A little background. We love to travel to Prague. On average, we go there once every six months and always stayed with Gastale. In general, we love Prague very much.
On our previous visit, we persuaded friends to leave with us, who were literally sick of stories about their trips. On November 3.2006, we, as a group of 4 people (2 married couples), arrived in Prague. Our tour operator was Vedi Tour Group s. r. o. , from which we only needed a return transfer (Hastal-Airport). We refused a direct transfer, because we were taught by the bitter experience of delivering us to the hotel after a long time after arrival, because sometimes we are waiting for those who are late, then the next plane is about to arrive, and we need to immediately grab the arriving ones, then at first we bring in tourists who settled far from the center, so we don’t come to Gashtal very soon.
The independent journey from the airport to Gastal takes much less time and is much more predictable. It should be noted that not a single tour operator exempted us from paying for the transfer, because. from their point of view, such a gesture would automatically transfer us into the category of individual tourists and, accordingly, would increase the cost of the trip. Paradox. : )
So on November 3 last year (on Friday) we arrived in Gashtal and filled out questionnaires for settling. Immediately after this ceremony, it was announced to us that, by a tragic accident, those two rooms that were intended for us were powerfully flooded. That is, right those two numbers, directly completely flooded from a reservoir unknown to us. The nice receptionist terribly apologizes and on behalf of the hotel offers us just two nights (until Sunday afternoon) to move to the Dlouha hotel (which is on the street of the same name in building number 17), which is only 5 minutes walk away. The oblomingo bird touched us all with its wing, for we were already ready to check into a practically native hotel and then go to Staromestskaya. Seeing our confusion, the service worker of the Gastal hotel reduced the travel time to the DZS (namely, the House of Foreign Services (DZS), that is, we will officially call this institution) to three minutes and handed us some free coupons for lunch in Gastal (which, we need Note that we never used it.
We wandered dejectedly to the DZS, where we rode in a wonderful elevator the size of a dog kennel, upholstered in a gray carpet, and settled in the rooms. Our fellow travelers even found some pleasure in living in DZS, because. the windows overlooked Dlouha, which, although not the quietest street in the center of Prague, and in the entrance opposite there was a mighty repair, as a result of which, from 8 in the morning, workers began to dump broken bricks from wheelbarrows into the pallet, which was still empty due to the early hour, but still Dlouha - not the worst place to stay in Prague. So, we spent a third of our vacation (or two days of our life) in the DZS, and on Sunday afternoon we settled in Gashtal.
Fortunately for us, a local flood in two rooms was eliminated just in time for the appointed day and hour. The employees of the hotel did their best that we could not find any traces of leaks at all either on the walls, or on the ceilings, or on the floors of the rooms, and if the workers did repaint the ceilings, they did it so skillfully that they were able to restore cracks, scuffs and dust. Fortunately, the floors of the rooms were not damaged either - we made such a conclusion after surveying the dry, but not new, carpet in the rooms. Truly, human hands are an almighty tool, if you give them reason to help!
In general, we spent the rest of the holiday without worries in pleasant bliss, relaxation, trips to pubs, self-organized beer tastings, walks through the streets and sights, etc.
It so happened that the closest place for us - Russians to meet is abroad : ) With our other friends, whom we have not seen for a very long time (last time in Turkey; ) and who live in another city, we agreed to meet in Prague 16 March 2007, Friday. Of course, in the Hastal Hotel, because we will not change the hotel because of an accident. We went to Prague with a ten-year-old girl who is our daughter and who got the trip for good behavior and in connection with the anniversary. We booked accommodation and return transfer through a travel agent in Vedi Tour (Vedi Tour Group s. r. o. ). Having nevertheless some negative experience, we asked to re-request confirmation of the hotel from the tour operator, describing our concerns and past troubles, meeting arrangements with friends who are arriving from another city, which was done. Lead tour informed us that the hotel reconfirmed our check-in, that last time we were overtaken by force majeure and blah blah blah.
In anticipation of a wonderful holiday, we flew to Ruzyn. Having informed the meeting worker of Vedi Tour that we only needed a transfer back, the three of us left for the hotel by public transport, leaving the travel industry worker to be bored waiting for other tourists and once again glad that the transfer was not for us. Having rumbled along the pavement with suitcase wheels from the Staromestsk Metro to Gastal, we entered Gastal. An unsmiling girl handed us questionnaires, which we were quick to fill out and return to her. At that moment, the girl's face lit up with a smile!
The wife later said that it was at that moment that she understood everything. I have read in many works of fiction and near-science that at the moment of death, the whole life flies before the inner eye of a person. I don’t want to say anything bad, but the smile of this nice worker Gashtala can cause a similar, but more local effect - events of about six months ago fly before your inner eye.
