European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 10, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Commentary k t to some places look better then by Catherine Watson Minneapolis St. Paul Star Tribune Call it the enchanted april effect the amazing difference that Daylight can make in a place. If you saw that charming movie you la remember How the English heroines arrive at night at their rented italian Castle hoping for Beauty and warmth but finding pouring rain and a strange gloomy dwelling inhabited by weird servants. Shades of Transylvania. Next morning of course Rich sunlight has transformed everything. The shutters open onto shining sea the House is awash in Flowers servants smile and the dream comes True. It happened to me most recently in Machias Maine North of Acadia National  did t know it when i breezed past the Park Entrance late one afternoon but i was also driving past the largest group of lodgings i was going to encounter for the next several Days. T thought i d drive till i got tired and just stay in some cozy bed and breakfast i feel safer in those than in impersonal hotels and the coast of Southern Maine had been thick with them. By the time it got dark though the towns were smaller and the rare motels looked either Sleazy or sinister. I kept driving thinking i d find something better farther North. It got Darker. Motels got fewer. J got hungry. I got tired. I kept driving. Finally exhausted i stopped at a pay phone in the town of Machias looked up a is there were Only a couple and started phoning. The last one i called had space. Great thought and it was even close by. But when i got there. The House was the kind of mansard roofed victorian made famous by the Addams family. It stood on a dark slightly seedy Street and the Guy who answered the door had a gaunt face and Greasy hair. A lamp was burning in the foyer but there were no other lights inside that i could see. There also were no other guests. Us huh a. Not what i wanted to hear. Well could i see the guest rooms before i Register urn All of them As if i had someplace else to go if they weren t suitable my Host trudged up the stairs ahead of me turning on lights As he went. There were Only a few rooms and i lingered at the door of each one chatting and acting nonchalant As i fingered the Woodwork. Trying not to be obvious i was feeling around for Interior door locks. I think the Host noticed. He began to talk about his wife about How she normally took care of registering their guests and about his Young daughter both of whom would be Back soon. That was Good news. So was the discovery of a slide Bolt lock under my fingertips. I took that room locked myself in and waited till morning. When of course Rich sunlight transformed everything. The hostess had set a place for me at the antique table in the dining room and As i ate breakfast i gazed through the double doors beyond where Light was streaming into a charming Book lined parlor with a comfy looking sofa by a fireplace. If i d Only known. Sometimes the enchanted april effect works in reverse and darkness actually. Helps a place -.,That was True of the dismal hotel where i once was stuck in Istanbul Turkey. The famous Pera Palas was closed for renovations other Good hotels were either on strike too expensive or full and i ended up in a miserable one in a bad neighbourhood. To get to my hotel from the nearest Busy i.e., Safe Street i had to walk Down a Steep Dingy Alley and Cross a secluded courtyard full of broken Glass to what looked like a Back door but was really the front. Each time i got there t Felt As if i d run a Gauntlet. Each morning i awoke to dirty Gray Walls dirty Gray carpet and cockroaches in the sink. Each morning after i d scared the Roaches away so i could Brush my Teeth i would look out the room s wide window order any Book cd Usa a or video. Call toll free 0130-21176 onto the neighbourhood s shabby apartment blocks and vow that this was the Day i d find a better hotel. Yes definitely Brush Bushno doubt about it this tire Brush Brush this was the last Day i d put in at this hellhole. I would move out the first Chance i got yet the chances never seemed to come and i stayed on and on a solid week All the time i had in the City. Why because every evening when i got Back to that awful room the View out the window would take my breath away. It is still the first image that comes to mind whenever i think of Istanbul not the great Bazaar or the magnificent mosques and minarets but that Swath of night of dark Blue Hills with the bosporus in Between of land and water spangled with tiny lights like stars pulled sparkling out of the a Blue sky. By the end i did t even mind the Roaches. Distributed by scr put Howard new str let Vicenza Community come to ski with Siegi s ski school in Austria dates 18-24 december 1994 for beginners to experts from 3 yrs old and , Cross country deep Snow skiing ski safari snowboard racing clinic and Morel trip include ski instruction 5 Days 4 in per Day room breakfast and dinner Lor 6 Days saunas and parties in the Lundham rustic or met Gerwert i school race Tost diploma and medals child care available Lor children of All Ages Call Sonnya at 0444 97736818 00-23 30 weekdays f he Heidi a by 2 pin. Featuring Over 40 items Neucom Rod & gun club show & Sale Neucom Rod & gun club bldg. 2359, nov. 18-20, featuring major name Brand weapons. Hours nov. 18, noon to8 . Nov. 19, 10 . To 6 . And nov. 20,11 . To 6 . Auto show Bonanza Sale nov. 18-20,9am. To adjacent to Patch  30 new cars will be showcased the largest selection Ever at Patch. /. For More information tall Dan 421-2404. Sponsored in part by military sales group at to Gums up to 50% off selected items november 10, 1994 stripes Magazine 13