The Driskill , a Romanesque -style building completed in 1886, is the oldest operating hotel in Austin, Texas , United States, and one of the best-known hotels in Texas generally. The Driskill was conceived and built by Col. Jesse Driskill, a cattleman who spent his fortune constructing "the finest hotel south of St. Louis ".
81-612: Today, the Driskill remains one of the premier hotels in Austin, featuring lavish bridal suites, two restaurants, and a grand ballroom. The Driskill has been operated by Hyatt Hotels Corporation since 2013. The hotel was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on November 25, 1969. The Driskill is composed of two interconnected buildings; the original four-story Romanesque Revival building constructed in 1886, and
162-581: A 13-story annex constructed in 1930. The original building, designed by local Austin architects J. N. Preston & Son , was constructed with over six million pressed bricks and white limestone accents. The building contains two porticos on the southern and eastern facades, which contain large Richardsonian -style arches that were reputed to be the largest in Texas. The facade contains three limestone busts of Driskill and his sons; J.W. "Bud" Driskill facing Brazos Street, A. W. "Tobe" Driskill facing an alley on
243-501: A bungalow penthouse that is only accessible from the building's roof. The bungalow contains two bedrooms with private baths, a living room, and a full kitchen. The bungalow was originally used as a private residence by superintendents of the Southern Pacific Railroad , but was later rented to high-profile guests including Jack Dempsey , Bob Hope , and President Lyndon Johnson . In 1979, the hotel manager restored
324-422: A cold room to progressively hotter rooms. Men are usually washed by male bath attendants and women by female attendants before they are given a massage. Some details of the process vary from region to region, such as the presence or absence of pools where visitors can immerse themselves in water. In more conservative areas women are less likely to bathe in just their underwear while in areas where hammams have become
405-834: A decline in their use – although to varying degrees depending on regional cultural practices. In many regions hammams have been abandoned, demolished or converted to serve as commercial buildings or cultural venues. Some have been converted into museums or art galleries , as with the examples of the Bayezid II Hamam in Istanbul , which now houses a hammam museum, and the Davud Pasha (or Daut Pasha) Hamam in Skopje , North Macedonia . In Turkey many historic hammams continue to operate either for locals or for tourists; in some cases this has led to neglected historic hammams such as
486-414: A favorite place on return trips to Austin during his presidency. He watched the results of the 1964 Presidential Election from its presidential suite and addressed supporters from its ballroom after his victory. President Bill Clinton stayed in the four-room Cattle Baron's suite when he visited Austin in 1999. On September 11, 2001, Jenna Bush , daughter of President George W. Bush , was relocated to
567-416: A hammam after childbirth or illness. However, even al-Ghazali thought it admissible for men to prohibit their wives or sisters from using the hammam. For al-Ghazali the main point of contention surrounding hammams was nakedness, and he warned that overt nakedness was to be avoided ("… he should shield it from the sight of others and second, guard against the touch of others.") His writing focused especially on
648-579: A high-quality hotel near a major airport was a valuable business strategy. Within two years, they opened Hyatt House Hotels near San Francisco International Airport and Seattle–Tacoma International Airport . The company went public in 1962 as Hyatt Corporation. It had two divisions: Hyatt House Hotels and Hyatt Chalet Motels (renamed Hyatt Lodges in 1966). In 1967, the company opened the Regency Hyatt House in Atlanta, Georgia (today named
729-483: A lifestyle hotel operator for $ 125 million, with up to an additional $ 175 million over the next six years as properties come into the pipeline and open. Dream Hotels Group's portfolio include 12 managed or franchised lifestyle hotels under four brands. In April 2023, Hyatt acquired Mr and Mrs Smith, a UK-based platform offering direct booking access to over 1,500 boutique and luxury properties worldwide for £53.0 million in cash consideration. In June 2024, Hyatt acquired
810-420: A loss of $ 25,000 in 1903 to banking competitor, e.l. Wilmot. Under Wilmot's ownership, the hotel was managed by hotelier W.L. Stark, who added a barbershop and women's spa featuring Turkish baths , oversaw the construction of the annex, and adorned the former smoking room with eight antique Austrian gold leaf-framed mirrors previously owned by Maximilian and Carlota of Mexico . In 1950, the hotel embarked on
