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Source: (consider it)
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Thread: What do you expect from your holiday hotel?
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Dormouse
Glis glis – Ship's rodent
# 5954
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Posted
I appreciate that this may count as "homework" and so my thread may get closed down - my apologies if this does contravene Ship policy...
My language school is being interviewed for a contract to give Englishlessons to those who are involved in tourism in the area.
One of the things that our Director is keen that we show is an understanding of what different English speakers (UK/ US/Australians) might expect when they go to a hotel/ guest house...for example, we recently discovered that many German people enjoy a glass of wine before they go to bed (according to our German teacher)
English people might well like to be offered a cup of tea, served in a teapot, with cold milk. etc
So, if it's allowed, could people say what they would like to see if they went to a hotel/guest house in the middle of France; what they would expect/ be shocked by/ etc. And give me some clue as to which Anglophone nation you are hailing from.
And if it's not allowed to garner responses, and the thread is closed, but you'd like to help, you could always PM me. Thank you, dear peeps.
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Posts: 3042 | From: 'twixt les Bois Noirs & Les Monts de la Madeleine | Registered: May 2004
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daisydaisy
Shipmate
# 12167
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Posted
In the last few weeks I've stayed in various guest houses and to me it's the little touches that make the good ones stand out and made me feel I was really welcome and being taken care of.
A welcoming chocolate on my pillow is always a good start.
Each one had a kettle & tea bags/coffee (even decaff) sachets, but my favourites also had a choice of mug or cup and saucer, a sachet of hot chocolate and freshly made cookies in a tin.
The good ones provided toiletries - not just a sachet of shower gel (tricky to open with wet hands) but a pump dispenser. Some of them also had tissues, cotton buds, and packs of little nail files and even a little sewing kit.
Easy access to an iron and board can be useful but does anyone use a trouser press? I had a go at pressing a wrinkled shirt with one recently, with questionable results!
In some colder places I've been offered a hot water bottle, which was placed in my bed before I went up to bed. Cozy! Spare blankets and pillows are good too.
Breakfast is important - at my 2 most favourite guest houses the eggs were so tasty that I wasn't surprised that that they had been taken from the nest (or wherever hens lay them!) that morning - can't get much fresher than that! Fresh tomatoes & mushrooms (rather than tinned) are good. Incorporating local specialities into the breakfast menu is welcome - in Scotland my favourite guest house gave me freshly made sausage, black pudding as well as haggis - yummy. Porridge was offered, but as I can't have that I took cold cereal instead.
Ideas of what to do locally is good - not just the tourist leaflets but also books of local interest, notes/maps for local strolls/walks, and bird/plant identification. Also suggestions of places to take an evening meal.
Posts: 3184 | From: southern uk | Registered: Dec 2006
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Boogie
Boogie on down!
# 13538
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Posted
Number one - and very important too, I expect it to be clean.
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
ETA - everything else usually depends on how much you pay.
[ 29. August 2012, 14:20: Message edited by: Boogie ]
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Garden. Room. Walk
Posts: 13030 | From: Boogie Wonderland | Registered: Mar 2008
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Boogie
Boogie on down!
# 13538
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Posted
We often stay in German hotels, as my son lives in Heidelberg - every one has been fabulous in every way.
Except - no kettle or tea/coffee making facility in the room. Unthinkable!!
We now take our own little kettle, mugs etc.
[ 29. August 2012, 14:23: Message edited by: Boogie ]
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Garden. Room. Walk
Posts: 13030 | From: Boogie Wonderland | Registered: Mar 2008
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Firenze
Ordinary decent pagan
# 619
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Posted
My favourite touch is not one I expect to see widely replicated - a small decanter of whiskey in the room (this was on Islay).
Posts: 17302 | From: Edinburgh | Registered: Jun 2001
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beachcomber
Shipmate
# 17294
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Posted
Helpful friendliness, tea-making in room; good food. Genuine positive feeling.
Light, quiet, fresh, airy.
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Helen-Eva:'This is all really interesting and intensely confusing stuff and I am now bewildered in a much more informed way than I was before.'
Posts: 144 | From: bagdad cafe | Registered: Aug 2012
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Loquacious beachcomber
Shipmate
# 8783
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Posted
Nice Shipmate name and avatar, Beachcomber!
What I expect from a hotel varies depending on whether it is a stopover location or a destination location.
If, for example, I was travelling through Iowa, a clean, quiet room after a long day of driving, and a good breakfast in the morning to see me off would do it.
If arriving in Daytona Beach, a view, a nearby bar and great restaurant, exercise rooms, a heated pool, bike paths, etc. would become important.
