Looking out from my bedroom window in my Ca'n Digus apartment, peering beyond the row of recycle bins, I can see, to my delight, the vast expanse of the Mediterranean; it's dotted here and there by people sailing, wind surfing, and, craziest of all, kayaking. This view sums up Ca'n Digus; it longs for greatness, but there's always that row of recycle bins sitting obstinately in its way.
I arrived, girlfriend in tow, rather late at night, say around 11.00pm. This is when Menorcan people start doing things; during the day they mope around like half drugged sheep, probably wondering why they bothered to drag themselves from their siestas in the first place. Anyway, because of their intolerance for the sun and their love for the moon, Ca'n Digus staff, at 11.00pm, are somewhere else; responsibility for guests transfers itself to the restaurant next door which, it transpires, is not affiliated with the hotel at all. A waiter will let you into your room but, as might be expected, they won't bother providing a warm welcome; you'll be lucky if you are rewarded with something more than a grunt. Anyway, into your room you'll tumble; straight into your bed, after a strenuous jouney, for a good night's sleep. Except, if you are at the front of the hotel, close to the aforementioned row of recycle bins, you'll be rather annoyed to discover that these are emptied throughout the night. One truck does not pick up everything; several trucks will arrive to independantly collect paper, bottles, cans and clothes. The bottle truck is worst; the sound of glass smashing at three in the morning is something close to horrific.
If you want to complain about the night's events or, indeed, ask the hotel staff about anything, you'll have to make an extra special effort. Most of the time the reception is shut; it opens at specific times and for no more than minutes at a time. The staff spend the rest of their hours, presumably, sleeping.
This lack of work leads to other problems; in our two week stay our room was cleaned once. Worst of all, our toilet roll was never replaced; I had to buy my own or, during more desparate times, steal it from the restaurant's restroom. One curious thing to note; there were always clean towels. These are delivered surreptitiously, appearing at random times throughout the day, as if the hotel has some kind of friendly spectre who cannot abide dirty towels. All I can say is, the spectre needs to extend his reach.
The rooms are comfortable enough. You're provided with chairs, a sofa, a table; a kitchen with gas cooker, sink and dinner utensils; a bathroom with shower, toilet and sink; and a bedroom with a double bed which is actually two single beds pushed together. Needless to say, they don't stay together; you'll wake up with the feeling that, during the night, you had a spat with your loved one and, in a moment of pure anger, pushed your half of the bed away from their's. Incidentally, if you do happen to have an argument in the middle of the night with your loved one, you can always push your half of the bed away from theirs.
All ground floor rooms open onto the pool area; this is fairly small and is populated mainly by british people all making rediculously grand and pompous comments such as, "I holiday here every year...for a month." Surely, it is this class of clientele who are responsible for the cost of the rooms; Ca'n Digus charges four star rates for a two star hotel. Writing that makes me laugh; surely the two stars are self applied; Ca'n Digus deserves nothing more than one.
Ca'n Digus' one saving grace is its location. It's on the sea front; it's close to many restaurants (most of which, by the way, are terrible), and nearby, there is an excellent place where you can learn how to do all those wonderful water sports you can see, beyond the bins, from your bedroom window.
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