A charming hotel worker from a part of the former Czechoslovakia, in tolerable Russian, reported that, by a tragic accident, the room that was intended for us was powerfully flooded. That is, right in that number, it was completely flooded from a reservoir unknown to us. The nice receptionist terribly apologizes and on behalf of the hotel offers us just two nights (until Sunday afternoon) to move to the Dlouha hotel (which is on the street of the same name in building number 17), which is only 5 minutes walk away. The oblomingo bird touched us with its wing, for we were already ready to check into a practically native hotel and then go to Staromestskaya. Doesn't this remind you of anything? Yes, it also seemed to me that I was in some kind of anomalous zone, where it is still November 3.2006, Friday. Groundhog Day, tyk to hide.
But no, the date on the clock was March 16.2007, Friday. Apparently, something is reflected in our faces. Probably even something obscene (I certainly do not mean a ten-year-old girl), because the girl froze with a smiling mask on her face. She died only when she heard the unequivocal: “No! ”, which I was forced to utter without the inappropriate in this case, “prosiiiiii”. Very correctly, we tried to explain to the girl that we had already stayed in this hospitable hotel many, many times and would like to continue this tradition. The sweet young lady, obviously, tried her best to help us in our grief: she blinked her eyes, fluttered her eyelashes, looked at the monitor screen from time to time, nodded, said “yeah” and, in my opinion, even clicked her tongue a couple of times. However, nothing helped! The room was still flooded! In the end, the merciful girl said that she personally could not do anything for us, except to escort us to the DZS. “There are no other options! ” she said. "Not! I repeated, “Dlough, no! ” In terms of brevity at this moment, I could compete with the authors of the slogans “No pasaran! ”, “Patria o muerte! ” or even "Yankee, go home! ".
The hotel worker, realizing that we had no intention of revisiting the glorious elevator the size of a dog kennel, upholstered in carpet, said that we needed to wait for the director. At the same time, we also felt an urgent need to meet with the director of the hotel. Leaving our things in the luggage closet, we walked to the Old Town Square, watched a performance at Orloi and went to meet friends at the metro station. On the way, about the sixth time I managed to get through to the guide indicated in the Vedi Tour voucher - Vladislav Labkov. If you happen to need his mobile phone number, I can provide it for you to have fun listening to ringing tones that no one answers. And so, hallelujah, Vladislav picked up the phone, and I described our difficulty to him. I gave him examples from recent history, when four people who booked a tour through Vedi Tour Group (Vedi Tour Group s. r. o. ) were evicted from a hotel in Prague on Friday and settled into it again on Sunday.
Vladislav promised to sort it out and asked what we were going to do. I informed him that we intended to wait for the hotel director, who would arrive in two hours (according to the truthful girl from the reception). Vladislav in a cheerful voice told me that in exactly two hours they would solve our problems with the director of the hotel, since it was at that time that he should come, and only he could solve all the difficulties. I fell silent with some bewilderment, since I am not yet very used to someone passing on information to me that has just been received from me, but already as news and the result of work. On this we said goodbye.
So, from the metro station, the five of us again rumbled to Gastal. The same girl remained at the reception, who somehow noticeably got bored when she saw us. Before that, she was very cheerful and tried to resolve the situation with two Englishmen - a married couple who booked a room in the same hotel and even presented some papers in confirmation, but what are some papers for this girl ? ! In general, the British were left to fend for themselves with their backpacks and bags on chairs at the entrance. The last thing I heard in their address from the lips of the girl in English: “I don’t understand who ordered the hotel for you, and who took the order! ”. Indeed, globalization - a sign of recent decades - has even penetrated Gastal Square, now they have the opportunity to refuse everyone in different languages! After that, the girl gave out questionnaires for settling in to our companions.
My silent behavior probably confused her a little, so I reminded myself by giving a last name, which she may have forgotten, and asking for the promised meeting with the director. The girl nodded and accepted the questionnaires from our friends. After some time, a middle-aged lady with dyed hair appeared next to us (we saw her many times in all our previous visits to this charitable institution), which, of course, could be mistaken for the director of the hotel, if not for some specificity in clothes - dark tight pants, which I would unknowingly describe as leggings, and a colorful blouse, somewhat enlivening her appearance. She reminded me rather of a colorful mistress of the house on the Black Sea coast of Crimea. In general, I imagined the director of the hotel a little differently. However, this sympathetic woman in specific clothes asked us what kind of difficulties made us stand with a boring look at the reception.
The wife again, not particularly shortening the story, described our plight, in which we find ourselves for the second time, that we brought a child with us, that we are their regular customers, that we agreed to meet friends at this wonderful hotel... Auntie was very actively busy face, clasped her hands, and performed similar exercises, which, no doubt, are taught to all employees of this glorious hotel in special courses. At the end of the story, she threw up her hands, flashed a tear at our "baby" and announced that we could go to Dlouha, because there was no place for us in Gastal. In response, the wife said that we would settle down right at the reception, on the chairs, as soon as the unfortunate British left them. Aunt twisted her face, snorted in pure Russian: "Pzhalsta! " and walked away, twisting her hips.
