My friends Ryan and Suz were married in Waterloo, IA, Saturday, so I made the treck. It was a great reception, caught up with friends, the whole schmazz. But this isn't a blog about a wedding.

This is a blog about a hotel offering AMAZING customer service. The first hotel to make sure the greatest female singer of all time was in my hotel room while I unpacked. I've been asking for over a decade for this to happen, and never imagined it'd finally happen at the Black Hawk Hotel in Cedar Falls, IA.

The Black Hawk Hotel goes way back...they even claim to be the oldest operating hotel in the country! About 15 minutes from Waterloo, it scratched all my itches...historic, cool, comfy, and they had a "Special Requests" box on the website. So, I put in what I always put in, "I would love to unpack and fall asleep with a picture of the First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald." And look! 

And they delivered!

CEDIT: Rabe/TSM
Ella Fitzgerald, a beverage, and a smiling James (not pictured).
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I didn't expect to feel as uplifted as I did. Thru the whole weekend, I'd glance at the frame and smile. That's service. Well done, BHH. If you're looking for a getaway, you can't beat this great hotel. My room was $114/night. Others are higher, but I don't think I saw one for more than $200. Plus, you're downtown so shopping, eating, all of it.

Wedding Trip to Iowa

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