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TODAY'S SPECIAL - AND SO ARE YOU (Sign on beachfront fish & chips shop)
Posts: 5954 | From: Southeast of Wawa, between the beach and the hiking trail.. | Registered: Nov 2004
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Earwig
Pincered Beastie
# 12057
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Dormouse:
So, if it's allowed, could people say what they would like to see if they went to a hotel/guest house in the middle of France; what they would expect/ be shocked by/ etc. And give me some clue as to which Anglophone nation you are hailing from.
I would like to see some food and drink from the local region - a bottle of local wine and some cheese and fruit, perhaps? Something to nibble on when you arrive that helps you get a feel for the place.
And I would be horrified to see any dirt in the room, hairs or rips in the towels or bedlinen. I keep a filthy house, but feel physically sick at any uncleanliness in a hotel.
eta - I hail from the Anglophone nation of Yorkshire.
[ 29. August 2012, 14:55: Message edited by: Earwig ]
Posts: 3120 | From: Yorkshire | Registered: Nov 2006
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North East Quine
Curious beastie
# 13049
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Posted
I like a "local touch" of some description. I like leaflets / booklets about the area.
I'd be disappointed if there wasn't a kettle and tea / coffee/ hot choc sachets.
I don't expect people to be able to speak English, but I do like tolerance towards my inept attempts at their language.
I'd be shocked by a lack of cleanliness, or something broken (door handle which came off in my hand etc, to give an example of something I've experienced. The guest house owners just said "don't worry. That's always happening!") ![[Disappointed]](graemlins/disappointed.gif)
Posts: 6414 | From: North East Scotland | Registered: Oct 2007
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Roseofsharon
Shipmate
# 9657
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Posted
I have a relative with a 4* hotel in Spain. On our first visit I remarked on the absence of tea & coffee making facilities in our room and was told that this was a specifically British requirement and very uncommon on the continent.
I don't know if the tea-making habit is becoming international, or if the British are now a higher proportion of their clientele, but they now provide facilities for making hot drinks in their rooms. ![[Biased]](wink.gif)
From the replies you've had so far, it would seem that this kind of 'welcome tray' is still important to us folks from across the channel.
The best welcome trays we've come across have had tea bags, and sachets of coffee (full strength and decaff), fruit or herb infusions of some sort, some sort of chocolate drink, sugar and (probably has to be UHT) milk.
Otherwise, clean, warm & comfortable - which I imagine is a general requirement. Local food, and information about the area - preferably in leaflets we can take away.
That just about sees us right.
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Posts: 3060 | From: Sussex By The Sea | Registered: Jun 2005
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Doublethink.
Ship's Foolwise Unperson
# 1984
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Posted
I like to have access to free wifi- cos I will prolly have a smartphone with me, if not a netbook, and I would be looking up activities online as opposed to leaflet surfing.
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All political thinking for years past has been vitiated in the same way. People can foresee the future only when it coincides with their own wishes, and the most grossly obvious facts can be ignored when they are unwelcome. George Orwell
Posts: 19219 | From: Erehwon | Registered: Aug 2005
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beachcomber
Shipmate
# 17294
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Posted
'Nice Shipmate name and avatar, Beachcomber!'
oh dear snap ! How amazing !
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Helen-Eva:'This is all really interesting and intensely confusing stuff and I am now bewildered in a much more informed way than I was before.'
Posts: 144 | From: bagdad cafe | Registered: Aug 2012
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Pigwidgeon
Ship's Owl
# 10192
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Posted
Number 1 - Cleanliness!
I also want my own toilet and shower "en suite."
I read in bed, so I like to have a bedside light that's brighter than 15 watts (I'm not kidding -- I've had those), and that's high enough that it actually shines on the book. Many are attached to headboards that are lower than head height.
Much as I love wine, I don't think it should be put in the room unrequested. When I traveled with my ex, an alcoholic, that would have been a real problem.
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"...that is generally a matter for Pigwidgeon, several other consenting adults, a bottle of cheap Gin and the odd giraffe."
~Tortuf
Posts: 9835 | From: Hogwarts | Registered: Aug 2005
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Ariel
Shipmate
# 58
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Posted
I don't want chocolates on my pillow but I do want a kettle in the room, biscuits, and some kind of herbal tea as an alternative to instant coffee or teabags. It's also helpful if you know they're going to supply a hairdryer.
The place should be clean and the windows openable - some places have windows which have been stuck in position for years and can't be opened (or properly closed, with draught) or are permanently sealed. A radiator which has settings you can alter is a bonus, spare blanket ditto.
Also in single rooms, it would be good to have one that isn't so cramped it barely has room for the bed and you have to sidle past the wardrobe before attempting to open it. If there isn't a single room supplement, that place is definitely going right up the list as a possibility.
Breakfast - open to suggestions but it should be substantial and there ought to be the alternative of something cooked as opposed to the "continental style", where you may end up eating the same limited cold foods every morning until you leave. I really like breakfast buffets but wouldn't expect them in France.
