I am not sure how many hotels I have stayed at in my life, My memory can take me back to most of them if I try hard, and they include backpacker lodges from a trip in Southeast Asia more than 20 years ago, run-down joints in all Central Asian countries, faceless motels in the US (and now Australia and New Zealand), and posh business establishments when traveling on work to many different countries — the list is long and varied.

However, few of these places have left a lasting impression, and I wouldn’t be able to conjure up specific reasons to visit them again today. While there was serendipity involved in choosing many of them (especially in the pre-internet booking and review-obsession days), there was not to be a shared history between the hotel and my life, or that of my family.

Except for those that I have listed below — special places with autobiographical meaning. Continue reading →