from your oceanview balcony hammock.

Rating: 9/10

THE VIEWS AND PHOTO SPOTS:

I would rate Hotel Maraica’s Instagrammability a 10/10 if it weren’t for the harsh sun-in-your-face lighting. Contrary to the hotel’s goal of helping its guests disconnect, every corner of the property looks like it was made for a bikini calendar photoshoot. I’m no Sports Illustrated model, but I sure as hell took advantage of the endless photo ops. Gorgeous beach sunsets, giant palm leaves, a boho-chic aesthetic, a saltwater pool with a view? It’s every basic Instagram b*tch’s dream come true (myself included).

Rating: 9/10

BEST SEASON TO VISIT:

I’d argue that the best time to visit is in early spring (February through April). It’s going to be hot, but the high temperatures will still be bearable compared to the thick of summer. Plus, if you make it to San Pancho in early spring, you’re likely to see whales on any boating excursions.

IF I HAD TO COMPLAIN ABOUT ONE THING:

Although Hotel Maraica is located near the sand, the beach isn’t technically a part of the resort’s property. Therefore, there are no lounge chairs to chill out on, and there’s no beachside service. You have to bring a towel down to lay out on the sand or walk to one of the other resorts if you want a seaside cocktail and bite to eat.

BOOK HERE:

Expect to pay anywhere between $200 to $515 per night (more on weekends) depending on the type of room you select and the time of year you visit.

Click here to check availability.

INSTAGRAM IMAGES TAKEN AT HOTEL MARAICA:

Taking inspiration from Robert Rodriguez’s grindhouse revival flick Planet Terror, French Montana and Doja Cat lead a violent revolution in a dystopian future in the video for “Handstand” from French’s new album They Got Amnesia. Saweetie also appears on the song, twerking on a rooftop as the cityscape burns behind her like Nero.

That doesn’t mean the video lacks eye candy, though. While being confronted by grungy, Mad Max-esque punks and menacing cyborgs, Doja is equipped with the most dangerous piece of lingerie: A machine gun bra, which she apparently finds great enjoyment in putting to use. As riots take over and eventually destroy the already mostly demolished city, the trio defeats their enemy while showing off French’s new NFT (look, nobody ever said product placement has to make sense).

Montana, who recently argued that it’s harder to be successful in rap than pro basketball, has been enjoying plenty of success surrounding the rollout for his album, with videos for “Panicking” and “Bag Season” helping to bring They Got Amnesia in at No. 59 on the Billboard 200.

Watch French Montana’s “Handstand” video featuring Doja Cat and Saweetie above.

They Got Amnesia is out now via Epic Records. Get it here.

Just when we thought the world couldn’t get any more surreal than what we experienced in 2020, 2021 happened. While this year has been just as strange and full of as many instantly meme-able moments as the previous one, few states had as many major missteps as Texas.

On Tuesday, The Daily Show correspondent Ronny Chieng dedicated more than five minutes to taking us down memory lane in the Lone Star State, which truly had an incredible year. From a senator who high-tailed it to Cancun when the temperature dipped (leaving his tiny Poodle, Snowflake, to fend for itself) to the state’s enactment of a near-total abortion ban to a gaggle of conspiracy theorists gathering in Dallas to await the resurrection of JFK Jr. (has he arrived yet?), Texas proved yet again that everything’s bigger there—including the scandals. Or, as Chieng described it: “The state that grabbed 2021 by the horns and made it its bitch.”

Chieng gave top billing for the wild ride of a year to Governor Greg Abbott: “He banned masked mandates,” Chieng explained. “He banned vaccine mandates. He banned vaccine cards. Because the best way to fight COVID is with freedom… and ICU beds, but we ran out of ICU beds because of all the COVID.”

After rattling off many more of the state’s embarrassing “accomplishments” from the past 12 months, Chieng—complete with sound effects—continued defending Texas’s lawmakers.

“Say what you want,” Chieng exclaimed. “But what other state would have had the balls to turn their entire population into a bunch of snitches? Not Rhode Island! F*ck you, Rhode Island!”

“The fact is, Texas was a powerhouse all year long,” Chieng continued. “Even when they didn’t have power in their house… That’s right, thanks to Texas’s independent power grid, the energy capital of America had no energy. This past year, Texas was even number one at irony: Pipes were bursting, cell phone towers were down, people couldn’t even put gas into their horsies.”

But Chieng probably summed up his argument best when he called out “you other b*tch-ass states” and repeated the oft-heard statement that “Everything’s bigger in Texas… especially the lines to vote in Black communities.”

You can watch the full clip above.

On the heels of a breakout third year, Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton was eligible for a rookie contract extension this offseason. Ayton and the organization never came to an agreement, though, and the big man will be a restricted free agent next summer.