Would not be happy with animals in the dining room, paper-thin walls, doors that didn't lock properly, shared bathrooms, quirky house rules, etc.
Posts: 25445 | Registered: May 2001
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Roseofsharon
Shipmate
# 9657
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Pigwidgeon:
I read in bed, so I like to have a bedside light that's brighter than 15 watts (I'm not kidding -- I've had those), and that's high enough that it actually shines on the book. Many are attached to headboards that are lower than head height.
Oh that would be great, but it is found so rarely - even in places that supply a selection of reading material - and comes far ahead of chocolates, wine and free toiletries on my list of requirements.
And I like to be able to turn off the heating in my room at night.
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Posts: 3060 | From: Sussex By The Sea | Registered: Jun 2005
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jedijudy
Organist of the Jedi Temple
# 333
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Posted
On our travels last month, one of the Very Important Things that we researched was en suite baths with step-in showers. Neither one of us wanted to fall into one of those quaint, but dangerous high sided tubs.
Also, free WiFi like Doublethink mentioned. The only place that didn't have it available for free in the room was the most modern of the places we stayed. Who knew? (They were just fancy enough to want to charge for everything...like the coffee service in the room.) ![[Eek!]](eek.gif)
The other important thing was proximity to the sites we were particularly interested in. Staying right across the street from J S Bach's church was extremely appealing!
Oh, and cleanliness is indeed a virtue! (Finding fuzz balls and hair on the bed sheets was a very disgusting discovery in one place.)
[ETA extra info]
[ 30. August 2012, 01:33: Message edited by: jedijudy ]
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Jasmine, little cat with a big heart.
Posts: 18017 | From: 'Twixt the 'Glades and the Gulf | Registered: Aug 2001
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nickel
Shipmate
# 8363
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Posted
As an American, if I were visiting France (*sigh* maybe I will some day!) the things most important to me would be: clean room, clean bathroom (attached or down the hall, I don't really care), pillows and bedding other than feathers or wool (I'm allergic to both). Free wifi. Power outlets for recharging cellphones, laptops, etc. Ideally the room would have decent sound-proofing and an individually-controlled heating and/or cooling system. A small refrigerator/microwave would be very welcome but not mandatory. No need for a coffeepot or tea in the room, assuming there is coffee and food available in the lobby or close walking distance. No need for an ironing board -- I'd be on vacation! but an in-house washer/dryer that guests could use would be nice.
What I would not like: dirt, bed bugs, vermin of any sort; anything that made me feel unsafe, such as a door with no lock, or thin curtains on the window that made me wonder about my privacy, or faulty wiring, or stuff like that.
Posts: 547 | From: Virginia USA | Registered: Aug 2004
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Lyda*Rose
Ship's broken porthole
# 4544
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Posted
The coolest amenity I ever had in a place I stayed was at a cabin motor court in New Mexico when I was a kid. My family had driven half the day from Carlsbad Caverns right into a noisy thunderstorm in mountainous Ruidosa, NM. The manager recommended an excellent Mexican restaurant. And when we got back he had set a cozy fire in the fireplace with extra wood to feed it and had turned the covers of the nice, clean beds. That was an altogether a delightful day! ![[Yipee]](graemlins/spin.gif)
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"Dear God, whose name I do not know - thank you for my life. I forgot how BIG... thank you. Thank you for my life." ~from Joe Vs the Volcano
Posts: 21377 | From: CA | Registered: May 2003
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Sioni Sais
Shipmate
# 5713
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Posted
1. It must be clean. I'd hope that would go without saying but I've been disappointed and I'm hardly obsessive.
2. Bathtowels. If I'm having a bath or a shower, I want a decent size towel. Bathtowels for preference but something larger than the kind one would take to the beach.
3. Space. A decent sized bed is a necessity, though we have a superking-size at home so choose twin beds in hotels and B&Bs, but some floor space is needed too.
btw, don't advertise 'Full English/Welsh/Irish/Scottish Breakfast' if it isn't a serious meal. One egg, one sausage, one rasher of bacon, half a mushroom and a slice of tomato does not constitute a full anything.
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"He isn't Doctor Who, he's The Doctor"
(Paul Sinha, BBC)
Posts: 24276 | From: Newport, Wales | Registered: Apr 2004
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Dormouse
Glis glis – Ship's rodent
# 5954
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Posted
Thank you Guys, this has been interesting and useful reading. Please keep it coming!
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What are you doing for Lent?
40 days, 40 reflections, 40 acts of generosity. Join the #40acts challenge for #Lent and let's start a movement. www.40acts.org.uk
Posts: 3042 | From: 'twixt les Bois Noirs & Les Monts de la Madeleine | Registered: May 2004
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Firenze
Ordinary decent pagan
# 619
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Posted
A number of comfortable chairs commensurate with the maximum number of people staying in the room. The number of Doubles I've stayed in which have ONE armchair and then the hard, upright one.