It should be noted that our friends did not leave us in trouble, but all this time they were nearby and watched the negotiations with interest. To my question: “Well, why don’t you move in? ” I was told that the nice receptionist was hesitant to give them the keys yet. This indecisive girl deals with the unfortunate Englishmen.
Not seeing representatives of the tour operator Vedi Tour in the hotel, who could help us in solving some difficulties, I decided to try again to reach out to the compassionate heart of Vladislav Labkov. Unfortunately, all five or six calls that I made, standing at the ladies' toilet on the first floor of Gastal, did not bring success - Vladislav could not pick up the phone. Undoubtedly, Mr. Labkov really wanted to help people who paid Vedi Tour money, but could not realize their vacation plans, but important, inexorable, maybe even force majeure circumstances did not allow him to answer my phone call. However, my spoiled imagination painted a completely different picture: Vladislav, seeing my phone number on the identifier and realizing that my speech would not bring him the desired pleasure from life, simply refuses to talk to me. A vicious mind offered me a way out - a call from my wife's phone, the number of which has not yet been lit up by Mr. Labkov. I immediately call Vladislav, and, lo and behold, he picks up the phone! Undoubtedly, such a happy coincidence (Vladislav was freed from important matters or suddenly gained hearing just during a call from another phone) prompted me to think that now everything will work out.
After I introduced myself, Vladislav Labkov very politely asked how I was doing. I dared to answer that my business is still the same, that the room is probably still flooded, and that I still do not see representatives of Vedi Tour who would make even the slightest effort to check me into the hotel indicated in voucher issued by this tour operator. Vladislav politely and even a little sadly informed me that the problem was that the room that was intended for us was flooded and there was nowhere else for us to stay. At that moment, I was again amazed at the ability of this person to communicate to me, as news and the result of his own work, the information that had just been received from me. Probably, this bewilderment unnerved me a little, and I asked Vladislav how he knew about what he had just told me.
I did not really understand the answer, but continued in the spirit that the representatives of Vedi Tour, despite requests, did not come to the hotel, did not talk with representatives of the hotel administration, did not take any measures aimed at fulfilling their obligations. Vladislav's answer almost discouraged me, this answer contained undoubtedly important information that many tourists arrive in Prague every day, and Vladislav simply cannot come to everyone's hotel and solve problems that arise. I was not ready to talk in the style of “come here in large numbers”, so I told Mr. Labkov that I would wait for him at the hotel, that I was not going to settle in the House of Foreign Services. I also told Vladislav my observation (which I have the right to be proud of) - not a single tour operator or travel agent has ever refused to take money from me under the pretext that he already has too many clients, and he does not have the opportunity to take money from everyone. Vladislav told me that, in accordance with the laws of the Czech Republic, the hotel has the right to evict me anywhere at its own discretion. My move: I assumed that my requirements for Vedi Tour would be based on Russian legislation, our contract, tour and voucher, which do not imply a permanent relocation of me and my family members from Friday to Sunday to the hostel of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports. Our bickering would have lasted endlessly, but I was forced to say to Vladislav like Penelope Odysseus: “I will wait for you here! ” and hang up because. . .
At that moment, like the ancient Greek “god from the car”, the director of the hotel came out of the elevator to us. He was tall, bearded, quite young and gave the impression of a very decent and maybe even religious person. As you probably already guessed, in response to his question, what really happened, I outlined a picture for him with the learned strokes of a master who again draws a wheel and a steering wheel by the day of the motorist. The attentive reader will notice that this is not the first time we describe the difficulties that have arisen. I think that this method of exhausting is a psychological device designed to tire the narrator, to make his story an ordinary daily event and, thereby, reduce the intensity of passions. Very smart and correct!
In the course of the story, the director showed himself to be a very sympathetic, compassionate person: he nodded his head, said “yes” and even “I understand”, looked at our girl who was trying to communicate with a local parrot, and, in general, would be an excellent conversationalist if it would be in our plans to confine ourselves to conversation. At the end of my long and uninteresting story, the director said that, unfortunately, our room was flooded (which, by the way, we have heard many times), that the relocation to the DZS will last only until Sunday, that he is very sorry (which, by the way, we also heard repeatedly). I was forced to upset this good and in my own way unfortunate person with my answer: “Dlough - no! I declared again. I don't like Dlouha! " - as if in excuse, I said.
After that, to my shame, I called DZS the word that is used to call not very comfortable hotels in my country. The director felt the moment and suggested an option that seemed even more delusional to me - relocation to the DZS along with our innocent friends. Just for two days! The unfortunate top manager did not even look that our friends flew to Prague for these two days and paid Gastal for two days, and spending these two days in the DZS would be the height of madness. The director said he would try to work something out and left.
Our friends safely received the keys to the room and went upstairs. A few minutes later, a couple of newly arrived tourists came upstairs with the keys. By that time, the British had disappeared somewhere along with their backpacks and bags.