Despite that, he isn’t worried about a new deal. In an interview with The Undefeated’s Marc Spears, Ayton spoke on a range of topics, including his response to that impasse. His focus is on working hard, winning games, and dutifully filling his role as a key player on the 20-4, title-contending Suns.

“If you want to get something and earn something in this league, you have to be a winner,” Ayton said. “Me putting my head down and working is just closing out all of that noise. I’m not really worried about all of that.

“You had the time to do the negotiations,” he continued. “You had a deadline and it didn’t work out. Boom, Bada, Bing. You still got to work. You still got to play in between the lines. Still got to make sure this dude don’t dunk on me, score on me or do something to win the game. Still got to do that. And that’s just my competitive spirit.”

Ayton said his desire is ” to be the best young two-way player in the league” and consistently “controlling the game” outside of scoring, whether that’s communicating, anchoring the paint defensively, rolling hard to the rim, or helping create baskets for teammates.

If or when he accomplishes those tasks, he’s searching for more tangible results as well.

“I want All-Star and Defensive Player of the Year,” he said. “I want to be on that talk of First-Team defense.”

Kim Kardashian and Ye may be ending their marriage (and already dating others), but that doesn’t mean they don’t recognize the influence they’ve had on each others’ lives. Kardashian apparently influenced some of Ye’s music on his My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy album, acting as his muse on the track “Lost In The World.” But Ye has also influenced Kardashian in a number of ways, namely her style.

Kardashian was honored for her style at the 2021 People’s Choice Awards on Tuesday night. She took the stage in a Balenciaga skin-tight black jumpsuit and massively oversized sunglasses to accept the Fashion Icon award, which was presented by last year’s winner Tracee Ellis Ross. During her speech, Kardashian gave Ye a huge shout-out, saying he introduced her to the world of high fashion.

Kardashian said:

“I started off as a closet organizer and a stylist, so the fact that I’m winning a fashion icon award it’s like a pinch-me moment. I have those every single day that designers are willing to work with me, there was a time when they weren’t. […] To Kanye, even to really introducing me to the fashion world. I fell in love with fashion and I’m so inspired by so many people.”

Watch Kardashian’s full acceptance speech above.

This may sound harsh, but it’s meant with absolutely no malice: Lil Duval is a menace and he must be stopped. Whenever the comedian tweets comparing various figures in hip-hop, complete chaos breaks out among rap fans on Twitter as they end up debating the merits of his off-the-cuffing (and likely trolling) analyses for days on end. Previously, he noted similarities between the music video styles of DaBaby and Ludacris, prompting a days-long discussion that led to the rappers themselves weighing in.

This week, though, he made an even more surprising assertion, comparing two rappers who couldn’t be more different on the surface: Pulitzer Prize winner Kendrick Lamar and the frequently problematic Kodak Black. “Kodak really up there with Kendrick lyrically but y’all don’t wanna hear it tho,” he tweeted yesterday morning. It didn’t take long for Rap Twitter residents to get riled up, chiming in with arguments both for and against Duval’s statement.

The two rappers do share some commonalities. Both were selected for XXL‘s Freshman Class (Kendrick in 2011, Kodak in 2016), and both frequently address the harsh conditions young Black men often face in the US, from poverty and violence to the institutionalization of the prison system. However, they’ve also had wildly different trajectories; while Kendrick has gone from government assistance in Compton, California to be one of hip-hop’s most critically-acclaimed and commercially successful artists (see above, re: Pulitzer), Kodak has faced a number of legal issues and pop culture controversies for everything from illegally purchased guns to sexual assault.

Kodak himself seemingly weighed in as well, writing in a comment about the post on Instagram, “I understand it be controversial Shit behind me but I’ll appreciate it if y’all just worry bout me Fa my talent & not da other shit on social media !!! Thank You”

Check out more responses to Lil Dvual’s unexpected comparison below.

During a recent profile for Vanity Fair, writer/director Adam McKay opened up about his split from Will Ferrell, which McKay revealed was much more personal than just the dissolving of their Gary Sanchez Productions. The two not only ended their business partnership, but also their friendship, and McKay blames himself for the whole thing. And it was his fault. According to McKay, the situation went south when he poorly handled casting John C. Reilly as Lakers owners Jerry Buss in a new HBO limited series after initially giving the role to Ferrell, a longtime Lakers fan.

However, after making the admission to Vanity Fair, numerous outlets covered the falling out, which McKay might be a little surprised to see. In a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, McKay made mention of how the media focused more on his split from Ferrell and not the climate issues raised in the Vice director’s latest film:

It’s kind of crazy to see how much has been reported on this. We made Don’t Look Up to hopefully get people talking about the climate crisis — literally the biggest threat to life in human history — and to see so much made about two comedy guys not talking about a TV show is a scary sign of our times. I love Ferrell. Always will. I had the best, most fun run of my life with him. Yes, I wish I had talked to him about it out of respect, but we were both focused on our new companies and life just took over.

