Some like it hot
This is going to be a bit of a rant, but I'll preface it by saying that I'm enjoying myself in general, and I'm not sorry I'm here. I don't know whether it's the attitude of my hosts or the reputation that precedes Americans or a little of both, but I'm having to spend much more time and effort securing my own comfort than anyone should ever expect to do in a full service hotel.
Europeans have long complained about Americans being wusses when it comes to climate control, but my room is hot. It's hotter than the lobby. It's hotter than the hall. It's 30 (or a little over 10 if you prefer C) degrees hotter than outside without special intervention. I grew up in Texas and didn't have an air conditioner in my home for much of my childhood. My temperature tolerance during waking hours is wide, and has been expanded by my need to wear a hat and long sleeves outdoors for sun protection throughout the year. However, sleeping in a hot room with no air circulation, even when I'm exhausted, is extremely difficult for me.
Knowing that the climate control would not be quite the same here, I turned my thermostat all the way down and let it run all day(they kindly let me check in very early, at about 10-10:30 when I arrived yesterday morning) before making any mention of it to the staff. Consider the context here. It's March in London, a pleasant 50-60(10-15 C) degrees outside most of the time. The lobby is cool, the halls on my floor are about neutral, and my room is the hottest place that I've actually observed in the entire hotel. So I called the front desk after spending about 12 hours with the blower on high and the thermostat set at 5 C(41 degrees) and also attempting to cool the room further by opening the windows. They sent up maintenance, but not before lecturing me on how they don't use the style of AC we have "in the States" and that I can't expect it to work right away. I don't know what their definition of patience is, but I'd have thought waiting for half the day, including 3 hours after dark, should have been evidence enough of my stamina. I didn't say any of this, of course. I just thanked them for sending maintenance, and, even though the only solution offered thereby was an oscillating fan, I tried to tip well and make do.
Relieved to have a means of moving the air in the room at last, I pulled the fan as close to the front of the windows as I could without damaging the cord, propped them open the few inches that they'd crack(the windows are tied to the frame to prevent guests from fully opening them, by the way, and every draft pulls them closed if they aren't blocked), took apart my duvet to get the blanket out of the middle because there was no actual flat sheet on the bed, took a cold bath, and tried again. Eventually, at about 3 AM, I finally slept after being up for the better part of 2 days. It's been well over 24 hours now, 12 with a fan in front of the windows, pulling in 55 degree outside air, and the room is still not really cool enough to sleep comfortably. I brought back a bar of chocolate from my trip to the market this morning, and it began to melt sitting right in front of the fan. I'm certain, especially after taking note of the temperatures in other parts of the building and walking a mile in my hat and coat outside without breaking a sweat, that something other than my person is actively heating this room. I dare not say anything, though, because I'm already wimpy-American-with-no-heat-tolerance, and I don't think a single member of the staff would actually believe there was a problem, no matter how I might try to explain. Even if I persuaded them to let me switch rooms(an option that has not yet been offered), I've got to spend 4 more nights in this place before I get home, and the last thing I need is to make enemies. So, I'm going to shop for an extension cord in an attempt try to put the fan between the windows and me tonight, and also look for a small fan to take on the rest of my trip, just in case it's illegal to turn off the heaters in Italy right now or something.
