Ode to Homewood Suites

by Monica Yunus

O! My

Omaha is a new city for me. In fact, this is my first time in Nebraska. I love coming to a new city: restaurants to explore, new sites and the new rhythm that characterizes every city. I haven't spent much time in the Midwest but I have a lot of friends who grew up here and the one thing I do know about Midwesterners is that they are polite and friendly- always. So it should come as no surprise that the hotel we are staying in, the downtown Homewood Suites, shares the same philosophy.

Homewood Suites is fantastic! When you are away from home for months at a time, you start to miss the little things. Maybe its your favorite fleece blanket, the gadgets in your kitchen, your pets. And there are always nerves the first night in a new hotel- will the bed be comfortable, is the tv from the next room over going to keep me up, and on and on.

Not at this location. The hotel is new and from the moment I arrived, I felt welcomed. And talk about perks: breakfast every morning (and its not that powdered egg stuff either- real eggs!!), dinner four nights a week (again, very homey meals that are very tasty), beer on tap at dinner, as well as wine, and a 24 hour shuttle that will take you on your errand run, or out to your new fave restaurant, or to the drug store! Did I mention that they will do your grocery shopping for you?? No, I am not kidding! Give them your grocery list and they will run out and pick up every item for you!

Then, let me tell you about the room: I have a very spacious 2 room suite complete with not one, but two flat screen tvs, a comfy sofa, king size bed which is really comfortable, pillows galore, a kitchen with a knife that can actually cut an onion, a two top stove and a dishwasher, plus a full size fridge.

All of that, plus there is a great gym, a pool and a jacuzzi for our use.

You may say," Why is she going on and on about the hotel??" Its because when you live in one so many months out of the year, you know what customer service can mean in your life- the difference between being happy on the road and able to perform well, or being an unhappy camper.

Here's to you Homewood Suites, from one extremely happy camper!

Monica Yunus will be appearing as Countess Almaviva in Opera Omaha's production of Mozart's Comic Masterpiece The Marriage of Figaro.

During the 2009 - 2010 season Monica Yunus returns to the Metropolitan Opera as Novice in Suor Angelica and Papagena in Die Zauberflöte, and joins the Montana Lyric Opera as Gilda in Rigoletto. Recent engagements include Poussette in Manon, Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Papagena in Die Zauberflöte, and Yvette in La Rondine all at the Metropolitan Opera, Norina in Don Pasquale with Syracuse Opera, Zémire in Zémire et Azor with Arizona Opera, Lucia in the North American Premiere of Zandonai's La Farsa Amorosa with Teatro Grattacielo at Alice Tully Hall in New York, and Argentine in the American Premiere of Gluck’s L’ile de Merlin at the Spoleto Festival USA. Performances on the concert stage have taken her from the Tilles Center in New York, to the University of Francisco Marroquin in Guatemala City, to The Al Bustan International Festival of Music and Arts in Beirut, Lebanon, to The Jordan Festival where she performed with Placido Domingo, to countless recitals throughout the US and abroad.

Tickets start at just $19.

Friday | February 26, 2010 | 7:30p
Sunday | February 28, 2010 | 2:00p

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