Having decided to spend the weekend in Suzhou, I needed to select a hotel. My first inclination was the Lamborghini Boutique Hotel that I had briefly visited some months earlier. It’s on the banks of a lake, and it appeared to have the sort of character I might like, so I made a booking. On arrival, the staff helped take the bags from the car to the lobby, and I was presented some very nice tea to drink whilst the check-in formalities were completed, all as might be expected.

As I experienced on my first exploratory visit to the hotel, the lobby was empty and on the walk towards my room, the atmosphere felt cold and soulless. Entering the corridor leading to the guest rooms, …

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