There are 80 rooms on 4 floors of International Guest House. Each floor has several women who divide up the rooms and cover for each other during their scheduled days off. Besides cleaning my room daily, which also includes disinfecting the tile floors of the room, hallway and stairs, she brings me chai, takes my laundry for washing and ironing and watches out so that my stay is comfortable.
Although chai is available throughout the day, I have two cups each morning as I journal and read the paper at the open courtyard.
-Her day off is Saturday.
-In addition to being disinfected, the hallway is swept several times daily with a grass broom.
-Only she has access to my room, I lock all valuables in a closet, or carry them on me.
-No visitors are allowed so she keeps a sharp lookout for strangers.
-This is an Ashram GH so there is no smoking or drinking allowed on the premises. It is also her duty to monitor for such activities.
-This is an Ashram GH so there is no smoking or drinking allowed on the premises. It is also her duty to monitor for such activities.
-I'm not sure of her hours, since she's here when I rise and disappears sometime late afternoon. But,her day is long.
When I first arrived, there was a failure to place a light weight blanket on my bed (I did not think anything was amiss, since not having a blanket has happened before). The next morning she found that I had simply spread and used my sarong. I returned from lunch to find 2 blankets on the second bed. There they remained, the sarong continuing to see service for 5 days. Each morning I would fold up the sarong and place it at the end of the bed. This is common in SE Asia. She corrected me by spreading it across the full bed. One morning, I returned to find the blanket opened with a folded lump underneath it, my sarong. The sarong went into the closet. A gentle nudge from the floor lady.
The same happened with an incense burner I had placed on the small table separating the two twin beds. One afternoon, I found it moved to a proper spot, a small triangular slate piece which is near the door and where bottles of water and the key are dropped.
She takes her job seriously, shaping up the guests who need shaping.
When I first arrived, there was a failure to place a light weight blanket on my bed (I did not think anything was amiss, since not having a blanket has happened before). The next morning she found that I had simply spread and used my sarong. I returned from lunch to find 2 blankets on the second bed. There they remained, the sarong continuing to see service for 5 days. Each morning I would fold up the sarong and place it at the end of the bed. This is common in SE Asia. She corrected me by spreading it across the full bed. One morning, I returned to find the blanket opened with a folded lump underneath it, my sarong. The sarong went into the closet. A gentle nudge from the floor lady.
The same happened with an incense burner I had placed on the small table separating the two twin beds. One afternoon, I found it moved to a proper spot, a small triangular slate piece which is near the door and where bottles of water and the key are dropped.
She takes her job seriously, shaping up the guests who need shaping.
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