Madame Savitsky

Many people ask how I came up with the names of the rooms at the Inn. We have the Nantucket Suite which is somewhat obvious...a beachy, cottagy feel prevails there. Then there's Sara's Hideaway, Kathleen's Boudoir and Eileen's Garden Cottage....all named for our three daughters. And last but certainly not least is Madame Savitsky's Parlor. This name comes with a little history....pertaining to me, and as it turns out it really does have an interesting history. I will get to the latter after I explain how I came up with the name. Quite a few years ago while at an estate sale in Mendham, NJ I came across a trunk. It was marked five dollars. It wasn't particularly special at first glance just really a box with no markings. Until I looked closer....the label was a shipping label and was addressed to Countess Madame Savitsky. Well of course at that point I had to buy it and my imagination ran wild with who this person was. It was before the days of computers, however, so I really never thought to look her up as it is so easy to do now. I brought it home and put it in a place of honor in what was our first home. I always thought that if I ever had a shop I would call it "Madame Savitsy's Trunk". So that is my history with the Countess and hence the name of one of the rooms here at the Inn. Fast forward to about 20 years later. The other day I answered the phone to a gentlemen wishing to make a reservation in Madame Savitsky's Parlor. I took all his information, we chatted a bit and then he asked...."tell me....how did you come up with the names for your rooms, particularly the one I'm going to stay in?". I gave him the story. His answer to me was, "well I know all about her and she actually was pretty well known in the early 1900's". Well, you could've knocked me over....what are the chances at this point in my life of ever hearing those words? I don't even have the trunk anymore, as in one of our moves it got lost somehow. Her story goes like this.....She was well known for having a Salon in Paris. She entertained many authors including Ezra Pound and James Joyce. She actually translated in French Joyce's novel "Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man". She apparently spent time at Franklin Farms Estate in Mendham which is how I acquired the trunk. Life is amazing isn't it? How our lives are intertwined often without us ever knowing it. And I am almost certain that Madame Savitsky's spirit is up there somewhere in that room! Keeping Inn touch.....