Despite knocking the media for focusing on the Ferrell split, McKay was surprisingly game for sharing more details about what went wrong with the friendship that created such comedy classics as Anchorman and Talladega Nights. Although, McKay does have hope for the future.

“As clean as we both tried to make it go, there were moments afterward where we weren’t exactly chummy,” McKay told THR. “I kept trying to frame it like, ‘Hey, it’s OK. It’s its natural conclusion,’ but as I would say it, it didn’t quite feel right. It felt like a breakup. I’m looking forward to when the dust has settled. I’d love to just go watch a Lakers game with him and kick back and get back to our old kind of rhythm.”

(Via The Hollywood Reporter)

As one of today’s biggest stars who has spent the last few years out of the limelight and (pretty much) off social media, fans embraced Adele’s new album 30 with open arms. Just three days after its release, 30 had already become the best-selling album of the year. That’s why it comes as no surprise that Adele’s 30 is also the only album this year to sell over a million copies in the US — and it’s only been out for three weeks.

As of Monday, 30 has officially sold over a million copies across all of its formats, including CD, vinyl LP, cassette, and digital album download. Over half of its one million sales took place in its first week, according to Billboard. Just one week after debuting, 30 sold 692,000 copies. 225,000 copies were sold in its second week, which ended December 2.

Before the release of Adele’s smash-hit album, the latest LP to hit one million sales in the US was by Taylor Swift. The singer’s 2020 release Folklore, which was released July of last year, surpassed one million copies sold last October. Currently, Folklore sits at 1.55 million sales and was also the only album in 2020 to sell over a million units.

30 is out now via Columbia. Get it here.

No one’s really keeping score in the ongoing battle of wits words between pro-Trump lawyer Lin Wood and pro-inanity congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, but the latest point definitely goes to Wood, who told the Daily Beast that he believes MTG is under the “influence of the devil.”

Mmm-hmmmm, keep talking…

While Wood is a noted fan of Donald Trump, he’s not as enamored of some of Trump’s staunchest supporters. Which is why he’s currently making like Santa Claus and drawing up his own list of all the naughty MAGA folks he believes have wronged him so that he can consider setting his own lawyers upon them for defamation.

Fox News hosts Tucker Carlson and Dan Bongino were already at the top of that list (it was Wood who shared that alleged “buddy-buddy” e-mail exchange between Carlson and Hunter Biden). Now, as Daily Beast’s Zachary Petrizzo writes, Wood has “added Greene to a growing list of ‘deep state’ right-wing agents working to ‘destroy’ his credibility. ‘They know what they did, they lied like dogs about me,’ Wood said. Greene, Wood alleged, has ‘falsely defamed’ him.”

Though Wood would not say when he will file these possible lawsuits, if he files them at all, escalation seems to be the only likely outcome of the Wood-Greene drama. Especially given Wood’s claims that Greene still owes him a whopping $5,000 for past legal work. While it may seem like a small amount of money, the consequences of MTG skipping out on the bill are actually pretty major: In early November, Daily Beast spoke with four experts who stated that failure to pay this legal bill would be a violation of federal financial reporting laws.

But Wood seems more concerned about the possibility of Greene being in bed with Satan. “I mean, from a biblical perspective, I think she is under the influence of the devil,” Wood told the Daily Beast. “Because people that follow Jesus Christ don’t lie. Marjorie Taylor Greene is a liar. Draw your own conclusions.”

(Via Daily Beast)

Fox and Friends recently sounded the alarm on weed and violent crime in New York City, and an early-Wednesday morning development will do nothing to quell that talk. The Fox News “All-American Christmas Tree” (located in midtown Manhattan) was set ablaze, and as Steve Doocy later summed up, “It’s beginning to look a lot like arson” after a suspect allegedly climbed the 50-foot-high structure and unleashed those flames.

Via the Wrap, co-host Brian Kilmeade was quick to label the suspect a “psycho” and emblematic of the “crime surge” that Fox News covers on a regular basis. He continued while blaming the tree-burning menace on The Left:

“This is emblematic of the cities out of control, defame and defund the police and this bail reform that has these men and women — these assailants, these suspects — out before they even can finish off the paperwork. This is what you get if you have these left-wing DAs and officials running these major cities. You get chaos.”

Then while Kilmeade sat by and said nothing in an atypically quiet manner, Ainsley Earhardt made a slip-up (or so it seems) while describing the somber situation. “It’s a tree that unites us,” she said. “It brings us together. It’s about the Christmas spirit. It is about the holiday season. It’s about Jesus. It’s about Hanukkah. It is about everything that we stand for as a country.”

No one’s sure how a Christmas tree is about “Hanukkah,” but regardless, the investigation into the apparent act of arson is still underway by police.

(Via The Wrap & Bobby Lewis on Twitter)