Posts: 17302 | From: Edinburgh | Registered: Jun 2001
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Ariel
Shipmate
# 58
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Sioni Sais:
btw, don't advertise 'Full English/Welsh/Irish/Scottish Breakfast' if it isn't a serious meal. One egg, one sausage, one rasher of bacon, half a mushroom and a slice of tomato does not constitute a full anything.
Without getting too tangential into breakfasts, as we had a discussion on this recently, if it doesn't include a sausage, and is just egg, bacon, a tomato and toast, it is not a full anything either and neither is the person eating it. And I don't care how good your homemade soaps and lavender bath essences are, they won't make up for it first thing in the morning.
Believe it or not, there are places advertising The Full English Breakfast that don't have any sausages on the menu!
Marmite would be nice, btw, as an alternative to jams and preserves of all kinds for toast. You can almost always get sweet things but rarely savoury.
[ 30. August 2012, 07:12: Message edited by: Ariel ]
Posts: 25445 | Registered: May 2001
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Gill H
Shipmate
# 68
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Posted
Have to join the Brit chorus and ask for kettle, cups, tea/coffee supplies.
I know this is rare outsde the UK (though getting more popular) but it is pretty much basic for us Brits. I am on a Disney forum and you would not believe the number of visitors to Disneyland Paris who complain at the lack of a kettle!
Many also moan if there is no hot breakfast available, but personally I love the 'cold meat and cheese' type breakfast buffets. Eating the way my host country eats is half the fun for me. But good quality food please (the cheaper hotels in Disneyland Paris serve cubes of supermarket Edam and Gouda! In the land of cheese, in a place ruled by a mouse! On the other hand the pain au chocolat is to die for...)
I have also heard some complain about lack of English channels on the TV. Again, not an issue for me. Watching something in French or German helps resurrect my language skills, and I enjoy it.
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*sigh* We can’t all be Alan Cresswell.
- Lyda Rose
Posts: 9313 | From: London | Registered: May 2001
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Roseofsharon
Shipmate
# 9657
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Posted
Although I love "a full English" if breakfasting in a UK hotel, I don't require one on the continent.
This is mainly because I can't resist them, and am then too full to eat lunch. Mr RoS can't survive without three meals a day, so no lunch is not an option - besides, I want to try all the local delicacies and a stomach full of fried protein limits my capacity.
My preferred breakfast is wholegrain cereal, a choice of fruit (not just fresh, but canned and dried for variety) and a selection of local breads.
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Talk about books -any books- on our rejuvenatedforum http://www.bookgrouponline.com/index.php?
Posts: 3060 | From: Sussex By The Sea | Registered: Jun 2005
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balaam
Making an ass of myself
# 4543
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Posted
I haven't fund that the size of the breakfast is any smaller outside Britain. The largest hotel breakfasts I have eaten in Europe (including the UK) have been in Eindhoven and Barcelona. Then there's American breakfasts They are different, but not necessarily smaller.
The trick with a large breakfast is not no lunch but a small lunch. A cup of coffee and a piece of cake is enough, or in Spain a single tapa.
A hearty breakfast is part of what I'd expect from a hotel, but it should be local style.
But in the room, a kettle is good, coffee, tea, chocolate drink and a small packet of biscuits are so common in Britain that we've come to expect them. An iron is better, though I can press shirts in a trouser press.
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Last ever sig ...
blog
Posts: 9049 | From: Hen Ogledd | Registered: May 2003
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Piglet
Islander
# 11803
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Posted
A clean bedroom with en suite bath and shower (he likes baths, I like showers). Tea/coffee-making facilities are a nice touch, especially if accompanied by little packets of Custard Creams (thank you to the hotel in Osterley where we stayed the other night before heading back to Canada).
Breakfast, if included, should have Proper Bacon™, as I can't get it here.
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I may not be on an island any more, but I'm still an islander.
alto n a soprano who can read music
Posts: 20272 | From: Fredericton, NB, on a rather larger piece of rock | Registered: Sep 2006
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The5thMary
Shipmate
# 12953
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Posted
I would really appreciate clean toilets, a clean room free of fleas and bedbugs. I shudder when I think about the colossal explosion of bedbugs around these parts. I once stayed at a hotel that provided plastic drinking cups for the guests. The cups were supposed to be clean in the bag they came in but I found traces of old lipstick on a few of them! Gross! I have a feeling this hotel was "recycling".
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God gave me my face but She let me pick my nose.
Posts: 3451 | From: Tacoma, WA USA | Registered: Aug 2007
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The5thMary
Shipmate
# 12953
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Posted
JediJudy: "Oh, and cleanliness is indeed a virtue! (Finding fuzz balls and hair on the bed sheets was a very disgusting discovery in one place.)".