891-716: A private company in 1979, when the Pritzkers bought the outstanding shares. Elsinore was spun off as a public company. The company opened the Playboy Hotel and Casino as a joint venture with Playboy Enterprises . Alongside the Hyatt Regency brand, the company introduced the Grand Hyatt brand in 1980, with the opening of the Grand Hyatt New York (now Hyatt Grand Central). That same year,
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#1732772978096972-754: A renovation, which closed off the Sixth Street entrance and removed the rotunda's skylight to make way for air conditioning units on the roof. In 1952, the former Austin National Bank was transformed into a television studio for KTBC , the very first television station in Central Texas. In 1969, The Driskill closed its guest rooms in anticipation of a renovation and new tower containing a modern glass facade, which never materialized. Most of its furnishings were sold, and an American-Statesman article declared, "Driskill Hotel's Fate 'Sealed'." The hotel
1053-493: A series of acquisitions, especially in the lifestyle and resort segments. Today, Hyatt categorizes its brands under four categories: timeless collection (containing Hyatt's classic brands), boundless collection (lifestyle brands), independent collection (soft-branded independent properties) and inclusive collection (all-inclusive hotels). Timeless Collection houses Hyatt's signature hotel brands, including: Boundless Collection houses Hyatt's lifestyle hotel brands. Following
1134-594: A source of revenue for the upkeep of other institutions such as mosques. In the 11th century the Seljuk Empire conquered much of Anatolia from the Byzantine Empire , eventually leading to the complete conquest of the remnants of the old empire in the 15th century. During those centuries of war, peace, alliance, trade and competition, these intermixing cultures (Eastern Roman, Islamic Persian and Turkic ) had tremendous influence on each other. Later
1215-622: A strong Eastern Roman bath culture, with the Baths of Zeuxippus constituting one early example. Ottoman architects expanded on the experience of Byzantine architects to create particularly well-balanced designs with greater symmetry and regularity in the arrangement of space than could be seen in hammams in other parts of the Muslim world. Some of the city's oldest monumental hammams are the Tahtakale Hamam (probably built right after 1454),
1296-474: A strong culture of public bathing, historical texts mention the existence of bathhouses in the 10th century as well as the use of hot springs for therapeutic purposes; however, there has been relatively little archeological investigation to document the early presence and development of hammams in this region. Muslims retained many of the main elements of the classical bathhouses while leaving out functions which were less relevant to their practices. For example,
1377-549: A three-day performance at the Driskill Hotel. In attendance was Charles Black , a freshman at University of Texas at Austin at the time, who cited the performance as inspiration for his interest in race and civil rights. In 1934, future President Lyndon Johnson met his future wife, Claudia Taylor , for their first date at the Driskill dining room. It became his campaign headquarters during his congressional career, especially during his famous 1948 Senate race, and became
1458-450: A woman or a man can make someone included or excluded. Therefore, they represent a departure from the public sphere in which one is physically exposed amongst other women or men. This declaration of sexuality merely by being nude makes hammams a site of gendered expression. One exception to this gender segregation is the presence of young boys who often accompany their mothers until they reach the age of five or six when they switch to attending
1539-653: Is a noun meaning "bath", "bathroom", "bathhouse", "swimming pool", etc. derived from the Arabic triconsonantal root H-M-M ( ح م م ) which yields meanings related to heat or heating. From Arabic حمّام , it passed on to Persian ( حمام ) and Turkish ( hamam ). In English, the inaccurate term "Turkish bath" is also used to refer to hammams. This stems from the tendency of historical Western writers to conflate ethnic and religious terms by referring to Muslims as "Turk" and because they presented hammams largely as an Ottoman cultural feature. The first recorded use of
1620-493: Is also required before or after sexual intercourse. Knowing that, May Telmissany , a professor at the University of Ottawa , argues that the image of a hyper-sexualised woman leaving the hammam is an Orientalist way of looking at things that sees leaving or attending the hammam as an indicator of sexual behaviour. Most hammams expect their clients to undress down to a modesty garment or loincloth , before proceeding from
