Amidst all the chaos and horror of watching everything good your country has done over the last 50 years undone in a matter of months, we’re rapidly approaching the first anniversary of our wedding and honeymoon. Even one year after the fact, there’s enough good associated with those days to push aside the rest of the world and make me feel, if only for a short time, that everything right and good with the world makes it all worth it.
We’re celebrating a little early on account of the fact that an opportunity too good to pass up landed in our lap. We’re at the Hotel Havana in San Antonio, which is owned and operated by the same good folks who gave us El Cosmico out in Marfa. The term “curated” is overused (and most often, misused) these days, but when you stay at a place like this, the term makes all the sense in the world. Every detail is just so, creating an environment that is more comforting and relaxing than any of the luxury accommodations I’ve visited.
This probably isn’t the place for everyone, but it fits the two of us like some cliched object which fits very well indeed. There’s nothing gilded, no lacy linens, but it’s old and quiet and comfortable and it has, quite ridiculously, two bathrooms. Rather than trying to describe the whole room, I’ll just detail the main bathroom. There’s a toilet to the side in it’s one enclosure, a central area with a rug, a leather chair, and a stand-alone sink and mirror. In turquoise-tiled hutch behind there, there’s an open shower area (no walls at all) and a large bathtub. Ridiculous, right? But it works. Best shower I’ve ever had, and damned if I can properly explain why.
Maybe this will explain it better
It’s not the sort of place you visit to sleep overnight and then move on. It’s more of a retreat, a place to get away, than it is a hotel. That’s what I’ve been trying to say. It makes me think of that marvelous era when writers and other bohemian types lived at hotels for long periods of time. That romantic notion of life appeals mightily staying at a joint like this.
It even has a proper desk? Not one of those glass-covered, overly busy monstrosities you get at “luxury” hotels.
Speaking of “romantic,” this feels like a reprise of our honeymoon in the best possible sense. It’s hasn’t been an easy year in many other senses, but being with Nicole is the best thing that has ever happened to me (and this from someone whose life has been marked by more good fortune than I claim to deserve). She supports me through the bad stuff and, hell, she supports me through the good stuff which isn’t something that should be taken for granted. She makes everything in my life better and I hope like hell I can continue to do the same for her.
So yeah, I’d marry the hell out of her again.
I’ll shut up now and just share some more images of this lovely place. If you’re in central Texas and you’re looking to get away from everything without going into the middle of nowhere, you could do a lot worse than Hotel Havana.
One of the most comfortable beds I’ve ever slept in, too.
Looking down from the bed area.
Stairs. Oh so many stairs in this building.
Living area. Cute fridge, pity about the name.
-RK