Over the years with my many trips, there have been some very funny situations that I have found myself caught up in. Here is one that I have not told to many people until now.
One of the major issues when you travel is time zone changes. You board a plane in one time zone, fly many hours, and deplane in another time zone. There are many ways to combat this; my method is to not sleep on the flight and upon arrival I eat and sleep at the new time zone.
I had occasion to travel to Seattle, Washington to meet with clothing suppliers that were headquartered there. I stayed at the Alexis Hotel which is located right down the street from the famous Pike Place Market. It is a very nice hotel, and one I would recommend highly.
I was up at the crack of dawn to make the 7 a.m. flight. I arrived at 1:30 p.m which is 4:30 p.m. Eastern time. So, I have been up nearly 12 hours and just getting off the plane.
My first appointment was not until the next morning, so I checked into the hotel and wandered around Pike Place Market, killing time and trying to adjust to the new time zone.
I had a quiet dinner and then watched some TV until 10 p.m. (1 a.m. East coast) My head was really doing the bobbing routine as it was nearing a 20 hour day. I fell right to sleep and slept soundly until 4 a.m. (7 a.m.) Bang, wide awake and no going back to sleep for me. I lay there reviewing my alternatives. I wondered if the newspaper could have been delivered yet, so I padded across to the door. Now, I have to confess, at this stage in my life I did not wear any night-clothes to bed. This could be a whole other topic to debate, but this is the way it was at the time.
I carefully opened the door and stuck my head out to see if the coast was clear, it was, and there was my paper resting nicely on the floor in front of my door. I bent down to retrieve it. Un-noticed by me, the door was silently swinging closed behind me! The cold brass door knob hit me square in the cheeks. Surprised, I gave a startled cry and an involuntary jump into the hallway to the sound of the door clicking shut behind me!! Seriously, what are the chances that this door knob was the exact height as my cheeks and that the door was on hinges designed to close by itself ? Really.
Now it is 4 a.m. and I am standing in the hallway of a very nice hotel holding the Seattle Times in my birthday suit.
Oh boy this is not good. This nice hotel does not have phones on each floor so calling the front desk is not an option.That would be way too simple. And I am certainly not going to knock on someone’s door asking for help. So I separate the paper; putting one section to my front side and one section to my back side. I walk (crab) my way to the elevator, press the button, wait forever for it to arrive, quickly hop aboard and press the lobby button. Praying is not the exact word I would use but I was sure hoping no one else in the hotel was having my time zone sleeping issues. The elevator reached the first floor and slowly opened … to an empty lobby. Whew, catching some luck. But I am still not going to just walk out into the lobby and cause someone to have a heart attack or quick call to 911. The front desk is not out in the open but is a part of the right wall. So, in a loud whisper I call out to the desk asking if some one was there. Again, at 4 a.m. in the morning what are the odds that the desk is empty and the concierge is sleeping in the back? And out pops a head from behind the desk. He looks around the lobby trying to find the source of the voice and then lands on me standing in the elevator displaying the newspaper, smiling weakly. What could be going through his head; drunk, crazy, is this guy actually staying here, should I call security? Eventually he comes out from behind the desk but does not come any closer. I wouldn’t have either. In a few simple sentences I explain my plight, assuring him that I am in fact a guest and not a lunatic and could prove it once I get into my room. Shaking his head he gets a key and joins me in the elevator, as far away from me as possible. It turns out that the night clerk is a college student making extra money and studying during the quiet times. He also has a sense of humor. On our slow ride up to my floor he suggests that the newspaper hiding my front should be the want ads and the one hiding my rear be the sports section. Hahaha. Not to be outdone, I countered that maybe the front should be breaking news and the back section the classified ads under ‘needs help’. What else can you do in this situation but make fun. We reach the floor, he unlocks the door, I hastily slip on a robe and confirm my guest status. He wishes me a good rest of the night and I can hear his chuckles as he walks down the hallway to the elevator.
I stayed at the hotel for two more nights and every time I entered the lobby I could feel the eyes of the staff following me across the lobby and into the elevator. But, being a very nice hotel, I never did hear any more about it. (I never did stay at the Alexis again!)
Travels of the Merchant Prince 