1701-614: Is an American multinational hospitality company headquartered in the Riverside Plaza area of Chicago that manages and franchises luxury and business hotels , resorts , and vacation properties. Hyatt Hotels & Resorts is one of the businesses managed by the Pritzker family . Hyatt has more than 1350 hotels and all-inclusive properties in 69 countries, across South America, North America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia The Hyatt Corporation came into being upon purchase of
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#17327729780961782-641: Is one of the Five Pillars of Islam and it is customary to perform ablutions before praying. The two Islamic forms of ablution are ghusl , a full-body cleansing, and wudu , a cleansing of the face, hands, and feet. In the absence of water, cleansing with pure soil or sand is also permissible. Mosques always provide a place to wash, but hammams are often located nearby for deeper cleansing. Many are actually part of mosque complexes. Hammams, particularly in Morocco, evolved from their Roman origins to meet
1863-593: Is positioned as a luxury brand, with the first hotel being a rebrand of the Great Eastern Hotel in London , followed by hotels in San Diego , West Hollywood , Shanghai and New York City . In August 2009, it was reported that Hyatt Hotels Corporation filed plans to raise up to $ 1.15 billion in an initial share sale. That November Hyatt completed an initial public offering and began trading publicly on
1944-744: Is said to be home to more than one ghost, including seven-year-old Samantha, who died after falling down the Grand Staircase chasing a ball. In 1908, the Daughters of the Republic of Texas met at the Driskill hotel to discuss the fate of the Alamo Mission in San Antonio . At the meeting, a divide between two factions of the group erupted over whether to demolish or preserve the structure. On October 12, 1931, Louis Armstrong opened
2025-511: The Blackstone Group , a New York -based private equity investment firm. Blackstone had inherited AmeriSuites from its 2004 acquisition of Prime Hospitality. The AmeriSuites chain was rebranded and called Hyatt Place, a competitor to the limited-service products Marriott International 's Courtyard by Marriott and Hilton Worldwide 's Hilton Garden Inn . In December 2005, Hyatt acquired limited service company Summerfield Suites from
2106-589: The Hyatt Regency Atlanta ). The futuristic hotel was designed by Atlanta architect John Portman , who would go on to design many other hotels for the chain. It featured a massive indoor atrium, which soon became a distinctive feature of many Hyatt properties. In 1968, Hyatt International was formed, to operate hotels outside the United States. It would soon become a separate company. In 1969, Hyatt opened its first international hotel, when it
2187-912: The JdV by Hyatt brand. In 2024, Hyatt purchased the Me And All Hotels brand from Lindner. Hyatt operates a loyalty program called World of Hyatt , which replaced Gold Passport on March 1, 2017. This program includes membership tiers of base members, Discoverists, Explorists, and Globalists. The program offers Hyatt members benefits such as room upgrades and complimentary breakfast, based on how many nights they stayed in Hyatt-affiliated hotels or how much they spend in Hyatt properties. Fortune magazine ranked Hyatt #32 on its list of "America's Best Companies to Work For" in 2019, rising to #16 in 2021. The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has awarded
2268-811: The Joie de Vivre , Destination , Alila , and Thompson hotel brands to the Hyatt portfolio, a growth of 85 hotels in 23 markets. In March 2021, Hyatt announced the official opening of Hyatt's 1,000th hotel worldwide, Alila Napa Valley in St. Helena, California. In August 2021, Hyatt acquired Apple Leisure Group (ALG), a luxury resort-management services, travel and hospitality group, from affiliates of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and KSL Capital Partners for $ 2.7 billion in cash. ALG's hotel portfolio consists of over 33,000 rooms operating in 10 countries. The acquisition will extend Hyatt's brand footprint into 11 more European markets. In November 2022, Hyatt acquired Dream Hotels Group ,
2349-652: The Kılıç Ali Pasa Hamamı and the Hürrem Sultan Hamamı being renovated and returned to their original function, while others were abandoned or repurposed. In Morocco, many hammams continue to serve locals in historic cities such as Fes and Marrakesh , where they are especially useful to the urban poor residing in the old cities ( medina s). In many other regions, however, hammams have become obsolete and have either been abandoned or converted to other uses. In Iran, some baths continue to operate in
2430-542: The Littlefield House , opened the Austin National Bank on the southeast corner of the building; the old bank vault still remains. Littlefield later purchased the hotel for $ 106,000 in 1895 and vowed that it would never close again. Littlefield invested over $ 60,000 in renovations, including ceiling frescoes, electric lighting, steam heating, and 28 additional lavatories, but still sold the hotel at
