| sprice@hsc.vcu.edu
Dear Folks, The Embassy Suites Hotel in Burlingame left me with feelings
more mixed than at any ACOR or ICOC I've been to. It is a beautiful spot
for a rug conference. Jerry's photos show how wonderfully the rugs on
dealer row were shown off by being hung on the railings with the excellent
light in the atrium. My image of what heaven must be like will be forever
colored by the experience of having breakfast in the atrium. Good company,
a nice variety of food, and surrounded by good rugs that seemed to change
every hour or so. Who could ask for more? One problem. The Embassy Suites
in Burlingame is in the middle of nowhere. The only thing within walking
distance was the diner-type restaurant in the Red Roof Inn a block or so
away. We were only about 15 miles from San Francisco, but getting there
took more than an hour by public transportation, and on the one day that
my family went downtown and had me meet them in the afternoon, it took us
more than 3 hours to get back. Every other rug conference I've gone to has
been in the middle of a city, and the convenience of being able to pop out
for lunch or a quick buzz down to a museum or shop was really nice. A
couple of the bay area dealers put on receptions in their showrooms, but
without an auto it was not possible to get to them. I'm told that the
location was selected because the San Francisco hotels are so expensive.
On the other hand, Burlingame cost more per night than Philadelphia (ICOC)
or Denver (ACOR), so I wonder a little about the wisdom of having it in
the bay area if the city itself was prohibitively expensive. Steve
Price |