While you're enjoying your President's Day off (perhaps downing a few Busch Lights?) take a look at some interesting Presidential Suites from around the world.
Note − some of these rooms come with a price tag that's more than democratic, but at the end of the day, even the greatest rooms on earth can't compete with the comfort of your own bedroom suite.
FIRST ROW
• 1 The Obama Presidential Suite at the Fairmount in Chicago - $3,900 a night
• 2 Presidential Suite at the Park Hyatt in Washington D.C. designed by Toni Chi.
• 3 Bathroom in The Presidential Suite at the Hotel Cala di Volpe in Italy - $31,000 a night
• 4 The Ty Warner Suite at The Four Seasons New York - $35,000 a night
• 5 The Presidential Suite at the Antulang Beach Resort in the Philippines - via Shop Crazy
SECOND ROW
• 6 The reinterpreted Presidential Suite at the W Hotel in Paris by architect / designer Patrick Jouin (the pod moves around a bathtub to capture different views of the city). Opens April 1st, 2001 – via Luxist
• 7 The original Presidential Suite at the Disneyland Hotel – via Magical Hotel Blog
• 8, 9 Suite with outdoor fireplace at the Ace Hotel & Swim Club in Palm Springs
• 10 The Hugh Hefner Sky Villa at the Palms in Las Vegas - $40,000 a night
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I've always thought that having pictures/paintings of a sitting president up in your home was really weird.
Not just weird - downright Stalinesque.
Oh I think it's cool! After seeing the top pic, I thought, "Man! I wish a had a huge print of Obama next to my fireplace!" ;)
Okay, well I may not want Obama in my living room. I do love that picture of him, though!
WHO actually books these rooms? WHO would pay $30/40 thousand a night for this crap?
I stayed at one of the "Presidential Suites" at the Waldorf Astoria about 15 years ago and got bedbugs. It was a beautiful set of rooms - and huge - but very, very conservatively designed. The ones at the Ritz in New York are pretty, too, but they're smaller. Same (was) true with The Plaza.
At least these look interesting.
The bathroom in the #3 suite looks more like the kind of thing I'd want to spend $31,000 getting remodeled. :-P
I like having a pic of the president in my home . . . guess it depends on how you feel about the current administration.
My husband is from Jordan and many Jordanians have photos of the king and queen in their homes (many businesses have them too). We are planning our baby's nursery to have two small "political" photos --- one of the Obama family and one of the royal family from Jordan.
I'm with paintitbright. That bathroom is yikes.
@nutterbuddy--
When we had presidents like Kennedy, Lincoln and Roosevelt - It was considered inspirational and patriotic.
Of course, none of these are anyone's home.
@mei-ling --
In metropolitain areas, they're most frequently booked by corporations as hospitality suites during conventions and by visiting entertainers for themselves and their entourage - Of course it's all a tax-writeoff.
In resort areas, they're booked by the folks who can afford it: Hollywood actors, CEO's, heirs to large fortunes...
...it's fun traveling with people like this - They often enjoy throwing extravagant parties.
I might display an image (photograph or painting) of a president in my house if it were personally autographed to moi.
*bepsf: it's not patriotic, it's servile and undemocratic (see comment above by Griffin; our presidents are not Jordanian kings, you know)
also, for individuals as for corporation, no expense is a complete tax write-off - if you ever did your taxes, you would know it. It might lower your gross income, but you'll never get whole $31K/night back
Tatyana, one of the characteristics of living in a FREE society is being able to do things - legally - that others call servile and undemocratic. And that includes hanging pictures of the president, a king, and even a burning flag.
*katlia - you read into my comment your own insecurities. I never said anything about legality of hanging portrait of a sitting politician on a wall in a hotel suite.
Fortunately, I'm still FREE (so far) of voicing my disapproval - from the aesthetic as well as ethical position.
It's typical and traditional to publicly display portraits of a head-of-state, but not a chief-of-government. That said, because the President of the United States is both a head-of-state and a chief-of-government it's weird, off-kilter and sycophantic to display photos of him outside of certain, official settings like a federal building or military installation.
In other words, you'll see plenty of portraiture of ERII (as head of state) in the UK, none of Prime Minister Brown (as chief of government). You'll see plenty of portraiture of Abdullah II (as head of state) in Jordan, none of Prime Minister Rifai (as chief of government). You'll see plenty of portraiture of Bundespräsident Köhler (as head of state) in Germany, none of Chancellor Merkel (as chief of government).