2511-686: The Mahmut Pasha Hamam (built in 1466), and the Bayezid II Hamam (built some time between 1500 and 1507). The monumental hammams designed by the 16th-century Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan (1489–1588), such as the Çemberlitaş Hamamı , the Süleymaniye Hamam (in the complex of the Süleymaniye Mosque ), and the Haseki Hürrem Sultan Hamam , are major examples of hammams that were built later in
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2592-1078: The New York Stock Exchange under the symbol H. According to the filing Mark S. Hoplamazian was to serve as CEO and Thomas Pritzker as Executive Chairman . The public offering was a result of the acrimonious breakup of the Pritzker family empire. Accused of looting family trusts, Thomas and cousins Penny and Nicholas took control of the family businesses when they and other family members were sued by cousin Liesel Pritzker , claiming fraud and seeking damages of over US$ 6 billion. On September 1, 2011, Hyatt acquired Hotel Sierra, which had 18 properties in 10 states. Along with Hyatt Summerfield Suites hotels, several of these properties were rebranded as Hyatt house in January 2012. In November 2013, Hyatt introduced their first all-inclusive resort brands, Hyatt Ziva and Hyatt Zilara, with
2673-1028: The Ottomans became prolific patrons of hammams. Since they were social centres as well as baths, they were built in almost every city across their European, Asian, and African territories. The Ottomans were thus responsible for introducing hammams to much of eastern and central Europe, where many still exist today in various states of restoration or disrepair. Such Turkish baths are found as far as Bosnia and Herzegovina , Greece , and Hungary . Many early Ottoman hammams survive in Bursa and Edirne , as well as in Eastern Europe and Anatolia , but hammams became even more numerous and architecturally ambitious in Constantinople (Istanbul) , thanks to its royal patronage, its large population and its access to plentiful water. The city's Greek inhabitants had retained
2754-633: The culture of the Muslim world and was inherited from the model of the Roman thermae . Muslim bathhouses or hammams were historically found across the Middle East , North Africa , al-Andalus (Islamic Iberia , i.e. Spain and Portugal ), Central Asia , the Indian subcontinent , and in Southeastern Europe under Ottoman rule . In Islamic cultures the significance of the hammam
2835-476: The expansion of Arab Muslim rule over much of the Middle East and North Africa in the 7th and 8th centuries, the emerging Islamic societies were quick to adapt the bathhouse to their own needs. Its importance to Muslim society lay in the religious requirement to perform ablutions ( wudu and ghusl ) before praying and because of the general Islamic emphasis on physical and spiritual purity , although
2916-531: The 10th century many places started to provide separate hours (or separate facilities) for men and women. The hammam then took on an important role in women's social life as one of the few public spaces where they could gather and socialise apart from men. Some hammams were privately owned or formed parts of palaces and mansions, but in many cases they were civic or charitable institutions which formed part of larger religious/civic complexes. Such complexes were governed by waqf agreements, and hammams often acted as
2997-425: The 20th century. A massage in a hammam is likely to involve not just vigorous muscle kneading, but also joint cracking - "not so much a tender working of the flesh as a pummelling, a cracking of joints, a twisting of limbs". Hammams aiming for a tourist clientele are likely to also offer an array of different types of massage similar to what might be offered in a spa. Arab hammams are gendered spaces where being
3078-581: The 9th century most scholars were no longer interested in debating the validity of hammams, although it continued to be seen with suspicion in some conservative circles. The earliest known Islamic hammams were built in Syria and Jordan during the Umayyad Caliphate (661–750) as part of palaces and desert castles at Qusayr 'Amra , Hammam al-Sarah , Qasr al-Hayr al-Sharqi , and Khirbat al-Majfar . Shortly after this period, archaeology reveals
3159-526: The Blackstone Group. Blackstone had inherited Summerfield Suites from its purchase of Wyndham International . In January 2012, Hyatt Summerfield Suites were rebranded as Hyatt House in 2012 to compete in the "upscale extended stay market" against Residence Inn , Homewood Suites, and Staybridge Suites. Hyatt launched its first lifestyle brand, Andaz, in April 2007. Hindi for the word 'style', Andaz
