FROM YOKO AND JOHN TO LAWRENCE OF ARABIA
TH ERE ISTH EGRE ATNORT HA MONGTHER OUT ES TRAVE L LED BY PAOLO VERZ ON E,APHOTO REPORTER ATTRACT ED BY“IMPOSSIB LE” DESTINATI ON SAN D EXTRA ORDINAR Y VIE W S, AL SO AN D AB OVE AL LINTHE CITY. ONTHETR ACE SOFMYTHICALC HA RACTERS
« Ilulisat, Greenland. Here I’m going to start my tour at the edge of the world, but in the heart of a city that has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2004. The view from the rooms of the Arctic Hotel (2) is the most incredible I’ve ever admired: you are lying on the bed and gigantic icebergs are floating in front of you. For those who want an even stronger experience, there are also igloo rooms.
In Reykjavik there is the Hotel Borg Luxury Art Deco, in a delightful and authentic 1920s style, of such a simplicity that makes you feel good, characterized by true understatement, but with wonderful details. And a cafe where it’s worth stopping. In Uppsala, Sweden, the destination is Villa Anna. On top of a small hill, elegant, quiet, right in the city centre but at the same time isolated from everything else. Arcotel Velvet in Berlin is also in a beautiful location. Nothing luxurious, on the contrary, absolute minimalism, but if you choose one of the suites, especially those on high floors, you can dominate the whole Mitte district.
Then there are the hotels which are the destination of the most diverse fans. Those of Yoko Ono and John Lennon know for example that they must book at the Hilton (1) Amsterdam, perhaps right Presidential Suite 702, the one of the famous “bed-in” immortalized by a photo that made history. Behind the newlyweds you could see the Old Zuid District of Amsterdam...I slept there years ago. Well…The temptation to emulate that picture is the minimum. The survivors of the Titanic shipwreck slept at The Jane Hotel in New York the night after the tragedy. It is somewhat ironic that the rooms resemble the cabins of a ship, and have remained as they once were, and so have the staff, dressed in 1920s uniforms. It has a sort of monstrous charm, and today the district is the cool High Line. And the most noteworthy thing is that it doesn’t cost the earth! In the middle of Soho, there is the Mercer Hotel, without unnecessary frills, but as chic as only classy places can be. Then there is the series of hotels in impossible destinations. In Baalbeck, Lebanon, I stayed at the Palmyra Hotel, 150 years of history in front of the Roman ruins, which can also be admired from the rooms. Especially if you book, like I did, the one where Charles de Gaulle slept. Finally, at the Baron Hotel in Aleppo, Syria, founded in 1911, the myth of Agatha Christie and Lawrence of Arabia is revived, and “Seven Pillars of Wisdom” even seems to have been written here. Unique and amazing atmosphere, memories are guaranteed».