'The Grand Continental Hotel, Dream Town' - Lucid Dream
Dream date: 6 May 2015
Day 14 of 14-Day Dream Incubation Experiment - The 'Dream Town' Dream
This is Day 14 (and final day) of my 14-Day Dream Incubation Experiment. Click on the red link to access the article which explains the experiment.
I was about to enter my house in Norwich, and saw that there were a large number of young (male) construction workers/builders outside. It was daytime and sunny. I went into my house, with the intention of making myself a cup of coffee. I then realised that it would be rude not to offer a hot drink to the construction workers. I wondered if I had enough cups. I looked in my cupboard and found I had about 4 cups - everything looked as it should in real-life. I went to the door and opened it, asking the construction workers if they wanted a tea or coffee. They said they did and entered the house. I was asking them what drinks they wanted and whether they took milk and sugar. One construction worker - a very fat young man with a shaved head said that he wanted '15 sugars' in his coffee. I refused to give him 1 sugars on the basis that it was unhealthy and said: 'You can have between 1 and 5 sugars' to which he replied he wanted 5.
I was then in my nan's house (living-room) in Sheringham. My mum and nan were there as well as several young female dream characters - all of which were small, blonde and Russian. They were standing around the living-room, laying out clothes on the back of the sofa. I think they were planning to get dressed up for a party or social event. I noticed that one of the dresses looked like a nurses uniform, and assumed the girls were all nursing students. I walked from my initial position by the window, round to the other side of the girls and then noticed that the 'nurses dress' was a white party dress which was decorated with gemstones and other sparkly details. The other clothing on the back of the sofa was similarly glamorous. I said: 'I have a skirt to show you'. I intended to find a white frilly (tulle) layered skirt with sparkly details on it and so went to a suitcase which was by the dining table and entrance to the kitchen. This suitcase was filled with my clothing. I rummaged through the bag to find the skirt, but could not. I noticed that my laptop was in the suitcase.
The scene then changed and I was in a hotel which was huge and Victorian in style. This hotel resembled the sorts of hotels you get in seaside towns in Britain. I have drawn 3 diagrams (below) to illustrate how the areas of the hotel were generally laid out.
The ceilings were very high and the hotel was ornately decorated. I was in the lobby area and to the right of the entrance were some leather sofas, underneath a window (through which I could see it was daylight). A group of people - a family of dream characters of various ages - were sat on the sofas. They had a variety of dogs with them. I approached the family and knelt down on the floor to pet the dogs. A middle-aged man said (in reference to two medium-sized dogs, one brown and one black): 'They are Staffordshire Bull Terriers' - however I could see that they were definitely not. They looked more like Spaniels. I then saw a huge, brown fluffy dog laying a short distance away on the floor (beside it's owner's place, on a second sofa) which looked like a bear. It's fur was Afro-texture and it had a very round, squashy face. I said to one of the female family members: 'What breed is this dog?' but she did not seem to hear me, so I repeated the question. A younger family member seated beside her, said: 'Turn around and see my dogs!' I did so, and saw that she had two Staffies, laying on a dog blanket behind me. I started to pet these instead.
I then left the lobby area and walked up some stairs, which took me to a wide hallway. To my left was a lead-plated window. To my right, just a few metres ahead of me was a reception desk, with two older male dream characters, wearing burgundy uniforms which indicated that they worked in the hotel. I looked out of the window (which was pointed at the top and looked like the type you find in churches) and I suddenly realised (I am not sure how) that I was in my 'Dream Town'. I did not become lucid at this point, so unfortunately was not able to direct my attention to the right things - or ask relevant questions of dream characters. The view from the window was almost an aerial view - it seemed we were high above the landscape I was looking out at, even though I could see hills in the distance. The view was a typical and familiar-looking one - suburban Britain. I could see a patchwork of fields, trees, hedgerows, rolling hills and many houses stretched out before me. I shouted out to the hotel worker dream characters: 'What is the name of this hotel?' One of them said: 'Guess' and I answered: 'The Grand Custard'. I thought again and said: 'No, the Grand International'. The dream character told me to guess again and I said: 'The Grand Continental' and he said; 'Yes it is'. I then walked around the hallway - the carpet was a plush red one and there were ornate features on a stair-rail and on the walls. I cannot remember much else of what I saw while investigating the hotel on this floor.