3240-523: The Grand Hyatt and Park Hyatt brands to its portfolio. In 1995, Hyatt entered the vacation ownership market. Hyatt introduced the Hyatt Place brand, designed as a limited service offering for business travelers, in 2006. Hyatt House was Hyatt's first select-service property, catering primarily to travelers with long-term stays and at a more economical price point. Since then, Hyatt has added a wide range of other brands either through organic growth or via
3321-555: The Hyatt House, at Los Angeles International Airport , on September 27, 1957. In 1969, Hyatt began expanding internationally. Hyatt has expanded its footprint through a number of acquisitions, including the acquisition of AmeriSuites (later rebranded Hyatt Place) in 2004, Summerfield Suites (later rebranded Hyatt House) in 2005, Two Roads Hospitality in 2018, Apple Leisure Group in 2021, Dream Hotel Group in 2023 and Standard International in 2024. The first Hyatt House
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3402-525: The World, which allowed World of Hyatt members to earn and redeem points during their stays at participating SLH properties. The partnership has since ceased in 2024 following Hyatt's acquisition of Mr & Mrs Smith, a direct booking platform of luxury hotels. In 2022, Hyatt entered into an exclusive collaboration agreement with Lindner Hotels AG, a German hotel operator, in bringing more than 30 hotels across seven European countries into Hyatt's portfolio under
3483-990: The acquisition of Standard Hotels announced in August 2024, Hyatt will form a dedicated lifestyle group led by Standard International's Executive Chairman Amar Lalvani overseeing all lifestyle hotel operations. Current brands in the portfolio include: Independent Collection houses Hyatt's soft brands of independent hotels, including: Formerly AMR Collection and AMResorts of Apple Leisure Group , Inclusive Collection houses Hyatt's all-inclusive resort brands following its 2021 acquisition of ALG . Brands include: In 2013, Hyatt partnered with MGM Resorts International in bringing 12 MGM properties in Las Vegas to Hyatt booking channels, as well as in-depth collaborations with each other's loyalty program. The partnership ended in 2023 when MGM partnered with Marriott International instead. In 2018, Hyatt began partnering with Small Luxury Hotels of
3564-413: The appropriate forms of conduct for many aspects of Muslim life and death. One of the volumes, entitled The Mysteries of Purity , details the proper technique for performing ablutions before prayer and the major ablution ( ghusil ) after anything which renders it necessary, such as the emission of semen. For al-Ghazali, the hammam is a primarily male institution, and he cautions that women should only enter
3645-525: The beginning of the 19th century but only eight were still in business by the start of the 21st century, with many others abandoned or neglected. In the former European territories of the Ottoman Empire such as Greece and the Balkans , many hammams became defunct or were neglected in modern times, although some have now been restored and turned into historic monuments or cultural centres. Prayer
3726-666: The boutique Park Hyatt brand was also introduced. The Pritzkers took Hyatt International private as well, in 1982. However, Hyatt and Hyatt International remained two separate companies until June 2004, when substantially all of the hospitality assets owned by the Pritzker family business interests, including Hyatt Corporation and Hyatt International Corporation, were consolidated under a single entity called Global Hyatt Corp. On June 30, 2009, Global Hyatt Corporation changed its name to Hyatt Hotels Corporation. In December 2004, Hyatt Hotels Corporation acquired AmeriSuites , an upscale chain of all-suite business class hotels from affiliates of
3807-537: The bungalow to use as his private residence. Jesse Driskill, a successful cattle baron, had moved to Texas from Missouri in 1849. Flush with cash from his service to the Confederate Army , to which he supplied beef throughout the Civil War , he decided to diversify by constructing a grand hotel in Austin. In 1884, Driskill purchased land at the corner of 6th and Brazos for $ 7,500 and announced his plans for
3888-493: The cigar smoke and rough talk of the cattlemen in the lobby. The second floor contained the main dining room and ballroom, separate parlors for men and women, a children's dining room, and bridal suites. Other embellishments included an electric bell system, marble bureaus, steam heating, and gas lighting. The 13-story annex, designed by the El Paso architecture firm Trost & Trost , opened in 1930. The 180-room annex contains
3969-540: The company 100% in the HRC Equality Index for more than ten years, last in 2020. [REDACTED] Media related to Hyatt at Wikimedia Commons Turkish baths A hammam ( Arabic : حمّام , romanized : ḥammām ), also often called a Turkish bath by Westerners, is a type of steam bath or a place of public bathing associated with the Islamic world . It is a prominent feature in
