Goodbye Gold Lake Hotel

I am sitting here watching Chinese kids TV, the internet not working, the Do Not Disturb sign on (hopefully they won’t ring the bell), and all our bags packed…hoping our laundry comes back before 2:00.  Things aren’t all bad at the Gold Lake Hotel, but the internet and the lack of Taxi’s and the fact that we will most likely be living out of a hotel for the next week and a half or so, pushed us over the edge.  The Kande is walking distance to my usual stomping grounds and tons of restaurants.  The Kande has faster internet (Adam stayed there in November), and if we don’t feel like walking Taxi’s come by the hotel all hours of the day.  The Kande even has their own special taxi’s that are used during busy times. 

The Gold Lake Hotel wasn’t all bad, the people that worked here were very nice and were big helps.  Yo Yo (my favorite) was usually the one to get us a Taxi, however I think we made her nervous because every time we would ask for a taxi she would stress out and if she had to she would spend 15 min. on the phone trying to get a taxi for us.  There were a couple times where she got someone to drive us in the hotel van.  Yo yo loved practicing her English with me and I enjoyed that someone would make conversation with me and not always ask if we liked it here.  Elva is the assistant manager and has been busy interviewing the past week or two, but when we first got here she came to the door to welcome us.  She also is happy to help and happy to translate.  Kevin is a little annoying only because he can never quite figure out what we are asking.  He is the head of reception and gave us some chocolate cake when the taxi he ordered for us never showed up.  He also wrote us a very nice letter.  (We started ordering taxi’s ahead of time so we could be sure to get one…however I can’t think of a time where it actually worked.)  One thing I loved about the hotel is that they play the Kenny G. Christmas CD every morning at breakfast.  I love Christmas music and it was the only reason I went to breakfast (it certainly was not the pigs blood, noodles, and porridge that brought me back).  I also did enjoy doing laundry in a hotel 

Things we will not miss: (besides lack of taxi’s, maids, and broken internet) the “western style” restaurant.  They either didn’t have what we ordered or it was made all wrong.  They show a picture of an amazing bowl of French Onion Soup and the picture doesn’t match at all!  We ate there 3 times I think for dinner and breakfast on and off.  I can’t remember one really good meal (which is why we always had to go out…by the way the Kande has three restaurants).  The breakfast buffet wasn’t my favorite, Adam liked that he could try new things but I just really wanted a bowl of cereal and a glass of cold milk.  Adam thinks I am stilly to feel this way at all…and I probably am silly, but I feel a ton of pressure from the staff to feel happy here.  They constantly ask me why I don’t just have lunch in the hotel (do you not like the food?), they ask me am I happy here, they ask me if I like their hotel.  Honestly this hotel would be wonderful if you were staying a week or even 10 days but beyond that…no!

I probably would have stuck it out another week but I think Adam was tired of hearing me vent to him about the same things each day…I know some of you may be surprised to hear this but I can be a little particular about things and the littlest things can push me over the edge.  Most days we were able to over look the things that annoyed us but lately not as much.  I don’t know if it’s the feeling of not being able to settle in, or the fact that up until this weekend we hadn’t found a place that we could truly call home, or if it’s the hotel.  Personally I think it’s a mixture of everything.  If I was in the US and the internet didn’t work I could totally handle it…maybe even feel a little free, but here it’s my only way of communicating with friends and family, paying bills, checking up on some of my favorite blogs to read, reading news from the US and posting on the blog.