Basics: Bathroom (shower and bath separately), Everythingelseroom (big double bed, desk, armchair, table).
In the bathroom:
Marble shower cubicle with shower gel and shampoo and a sweet little shelf to prop your foot on as you shave your legs.Bath - with big towels and a string you can stretch over the bath to dry stuff on, and a hair-rinsing shower attachment (so actually two showers in the bathroom).
White towelling robe
Flannels & hand towels
Shaving kit, vanity set (cotton buds and balls and an emery board), shower cap, sanitary bag, comb, dental kit,
matches (why in the bathroom? where's the candles?) Shampoo, conditioner, shower gel, tissues.
Hair dryer
Shaver socket (240V and 115V) - with a volume knob. Why? Suggestions please?
Shaving mirror
Phone beside the loo (hmm)
Bathroom scales
Basket for dirty towels
In the wardrobe:
Shoe polish
Shoe bag
Shoe horn
Laundry bags
Umbrella (!!! a big one too)
Small safe
Iron & Ironing board
About 12 hangers
Spare pillows & cushions.
Torch
Fridge / Minibar / Other food supplies (quite expensive)
Kettle / tea / coffee
Bedside tables with two litre-bottles of water provided free every day (I put them into the mini fridge to chill a bit, but it's slightly rubbish)
More matches and an ashtray (boo hiss)
My malarone pills (Maneer says they have the side effect of making you lose weight! Result!)
Gideon's Bible and Bhagavad-Gita "As it is"
Alarm clock
Biggish TV (no DVD or CD player though - which it said on the website that it had... only perhaps that was the other hotel we thought we were staying in)
Slippers and mat (laid out beside the bed - very nice)
Chocolate on the pillow when they turn the bed down in the evening (monsieur ambassador, with these chocolates you are really spoiling us)
Phone
Desk with 4 sockets available: 2 Indian (takes a "Europe" two pin plug), 1 British 3-pin standard and 1 with an adaptor that seems to take any plug In The World.
Ethernet cable
But... there's wireless internet available in the room so I don't need to use it. I'm writing this sitting in the comfy armchair, with my laptop on my lap (where it evidently belongs). The internet access costs Rs 750 per day (that's about £10!) so I'm going to try and negotiate on that... children, if you enjoy this blog please clap your hands loudly so that Tinkerbell won't die [oops, no, what I meant was, SMEs etc. please add comments saying how useful it is and how much you appreciate hearing about the Indian Experience. Can I do a big smiley grin now? :-) ].
Big windows, with balcony beyond. And no crank to shut the window if I sneeze. Or rather, to open it to let the heat and mosquitoes in. I'm prepared to compromise on that.
There are also some groovy buttons by the bed and by the front door that you can press to say "do not disturb", "make my room" and "laundry". I'll leave you to ponder on the meaning of those strange inscriptions.
Further afield (outside the "suite" door)
2 groovy glass lifts (and two less groovy enclosed ones)
Big (really big) atrium. Is it just me or do the balconies and rooms look rather like a prison? OK not in the finish, just in the layout.
Gym (looks well equipped although I'm no expert. Will give you an update when I've put it to the test tomorrow)
Spa: Jacuzzi, Steam room, Sauna, plus massages, treatments, hair cuts etc.
Pool: The disappointing bit: it's outdoor, curvy shaped (no good for lengths), accessed by a long corridor then a flight of stairs and (this is the worst bit) right in front of the full-length windows of the 24/7 restaurant. Good for posing, not very good for people with flabby bits.
Shop: a delicatessen with delightful looking cakes, caviar and so on, not really somewhere to get normal provisions, or even toiletries and so on which one might need.
Other shop: a souvenir shop which actually has some interesting looking books. And some overpriced gifts which I don't plan to investigate further. There's a whole "arcade" of shops, but alas they are all just empty spaces apart from this one shop.
Conference centre: in the sub basement (best place for it, I say).
Restaurants: many. Lots. I've only tried 24/7 so far, which does excellent buffet breakfasts (included in the price of the room) and good buffet lunches (nice, but quite expensive, for India - I intend to eat at work during the week when possible). I also brought some cup-a-soups with me for urgent attacks of the munchies post-work (although not many). Tonight Phil, Maneer and I ate at Woks which did reasonable Chinese food - large portions. The highlight was alas the sizzling walnut fudge brownie. Every single one of those 4 words is appealing. Together was more than I could resist. It came on a hot plate, and then when the waiter poured chocolate sauce over the top, it sizzled. And had walnut and chocolate. mmmm.
(Fuzzy picture because the camera lens steamed up).
2 comments:
The hotel looks like a columbarium (dove cote, but the Romans used the same word for one of their ways of storing dead bodies) or like that bit of the Matrix. But what I really wanted to say was do you have to call in the darzee when a button falls off? No needles and thread.
They are rather pod-like. I would like to be able to open the window and sit in the sun on the balcony, but as mentioned there is no handle on the balcony door.
I think you would have to call someone about sewing repairs (not me though, I brought a cute little Muji sewing kit with me). There's a button on the phone marked "instant service" so perhaps they have a posse of needlewomen ready to dash into action.
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