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By D. Clay Hays Now there's a distinction for you, one of the "Dirtiest Hotels in the Country", and you'll find it right here in our fair city. Hot Springs' own Velda Rose, as per Trip Advisor's "2009 Dirtiest Hotels in the United States", made #8. Well, at least it was close to the bottom of the list but any way you build that house of cards, she's a comin' down! It's a shame, really, but not uncommon among internet reviews of Hot Springs Hotels. Oh sure, all the fancier, newer Hot Springs Hotels get pretty good reviews but some of our "Grand Old Beauties" get a bad rap in my opinion. And I'm not saying the Velda falls in that category. Geez, if that many people say something stinks, it probably stinks! But here's the thing about those Grand Old Beauties; did you miss that word in the middle there? "Old" is the key word here people! 
Take the Arlington for instance. She's the centerpiece of Historic Downtown Hot Springs,and has been since the first was built in 1875. This third rendering of the twin-towered majesty was built in 1924, which makes her 84 years old. Throughout her history she has hosted a veritable "Who's Who" lineup of dignitaries, politicians and celebrities, and scores of grand balls and social events. Yet, she gets negative reviews all the time. How can this be? Let's see, how about this; She's 84 Freakin' Years Old! You can clean up, make up and dress up an 84 year old woman but she's still going to creak and moan, may smell a little funny and some of her buttons and knobs won't work either! If you can't appreciate these Grand Old Dames for their architectural beauty and historical significance because of a little musty air, then go stay at the Holiday Inn Express and sleep tight now, hear? But they won't have a room that Al Capone slept in! Now, if you read Trip Advisor's reviews of the Velda Rose, you'll find that most of them are bad, very bad in fact, but some are just the opposite. For instance, one five star reviewer's title is "A Rare Jewel in Historic Hot Springs" and the very next is "OMG DISGUSTING!" So I'm saying, like most everything else, it depends on whose eyes you're looking through. Such is the case, unfortunately, with general reviews of Hot Springs. I try my best to not pay attention to negative reviews and I'm certainly not the type to search out, much less respond to other people's blog posts about my home town. But it is my home town, I do love it here and I write about Hot Springs so I get a daily Google Alert on "Hot Springs AR". And some of you people are pissing me off! One particular post to which I was compelled to respond was from a traveling couple, self-proclaimed artists, who said they never saw much of the "supposed" great little art town. I read on to find that their visit was fraught with rainy weather, they had to drive around and see the sights through windshield wipers, the dog got sick…blah, blah, somebody call the Wah-mbulance! So these two artsy-fartsies came to one of the "Top Small Art Towns in America" and #4 on the list of "Places with Big City Art and Small Town Charm", never got out of the freakin' car, and can't understand why they didn't see any art galleries! I hated to succumb to the pressure but I simply couldn't help myself. And I don't know if I scorched 'em but I was sure shooting "electronic" flames! You too may experience the wrath of Clay if you don’t give my beloved Hot Springs a fair shake. But hey, it's a free country, so feel free to relay your insignificant little opinion if you must. I do it all the time! Thanks for your interest.....Clay If you'd like to comment on this post please use the Contact form.
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Hot Springs Hotel #8 Dirtiest Hotels in U.S.
