The Beacon

We stayed nine days at the Beacon hotel in Sandyford. The style is trendy, almost extreme, with hard surfaces and weird decorations. The lobby and the restaurant are fancily decorated but not especially functional. There are things that can bother you every day but it seems to be a sacrifice for the sake of style. [Darse was driven insane every minute.] Example: every time you want to reach the elevators from the entrance, you have to either jump over the armchairs or make a big detour. Another one: the elevators are upholstered but constantly smell like fried fish; and in front of the mirror there is a frilly lamp that blocks seeing your reflection.

The rooms are very edgy, both figuratively and literally. They have many sharp edges and corners that assault you. The bathroom walls are made of glass (!), the desk chair is sharp and totally transparent, the garbage can is made of sparse wires (no bag, of course, to not spoil the decoration), no clock at all (!!), and many other details that in the long run drive you batty. Plus, there is a bush at the back entrance that will knock you down if you aren’t watching. I’m serious, it happened to me and I got big bruises on my knees!

The only place that looks human is... the underground parking! It is extremely clean, quiet, has some soft music and it is not windy. After some walking in the windy, rainy weather and noisy traffic and construction sites in the neighborhood Darse said “At last, the warmth and cozy comfort of the underground parkade.”