4050-607: The continued popular appreciation of its pleasures in a region where they had already existed for centuries. He also notes that there was initially strong opposition from many Islamic scholars ( ulama ) , especially Maliki scholars, to the use of hammams. These scholars viewed hammams as unnecessary for full-body ablutions ( ghusl ) and questioned whether public bathing spaces could be sufficiently clean to achieve proper purification . They also worried that spaces for collective bathing could become spaces for illicit sexual activity. Nevertheless, this opposition progressively faded and by
4131-556: The era of classical Ottoman architecture . When Sultan Mustafa III issued a decree halting the construction of new public baths in the city in 1768, it seems to have resulted in an increase in the number of private hammams among the wealthy and the elites, especially in the Bosphorus suburbs where they built luxurious summer homes. In Iran, many examples of hammams survive from the Safavid period (16th–18th centuries) onward, with
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#17327729780964212-493: The everyday interactions of Moroccans in the hammam. Staats argues that hammams are places where women can feel more at ease than in many other public interactions. In addition, in his work Sexuality in Islam, Abdelwahab Bouhdiba cites the hammam as a place where homosexual encounters in general can take place. He notes that some historians found evidence of hammams as spaces for sexual expression among women, which they believed
4293-579: The existence of Islamic bathhouses across much of the Muslim world, with hammams appearing as far west as Volubilis (itself a former Roman colony) in Morocco during the Idrisid period (late 8th to early 9th centuries). Historical texts and archeological evidence also indicate the existence of hammams in Cordoba and other cities of al-Andalus in the 8th century. In Iran , which did not previously have
4374-480: The first resorts being opened in Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, Los Cabos and Rose Hall, Montego Bay, Jamaica. On October 28, 2015, Hyatt announced that they were in advanced talks to acquire Starwood Hotels in a cash and stock transaction. The transaction was not completed, and Starwood was acquired by Marriott International instead. In 2018, Hyatt saw expansion with the acquisition of Two Roads Hospitality. This added
4455-581: The gala event that included a parade of every Texas Governor and/or their descendants, since 1886. All proceeds from the event went to the Austin Heritage Society, who was strategically instrumental in the resurrection of the Hotel Driskill. In 1995, The Driskill was purchased by Great American Life Insurance, who embarked on a $ 30 million renovation to restore the hotel to its original appearance, which had been heavily modified over
4536-612: The gender of the visitor) with the use of soap and vigorous rubbing, before ending by washing themselves in warm water. Unlike in Roman or Greek baths, bathers usually wash themselves with running water instead of immersing themselves in standing water since this is a requirement of Islam, though immersion in a pool used to be customary in the hammams of some regions such as Iran . While hammams everywhere generally operate in fairly similar ways, there are some regional differences both in usage and architecture. The word "hammam" ( حَمَّام )
4617-410: The hammam experience such as jewel boxes, gilded soap boxes, mirrors, metal henna bowls, perfume bottles and nalın (wooden or mother-of-pearl clogs that prevented slipping on the wet floor) can now only be seen in museums. Traditionally, the bathhouse masseurs ( Turkish : tellak ) were young men who soaped and scrubbed their clients. However, the tellaks were replaced by adult attendants during
4698-532: The historic city of Isfahan in particular containing many examples. The spread of Muslim rule in the Indian subcontinent also introduced hammams to this region, with many examples surviving in Mughal architecture (16th–19th centuries). Hammams continued to be a vital part of urban life in the Muslim world until the early 20th century when the spread of indoor plumbing in private homes rendered public baths unnecessary for personal hygiene. This has resulted in
4779-532: The historic districts of cities like Isfahan where they continue to serve religious functions, but there is an overall decline in their numbers. Many surviving Iranian examples have been converted to other uses, most notably as restaurants and teahouses . In Damascus , Syria , only thirteen hammams were still operating in 2004, mostly in the old city; many others had been either demolished or repurposed. Cairo in Egypt contained an estimated 77 operational hammams at