Yeah! I found a clump of crotch hair stuck in the shower drain at the same hotel with the lipstick-covered plastic drink ware... you can bet I never stayed at that rat hole again. And the staff was indifferent. This place was rated highly on Yelp but maybe money exchanged hands in that regard.
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God gave me my face but She let me pick my nose.
Posts: 3451 | From: Tacoma, WA USA | Registered: Aug 2007
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chive
Ship's nude
# 208
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Posted
If you're going to put a tv in the room make sure it's somewhere you can watch it comfortably not hanging from the wall to high to see it unless you're standing on the bed. The nicest hotel I stay in with work has the tv on a trolley so you can move it about and even put it in the bathroom door and watch telly in the bath. That is luxury.
I'm not bothered about tea or coffee making equipment because I don't drink either but a bottle of water would be good because tap water can be minging.
If the hotel is in a noisy area good soundproofed windows are important because it's good to get some sleep.
The worst hotel I stayed in was in Romania where you couldn't sit for a beer in the bar without being approached by prostitutes every five minutes. I found that somewhat off putting.
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'Edward was the kind of man who thought there was no such thing as a lesbian, just a woman who hadn't done one-to-one Bible study with him.' Catherine Fox, Love to the Lost
Posts: 3542 | From: the cupboard under the stairs | Registered: May 2001
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Pigwidgeon
Ship's Owl
# 10192
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by chive:
If the hotel is in a noisy area good soundproofed windows are important because it's good to get some sleep.
Yes -- and also drapes or shades to block out the light, please.
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"...that is generally a matter for Pigwidgeon, several other consenting adults, a bottle of cheap Gin and the odd giraffe."
~Tortuf
Posts: 9835 | From: Hogwarts | Registered: Aug 2005
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Uncle Pete
Loyaute me lie
# 10422
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Posted
I don't expect the Holiday Inn when I travel (*shudders at the thought*, but please, a wheelchair accessible room includes an accessible washing station. I still have nightmares about two hotel chains in the UK, one in Crawley and the other at Heathrow*. Outside the West, I cope with what I get. The nice thing about Asia is that a wet room bathroom is almost always available. Except for one hotel in Delhi which catered to Westerners. But even then I coped - an overnight stay doesn't bother me if I can't shower. But a body wash is always possible in those cases.
But Travelodge is wonderful ...
This is not quite on topic, but B&Bs are impossible for wheelchair users, Therefore, hotels.
(My favourite small hotel is in Munnar. It has the most beautiful flower garden in the world, and for that I put up with 23 inch bathroom doors.)
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Even more so than I was before
Posts: 20466 | From: No longer where I was | Registered: Sep 2005
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Ariston
Insane Unicorn
# 10894
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Posted
The whole "tea service in room" thing was rather odd when I stayed in B&B's in the UK (by the way, if Mary who runs the B&B in Caernarfon is reading this, I'm sorry I walked off with your room key!), since, in the States, the most you can expect is a rather tired coffeemaker and a few instant filters of preground coffee. If even the Dominican priory in Edinburgh has a kettle and tea for the odd guest of the friars . . .
The idea of serving an actual breakfast, complete with laverbread, was also odd—granted, there was the one chain hotel in Amish country that served Amish baked goods as well, but that's a rarity here in the States.
Cleanliness is a must. Even at the rather cheap student hostels I stay at, "clean" is the only amenity I expect.
Something quirky to remember the hotel by. At the best hostel I've ever been at (Hotel Caulaincort in Paris), the owner put up a cow statue in the stairwell. Ask the staff why there's a cow in the stairwell, and the only answer they can give you is that the owner wanted one there. Somehow, it made sense.
A front desk staff that doesn't repeat the information their sponsors tell them to parrot. If you want a good restaurant, they should tell you where they eat, not who paid for the brochure.
Oh, and reliable directions out of town. That's always important.
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“Therefore, let it be explained that nowhere are the proprieties quite so strictly enforced as in men’s colleges that invite young women guests, especially over-night visitors in the fraternity houses.” Emily Post, 1937.
Posts: 6849 | From: The People's Republic of Balcones | Registered: Jan 2006
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cliffdweller
Shipmate
# 13338
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Ariston:
The whole "tea service in room" thing was rather odd when I stayed in B&B's in the UK (by the way, if Mary who runs the B&B in Caernarfon is reading this, I'm sorry I walked off with your room key!), since, in the States, the most you can expect is a rather tired coffeemaker and a few instant filters of preground coffee.
hehe. Whereas I am going to insist that, for an American, a kettle to heat up water is simply not sufficient since it means you are expecting us to drink (*deep shudder*) instant coffee. A proper coffeemaker is essential. Instant filers of preground coffee is fine as long as its fairly fresh and good quality-- but no instant, please!
