The charms of a small motel in south US

There is a certain charm that small motels in the US have that large brand franchise motels do not. The big Marriotts and the Best Westerns are soulless, homogenous blocks of inhuman hospitality, replete with illegal immigrants cleaning your rooms and disinterested college students manning the front desk.

Internet access costs $9.99 and making phone calls from your room require you to hand over your house as collateral. They are mostly efficient, but efficient in the most boring, lifeless sort of way. I recently stayed a couple of weeks, a large duration by my standards, at the Knights Inn in Tampa, Florida.

Knights Inn isn’t your typical franchise motel. They proudly claim that they’ve been around for 40 years, which, in American terms, is about as long as an ice age. They also have no other branches, which adds this bit of exclusivity to the place. It has stood for 40 years in a place that has completely changed around it.

For starters, a roster of pleasant old ladies man the reception. There is a complete lack of disinterested college students working part-time. Since this is the south, these are very conservative Christian ladies who, when they are not chiding you for taking the Lord’s name in vain, are baking the most melt-in-the-mouth cookies for church on Sundays.

Yes, the American south has a dark history in terms of racism and slavery, but no one says “Have a nice day” quite like them. The lady at the reception when I checked in told me “Your rooms are right around the corner hon”. Not that it means much, but when you deal with the vicissitudes of modern day of travel, airport security, cattle class, et al, a pleasant receptionist who calls you “honey” isn’t bad at all.

When one stays at a small motel like this for a couple of weeks, there’s a thousand little stories that one becomes aware of. I was waiting in line at the reception one morning to extend my stay when a gentleman in front me was arguing with our friend, the old lady. She was, quite emphatically, telling him that she could not possibly extend his stay when his credit cards tend to decline payment.

The man was trying hard to persuade her to give him a week till his paycheck comes through. She told him that she had already given him 3 weeks of leeway. He told her that his alimony commitments make things difficult for him. The old lady just gave him a look that suggested that perhaps he ought to have treated his wife better. And so it went.

When he eventually left with a promise to settle dues in a couple of days, the lady told me that I was the only non-divorcee, non-legally-separated customer they had. Apparently, Knights Inn was the only place economical enough for troubled men who had to deal with a broken marriage, a sagging economy and daily room rents.

Yes, the carpeting is dubious and the shower can be unpredictable, but as a frequent flier, I’ll take this any day over a big hotel.

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