This Hotel Is "La Rosa"

Introduction

This is for ViM's April Prompt "Setting as Catalyst" which you can read about here:

This Hotel Is "La Rosa"

Many years ago my friend Ange told us of this campsite in Yorkshire and they had a hotel in Whitby. I'm not sure if the campsite is still going but the hotel most definitely is. I have written two pieces specifically about the hotel so I will drop them here:

The thing is, La Rosa is not a normal hotel, but I knew when I first walked through the door that it was going to be my favourite hotel ever. This is one of those places that you are not looking for but when you get there you know you have discovered a place that is magical and will never leave you and you will always love it and never forget it.

I can't remember the first room we stayed in, but we have enjoyed Lewis, Little Red, Sacre Couer but Stoker is the preference, decorated it black and looking out towards the Abbey.

Unlike most hotels, every room is different and none contain TVs, radios or telephones (much to the chagrin of some TripAdvisor reviewers) but every room has lots of items of interest and I heard a rumour that it was furnished from charity shops and antique stores. It is really like some mad uncle's or aunty's house and just looking around is an adventure.

This is what I want from everything, and that feeling may have already been there and staying in La Rosa just confirmed it.

So from this, I always look for the hidden places, the interesting things. Sometimes that works sometimes it doesn't.

I am certainly not a fan of brands although if you are far from home and there is a KFC and you are hungry then that might be acceptable, unless there is an interesting cafe or restaurant nearby.

I know that this could be fiction or non-fiction but La Rosa and Whitby have probably transformed me and it makes me a little sad for people who always need a brand. When I see articles about establishing and following brands I get very turned off.

I don't know about you but I love the thrill of finding something unexpectedly good. this often leads me to places that are blind alleys and when that happens you always learn something from it.

I find this with music and with people too.

Before Vocal I only used Facebook sporadically, including playing Scrabble which became impossible. Since Vocal I have doubled my Facebook friends and some of those have changed my life for the better and I could not be without them. By listening and chatting I feel I have improved myself and again this goes back to me walking through the door at La Rosa.

I love finding music that I have never heard and maybe off the beaten track but I am imprest by Taylor Swift. It is strange how sometimes people expect me to be your archetypal old man who sits in a chair getting old watching the telly or listening to the radio.

While I sit in a chair and watch the tell or listen to the radio sometimes I do want people to be interested in me and wonder what makes me tick, and to that end, I walk a lot, play musical instruments and records, read lots of books that I document on my blog here:

So while some want me to disappear and just be quiet, I won't do so because I want to learn more and do more, and again, seeing La Rosa showed me that there are doors you can go through that will show you delights and wonders that you could never have imagined, let alone know of their existence.

The language I use may seem flowery and full of exotic language but this is the effect La Rosa has had on me and I feel that they are more than appropriate, and sometimes language like this can be entertaining and educational.

That reminds me of Public Service Broadcasting who have taught me a lot through their music, some of which I documented here:

I will be back in La Rosa around the time of my birthday, staying in Stoker and who knows what new secrets I will discover and how it will affect me.

Conclusion

la Rosa has definitely changed my perspective in what I look for in anything. Some people only countenance brands, Coffee must be Starbucks, Music must be Spotify (I know they have nothing to do with music), clothes must be Next, perfume must be Chanel, and hotels must be Premier Inn or Hilton. Everything must be branded.

I look for the unusual, the different, the challenging, the fun and most of the time brand names put me off.

La Rosa is one of a kind and I will always be there when I can.

Thank you so much for reading this.