I then went downstairs to a bar/cocktail lounge area, which was very dark (swathed in a blue smoky light) and crowded with dream characters (guests of the hotel) who were enjoying cocktails. I walked to the back of the cocktail lounge and saw that there was a laptop there, on a table which was unoccupied - except it wasn't a modern laptop computer - it looked a lot like a toy I used to own - a Fisher-Price cash register - with a screen at the top. I started to use this 'laptop' to contact someone (I am not sure who) and as I was in the process of doing so, I suddenly became fully lucid. The fact that I was experiencing a lucid dream - and was immediately aware that I was certainly in my 'Dream Town' and therefore my dream incubation experiment had succeeded was overwhelming and I had to concentrate really hard on stabilising the dream so as not to wake up from the excitement. I decided to shake my hands, which is a method which has worked for me before. I was also willing myself to calm down and breathe deeply. I then decided that instead of shaking my hands, I should just focus on my palms, which I did. My hands looked normal. The dream seemed to stabilise. I used the laptop once more, and noticed that a former friend, CP was trying to contact me. I did not want to speak with her (as I have not spoken to her for many years in real-life due to us growing apart when she got a new boyfriend). I looked to my right, hoping to investigate the dream scene and noticed that there was a bed now, only a couple of metres away from me, in the cocktail lounge. Standing beside the bed was PS and a male dream character of a similar age. I approached PS and sat down on the bed. PS said: 'I haven't seen these jeans before!' indicating to my clothing. I noticed that I was wearing jeans and said: 'I own lots of pairs of jeans, but I never wear them' (true). PS started to remove my jeans and then my underwear. He was standing at the foot of the bed, while I was sitting/laying back on it. The male dream character was just standing next to PS, doing/saying nothing. As PS pulled my jeans off my legs and started to take off my knickers, I realised I had started my period and I was embarrassed at the sight of blood, hoping he would not notice. I tried to imagine the blood wasn't there and suddenly noticed that there was no longer any blood at all - I had been wearing orange underwear which looked red under the strange lighting in the dark cocktail lounge.
The male dream character started to leave and then PS turned to say something to him, which meant his attention was distracted from me. I wanted him to remain in the dream, so that he could explore the Dream Town with me. I thought that first I should see how he would react to me telling him he was a lucid dream character in my lucid dream. I said: 'I've got something really important to tell you!' PS turned back to me (the male dream character was walking off, towards the counter/bar to get buy a drink). PS said: 'I bet you don't' to which I responded: 'It's really shocking!' (I assumed he would be shocked at the revelation as I have read that dream characters in lucid dreams often refuse to accept that they are dream characters). I then said: 'This is a dream and you are a dream character'. PS said: 'Prove it!' so I decided that the only way I could do this was by performing a reality check in front of him (I assumed that my fingers might go through my palm because this was a lucid dream and I had managed to exert some minor control earlier in relation to the period blood disappearing at will). I lifted my hands and performed the reality check - trying to push my fingers through the palm of my hand. I noticed I was wearing fake nails (which I was not wearing in real-life at this time) - they were painted pearly white. However, the reality check failed to prove to PS that this was a lucid dream - no matter how hard I pushed, I could not force my fingers through the palm of my hand. PS said: 'See, it's real-life!' and then I woke up!
TIME: 18:00 - 21:00 hours (this dream happened just before waking)
LUCIDITY: YES - I was fully lucid via a DILD (Dream Initiated/Induced Lucid Dream). Lucidity seemed to last for approximately 5 - 10 minutes
Dreamsigns:
- None of note until I became lucid
Recurrent Dream Themes:
- My nan's house in Sheringham as a dream scene location
- Dogs
- PS as a dream character
Potential Day/Dream Residue:
- A few days before this dream a workman from Maintenance at my university attended my house in response to a complaint made by my neighbour (in relation to birds getting caught in the wire netting above our houses). I also have a need to call Maintenance in relation to a hole in my bedroom wall (my foot kicked out as I woke up and went through the plasterboard).
- The day of this dream there were some construction workers/builders standing outside my house.
- The day before this dream DL had told me about a Russian colleague of his.
- The day of this dream I had seen a picture of Courtney Love - taken from the Hole music video for 'Violets' from Live Through This (1994) in which Courtney Love is wearing a white layered tulle dress - like that worn by a ballerina.
- The day before this dream I had played Sims 3 and noticed an in-game character (NPC) called 'Caroline Custard'. I also saw a reference to custard on an episode of Come Dine With Me which I watched on the same day.
- A couple of days before this dream I had reorganised my wardrobe. While doing so, I found a pair of jeans I have not worn in ages and also a pair of orange lace knickers. I then wore an outfit DL had not seen before and he asked whether I had been raiding my wardrobe.
- The day before this dream, I finished my period.
Waking Thoughts & Emotions:
I woke from this dream in a completely happy and positive mood because I had achieved some success in my Dream Incubation Experiment - on the last day of the experiment! Although I did not achieve all of my set goals - such as investigating my Dream Town and asking questions of my dream character companion - I was did find myself in my Dream Town as desired and this was a lucid dream. I was so exuberant and thrilled at having achieved this much when I woke that I felt on top of the world and very 'mentally empowered'.
* I am not sure if I have forgotten any early parts of this dream, but if I recall them at a later stage, I will record them below.
Interpretation/Analysis:
This dream represents a successful attempt at dream incubation and lucid dream induction using the methodology I have had in place throughout.
