|
I'm partial to the Madonna Inn of San Luis Obispo, California.  It was built in the late 50s by a successful but eccentric developer who was actually named Alex Madonna. He and his wife maintained the Inn as a labor of love for years, and after it burned to the ground in 1966 they rebuilt it to be even more resplendent than before. It is most famous for its various theme rooms, many of which feature rock walls. The Madonnas had a serious thing for rock walls (more on that later).    If rough-hewn limestone ain't your bag, don't worry. Ever wanted to live inside "It's A Small World"? Thanks to the Madonna Inn, you can.  Or do you prefer Victoriana, with an assload of lumber crashing through the ceiling? They have that too.  The Madonna Inn is also known for its fine dining. This is the Gold Rush Steakhouse. Here it's allegedly decorated for Valentine's Day, but it pretty much looks like this all the time.  The Silver Bar Cocktail Lounge is the perfect illustration of the Madonna Inn's style, if you want to call it that -- weirdly Disney Germanic, like a gigantic cuckoo clock, with lots and lots of pink. There is no rock wall in the Silver Bar, but there are rock-pile pillars between the windows (not shown).  Pink tennis courts! Just cause.  There's also a bakery. Pink is the main idea here too.  The true soul of the Madonna Inn lies in that unique combination of  and rock walls, and the best example of this has to be the famous urinals (noted as a tourist attraction by the SLO Chamber of Commerce). You piss on the rock wall and then a waterfall turns on and removes the evidence.  The Madonna Inn is unironically beloved by many, many southern Californians. It's kinda ramshackle, it's not near anything in particular, it smells real weird and it'll give you hosed-up dreams for weeks after a stay there, but for whatever reason even the most jaded Hollywood trendoids will defend it to the death and they're usually not even trying to be funny. Long may it reign. spite house has a new favorite as of 07:49 on Feb 10, 2015 |
#
¿
Feb 10, 2015 07:45
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ May 7, 2024 19:56 |
|