Now, if real, brewed coffee is available in the lobby that will do-- especially if it's of high quality. But it would need to be available and freshly made over a pretty broad period of time, which is why most American hotels find it easier to just let you make your own.
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"Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don't be afraid." -Frederick Buechner
Posts: 11242 | From: a small canyon overlooking the city | Registered: Jan 2008
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Eutychus
From the edge
# 3081
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Gill H:
Have to join the Brit chorus and ask for kettle, cups, tea/coffee supplies.
I know this is rare outsde the UK (though getting more popular)
Campanile seem to be the only chain in France to have grasped this. Their hotels are pleasant enough, but make sure when booking to ask for a room without an interconnecting door to the next one, othewise you will be able to hear the actual conversations going on in the next room (let alone anything else...).
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Let's remember that we are to build the Kingdom of God, not drive people away - pastor Frank Pomeroy
Posts: 17944 | From: 528491 | Registered: Jul 2002
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ExclamationMark
Shipmate
# 14715
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Posted
Clean. Free wi - fi. A desk you can work at
(If a double) space and chairs . Tea and Coffee. (My real desire) - ability to have a nice hot bath and watch telly at the same time - either through an open door or combination of mirrors. Hosts and staff who smile and are ready to talk (our fav Hotel 4* in Falmouth UK is great for this).
Oh, cheap out of season deals and/or early booking discounts
Posts: 3845 | From: A new Jerusalem | Registered: Apr 2009
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comet
Snowball in Hell
# 10353
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Posted
if a hotel is far away from any shops, then a little shop in the hotel with necessities - toothpaste, tampons, bandaids, aspirin.
for those of us who hail from the very high latitudes - openable windows is a must, and sealed shut windows is a deal breaker. We're generally sissies about heat and stuffiness. A/C is nice, but it doesn't fix the stuffiness. we need some outdoor air! when we arrive in December, we still may open the windows. forgive us. we're coming from the deep cold. your locale is probably like a tropical spring day to us. and yes, if you have a pool, we're jumping in. liquid water is a treat.
oh - on a serious note - I don't know how much difference this makes, but at least in Alaska, we take our shoes off at the door to our rooms, (or front doors if it's a private home) so the floors have to be very clean because chances are we'll be barefoot.
other than that, I second the votes for clean, quiet, and coffee.
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Evil Dragon Lady, Breaker of Men's Constitutions
"It's hard to be religious when certain people are never incinerated by bolts of lightning.” -Calvin
Posts: 17024 | From: halfway between Seduction and Peril | Registered: Sep 2005
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Doublethink.
Ship's Foolwise Unperson
# 1984
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by PeteC:
I don't expect the Holiday Inn when I travel (*shudders at the thought*, but please, a wheelchair accessible room includes an accessible washing station. I still have nightmares about two hotel chains in the UK, one in Crawley and the other at Heathrow*. Outside the West, I cope with what I get. The nice thing about Asia is that a wet room bathroom is almost always available. Except for one hotel in Delhi which catered to Westerners. But even then I coped - an overnight stay doesn't bother me if I can't shower. But a body wash is always possible in those cases.
But Travelodge is wonderful ...
This is not quite on topic, but B&Bs are impossible for wheelchair users, Therefore, hotels.
(My favourite small hotel is in Munnar. It has the most beautiful flower garden in the world, and for that I put up with 23 inch bathroom doors.)
Some B&Bs in the UK have accessible rooms, we have booked such accommodation in the past for family members - it just requires some research.
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All political thinking for years past has been vitiated in the same way. People can foresee the future only when it coincides with their own wishes, and the most grossly obvious facts can be ignored when they are unwelcome. George Orwell
Posts: 19219 | From: Erehwon | Registered: Aug 2005
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Belle Ringer
Shipmate
# 13379
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Posted
In priority order:
Clean.
Safe. Including adequate window coverings I can open for the view (if any) and close to change clothes privately.
Cheap. I like to stay in the cheapest possible places and save my money for the daytime activities instead of spending it on a room where my eyes will be closed.
Accessible wall plugs. Gotta recharge phone and camera and MP3 player and still plug in hair dryer and hair wand.
There needs to be a breakfast place nearby if not in the hotel. If it's in-hotel, please advertise honestly! To me "full breakfast" includes some eggs or meat, not just breads and cereals.
No bugs.
Two towels per person -- one for hair one for body.
A bar of soap, just because Americans are so used to hotels providing soap that we don't carry it.
Either climate control or (if it's cold) enough blankets. Please not those thick fluffy things that are way too hot for sleeping! Blankets. Two, so I can choose none or one or two! Many a hotel I have to ask for another blanket, so at least have that option to ask (some say "no" and I have to sleep in some of my clothes to be warm enough.)