4860-520: The hot air and cool the building; the skylight was removed when air conditioning was installed on the roof in 1950. The building was designed for separate entrances for men and women. Two entrances, one on Sixth Street and another facing the alleyway on the west side the building, were reserved for men and were flanked by a saloon, billiard room, cigar shop, a newsstand and a barbershop featuring baths. The women's entrance on Brazos Street allowed female guests to proceed directly to their rooms, thereby avoiding
4941-492: The hotel by the Secret Service in the wake of the terrorist attacks earlier that day . On March 17, 2018, actor Bill Murray and cellist Jan Vogler recited the poem "Dog" by Lawrence Ferlinghetti from the front steps of the Driskill Hotel to promote the film Isle of Dogs during the 2018 South by Southwest festival. Hyatt Hyatt Hotels Corporation , commonly known as Hyatt Hotels & Resorts ,
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#17327729780965022-548: The hotel following a harsh winter and drought that killed his cattle inventory. In addition, S.E. McIlhenny, the hotel's general manager, and half of the staff were hired by the Beach Hotel in Galveston , which expedited the closure. Driskill sold the hotel in 1888 to his brother-in-law, Jim "Doc" Day, who reopened the hotel in January 1888. Austin magnate George Littlefield , responsible for other Austin landmarks such as
5103-400: The hotel. The hotel held a grand opening on December 20, 1886, and was featured in a special edition of the Austin Daily Statesman . On January 1, 1887, Governor Sul Ross held his inaugural ball in its ballroom, beginning a tradition for every Texas governor since. In May 1887, less than a year after it opened, Driskill was forced to close the hotel, as he could no longer afford to operate
5184-545: The layout of Roman and Greek bathhouses and featured a regular sequence of rooms: an undressing room , a cold room , a warm room , and a hot room . Heat was produced by furnaces which provided hot water and steam , while smoke and hot air was channeled through conduits under the floor . In a modern hammam visitors undress themselves, while retaining some sort of modesty garment or loincloth , and proceed into progressively hotter rooms, inducing perspiration . They are then usually washed by male or female staff (matching
5265-424: The male hammam with their fathers. Women's hammams play a special role in society. Valerie Staats finds that the women's hammams of Morocco serve as a social space where traditional and modern women from urban and rural areas of the country come together, regardless of their religiosity, to bathe and socialise. The bathing regulations laid down by al-Ghazali and other Islamic intellectuals are not usually upheld in
5346-443: The me and all hotels brand from Lindner Hotels AG, for which Hyatt has entered into a strategic collaboration with in 2022, consisting of six lifestyle hotels and over 1,000 rooms in central city locations across Germany. In August 2024, Hyatt announced the planned acquisition of Standard International , an upscale boutique hotel operator, for $ 150 million, with up to an additional $ 185 million over time as additional properties enter
5427-417: The need to avoid touching the penis during bathing and after urination, and wrote that nakedness was decent only when the area between a man's knees and lower stomach was hidden. For women he suggested that only exposure of the face and palms was appropriate. According to al-Ghazali, nakedness in the hammam could incite indecent thoughts and behaviours, hence its controversial nature. In Islam ritual ablution
5508-429: The needs of ritual purification according to Islam. For example, in most Roman-style hammams, there was a cold pool for submersion of the body, a style of bathing that finds less favour with Islam which regards bathing under running water without being fully submerged more appropriate. Al-Ghazali , a prominent Muslim theologian of the 11th century, wrote Revival of the Religious Sciences , a multi-volume work discussing
5589-535: The portfolio. The acquisition consists of 21 open hotels and more than 30 future properties under The Standard, Bunkhouse Hotels, Peri Hotels, The StandardX, and The Manner brands. With the transaction, Hyatt will form a new dedicated lifestyle group, managing all lifestyle brands and operations led by Standard International's Executive Chairman Amar Lalvani. Hyatt-branded properties have traditionally catered to upscale or business customers; its properties were either full-service or boutique hotels. In 1980, Hyatt added
5670-418: The preserve mainly of tourists there is more likelihood that women will bathe naked. Some hammam complexes contain separate sections for men and women; elsewhere men and women are admitted at different times in which case the hours for women are usually far more limited than those for men. Traditionally hammams, especially those for women, doubled as places of entertainment with dancing and food being shared. It
