B&B: Raphael Inn

Talk about an experience! This is the best bed and breakfast I've ever been to, and it will be the standard for all future ones.

So often we only think of the digital experiences when we think of interaction design, but ultimately the user experience is much bigger and all encompassing.

I happened to stay in 2 different rooms during my stay at the Raphael Inn on my visit to Gettysburg, PA.  Both rooms were meticulously decorated, well furnished, and truly offered the B&B experience of a lifetime.

First is the Evangeline room, which is freshly painted in this gorgeous purple with a theme of flowers and birds.  It's perpetual spring in this room

The view from the rocking chair in the room revealed the wonderful ceiling work, giving a modern and refreshing feel.

The white bird cage is a nice accent against the bold paint color, and many butterflies adorn its surface.

On the dresser is an old style radio that can actually play cassette tapes, and the inn keepers provided various music tapes for your listening enjoyment.

Also on the dresser is a nice lamp, with a glass dragon fly hanging off of its edge.  With the main ceiling light off, you can really see the line shine through the glass and provide a certain air of magic.

The curtains were hand made with a semi-see through printed layer and a plain layer that allows light in while providing privacy.

There were little above door village house decorations on the door frame between the room and the bathroom, and there was even a mini park bench with a mini giraffe to the right of the dresser.

This is true attention to details!

The main entry way is styled with a Paris cafe theme.  In other B&Bs, the breakfast is just basic continental.  At the Raphael Inn, be prepared for a feast for both the eyes and the mouth.

On my first day I had an early morning, so couldn't stay for sit down breakfast. The inn keepers made a special effort to pack me a "boxed lunch" that consisted of a sausage & egg bagel sandwich, a chocolate muffin, an apple, a bottle of water, and a bottle of orange juice! I didn't even realized until later the apple was both cored and cut in half for my convenience.  Such hospitality!

The next day I was able to enjoy sit down breakfast and was presented with a gorgeous fruit plate before the main course of waffles and bacon arrived.

The Raphael Inn does not take breakfast lightly, and they are very good at it indeed. I think I had the best 4 days of breakfast I've ever had on any vacation I've ever taken here.

It happened to be with the scheduling of things, I needed to switch to a different room during my stay.  I moved into the California Rose Suite which had a king size bed and a futon couch.  The bed had a foam layer and I melted right in.

This room has a nautical theme, and used treasure chests as night stands as well as the coffee table next to the futon.

The little sitting area by the bed has mock fences as if on the beach, and the closet had a wall paper reminiscent of being in a wood hut.

There were little "treasures" all over the room, including a small treasure chest filled with "gold coins" (werther's originals).

The book ends on the coffee table were nautical themed, and even the books were seaworthy adventure books like Robinson Crusoe, and Treasure Island.

Every last detail was accounted for, and my experience at the B&B really could not have been better.

While I realize being a designer means I noticed a lot of details that might have been missed by most visitors, it is these details that not only complete the experience, but brought it to a new height unmatched by others.

This is true of all user experiences. The details really do count. Often times, less is more. Do fewer things, but do them really really well. Cross all the T's and dot all the I's. Completing the details will complete the user experience and bring delight.  In the end, who wouldn't want to delight their users?

Details in design

check out the detail on the back of the chair in my mount washington hotel room. I'm afraid to know how much each of these cost.

Puerto Rico!

Vacation in tropical paradise! Got to see the Arecibo Observatory, Caves at Rio Camuy, El Yunque rain forest, El Morrow and La Castillo in Old San Juan as well as eat some really tasty local foods! Got to swim in La Mina falls in the rain forest and ride horses on the beach! What more can I ask for? ;)

One thing I found funny was that the high ways had barriers that were painted in specific color patterns of 2 or 3 colors. But I didn't quite figure out why they chose the colors they did. But it was cool regardless.

green, red, and yellow

purple and yellow

peach and blue

purple, turquoise, and green

I thought the local frog - Coqui - is one of the cutest sounding things I've ever heard, and couldn't resist buying a stuffed version that replicates its chirps that resonates throughout the night.

The Arecibo Observatory has the world's largest radio telescope and it actually rotated while I was visiting.

Swimming in La Mina falls is only second to swimming in one of the Maui falls on the road to Hana.

 

And El Morrow and La Castillo in Old San Juan captured the magic of the old world.

Trail riding is brought to a new level when you can ride directly on the beach with the ocean waves crashing at your feet. My horse was Tyson (the smaller one in front), and I actually got him up to a full gallop a few times. =P

My horse Tyson is laughing!

No tropical paradise trip is complete without great food. Tostones, monfongo, empanadas to start. But don't go anywhere without the ketchup-mayo. It's the most amazing dipping sauce ever.

See the full slide show of the entire trip photos. :)

Riding Camel & Feeding Giraffes

Finally got around to scanning the souvenir photos from the Miami Zoo in.

The giraffes were so beautiful! Look at those big eyes! Look closely under my hand and you'll one of them sticking his tongue out, reaching for the green leaf I'm holding. They have tongues that can wrap and grab, and that's what happens when you feed them, they reach out with their tongues and when they find the food they'll wrap around it and pull it in. Your hand can get slobbered a bit but it was super fun!