Other than that,
I would far rather visit a place that reflects local culture than one that mimics my own home area. If French hotels usually do X, then do X. The rest of the things people mention maybe should be "available from the desk" -- coffee maker, bottle of wine, chocolates (I don't eat them, but I do have a weakness for the fresh baked chocolate chip cookies one hotel provided every afternoon -- but what made it special was that THAT hotel does it, it wasn't something EVERY hotel does.)
I carry my own plug in heat a cup of water device, and tea bags. I carry my own shampoo and blow dryer because one cannot be sure if these will be supplied.
Bath down the hall is just fine if it means the room is cheaper.
Things I have enjoyed in deluxe hotels the rare times that's been the only option -- fluffy bathrobe, extra pillows of various firmness, a pen and small pad of paper, some people want a TV in which case you need a TV schedule, a local phone book comes in handy sometimes like to find restaurants, literature about the local area, especially if it's a mixture of the must do sightseeing and some of the local things that don't get into most guide books. List of various kinds and prices of restaurants. An iron -- rarely needed but valuable when it's there. A place with washing machines and dryers for clothes, and laundry soap.
Posts: 5830 | From: Texas | Registered: Jan 2008
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The5thMary
Shipmate
# 12953
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Posted
I also like it when a hotel that advertises a buffet-style breakfast has more than just sweet cereals, pastry, and some fruit. I'm a diabetic and those things are just not something I want to shove in my craw--well, to be honest, they ARE things I want to eat but they do nothing good for my blood sugar. Especially here in the southern U.S., it seems that every breakfast buffet has the ubiquitous sausage gravy and biscuits. Usually good-tasting but again, not something that a diabetic is going to want to eat much of. Several kinds of eggs, toast of various breads, skim milk, healthy cereals, tea, coffee, sugar-free options are all appreciated.
Ohhh, no! Now I'm HUNGRY! I better go off and make hash browns and scrambled eggs... ![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
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God gave me my face but She let me pick my nose.
Posts: 3451 | From: Tacoma, WA USA | Registered: Aug 2007
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The5thMary
Shipmate
# 12953
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by Zappa:
quote:
Originally posted by Loquacious beachcomber:
Nice Shipmate name and avatar, Beachcomber!
![[Killing me]](graemlins/killingme.gif)
In the meantiome I don't get this concept of "holiday + hotel". I sleep in the back of my car, or have occasionally stretched to a tent.
Oh, my. Really into roughing it, aren't you? LOL. Well, some of us are more... how shall I say it...civilized and would like to enjoy our holidays without the back strain of sleeping jammed up against the steering wheel of a car. It's supposed to be a holiday! Oh, Zappa, you're killing me! Next you'll be telling us that when you go on a holiday, you hunt for your own food in the parks of whatever city you're visiting. It's not a proper holiday unless you kill an animal, gut it and cook it on a spit. Do you pack up the extra meat for the rest of your trip and perhaps munch on deer meat jerky whilst visiting the Louvre?
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God gave me my face but She let me pick my nose.
Posts: 3451 | From: Tacoma, WA USA | Registered: Aug 2007
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St Everild
Shipmate
# 3626
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Posted
Pillows. Decent ones. Sufficient of them to be able to sit up in bed and read by the light of the decent reading lamp.
Everything else I expect has been covered by others on this thread, so I won't repeat myself.
Posts: 1782 | From: Bethnei | Registered: Dec 2002
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LutheranChik
Shipmate
# 9826
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Posted
We usually travel with our dog, which tends to limit our hotel experience to pet-friendly chains and modest mom-and-pops. That said, we still expect:
Decent (read: firm) pillows
More than one towel/washcloth per person
shampoo in addition to bar soap
Cleanliness that includes freedom from stale tobacco smoke in the room
WiFi
We hate chain-motel breakfasts and avoid them unless we're desperate, and we also never use the in-room coffee makers, so those aren't very important factors in our stay.
On those rare occasions when the hoomans do get to travel alone, and we can lodge at a bed-and-breakfast (our preferred choice for those trips), we expect:
Our own bathroom (not only for privacy, but because one of us has medical issues that require frequent bathroom trips and special supplies that we'd rather not bother other guests with)
Again, firm pillows
A proper breakfast (meaning something hot and protein-filled to go with the usual fruit, muffins and rolls)
A common guest space other than the owners' own living quarters
Our favorite B&B (in Omena, MI, if any readers are interested) is an old farmhouse that overlooks scenic Omena Bay on one side. The owners live on the third floor of the house, but also use the B&B kitchen and dining room for themselves. Cozy farmhouse bedrooms on the second floor, each with its own bathroom...a downstairs parlor with comfortable chairs. The breakfasts are hearty and delicious and use local products. We enjoy the balance of privacy and interaction with the hosts.
