Thursday, July 8, 2010

Stephen King Suite: Venetian Culture Shock





Venice began with something a little special: the Hotel Saturnia. We looked forward to this hotel more than any other place to hang our hat on the whole trip. It was our splurge! We decided to pull out the stops and have a beautiful hotel to end our trip.

We booked two rooms, so we went to my friend's room first. It was bathed in sunlight with light wood furnishings. It was bright and cheerful and clean. I was excited, and couldn't wait to see my room.

As soon as the door to my room opened, I knew I had entered another dimension. My son and I looked at the digs and shuddered. It was dark and scary and straight out of a Stephen King novel!

I love antiques. I am a fan of dark wood. I love the color red. However, when all three were combined in this particular setting, it created a whole new twilight zone vibe. If we were going to see a ghost anywhere on this whole trip, this was the place. I may think about this the most, as I have to get up to use the bathroom in the dark every night.

Don't get me wrong, I loved the carving and detail on the antique furniture, but I'm also an avid antiquer who antiques with karma in mind. This is weird, but I can feel when a particular item has an aura. This room, though beautiful, had a creepy aura oozing from every corner.

My friend, who recommended the hotel, said she figured I was suffering from "Ugly American Tourist Syndrome." Hey! I smiled at every person smoking at breakfast, lunch and dinner. I am respectful of culture. Maybe this was just a little venetian culture shock mixed with superstition?

We survived our two nights without ghostly or ghastly incident. The beds were clean and comfy. Although the room smelled of antique wood, it was not unpleasant--kind of like being at your great grandmother's house overnight--way up in the attic.

For the record, I will tell you, the two boys would not stay in this room alone at night. To be fair, the hotel was immaculate. The service was impeccable.

Sometimes you just have to get over your own hang ups, and maybe being the Halloween girl that I am, I just had to create a little dark side drama for myself.

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