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Article: Natale Rusconi.(Hotel Cipriani)(Viewpoint essay)
- Article from:
- Hotels
- Article date:
- August 1, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Reed Business Information, Inc. (US). This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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By Natale Rusconi
After nearly 30 years in the beautiful and unique Cipriani Hotel in Venice, I can look back and consider not only what my hotel life has been but also to what the European hotel industry has undergone during this vital and dramatic period of the world's history.
When I started in 1963 at the Gritti Palace as an assistant manager, the hotel was overburdened with staff, and you could see a page boy attached to every column of the building. A door could not be approached without remarking a white-gloved hand opening it for you. The menus in the restaurant were all in French and English: "no Italian please, it is not elegant--.!" were the ...