With the new limited posting schedule and Travel Tip Tuesday mandates the “15th of the Month Review” got bounced back a few days. But I think we are making up for it. Today is Part I of a Two-Part series on hotel reviews, brought to us by guest blogger, avid traveler and Burt’s Bees addict Geggie of So … What Else, What Else, What Else.
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A place to lay your head …
I love to travel, but oh the hotels. What a risk. I sleep in hotels three or four nights a week for work, but they’re usually the no character, giant convention type hotels. When I’m traveling for fun on my own dime I want character, charm and a great location and price. Here are some of my favorite finds in the past couple of years for hotels in Amsterdam, Rome and beyond.
Now, I will compromise luxury for location and price, so none of these are movie star worthy (with the exception of the Phoenix and LA recommendations coming next month right here on My Bella Vita.) I’m also very comfortable in pensions and B&B with shared toilets, but if that’s not your thing, all of these places have en suite options.
If you’re a diva, these probably are not for you. That being said, let me know if you’re interested and I’ll give you more scoop.
Paris
Abaca Messidor Hotel
Live like a local in the very non-touristy 15th. It’s not fancy, but it’s clean and the bathrooms are huge and recently remodeled. We really like being out of the center of town and only ½ block to the Metro.
Prague
Castle Steps
Just rent an apartment, you’ll be glad you did. We stayed here twice and it was perfect. And a fabulous deal. I can’t even tell you how cheap it was five years ago. The best part of town on Nerudova Street.
photo credit: Trubble
Krakow
Old Town Apartments
Loved this location behind the main square in Krakow. We stayed in the Stolarska 3 apartment and it was perfect. Super clean, modern and the price was right!
Rome
Al Pantheon con Thomas Mann B&B
I am ALL about location and this is the best location in Rome as far as I’m concerned. You step out of the front door of the B&B and look to your right and there’s the Pantheon about 10 seconds away, literally. It’s amazing! Now, it’s spare by American standards, but it was fine with me. Clean, but small and not super cozy. You have to walk through a common courtyard with a restaurant, residences and more. But, for about $140 a night and en suite, it was just the thing for us. Don’t book this for your honeymoon or if you require a hair drier. But if you’re a budget traveler who doesn’t want to compromise location, it can’t be beat.
photo credit: Malkav
Amsterdam
Hotel Prinsenhof
Love it! A funky little place right in the middle of town. I stayed in a room overlooking the canal. The rooms are bright and clean. I stayed in two different rooms both with shared toilets, which is no big deal for me, but they do have en suite available. I will definitely stay here on my next trip to Amsterdam.
Be sure to check back on July 15 for the next installment of Geggie’s Hotel Reviews.
What are some of your favorite hotels? Do you choose hotels based on location, price or amenities? What are you willing to sacrifice?
Hi, my name is Emma and I’m a Mariah Carey fan
The Scotsman May 27, 2004 | Emma Cowing on showbiz I HAVE a secret. Actually I have several, but since this is a column not an epic poem, I’ll try to keep it brief. I love showbiz pap. You know, the crap stuff. The really dreadful, wouldn’t-confess- it-on-your-deathbed type of thing. I might be able to talk knowledgeably about the impact a surge in oil prices will have on certain sectors of the US economy, but give me a copy of Heat and a Vanilla Ice CD and I’m a happy girl.
It’s not just me, either. An acquaintance of mine was recently forced into the embarrassing position of explaining to friends that his computer wasn’t infected with a virus because he’d been attempting to download porn, but because he’d been attempting to download the new LeAnn Rimes single.
But why, I wonder, should we have to hide our love for the naff things in life for fear of being mocked? Such crapness is there to be celebrated and enjoyed, that’s the whole point. Admitting a weakness for the early work of Billie Piper is character-forming and it does not necessarily mean you’re a total airhead. In an attempt to bring an end to this skulduggery, I share with you my own guilty showbiz pleasures. Things so bad, they just have to be good. I defy anyone who ever picked up a copy of Heat or watched MTV not to have their own list. go to web site google gravity download
LISTENING TO MARIAH CAREY Yes, she does sing all those dreadful weepy ballads, and yes, some of those outfits do defy both belief and gravity. But her music is wonderfully bouncy. The sort of bubblegum pop that requires absolutely no intellectual thought whatsoever. Especially on headphones, in the summer, walking down the street. And anyone who can show a camera crew around her home and say the words: “This is the shoe room” with the sort of deadly serious tone more commonly heard at state funerals gets my vote any time.
WATCHING MTV CRIBS A sort of Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous for the MTV Generation. Generally featuring a blinging rapper with the kind of personal taste that would give Lawrence Llewelyn-Bowen a conniption fit, we are shown a succession of Versace sofas, solid gold taps and fridges the size of Papua New Guinea bulging with Cristal Champagne. My favourite bit though, is when the blinging rapper opens the door to his bedroom and says (as they always do): “This is where all the action happens.” SEARCHING THE NET TO FIND OUT WHAT FORMER BIG BROTHER CONTESTANTS ARE UP TO NOW When they’re in the house, they’re fascinating. Creatures to be studied in intricate, obsessive detail. But the moment they’re let loose, all those housemates we loved so much spoil somehow, losing every inch of their allure. I don’t want to see them turning up at premieres, appearing on breakfast TV shows or advertising shampoo. But once they’ve disappeared again, vanished off planet showbiz, seemingly forever, I’m straight on to Google, trying to find them again. Did you know Nichola Holt got married last year? Or that Elizabeth Woodcock has a website documenting her motorcycle travels through Europe? And here you were thinking I was wasting my time. see here google gravity download
WORRYING ABOUT THE CAREER OF TOMMY GRAND FROM THE TV SHOW CHEATERS This guy is a legend. If you have never watched Cheaters before I advise you to install cable TV immediately solely for the purpose. In the programme, people with names like Crystal and Dwayne call in private investigators to find out if their partner is cheating on them (the answer to this question is generally in the show’s title) and then film the results. Tommy, who looks like he arrived on set via Michael Hasselhof’s wardrobe circa 1983, mediates when a weeping Crystal confronts a cheating Dwayne en flagrante with a recalcitrant Lurleen. It’s compulsive, car-crash viewing, made all the more addictive by the soothing Texan drawl of our moralistic host, who accuses the cheater of every crime against humanity, all while maintaining a luminous mahogany tan. Apparently though, Tommy was recently axed from the show in mysterious circumstances and has since been reduced to presenting programmes with names like Speedzone TV and Stag. I haven’t had a decent night’s sleep since.
HAVING A CRUSH ON KEITH DUFFY Member of Boyzone, the world’s most suspect boy band? Check. Now appearing in Coronation Street, a programme I have never watched in my life? Check. The epitome of Irish bad-boy gorgeousness and therefore worthy poster material? Checkity check check.
* Louisa Pearson is away.
Emma Cowing on showbiz
