XiaopaPat
February 24, 2025
How unreliable it is, let me tell you about my legendary experience.
A few days before I left, I had confirmed the arrival date and time with the hotel in advance. There were no problems in communication and the replies were timely.
Before I flew, the hotel sent me a message asking if I would like to move to another area with better conditions. I replied that I didn't want to because it was already in another area. The hotel replied that I understood and that you could just come normally and the room had been reserved.
I arrived in Ho Chi Minh and took a taxi to the hotel at about 6 pm. I found that this was an apartment building with no hotel or homestay signs in the building. I sent a message to the hotel, asking how I should find you and check in when I arrived at the hotel? I sent a lot of messages during the period, but there was no reply for more than half an hour. I bit the bullet and called the hotel, but the number was empty.
I quickly contacted Ctrip and asked Ctrip to contact the merchant. The Ctrip housekeeper worked hard for a long time and said that the merchant was empty and could not be contacted. I was with my family of 4 in the lobby of the apartment, feeling helpless. I am a native English speaker, but the locals don't speak English either.
Later, I saw the security guard of the apartment. I used a translation software to show him the name of the hotel and asked him if he knew it and if he could help me contact it. Luckily, he really knew it. After a while, a lady came down, but she didn't speak Chinese or English. She called a video call to find a guy who spoke English to communicate with me.
The electricity in this room is broken. Either go to an apartment in another area or give you a refund. I was confused. I suspected that this was a trap. They tricked me to go to another place and then gave me a kidney.
It's 8 o'clock in the evening. It's too difficult for me to find other hotels on the spot to arrange a room for my family of four.
At this time, a group of Vietnamese families came to the lobby of the apartment. They spoke very good English. After listening to what the woman said, they began to persuade me that they also had a house in that area. That area is good, don't worry.
I gritted my teeth and stomped my feet. I believed it. I told the guy who knew English that I only had two requirements. First, you have to send me to that place. I can't explain it clearly and can't find it. Second, someone has to receive us when we arrive. The young man patted his chest and said, I'll call a taxi to take you here. I'm waiting for you at the destination on my bike.
Before getting in the car, I told the landlady that I had to add your contact information in case I couldn't find him again.
It took 30 minutes to get there by taxi. When I entered the apartment building, the young man was not there. I sent a message to the landlady to ask her to contact him and ask where he was. Did he fall into a ditch while riding his bike? She replied that she would be there soon. 20 minutes later, the young man arrived.
It was relatively smooth afterwards. The previous experience made me numb. If I didn't have more than 20 years of overseas experience and my native English level, I wouldn't be able to handle these things.
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