The director returned without solving the problem. This was evident from his confused look and slightly doomed movements. "No, " he said, "only Dlouha. " Frankly, we had a little more discussion about the qualities of DZS in comparison with Gashtal, after which I asked a question that a polite, sensitive, compassionate and forgiving Russian, of course, should not ask. I asked why the hotel management divides people into two categories: for some rooms there are none, but for others at the same moment they are.
The director did not really understand my pronunciation, so I had to clarify my idea - while we were having a heated discussion, two couples (our friends and unknown citizens) checked into the hotel. From this I concluded that the hotel still had free rooms, to which we were simply not allowed. The director was a little embarrassed and said that our friends booked a room by contacting the hotel directly, that the hotel directly guaranteed them a hotel room and could not... I didn’t remember this word for sure, but it was synonymous with the word “throw” their respected customers.
The hotel has no relations with us, so they can us... that's the word. He also said that we are not talking about some kind of personal attitude towards us, that they personally do not refuse us, that they refuse our tour operator. It really clarified a lot for me personally. I asked the director to contact our esteemed tour operator Vedi Tour and personally inform him that we were being put out of the hotel on the street because "Dlough - no! ". The director again apologized for the inconvenience and announced that he would gladly accommodate us, but he recently closed an entire floor for repairs. I grumbled a little about the fact that they used to tell us that the reason for everything was the floods, now it’s repairs, asked to see the flooded room (maybe it’s not too damp there), but the director disappeared again to find out who was that second couple, which was settled.
In order to occupy my hands with something, I called the travel agent through whom I purchased the tour and asked him what to do next. It should be noted that the director of the travel agency took this matter into his own hands, promised to contact the director of the tour operator and call me back within 10 minutes. It was one of the few people who did not deceive expectations.
I did not give up hope that a representative of Vedi Tour would suddenly appear to help settle the problem, but this did not happen. But the director of the hotel reappeared (I confess, I myself was already confused how many times he disappeared and appeared), who first said that the couple who checked in at the same time as our friends booked, as he said, “superor”. I replied that we have no prejudice against the "superor" and we can also live in it, since it so happened that our room was flooded just at the moment when the floor was being renovated. The director showed me a price list, which indicated the price of "superor", significantly higher than the price of the "standard", which, according to the director's statement, they only book for people like us - customers of Vedi Tour. I reiterated that I see no problems and understand the difficulties of the hotel, which is forced to relocate us to the "superior" instead of the booked "standard". The director objected in the sense that there was only one "superor". I noticed that we nevertheless arrived earlier than much more respected guests who settled in the "superor". To which the director, as a reconciliation, offered the option of relocating us as a whole family to another hotel “Ne Dlouga! ”.
I agreed with the condition that the hotel found should be close and not worse than Gastal. In general, the respected director, after several minutes of phone calls, offered us the hotel “At the Old Lady”: “Damn nails! Very close here! " The wife agreed, the ten-year-old girl also did not express any negative emotions about the name "At the old lady. " We refused the director's kind offer to take a taxi to the Old Lady and rumbled our suitcase wheels to this hotel. Our friends accompanied us, and we checked into a very decent two-room suite of the Old Lady.
Right before leaving Gashtal, an employee of Vedi Tour called the reception, who introduced himself as Maxim. He informed me that the director had already sorted out my problems, and we would now move to another hotel that would suit us. I listened to him in surprise, although I had already begun to get used to the fact that Vedi Tour employees only take the trouble to retell information that they have just received from other people. I had to interrupt Maxim and slightly reproach him, expressing bewilderment at the fact that I did not manage to personally get to know any of the employees of Vedi Tour at the moment when I was put on the face with their voucher. Maxim was mournfully silent on the phone. To my question, who should I call if they refuse to accommodate us in the hotel “At the Old Lady”, Maxim answered with lightning speed “To Vladislav Labkov! ”. I asked him to warn Vladislav to still pick up the phone when I called him and suggested the possibility of my calling the Vedi Tour office in Prague if Vladislav again suddenly finds himself unable to answer the call. Maxim firmly stated: "It's better to call Vladislav! " Then he thought for a while and uttered a brilliant phrase: “We'd better call you ourselves if you have any problems! ”. There was nothing for me to say. I'm just dumb before genius.
It should be noted that after two days we humbly returned to Gastal, which we really love. We were settled on the fourth floor, right under the dismantled fifth. For this reason, every morning we had the pleasure of hearing how, right above our heads, someone rolls empty barrels, pours construction debris and performs many more high-profile events so that the Gastal Hotel becomes even more comfortable, homely and calm, becomes a true home for more tourists .
For the sake of justice, I note that Vedi Tour provided us with an individual return transfer in a minivan.
The author does not claim that the system of relocating Russian tourists to cheaper hotels for the weekend is a rule in Vedi Tour. The author does not share the point of view, according to which, on weekends, rooms reserved for Russian tourists are used for European tourists who come to Prague for the weekend. The author believes that the fact that a room in the House of Foreign Services costs 20 euros per day less than in Gastal (almost 1.8 times) and that the host party does not recalculate is just a coincidence.
