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The Mandragora Hostel provides a welcome city retreat for fans of the sorts of furnishings and vibrations one finds in an ashram—as opposed to, say, a hostel. This is not a party hostel, but a place of peaceful tranquility. For four nights, the Mandragora served as our comfy crash pad. It was a lovely respite following long days spent pounding budget accommodation pavement.
The fourteen beds and double Domino Room sit inside a turn-of-the-last-century building on a narrow street it shares with the Frank Zappa café, a world music store, and neighbors who string Tibetan peace flags along window ledges.
Mandragora staff is made up of part-time yoga teachers and interior design fanatics. They can usually be found off the large guest kitchen, greeting guests, cleaning floors, and lighting incense. Breakfast is available for a price if requested one day in advance. Breakfast options include yogurt and fruit for €3 or goose liver, jam, cheese, and bread for €4.
Inspired details are found throughout, with dorm rooms resembling five-star yoga retreats more than typical youth hostel quarters. Red lamps illuminate chakra maps hanging on an orange wall. Candles burn inside stained glass holders. Light reflects off oddly-shaped tiny mirrors on the walls. Plant life adds still more color.
Give peace a chance, brother, or sleep somewhere else.
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