Uptown Inn, Clarksdale, MS

We are generally easy travelers. Give us a clean bed and a hot shower, and life is OK. We know that in many towns, there are no 4-star hotels to be had. Clarksdale is one of those towns.

We found Clarksdale a couple of months ago on a journey to New Orleans. The town is NOT to be missed if you venture to Memphis or Tunica. This small city of 20,000 is truly "Ground Zero" for the blues. Clarksdale battles with Rosedale as to which city actually is home to the infamous "Crossroads" where Robert Johnson sold his soul to the devil. In Clarksdale, at the intersection of Highways 61 (yes, THAT Highway 61) and 49 is a monument to the event. It's also the city where legendary blues singer Bessie Smith died after a car accident. "Ground Zero" is a blues club owned in part by nearby resident Morgan Freeman (more on that later).

During our trip in January, we were invited to come back to the local Elks Lodge to do a karaoke show. My partner has a gift - why would anyone agree to pay $400-plus to a couple from Ohio to travel to the Mississippi Delta to do karaoke? But...not complaining at all! It was a great trip, and a chance to do a couple of things we missed in January.

On this trip, we definitely wanted to go to Ground Zero, which is downtown Clarksdale. Responsibility indicated we needed to be within walking distance, in case the night got too long. We chose the Uptown Inn for this reason - it was the closest.

While very inexpensive, it was clean (at least for the first day and a half) and the shower was hot. And...that's it. No service whatsoever.

I don't have a problem with a hotel charging for ice - I understand, municipal water costs money. I don't have a problem with a hotel not making the ice convenient for the customers (and anyone who walks in off the street). What I do have a problem with is doing the above, and not informing the customers that ice is only available at certain hours. Or, more importantly, UNAVAILABLE when the owner chooses to sleep.

We wanted a nightcap when we returned from the gig. The sign at the desk said "Ring Bell for service". It did not say "Don't ring the bell if you want ice." And, don't insult our intelligence by saying that the ice machine is out of order.

Yep...for the simple reason of no ice available in the middle of the night, we will spend our money elsewhere (probably more) the next time we visit Clarksdale.

Oh...and the cockroach I killed in the bathroom an hour before we left.