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 |  This is my blog & my hope, writing daily will help me see my progress and log supporters. |
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| For most people, giving five-star reviews may be the easiest ones to write. However, I (mostly) shy away from providing such high acclaim because, in reality, nothing is perfect—not written stories, restaurants, service providers, or hotels. On the flip side, who (in all decency) would enjoy regularly handing out one—and two-star reviews? This is especially true when dealing with a person or business that is obviously trying to deliver...even if they fall short in various areas. In saying all of that, the hardest rating for me to give is three stars. It is neither here nor there, and this is where I find myself tonight after the hotel we stayed at in Bang Saphan requested a review. The trouble is they landed squarely in the middle, providing some good and some bad experiences over the three nights we were there. I must admit I wasn't in the best frame of mind when we arrived at the establishment. The night before, Nada sat me down and said she had something she needed to tell me. As we all know, those words rarely produce a good outcome, especially when followed by, "Promise me you won't get mad." Of course, I refused her request, and although the news wasn't as bad as I thought it might be, thinking she might say, "I was once a bar girl" or "I have HIV", it still wasn't a great thing to hear...especially considering we were just about to leave for a romantic three-night getaway at a rather expensive resort. I'm not going to get into the details of what she said here because this post isn't about that (I might get into it more in a later post), but I will say that it was about an STD. One can contract many things when falling in love. Some are more easily treated than others, whilst some can be life-threatening, but the STD Nada has shared with me is neither. It is, unfortunately, a sexually transmitted dept. I suppose it could be worse, but I do wish she had been honest with me earlier, instead of waiting six months to reveal her dirty little secret. Anyway, back to the real story here...the hotel was old. Our room had recently received a fresh lick of paint, although in keeping with Thai style, they hadn't done a great job. The floor wasn't as clean as I would have liked, and the promised ocean view was almost completely obscured by the next building. Thankfully, the bed was comfortable (although neither of us slept well during the first two nights because of the ongoing discussions we had about her lack of transparency over her financial predicament) and the food at the hotel restaurant was well-priced and delicious. Breakfast (I was foolish enough to pay for in advance) on the other hand, was underwhelming. Lesson learned, and in future, I will pay for breakfast once I know what it is like. The pool was beautiful, although the location, which was right on the beach, lacked the WOW factor the online photos purported. The staff were friendly and helpful and did their best under somewhat difficult circumstances. The hot water in our shower stopped working after one night, although we don't have hot water at home and are used to showering in cold water (it was nice to have a hot shower on that first night though). In cases like this, I find it hard to say what I truly think in a public review. I owe it to the community to give an honest opinion, but also feel that saying negative things about a business that is likely struggling to stay afloat, is not the right thing to do. It isn't much different to giving reviews here on WdC...where the truth can help someone become a better writer, but can also cause them pain. I think most people, when faced with an average experience, will inevitably pass on giving their thoughts, and as much as that is, to some degree, a copout, it is, in most cases, the best (and most sensible) thing to do. |
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