That’s me. Sure, I will try new things but what I mean by habit is this: when we go to a new restaurant and I order a dish, often that becomes what I order every time I go back (unless it tasted awful). Whatever my first encounter with a place, be it a restaurant, a hotel, a rental car—that tends to become my norm.
And I like things to be orderly. That’s mostly so I don’t have to waste precious brain power remembering where I put something or lose a lot of time getting things pulled together.
This is my sixth trip to Hawaii, and my sixth stay at the Hilo Hawaiian, a hotel that's definitely seen better days; it's shabby and damp but it's the best available in Hilo. The first four times I stayed, I had an ocean view. The fifth time I didn’t but the room layout was exactly the same—bed on the same wall, bathroom fixtures aligned the same, you get the idea.
This time not only do I not have the ocean to placate me, the room is mirror image from the other rooms I’ve stayed in. I find this most disconcerting especially in the dark when little lights aren’t where I expect them to be and when I have to think about where I’m going should I wake up to use the bathroom.
Plus my favorite restaurant—the Garden Snack Club—has shut down. They had amazing red curry and I’ve had it the last three visits. Last night I had to settle for curry from the Thai place next door. It was fine, but it was different.
Oh and I had to sit in a window seat from Minneapolis to Honolulu. I prefer the aisle seat because anything else makes me feel trapped and more than a little claustrophobic.
And to top it off, the Hertz guy, who remembers me because I come here a lot, was “nice” and gave me the biggest SVU I’ve ever driven. I rent according to the government rates, so I'm supposed to get a sub-compact or compact. But this beast is a Chevy Traverse and driving it up the paved goat path that passes for a two-lane road is a little unnerving.
That is a whole lot of change for this creature.
4 comments:
I feel your pain. I'm very much the same way. I have an assigned place in yoga class and make sure to get there early in order to get my spot.
I've been to Hilo once and we stayed in a fairly bizarre hotel that was not as nice as yours. It had a strange tropical forest-like grotto in the middle - open to the outside. All rooms opened out to it. At least that's how I remember it.
When I had a yoga class to go to, I did the same thing!
I'll have to ask around about the hotel you stayed at. It doesn't ring a bell but then again, the options here are not plentiful. Most people don't make Hilo a part of their Hawaiian experience.
I was there in 1987. Probably the hotel doesn't exist anymore or (I hope) has been renovated since.
A lot of my friends are like you. I myself like change. We go to the same island every other year with the same people, but so far we've never stayed in the same place twice; guess who makes the reservations?
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