On our previous visit, we persuaded friends to leave with us, who were literally sick of stories about their trips. On November 3.2006, we, as a group of 4 people (2 married couples), arrived in Prague. Our tour operator was Vedi Tour Group s. r. o. , from which we only needed a return transfer (Hastal-Airport). We refused a direct transfer, because we were taught by the bitter experience of delivering us to the hotel after a long time after arrival, because sometimes we are waiting for those who are late, then the next plane is about to arrive, and we need to immediately grab the arriving ones, then at first we bring in tourists who settled far from the center, so we don’t come to Gashtal very soon.
The independent journey from the airport to Gastal takes much less time and is much more predictable. It should be noted that not a single tour operator exempted us from paying for the transfer, because. from their point of view, such a gesture would automatically transfer us into the category of individual tourists and, accordingly, would increase the cost of the trip. Paradox. : )
So on November 3 last year (on Friday) we arrived in Gashtal and filled out questionnaires for settling. Immediately after this ceremony, it was announced to us that, by a tragic accident, those two rooms that were intended for us were powerfully flooded. That is, right those two numbers, directly completely flooded from a reservoir unknown to us. The nice receptionist terribly apologizes and on behalf of the hotel offers us just two nights (until Sunday afternoon) to move to the Dlouha hotel (which is on the street of the same name in building number 17), which is only 5 minutes walk away. The oblomingo bird touched us all with its wing, for we were already ready to check into a practically native hotel and then go to Staromestskaya. Seeing our confusion, the service worker of the Gastal hotel reduced the travel time to the DZS (namely, the House of Foreign Services (DZS), that is, we will officially call this institution) to three minutes and handed us some free coupons for lunch in Gastal (which, we need Note that we never used it.
We wandered dejectedly to the DZS, where we rode in a wonderful elevator the size of a dog kennel, upholstered in a gray carpet, and settled in the rooms. Our fellow travelers even found some pleasure in living in DZS, because. the windows overlooked Dlouha, which, although not the quietest street in the center of Prague, and in the entrance opposite there was a mighty repair, as a result of which, from 8 in the morning, workers began to dump broken bricks from wheelbarrows into the pallet, which was still empty due to the early hour, but still Dlouha - not the worst place to stay in Prague. So, we spent a third of our vacation (or two days of our life) in the DZS, and on Sunday afternoon we settled in Gashtal.
Fortunately for us, a local flood in two rooms was eliminated just in time for the appointed day and hour. The employees of the hotel did their best that we could not find any traces of leaks at all either on the walls, or on the ceilings, or on the floors of the rooms, and if the workers did repaint the ceilings, they did it so skillfully that they were able to restore cracks, scuffs and dust. Fortunately, the floors of the rooms were not damaged either - we made such a conclusion after surveying the dry, but not new, carpet in the rooms. Truly, human hands are an almighty tool, if you give them reason to help!
In general, we spent the rest of the holiday without worries in pleasant bliss, relaxation, trips to pubs, self-organized beer tastings, walks through the streets and sights, etc.
It so happened that the closest place for us - Russians to meet is abroad : ) With our other friends, whom we have not seen for a very long time (last time in Turkey; ) and who live in another city, we agreed to meet in Prague 16 March 2007, Friday. Of course, in the Hastal Hotel, because we will not change the hotel because of an accident. We went to Prague with a ten-year-old girl who is our daughter and who got the trip for good behavior and in connection with the anniversary. We booked accommodation and return transfer through a travel agent in Vedi Tour (Vedi Tour Group s. r. o. ). Having nevertheless some negative experience, we asked to re-request confirmation of the hotel from the tour operator, describing our concerns and past troubles, meeting arrangements with friends who are arriving from another city, which was done. Lead tour informed us that the hotel reconfirmed our check-in, that last time we were overtaken by force majeure and blah blah blah.
In anticipation of a wonderful holiday, we flew to Ruzyn. Having informed the meeting worker of Vedi Tour that we only needed a transfer back, the three of us left for the hotel by public transport, leaving the travel industry worker to be bored waiting for other tourists and once again glad that the transfer was not for us. Having rumbled along the pavement with suitcase wheels from the Staromestsk Metro to Gastal, we entered Gastal. An unsmiling girl handed us questionnaires, which we were quick to fill out and return to her. At that moment, the girl's face lit up with a smile!
The wife later said that it was at that moment that she understood everything. I have read in many works of fiction and near-science that at the moment of death, the whole life flies before the inner eye of a person. I don’t want to say anything bad, but the smile of this nice worker Gashtala can cause a similar, but more local effect - events of about six months ago fly before your inner eye.
