Back in my old Campus Planning days in the 90’s, I received a dubious distinction for “Most Diverse Clothing”, and no, I wasn’t cross dressing. I could easily transform myself from slob to slick. At that time it meant wearing tee shirts before casual was in and business suits for women that weren’t dark blue imitations of what men wore except for floppy dark blue bow ties.

For this post I decided to show you the range of hotel accommodations, from Emei Shan to the following day in Fraser Suites in Chengdu.  (OK, for Emei Shan camping could be more extreme but this was in a structure–or at least purported to be one. And yes, it was in a rural, remote part of the world, with NO standards. It makes the Marriott attention to detail something you would kill for after this encounter. And there’s no comparison as far as price was concerned because we are talking two ends of the spectrum.

I never claimed to be big on luxury, but I am admittedly a bit eclectic. You can compare the living, dining, and sleeping accommodations at your own leisure. At Fraser Suites, we were able to get a free upgrade to a 1-BR suite, free buffet breakfast, and full kitchen with washer/dryer for the price of a typical chain hotel. I think you will catch the drift. The bathroom in Emei was edited so you wouldn’t see the details of the floor toilet conveniently integrated directly below the shower, but the room did have, as the Brits say “an ensuite bedroom”. We came back to Fraser Suites in Chengdu and I finally got my shower. The difference in 24 hours is what bears consideration, and what a shock it is to my system. I think I deserve a “Diversity in Accommodation Award” at least for yesterday and today.