I recently, during winter vacation, had the misfortune of staying at Country Spa, Kovalam, a resort owned and run by Country Club and spouted to be Asia’s first floating spa.Thankfully, I am not a member of Country Club as I have already been a victim of Mr.Reddy’s competitor, Club Mahindra.We had booked it through a travel agent as apart of our 10 days’ trip to Kerala.We reached Kovalam on 29 Dec in anticipation of a nice finale to our 10 days sojourn in God’s own country.We were supposed to check in at 12 noon but we got late and reached the place at 4pm, and we got to know that we would have to wait for 10 minutes as our room was being cleaned.We had booked three rooms.We were tired after our journey from Alleppey and we were asked to wait in their small, cramped lobby.
We waited politely.Seconds passed, minutes slipped by and there was no sign of our rooms.In the meanwhile, we could see other visitors getting into arguments with the receptionist as they too, were facing some problem regarding room allotment.We now, asked to see the manager, who was told of the rude behaviour of the front desk staff and rooms not being handed over.
We had 7 kids between three families who were feeling fidgety and hungry.We were not even offered water and when we complained we got tea at 5pm, and where were we at that time?Still in the lobby.Now, the rooms were finally given, but there was only one bell-boy for the whole resort and it was a pity seeing him huff and puff all alone with the heavy bags and it was only by 5.45 that our luggage reached the rooms and lo!behold! they had not bothered to clean the bathroom properly and supply the fresh soaps and other things.I from room no. 409, had to call them and ask them to send someone to clean the bathroom and also with a freshener as the bathroom was stinking.The view from the room: nothing.Then, we went off to the beach which is a short walk away and had a wonderful time there.The proximity to the beach is the only highlight of the resort.In the evening, we ordered prawns and soups for snacking and the prawns that turned up though big in size, looked suspicious and having been fried in cold oil.You could squueze out the oil and it was tasteless and they decided to send one soup less and later, we realised that it was their trademark, that if we ordered four things, they would invariably forget one.
Now, do you think, only this would be enough to put you off this resort, no wait! there is more.In the evening, our family was lazing on the bed and watching T.V. before ordering dinner, when suddenly by turns, we were requesting each other to scratch our backs, which we found vey funny and thought that it could be due to spending a long time in the sea.After our dinner, we retired to our bed to sleep when I couldn, t stop scratching myself on my arms, legs, back everywhere.I thought that may be, it was the prawns and took an anti- allergic pill when I saw my hubby also scratching himself.Now, I was suspicious.I turned the bed covers and oh my God!
What do I see! Hundreds of bed bugs crawling all over the bed, little ones, big ones, ones filled with our blood.Honestly, thanks to CC, my GK increased.I got to see bed- bugs for the first time in my life.I called up the reception and told them of the problem.Oh, I forgot to mention, it was 2 in the night.I waited for someone to come, ten minutes passed, no one turned up, I again called them up and now, I was fuming as my little son was sleeping on the infested bed, I caught hold of one bug and went down.I went to the front desk, 20 minutes had already passed and showed the guy there, the scratches on my body and the sample of the bug.
He said, yeas ma’am, I have sent one guy with fresh sheets.I said how do the sheets solve the problem of bugs, they are in the bed, when I shouted he gave us the keys to another room, where at 3, we could sleep.As for the floating spa, I just saw some steel benches with holes in a pool and the water was not reaching the benches, so I don’t know.I also went in for the body massage, where a torn towel was given to me to cover myself and my package consisted of a pedicure and a manicure where I was asked if they wanted me to cut!?/ my nails, they had no files and had a tooth brush for cleaning the nails and a local transparent nail paint.So much for the Spa experience.The property was beautiful but as I had written in my Corbett experience, YOU CAN’T EAT THE TREES N PLANTS NA? I shall soon upload one of the snaps of the bed bg.I still have the dead bug with me.Nice memory, na?