We'd previously spent a couple of trips at a B&B in a neighboring community...we had to share a bathroom with another party, and we also had no common space except for the hosts' living room, which was somewhat awkward, because they were very talky and didn't give us space to, say, sit and quietly regroup for the morning while waiting for breakfast. One spouse was a French-trained chef, so breakfasts were quite extraordinary, but we had a lot of boundary issues overall, especially when the tightly-wound host/chef was having a bad morning.
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Simul iustus et peccator
http://www.lutheranchiklworddiary.blogspot.com
Posts: 6462 | From: rural Michigan, USA | Registered: Jul 2005
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Trudy Scrumptious
BBE Shieldmaiden
# 5647
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Posted
Cleanliness
Free wifi
Good lighting
If breakfast is included, a good spread with lots of choices and especially fresh fruit
Staff who are friendly and helpful without being familiar or too chatty (sometimes awkward at a B&B as I'm quite a shy person -- I know that technically I'm a guest in someone's home, but as I'm a paying guest, I don't want to FEEL like I'm in someone's home and have to make small-talk with them).
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Books and things.
I lied. There are no things. Just books.
Posts: 7428 | From: Closer to Paris than I am to Vancouver | Registered: Mar 2004
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Zappa
Ship's Wake
# 8433
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by The5thMary:
quote:
Originally posted by Zappa:
quote:
Originally posted by Loquacious beachcomber:
Nice Shipmate name and avatar, Beachcomber!
In the meantiome I don't get this concept of "holiday + hotel". I sleep in the back of my car, or have occasionally stretched to a tent.
Oh, my. Really into roughing it, aren't you? LOL. Well, some of us are more... how shall I say it...civilized and would like to enjoy our holidays without the back strain of sleeping jammed up against the steering wheel of a car. It's supposed to be a holiday! Oh, Zappa, you're killing me! Next you'll be telling us that when you go on a holiday, you hunt for your own food in the parks of whatever city you're visiting. It's not a proper holiday unless you kill an animal, gut it and cook it on a spit. Do you pack up the extra meat for the rest of your trip and perhaps munch on deer meat jerky whilst visiting the Louvre?
Not quite - I bludge off family or buy in roadhouses ![[Hot and Hormonal]](icon_redface.gif)
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shameless self promotion - because I think it's worth it
and mayhap this too: http://broken-moments.blogspot.co.nz/
Posts: 18917 | From: "Central" is all they call it | Registered: Sep 2004
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Eleanor Jane
Shipmate
# 13102
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Posted
Coming from New Zealand, I'm not so fond of the British 'full English' idea - especially when it means getting up at 8 while on holiday. I'd rather have more flexibility to sleep in and eat some lighter when I wake up (i.e. serve yourself coffee and croissants, cereal, toast or whatever).
I also don't like feeling like I'm in someone else's house when in a B & B. I prefer a more neutral hotel-like environment.
Quietness is nice in a hotel i.e. not too much noise from traffic, other guests thumping around the corridors all night etc.
Cheers,
Eleanorjane
Posts: 556 | From: Now in the UK! | Registered: Oct 2007
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Sighthound
Shipmate
# 15185
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Posted
Cleanliness is very important; and I insist on an ensuite, because I don't favour walking naked down public corridors at 3-00am, and getting dressed for the occasion is a pain.
Tea and coffee facilities are nice to have, but to be honest I can live without. We usually take extra teabags and milk, just in case.
If there's a TV, I prefer it not to be positioned 10 feet up a wall, as this leads to cricked necks.
Breakfast can be a let down or wonderful. A place we tend to stay at skimps on this, and it spoils the experience. Makes me want to say 'Look, just knock £x off the bill and we'll eat in town.' One el cheapo sausage, a small piece of overcooked bacon, a mushroom and and a small portion of beans does not a 'full' breakfast make.
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Supporter of Tia Greyhound and Lurcher Rescue.http://tiagreyhounds.org/
Posts: 168 | From: England | Registered: Sep 2009
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la vie en rouge
Parisienne
# 10688
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Posted
Cleanliness is next to godliness
The only other thing I can think of that hasn't been mentioned is that I want to be able to hang my clothes up. Coathangers, please, and a cupboard tall enough to be able to hang up a dress without it getting rumpled at the bottom.
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Rent my holiday home in the South of France
Posts: 3696 | Registered: Nov 2005
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Piglet
Islander
# 11803
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Posted
quote:
Originally posted by comet:
... for those of us who hail from the very high latitudes - openable windows is a must ...
Yea and amen, although air-con will do, and in some cases is a necessity (a choir trip we did to New York one July springs to mind).
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I may not be on an island any more, but I'm still an islander.
alto n a soprano who can read music
Posts: 20272 | From: Fredericton, NB, on a rather larger piece of rock | Registered: Sep 2006
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