On a balmy summer night, contentedly settled under a handcrafted cotton quilt made by local artisans, I tried very hard to shut out unmistakable tinkling noises coming from the toilet, accompanied by a deep sigh and the whoosh of the flush. Thank God it was only my husband taking a leak in the open lavatory! It would certainly have been disagreeable if it were somebody else.
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| The characteristics of the original building were maintained in a painstaking makeover. |
We were visiting the former French colony of Pondicherry, a coastal town in southern India, and earlier in the evening had checked into the charming Hotel De L’Orient, a restored 18th-century French house. Ready for a shower after a long and dusty drive, I found the bathroom hidden behind two wooden screens.
I hunted for a door. It wasn’t there. Grunting, I tried to move the two screens, thinking they were sliding doors. Huh uh.
Coming in with our bags, the room attendant found me looking baffled. He cheekily smiled, apparently enjoying my bewilderment.
“Everyone who stays here searches for the door,” he said. “Madam, that is open toilet. No door.” I looked at him blankly.
Stumped, I marched out to get an explanation from the manager, who, obviously having experienced this with other guests, was amused, and quietly mollified me: They’ve tried to remain as old-French as possible, right up to the open-toilet concept.
This means that the only thing out of place in this decidedly French setting was me wearing shorts. A bosom-hugging gown of that period, I suppose, would have been more appropriate.
Continued: French for a Night: India’s Hotel De L’Orient
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