Play the Game of Life
Ryan Petersen's Blog

Shenzhen's Dong Hu (East Lake) Hotel bears an eerie resemblence to what the Godfather's house on Lake Tahoe would look like if it hadn't been maintained at all until today, thirty years later. Damp, moldy air permeates the once luxurious hotel's mazelike corridors, providing a poignant reminder of the don's downfall.

Government officials, police officers and other powerful people retreat to the hidden offices and tucked-away gambling parlors deep in her belly, where watchful eyes cannot wander. Red envelopes glide gently across mahjong tables while young mistresses wait by the pool. Clouds of dew take shelter from the oppressive humidity on hallway mirrors, where even your own reflection is distorted.


Throughout the hotel grounds, evidence of a bygone age of elegance appears like memories of a dream that you try desperately to hold onto as you drift helplessly into the demanding arms of the next one. Could such a gilted age really have existed in the distant past? It seems unlikely in this, China's most infamous boom town. Shenzhen was just a fishing village when the Godfather ruled the roost. So what could be passed off as a charming version of faded luxury, must instead be characterized as a poorly maintained, scuzzy hotel.

Labels: china, my favorite posts