5751-455: The progression from cold room to hot room was maintained, but it was no longer common practice to take a plunge in cold water after leaving the hot room, nor was exercise incorporated into bathing culture as it was in classical gymnasiums . Likewise, Muslim bathers usually washed themselves in running water rather than immersing themselves in standing water. Although in early Islamic history women did not normally patronise hammams, by around
5832-402: The scholar Mohammed Hocine Benkheira has argued that hammams were not in fact necessary for religious purposes in early Islam and that this relationship was partly assumed by later historians. He suggests that the hammam's initial appeal derived at least in part from its convenience for other services (such as shaving ), from its endorsement by some Muslim doctors as a form of therapy, and from
5913-537: The term 'Turkish bath' in English was in 1644. Public bathhouses were a prominent civic and urban institution in Roman and Hellenistic culture and were found throughout the Mediterranean world. They remained important in the cities of the early Byzantine Empire up to around the mid-6th century, after which the construction of new bathhouses declined and existing ones were gradually abandoned. Following
5994-402: The west side, and Jesse Driskill facing Sixth Street, whose bust is surrounded by decorative carvings including longhorns on the gable ends. The hotel opened with 60 rooms including 12 corner rooms with attached baths, a rare feature in hotels of the region at the time. At the center of the hotel was a four-story open rotunda capped by a domed skylight, which functioned as a flue to suck up
6075-584: The years. The hotel closed for four years for renovation work and was re-opened in a Millennium celebration on December 31, 1999. In 2013, The Driskill was purchased by Hyatt Hotels Corporation for $ 85 million, who embarked on an $ 8 million renovation of the hotel. Hyatt sold the hotel to Dallas-based Woodbine Development in May 2022 for $ 125 million. In addition to its beautiful architecture and rich history, The Driskill continues to draw attention due to its host of tragedies and rumors of paranormal activity. The hotel
6156-505: Was a result of the universality of nudity in these spaces. Hammams have also been associated with male homosexuality over the centuries and up to the present day. Features Types Types Features Clothing Genres Art music Folk Prose Islamic Poetry Genres Forms Arabic prosody National literatures of Arab States Concepts Texts Fictional Arab people South Arabian deities The hammam combines
6237-845: Was awarded the management contract for the President Hotel in Hong Kong, which was renamed the Hong Kong Hyatt Hotel (later known as the Hyatt Regency Hong Kong). In 1972, Hyatt formed Elsinore Corporation, a subsidiary to operate the Four Queens Hotel and Casino and the Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa & Casino. Donald Pritzker died in 1972 and Jay Pritzker continued to run the company. Hyatt became
6318-587: Was both religious and civic: it provided for the needs of ritual ablutions but also provided for general hygiene in an era before private plumbing and served other social functions such as offering a gendered meeting place for men and for women. Archeological remains attest to the existence of bathhouses in the Islamic world as early as the Umayyad period (7th–8th centuries) and their importance has persisted up to modern times. Their architecture evolved from
6399-440: Was common to visit hammams before weddings or religious holidays, to celebrate births, to swap beauty tips, etc. Women also used visits to the hammam to size up potential wives for their sons. Some accessories from Roman times survive in modern hammams, such as the peştemal (a special cloth of silk and/or cotton to cover the body, like a pareo ) and the kese (a rough mitten used for scrubbing). However, other accoutrements of
6480-416: Was opened in 1954 by business partners Hyatt Robert von Dehn and Jack Dyer Crouch as a motel near Los Angeles International Airport . In 1957, the hotel was purchased by entrepreneur Jay Pritzker for US$ 2.2 million . His younger brother, Donald Pritzker , also took on an important role in the company. Considering the growing use of air travel for business, the Pritzker brothers realized that locating
6561-643: Was saved from the wrecking ball at almost the last minute, however, when a nonprofit organization called the Driskill Hotel Corporation raised $ 900,000. Braniff International Hotels, Inc., a division of Braniff Airways, Inc. , of Dallas, Texas, bought the hotel in 1972 and began a $ 350,000 restoration of the grand lobby of the historic facility. Braniff reopened the hotel to customers on January 15, 1973, to very strong bookings and conference business. Braniff threw an official grand reopening celebration on February 10, 1973. Over 1000 guests attended
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