I got to ride Charlie the Camel here. They built a ramp up so you just hop on (without the camel kneeling). While the handler was leading him around this figure 8 track she asked if I had any questions. The conversation went like this.

"So, where are they from?"
"Oh, they're from Wisconsin."

Wisconsin? *blink* *blink*

"They're from Wisconsin?"
"Yup, there's a camel farm there."

... why is there a camel farm in Wisconsin?...

"Uh... so... isn't Wisconsin colder than Florida?"
"Yes, but the desert gets really cold at night so it's well within their natural habitat temperatures."
"Oh, I see..."

so yeah, I was riding a camel named Charlie from Wisconsin in the Miami Zoo.

I almost got to pet a hippo named Johnny! But he wouldn't come when they called out to him. He was half submerged in his pond, and they rang this bell and called his name for like.. a minute. He barely acknowledged us puny humans and stayed submerged. Oh well.

Speed Signs

All speed signs should be like this. :-)

Bird on the Attack

This is a male Argus Pheasant. I was walking in the aviary and he started to circle me. At first there were some Tufted Wood Partridge that was pecking at him so i thought they were playing. Then it started coming at me and started pecking at my feet! I redirected his attention by blocking his shots with my zoo map but was forced to retreat into a building. I asked one of the keepers if it was something i did or if i'm wearing colors too bright, she said no, that little guy is just aggressive and they had to put him in time out for attacking a little girl the other day. Way to start the day!

Watch Out for the Alligator!

I'm holding baby alligator Snappy! The handler to my side said he's "3", but he also said he's been "3 for awhile", so I'm left wondering if this is a pygmy type alligator that actually won't get any larger than this and they just keep calling it a baby and that he's "3". :)

Everglades Tour

On an airboat!

The way airboats move is very interesting. Since it's "gliding" across the water, when it "turns" you often "slide" a little sideways. It's almost like driving in new england and sliding around corners. Except it's way smoother and less scary. :)

Sweet!

Local sweet and had cream shop called Udder Sweets. Couldn't resist candy legos! Gummy alligators, swedish sea creatures, strawberry and cream gummy strawberries, and gummy cola pandas were only a few of their vast selection of goodies. :)

And yes, the candy legos actually work like real legos!

Art Deco Hotels

Art deco hotels on ocean drive. just hopped off one of those hop on hop off tour buses to walk around a bit. The architecture here is very cool and i certainly can't complain about the weather. :-)

Rental!

This is a rental and apparently have been featured in many movies and music videos - though the guide didn't say which ones. Really cool looking for sure. Wonder what the going price for it is...

Towers Along Miami Beach

another cool building in miami, this time on miami beach, view from the cruise boat. Love the curves on the roof.

Miami Lady Cruise

on the Miami Lady with Miami skyline in the background. :-) This 90 min cruise took us around Fisher Island, Star Island and the works to see where all the celebrities live. I took a bunch of pics of those mansions but I can't remember which is which anymore. I remember we saw home of Gloria Estefan, Noami Campbell (land formerly owned by Shaq.. currently a new mansion being built), Will Smith (summer home), Puff Daddy (totally covered by trees), and the oldest was a 1927 mansion formerly owned by Al Capone. Neat stuff!

Cool Building in Miami

Snapped this through my car window while in stopped traffic waiting for the draw bridge to come down. It's not terribly clear from this pic, but there's a rainbow coloring going across the building in each of those dots. I thought it was pretty neat.

Tiger, Fish, Crab, Oh My!

So I went to Newport Beach in Rhode Island for the first time with some friends. It was a very relaxing time - the weather was just right and the beach was moderately crowded with other sunbathers. The water was a good temp and I had great company.

We drove in a jeep with the top down around the neighborhood and I got a glimpse at some of those famous mansions Newport is known for. At some point I'll make another trip to go tour those places, but probably not any time soon. I feel poor enough already.

One thing about this trip that stood out from just another beach trip, was this one park where there was so much wind kites could totally fly themselves. A kite vendor had set up shop and the sky was filled with wonders.

I was enamored. I could have spent the whole day just watching all those creatures fly around if there was the time. But we had food to eat and places to be, so we only stopped for short while. But I was glad I snagged a shot of the giant flying crab and the puffer fish. I took several shots of the crab in fact, because I just loved the concept of a flying crab. Where else would I have seen such a sight? See more shots of the kites on flickr.

A Festive Occasion... with Saris and a White Stallion

Ankur and Anca's wedding ceremony was gorgeous in so many ways. It doesn't hurt that Ankur rode a white stallion to steal away the beautiful Anca in a red sari. Fairy tales do exist!

Golden Gate Bridge

I was long overdue for vacation, and took the opportunity to finally walk across the Golden Gate Bridge when I went to SF for a friend's wedding. I've been to SF, oh, about half a dozen times in the last decade. It really is quite a shame that in all that time I have not done this one, basic, touristy thing.

I can, however, proudly say I've ridden the Cable Cars about a dozen times or more.

Maybe next time I'll splurge on one of those little go carts and zip down Lombard.