The Suite Of Ava Gardner

The suite of Ava Gardner, the room of David Niven, the table of Truman Caporte ..... with all these credentials, a classic hotel of the Mediterranean is reborn, in the Paseo del Mar, in front of the Bay of Palamos (Girona). The Hotel Trias, which was inaugurated in 1900 and, 3 decades later, received the determined impetus of Rafael Maso, the architect and mayor of Girona, who reformed the structure destroyed during the civil war, and converted it to the emblematic destination of Costa Brava.

So much so, that half the Hollywood stayed in or passed through it in the era between 1960 - 1962. Caporte finished his book 'In Cold Blood' there. Robert Ruark stayed there too, author of 'Breakfast in Tiffany'. In fact he stayed there the longest, as his mortal remains rest in the cemetery of that town. In his memory the Bar of the hotel is dedicated to him.

Palamos is also historical in that it had just relived the Spanish Civil War with the discovery of a bomb just few days ago of that battle. This location is one the many Catalan coasts that had suffered the hardship of bombing by the Italian aviation, as well as the sea attack under Franco's orders.

As to Ava Gardner, much was and still is talked about. What is certain is that without her the Bar of Trias would not be the Bar of Trias. Of the local scale, Jordi Pujol immediately comes to everybody's mind, who relaxed and recovered there after he came out of the prison in Zaragoza, in the era of Franco not all that many years ago.

The hotel was acquired by the businessman Lluis Camos (Restaurant Bazaar, La Finca de Susana in Madrid, and the Hotel La Malcontenta in Palamos). The Hotel Trias leaves somebody cold though if he tries to relive the bygone glamour. The interior now offers a nautical ambience with the cold blue and white as dominant colours, and the solid walls heavily covered with oceanic decorations hardly allow sunshine to penetrate.

The vast, out of all proportion dinning room distracts one's attention to the designer lamps, and carefully structured food plates, the whole place sadly lacking coziness and intimacy. Rather a waste and incongruous for a hotel with such a history of interesting legend.

Perhaps because the tradition obliges it, the service is excellent, especially round the outdoor swimming pool area. Courteous, swift, always at the ready to attend to your every wish with a smile. Quite a pleasant contrast to the somewhat melancholic and impersonal interior.

I am very much for cosy ambience and an incorrigible romantic, so just one visit for curiosity, I won't go back except by invitation; as I also like to indulge in good food and impeccable service.

 

Tags:avagardner,trumancaporte,palamos

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