What's the worst hotel you've ever seen? And why is it the worst?

[davsand]

25. The Admiral Benbow Inn in Memphis.

I used to live with a man who had a fondness for third world vacations. Most years, I'd say, "You go and have a fun time, I'll see you when you get home." I skipped out on trips that involved armed Nicaraguan Rebels and scorpions in the beds. One year, he decided to do a blues tour of The Delta, and I actually was kinda excited to go. Sounded exactly like something we could do together, and I figured here in the US we probably were not gonna meet up with too much that I couldn't deal with.

The stopover involving the biker bar in southeastern Kentucky was ok. I'll grant you, the throwing of drinks and the screeching of the bartender was a bit over the top, but nobody died--so I could roll with it. I pulled up a piece of wall by the door and watched the guy named "Cooter" kick the shit outta "Jimbo." (And, no, I am NOT making up those names!)

The kids chanting "Go home, Crackers" someplace in Mississippi was a new experience for me, but, again, I was able to roll with it and nobody got arrested, so it turned out ok.

Arkansas was kind of a blur for me. I'd started to drink a bit when the AC broke in the car. I don't remember much about it other than feeling like I was in a mobile oven. I was just about ready to go home, I do remember that much about it.

Then we hit Memphis... The Admiral Benbow Inn. I peeled back the covers and found a HUGE clump of what looked like pubic hair in the middle of the bed. Somebody got scalped, is all I could think. Called the front desk and asked for some clean sheets and was told that there would be no clean sheets until the next morning when the laundry woman came in. I begged to leave and was told that I was just too picky...

Walked into the bathroom and found what looked like a huge amount of blood in the bathtub. It looked like a crime scene minus the yellow tape or chalk outline. I begged again to leave. He had to think about it, but decided I could "tough it out" for one night...

We were sleeping on top of the covers on the bed, with our own beach towel laid down on it, and somebody tries to force open the door to the room at around 4 AM. He was ready to leave at that point, I didn't have to beg.

Here's a local article about the state of the inn circa Feb of 2000:

http://www.weeklywire.com/ww/02-21-00/memphis_cvr.html




That was the LAST vacation we ever took together.


Laura