A charming hotel worker from a part of the former Czechoslovakia, in tolerable Russian, reported that, by a tragic accident, the room that was intended for us was powerfully flooded. That is, right in that number, it was completely flooded from a reservoir unknown to us. The nice receptionist terribly apologizes and on behalf of the hotel offers us just two nights (until Sunday afternoon) to move to the Dlouha hotel (which is on the street of the same name in building number 17), which is only 5 minutes walk away. The oblomingo bird touched us with its wing, for we were already ready to check into a practically native hotel and then go to Staromestskaya. Doesn't this remind you of anything? Yes, it also seemed to me that I was in some kind of anomalous zone, where it is still November 3.2006, Friday. Groundhog Day, tyk to hide.
But no, the date on the clock was March 16.2007, Friday. Apparently, something is reflected in our faces. Probably even something obscene (I certainly do not mean a ten-year-old girl), because the girl froze with a smiling mask on her face. She died only when she heard the unequivocal: “No! ”, which I was forced to utter without the inappropriate in this case, “prosiiiiii”. Very correctly, we tried to explain to the girl that we had already stayed in this hospitable hotel many, many times and would like to continue this tradition. The sweet young lady, obviously, tried her best to help us in our grief: she blinked her eyes, fluttered her eyelashes, looked at the monitor screen from time to time, nodded, said “yeah” and, in my opinion, even clicked her tongue a couple of times. However, nothing helped! The room was still flooded! In the end, the merciful girl said that she personally could not do anything for us, except to escort us to the DZS. “There are no other options! ” she said. "Not! I repeated, “Dlough, no! ” In terms of brevity at this moment, I could compete with the authors of the slogans “No pasaran! ”, “Patria o muerte! ” or even "Yankee, go home! ".
The hotel worker, realizing that we had no intention of revisiting the glorious elevator the size of a dog kennel, upholstered in carpet, said that we needed to wait for the director. At the same time, we also felt an urgent need to meet with the director of the hotel. Leaving our things in the luggage closet, we walked to the Old Town Square, watched a performance at Orloi and went to meet friends at the metro station. On the way, about the sixth time I managed to get through to the guide indicated in the Vedi Tour voucher - Vladislav Labkov. If you happen to need his mobile phone number, I can provide it for you to have fun listening to ringing tones that no one answers. And so, hallelujah, Vladislav picked up the phone, and I described our difficulty to him. I gave him examples from recent history, when four people who booked a tour through Vedi Tour Group (Vedi Tour Group s. r. o. ) were evicted from a hotel in Prague on Friday and settled into it again on Sunday.
Vladislav promised to sort it out and asked what we were going to do. I informed him that we intended to wait for the hotel director, who would arrive in two hours (according to the truthful girl from the reception). Vladislav in a cheerful voice told me that in exactly two hours they would solve our problems with the director of the hotel, since it was at that time that he should come, and only he could solve all the difficulties. I fell silent with some bewilderment, since I am not yet very used to someone passing on information to me that has just been received from me, but already as news and the result of work. On this we said goodbye.
So, from the metro station, the five of us again rumbled to Gastal. The same girl remained at the reception, who somehow noticeably got bored when she saw us. Before that, she was very cheerful and tried to resolve the situation with two Englishmen - a married couple who booked a room in the same hotel and even presented some papers in confirmation, but what are some papers for this girl ? ! In general, the British were left to fend for themselves with their backpacks and bags on chairs at the entrance. The last thing I heard in their address from the lips of the girl in English: “I don’t understand who ordered the hotel for you, and who took the order! ”. Indeed, globalization - a sign of recent decades - has even penetrated Gastal Square, now they have the opportunity to refuse everyone in different languages! After that, the girl gave out questionnaires for settling in to our companions.
My silent behavior probably confused her a little, so I reminded myself by giving a last name, which she may have forgotten, and asking for the promised meeting with the director. The girl nodded and accepted the questionnaires from our friends. After some time, a middle-aged lady with dyed hair appeared next to us (we saw her many times in all our previous visits to this charitable institution), which, of course, could be mistaken for the director of the hotel, if not for some specificity in clothes - dark tight pants, which I would unknowingly describe as leggings, and a colorful blouse, somewhat enlivening her appearance. She reminded me rather of a colorful mistress of the house on the Black Sea coast of Crimea. In general, I imagined the director of the hotel a little differently. However, this sympathetic woman in specific clothes asked us what kind of difficulties made us stand with a boring look at the reception.
The wife again, not particularly shortening the story, described our plight, in which we find ourselves for the second time, that we brought a child with us, that we are their regular customers, that we agreed to meet friends at this wonderful hotel... Auntie was very actively busy face, clasped her hands, and performed similar exercises, which, no doubt, are taught to all employees of this glorious hotel in special courses. At the end of the story, she threw up her hands, flashed a tear at our "baby" and announced that we could go to Dlouha, because there was no place for us in Gastal. In response, the wife said that we would settle down right at the reception, on the chairs, as soon as the unfortunate British left them. Aunt twisted her face, snorted in pure Russian: "Pzhalsta! " and walked away, twisting her hips.
It should be noted that our friends did not leave us in trouble, but all this time they were nearby and watched the negotiations with interest. To my question: “Well, why don’t you move in? ” I was told that the nice receptionist was hesitant to give them the keys yet. This indecisive girl deals with the unfortunate Englishmen.
