It is very common for travelers to collect souvenirs from the places that they’ve been to. It is usually something that you can collect or even keep in your home to display. This Italian traveler, however, has chosen quite a peculiar souvenir to collect from all the places that he’s been to. Retired UN worker Edoardo Flores likes to collect Do Not Disturb signs from hotels all over the world.
In all his travels, Flores has been able to collect more than 15,000 Do Not Disturb Signs. These signs are usually hung in hotel room doors to inform the resident housekeeping staff that they do not want the room to be cleaned or restocked. It is also a way to tell the hotel staff that they do not want to be disturbed for any reason.
Flores started his collection when a coworker noticed an odd Do Not Disturb sign that he saw in an office in Pakistan. He suggested that Flores collect signs because of all his travels for business. It has been several years and his collection has grown and now includes signs from hotels all over the world.
“I didn’t have a collection in mind when I took a few signs as souvenirs from business trips,” says Flores. He also added that he took other souvenirs from hotels during his travels. And his collection has grown from more than just his efforts. He has also recruited his coworkers and friends to collect Do Not Disturb signs that they find odd or interesting.
According to Flores, the most interesting signs that he has collected are from the 1940’s and 1950’s. He says the signs are “mostly humorous designs on one side and lengthy instructions for their use on the other”.