The case of the missing hair dryer

I was looking through pictures this morning, searching for something I took in Mississippi that I needed when I ran across this one.  You might wonder why someone would take a photograph of a hairdryer box, and typically, it would not be in my repertoire either.

Rand and I went to England several years ago when I was presenting at a conference in London.  We looked all over that hotel room for a hairdryer...and finally went across the street to the pharmacy and bought one.

Now, we are talking very small room here, as you can see.  There was a small bathroom just inside the door.  I am not complaining about the size--I hardly think one needs a gigantic space in order to sleep while traveling.  But one would think if a hairdryer was to be found, we might have located it.

On the last evening there as we were packing, Randy noted a small label affixed to the top desk drawer, and bent down to inspect it.  He called out to me, "Found the hairdryer!"  Clearly, we had not looked everywhere; it never occurred to us to look in the desk drawer, where I would have expected to find stationery (do they even do that in hotels any more?)  After laughing, we then noted another small door and a sign that said "kettle."  Sure enough, there was the electric kettle and cups, tea, etc, stashed away inside a small cubby with a door hiding it from view.

It gave me a chuckle this morning as I recalled a memory I had not thought of in a while.  I think it possibly a cultural difference.  While I personally am all about hiding utilitarian items in boxes, baskets, behind doors, etc., I am used to traveling and finding a hair dryer hanging on the wall of the bathroom.  Even where I have stayed in hotels or guest houses in South Africa, the hair dryer hung on a hook--albeit generally closest to a plug, not in the bathroom where there might not be a plug.

It is a tidy solution, and with the labels, should save the frantic search and trip across the street in search of a place that sells hair dryers.  I still have that hairdryer (safely stored out of the way under the bed, waiting for another trip abroad) and it has accompanied me twice to South Africa since then.  Although I have to use a plug adapter, the voltage is correct and saves me having to use the transformer to dry my hair.

Differences: it's what makes the world go round.