Among the various royal trappings George Washington assigned to himself after becoming President - in addition to the requirement that people stand in his presence, a refusal to shake anyone's hand, and use of the form of address of "His High Mightiness" instead of the subsequent "Mr. President" - was the practice of placing his state portrait in all prominent public places. All of these practices were abolished by John Adams and have not been revisited since ... until Obama, apparently.
"Bush Lights"? Do you mean Busch Lights?
I love the paint color of the Obama suite at the Fairmount. It has the grayish taupe color I've been looking for. Does anyone know any paint colors that would be similar to that wall color?
My parents used to have Kennedy and MLK Jr. hanging in their home. I now have Obama and fam.
Regardless of what used to be... people do what they want. They pay the mortgage/rent, so stop yapping about it.
Why pay $3,900 a night only to dream of having your taxes raised?
Zano did you read the article? It was brought to a school, not taken off to melt for bullets. Sheesh.
I actually prefer to see these images in the home and NOT in the federal buildings. I went to some gov't building a few years ago and almost fainted when faced with a great big picture of Cheney right next to Bush. It was traumatizing. But I have to admit that a picture of Obama would feel soothing and reassuring. Also, from a design perspective, Obama's face just looks a whole lot better. And this is also a conversation about aesthetics - right?
PS I loved seeing images of the royal family in Thailand - and Queen Rania's portrait in other places a few years ago!
Agreeing heartily with Omnidora.
What's with the portrait outrage? People hang pictures of Marylin, Audrey, Jesus (Christ or Luz), Mao (because he killed lots of people and it's cool), Tupac, whomever they wish to look at. Other people deem that tasteful, creepy, admirable or illegal. Have we not been over that before?
Sigh...:
Most Americans Don't Know They Got A Tax Cut
About a third of the $787 billion stimulus was made up of tax cuts, but Americans evidently don't realize they got them: a CBS News/New York Times poll shows that only 12% of respondents knew that President Obama had lowered taxes during his time in office; 53% said Obama kept taxes the same; 24% said he raised taxes; and 11% said they didn't know.
http://politics.theatlantic.com/2010/02/most_americans_dont_know_they_got_a_tax_cut.php
^^ Zano: See Godwin's Law: "a good rule in most discussions is that the first person to call the other a Nazi automatically loses the argument."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_law
that would mean you *kschilde.
you're the one recalling Nazis - and you definitely lost the argument with regard to "lowering taxes".
Tell me, did you personally looked into stimulus package composition? which of the taxes were lowered? did you completely lost all ability for critical analysing, even when it comes to your own wallet you'd rather stick your head into sand and get your info from NYTimes and Atlantic?
Zano, I have no idea from where you are quoting, but it's not the article you linked. I quote:
"The statue, which depicts the president as a 10-year-old, was moved to a nearby school that Obama attended when he lived in Jakarta as a child. . .[Ron Mullers, the original donor] said he hoped the statue still would inspire children who attend the school."
"Ron Mullers, the original donor said he hoped the statue still would inspire children who attend the school."
Inspire children to do what? Make outlandishes promises they can't possibly fulfill? Continuously blame others?
What a world...
*zano - please tell me if you have a blog -I want to add you to my blogroll
Tatyana - thank you, I guess I should start one. My tempered, measured and fact-based replies to the lies being spread by Chloe and the others were censored, suppressed and removed by the blog admin in a spirit of Obamaesque "transparency." The blog admin is - apparently - one of the 3 Obama voters left who feel any kind of empathy toward his reign of incompetence one year in.
OH SNAP!
Zano, honestly what the hell are you talking about? I asked you where your quote was since the article you linked didn't say anything about the matter. That's a question, not a statement, therefore unable to be a lie. Chill out.
I think the wee cadre of right-wing ranters on AT need to start their own design blog. Seriously.
rosenatti....wow....a liberal from San Francisco. Imagine that.
Zano, you leave me speechless.
I think there are way more people who are happy with Obama than there are bitter people who are still unhappy about not getting their way.
No matter who would have won, we would still have to dig outta the mess that Bush made.
Back to design....
And here I thought that criticizing the sitting administration was anti-patriotic.. oh wait, that was last time.
Sleek1...you are surely not the swift1. Everyone who spent the better part of 8 years longing for the day Bush would be outta there..you all have finally seen that day. Yet all you do is keep going back to Bush. Move on. I didnt like the guy either, but you got your new president. Quit whining and accept he fact that it is Obama's presidency now, regardless of what Bush did (or didnt) do.