Not seeing representatives of the tour operator Vedi Tour in the hotel, who could help us in solving some difficulties, I decided to try again to reach out to the compassionate heart of Vladislav Labkov. Unfortunately, all five or six calls that I made, standing at the ladies' toilet on the first floor of Gastal, did not bring success - Vladislav could not pick up the phone. Undoubtedly, Mr. Labkov really wanted to help people who paid Vedi Tour money, but could not realize their vacation plans, but important, inexorable, maybe even force majeure circumstances did not allow him to answer my phone call. However, my spoiled imagination painted a completely different picture: Vladislav, seeing my phone number on the identifier and realizing that my speech would not bring him the desired pleasure from life, simply refuses to talk to me. A vicious mind offered me a way out - a call from my wife's phone, the number of which has not yet been lit up by Mr. Labkov. I immediately call Vladislav, and, lo and behold, he picks up the phone! Undoubtedly, such a happy coincidence (Vladislav was freed from important matters or suddenly gained hearing just during a call from another phone) prompted me to think that now everything will work out.
After I introduced myself, Vladislav Labkov very politely asked how I was doing. I dared to answer that my business is still the same, that the room is probably still flooded, and that I still do not see representatives of Vedi Tour who would make even the slightest effort to check me into the hotel indicated in voucher issued by this tour operator. Vladislav politely and even a little sadly informed me that the problem was that the room that was intended for us was flooded and there was nowhere else for us to stay. At that moment, I was again amazed at the ability of this person to communicate to me, as news and the result of his own work, the information that had just been received from me. Probably, this bewilderment unnerved me a little, and I asked Vladislav how he knew about what he had just told me.
I did not really understand the answer, but continued in the spirit that the representatives of Vedi Tour, despite requests, did not come to the hotel, did not talk with representatives of the hotel administration, did not take any measures aimed at fulfilling their obligations. Vladislav's answer almost discouraged me, this answer contained undoubtedly important information that many tourists arrive in Prague every day, and Vladislav simply cannot come to everyone's hotel and solve problems that arise. I was not ready to talk in the style of “come here in large numbers”, so I told Mr. Labkov that I would wait for him at the hotel, that I was not going to settle in the House of Foreign Services. I also told Vladislav my observation (which I have the right to be proud of) - not a single tour operator or travel agent has ever refused to take money from me under the pretext that he already has too many clients, and he does not have the opportunity to take money from everyone. Vladislav told me that, in accordance with the laws of the Czech Republic, the hotel has the right to evict me anywhere at its own discretion. My move: I assumed that my requirements for Vedi Tour would be based on Russian legislation, our contract, tour and voucher, which do not imply a permanent relocation of me and my family members from Friday to Sunday to the hostel of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports. Our bickering would have lasted endlessly, but I was forced to say to Vladislav like Penelope Odysseus: “I will wait for you here! ” and hang up because. . .
At that moment, like the ancient Greek “god from the car”, the director of the hotel came out of the elevator to us. He was tall, bearded, quite young and gave the impression of a very decent and maybe even religious person. As you probably already guessed, in response to his question, what really happened, I outlined a picture for him with the learned strokes of a master who again draws a wheel and a steering wheel by the day of the motorist. The attentive reader will notice that this is not the first time we describe the difficulties that have arisen. I think that this method of exhausting is a psychological device designed to tire the narrator, to make his story an ordinary daily event and, thereby, reduce the intensity of passions. Very smart and correct!
In the course of the story, the director showed himself to be a very sympathetic, compassionate person: he nodded his head, said “yes” and even “I understand”, looked at our girl who was trying to communicate with a local parrot, and, in general, would be an excellent conversationalist if it would be in our plans to confine ourselves to conversation. At the end of my long and uninteresting story, the director said that, unfortunately, our room was flooded (which, by the way, we have heard many times), that the relocation to the DZS will last only until Sunday, that he is very sorry (which, by the way, we also heard repeatedly). I was forced to upset this good and in my own way unfortunate person with my answer: “Dlough - no! I declared again. I don't like Dlouha! " - as if in excuse, I said.
After that, to my shame, I called DZS the word that is used to call not very comfortable hotels in my country. The director felt the moment and suggested an option that seemed even more delusional to me - relocation to the DZS along with our innocent friends. Just for two days! The unfortunate top manager did not even look that our friends flew to Prague for these two days and paid Gastal for two days, and spending these two days in the DZS would be the height of madness. The director said he would try to work something out and left.
Our friends safely received the keys to the room and went upstairs. A few minutes later, a couple of newly arrived tourists came upstairs with the keys. By that time, the British had disappeared somewhere along with their backpacks and bags.
