A fantasy room at The Magnolia MansionA bed and breakfast in New Orleans
How would you decorate a love hotel? A house of pleasure? A pleasure pagoda?
The pleasure house is as an ancient edifice. The Chinese and Japanese had pleasure pavilions and pleasure pagodas.
The western world had its own version of pleasure houses too.
As it’s common in Argentina to live with your parents until your mid- to late-twenties-or until you marry-a trip to a love hotel is more than just a rite of passage: it’s the only way for many young Argentines to have a sex life.
Officially known as “temporary lodgings,” and in local slang as telos, there are countless hotels renting rooms by the hour, discreetly located in every neighborhood, with less subtle names such as You & I, Dreams, and Venus. Sometimes only a discrete red light designates a telo is behind an ordinary looking door.
Varying wildly in interior design—from chic, modern, and minimalist to twee, floral, and tacky—telos may feature overblown Egyptian-themed chambers or flashy Vegas-style boudoirs with mirrored ceilings.
Around $45 (pesos) buys you three hours of fun, porn on the TV, and access to all manner of toys, gels, and oils. The more expensive hotels boast luxurious suites, fully equipped with plasma screens, saunas, and complimentary champagne, while other, specialist establishments offer kinky vibrating beds and more technical apparatus such as sex chairs.
The neighborhood we live in when we are in Buenos Aires is upscale and trendy.
One day I peered into this garage and saw all these lighted votive candles. It was two in the afternoon and the garage was very dark, and the candle light intriguing.
Sitting on a ledge at the garage entrance is this retro looking sculpture.
The front of the building looks like a trendy boutique.
The crest on the front of the building is odd.
And so are the architectural brackets.
But I love the colors! Very retro and girly!
La fusta. Let me get out my Spanish dictionary:whip [wɪp]
sustantivo
verbo transitivo (pt & pp whipped)3. azotar (lash, hit) (británico); fustigar (horse)1. látigo (m) (for punishment); fusta (f) (for horse)
Ah! We live in the neighborhood where the polo field is located, and there are a dozen fancy shops selling polo things, including fustas! So this little love hotel, this chic telos takes inspiration from polo!
Ignacio Figueras and Prince HarryInspirational poster boys for polo
On our way to the airport to fly home, I saw another telos with the sign (in English): Quick Love $45 (pesos about $12.50 US). Our cab was whizzing by, so I couldn't get a photo.
I just love a country, especially a Catholic country that is so open about love hotels.
I think La Fusta is decorated (at least on the outside ha ha) so cute.
I got to thinking about decorating a love hotel.
I wouldn't do it all Lady Marmalade, but maybe playful and chic like La Fusta.
You can buy a fusta HERE.
There's also an Argentine restaurant in New york called La Fusta HERE. I wonder if they know about their namesake in Buenos Aires?!
Fusta chic?Click on images for larger view
Let it be known that "TELO" is the reverse spelling of HOTEL, a very common street speak used by "porteños" as the residents of the port city of Buenos Aires are called. Repeat TELO many times real fast.
ReplyDeleteDuring my younger years they called them "Hotel Alojamiento" (Lodging Hotels). These days have become "Albergue Transitorio" (Transient Lodging).
V-
ReplyDeletefirst of i miss you......
secondly, this is an awesome post.
i think it is so very clever. i would love to do a 'love hotel'.
i would use 3 color schemes for the rooms;
red & black ,emerald green and black, and cobalt and black.
oh!!
...and of course an all white room for those who wish to be virgins over and over and over again! lol
xx love
from a reader via e-mail:
ReplyDeleteapparently japan, taiwan, and thailand now have love hotels just like the ones in b.a., where you pull your car into a themed garage and go right upstairs. check-in was done earlier by computer, so no silly interview with a desk clerk!
m.y.
michael/bagelbrookefarm
When I worked in Old Town Sacramento many years ago there was an old shell of a hotel across the street. I used to fantisize about turning it into one of these places. I even had a name, "The Notel". There was already so much red velvet victorian decor in the bars and restaurants in the area, the bordello wild wild west look was everywhere. My place would have fit right in, and only blocks from the capitol too! Of course, I would have done a rose pink foyer (pink fiend that I am) with pink marble floors, old fashioned wallpaper and lace curtain inserts surrounded by velvet drapes. A basement for the Dungeon and a hidden entrance too. I love Renee's idea of an all white "bridal suite". Tee hee, what a great post, Valorie!
ReplyDeleteXO-Sabina
Hi Sabina!
ReplyDeleteGreat to hear from you!
I love your ideas!
xo xo