The director returned without solving the problem. This was evident from his confused look and slightly doomed movements. "No, " he said, "only Dlouha. " Frankly, we had a little more discussion about the qualities of DZS in comparison with Gashtal, after which I asked a question that a polite, sensitive, compassionate and forgiving Russian, of course, should not ask. I asked why the hotel management divides people into two categories: for some rooms there are none, but for others at the same moment they are.
The director did not really understand my pronunciation, so I had to clarify my idea - while we were having a heated discussion, two couples (our friends and unknown citizens) checked into the hotel. From this I concluded that the hotel still had free rooms, to which we were simply not allowed. The director was a little embarrassed and said that our friends booked a room by contacting the hotel directly, that the hotel directly guaranteed them a hotel room and could not... I didn’t remember this word for sure, but it was synonymous with the word “throw” their respected customers.
The hotel has no relations with us, so they can us... that's the word. He also said that we are not talking about some kind of personal attitude towards us, that they personally do not refuse us, that they refuse our tour operator. It really clarified a lot for me personally. I asked the director to contact our esteemed tour operator Vedi Tour and personally inform him that we were being put out of the hotel on the street because "Dlough - no! ". The director again apologized for the inconvenience and announced that he would gladly accommodate us, but he recently closed an entire floor for repairs. I grumbled a little about the fact that they used to tell us that the reason for everything was the floods, now it’s repairs, asked to see the flooded room (maybe it’s not too damp there), but the director disappeared again to find out who was that second couple, which was settled.
In order to occupy my hands with something, I called the travel agent through whom I purchased the tour and asked him what to do next. It should be noted that the director of the travel agency took this matter into his own hands, promised to contact the director of the tour operator and call me back within 10 minutes. It was one of the few people who did not deceive expectations.
I did not give up hope that a representative of Vedi Tour would suddenly appear to help settle the problem, but this did not happen. But the director of the hotel reappeared (I confess, I myself was already confused how many times he disappeared and appeared), who first said that the couple who checked in at the same time as our friends booked, as he said, “superor”. I replied that we have no prejudice against the "superor" and we can also live in it, since it so happened that our room was flooded just at the moment when the floor was being renovated. The director showed me a price list, which indicated the price of "superor", significantly higher than the price of the "standard", which, according to the director's statement, they only book for people like us - customers of Vedi Tour. I reiterated that I see no problems and understand the difficulties of the hotel, which is forced to relocate us to the "superior" instead of the booked "standard". The director objected in the sense that there was only one "superor". I noticed that we nevertheless arrived earlier than much more respected guests who settled in the "superor". To which the director, as a reconciliation, offered the option of relocating us as a whole family to another hotel “Ne Dlouga! ”.
I agreed with the condition that the hotel found should be close and not worse than Gastal. In general, the respected director, after several minutes of phone calls, offered us the hotel “At the Old Lady”: “Damn nails! Very close here! " The wife agreed, the ten-year-old girl also did not express any negative emotions about the name "At the old lady. " We refused the director's kind offer to take a taxi to the Old Lady and rumbled our suitcase wheels to this hotel. Our friends accompanied us, and we checked into a very decent two-room suite of the Old Lady.
Right before leaving Gashtal, an employee of Vedi Tour called the reception, who introduced himself as Maxim. He informed me that the director had already sorted out my problems, and we would now move to another hotel that would suit us. I listened to him in surprise, although I had already begun to get used to the fact that Vedi Tour employees only take the trouble to retell information that they have just received from other people. I had to interrupt Maxim and slightly reproach him, expressing bewilderment at the fact that I did not manage to personally get to know any of the employees of Vedi Tour at the moment when I was put on the face with their voucher. Maxim was mournfully silent on the phone. To my question, who should I call if they refuse to accommodate us in the hotel “At the Old Lady”, Maxim answered with lightning speed “To Vladislav Labkov! ”. I asked him to warn Vladislav to still pick up the phone when I called him and suggested the possibility of my calling the Vedi Tour office in Prague if Vladislav again suddenly finds himself unable to answer the call. Maxim firmly stated: "It's better to call Vladislav! " Then he thought for a while and uttered a brilliant phrase: “We'd better call you ourselves if you have any problems! ”. There was nothing for me to say. I'm just dumb before genius.
It should be noted that after two days we humbly returned to Gastal, which we really love. We were settled on the fourth floor, right under the dismantled fifth. For this reason, every morning we had the pleasure of hearing how, right above our heads, someone rolls empty barrels, pours construction debris and performs many more high-profile events so that the Gastal Hotel becomes even more comfortable, homely and calm, becomes a true home for more tourists .
For the sake of justice, I note that Vedi Tour provided us with an individual return transfer in a minivan.
The author does not claim that the system of relocating Russian tourists to cheaper hotels for the weekend is a rule in Vedi Tour. The author does not share the point of view, according to which, on weekends, rooms reserved for Russian tourists are used for European tourists who come to Prague for the weekend. The author believes that the fact that a room in the House of Foreign Services costs 20 euros per day less than in Gastal (almost 1.8 times) and that the host party does not recalculate is just a coincidence.
Translated automatically from Russian. View original
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