Here’s one good reason to avoid drinking water from the tap when travelling overseas.
Last month, Malaysian cosmetics brand CEO Aleeya Zailan, 35, checked into a five-star hotel in Malacca.
According to Aleeya, she didn’t notice anything unusual when she got to her room. However, after brushing her teeth, her throat started to feel sore and itchy.
She decided to check the tap water in the bathroom by placing the stopper in both the basin and bathtub. To her horror, she discovered that the water collected was a shade of dirty, yellowish brown.
“When I saw that such a reputable hotel was providing such dirty water, I was genuinely shocked,” said Aleeya, who did not reveal the name of the place.
She shared a clip of the disgusting brown water gushing into the sink and another of the bathtub, completely filled with the same murky water.
Not only was she disappointed, she was also upset because her kids had taken a bath and she was worried for their health.
Aleeya also shared a Google search, which showed that drinking contaminated water “can transmit diseases such as diarrhea, cholera, dysentery, typhoid, and polio”.
She emphasised that the incident was not staged, and she simply wanted to make the experience known so the hotel could work on the issue.
She then added that the other occupants and staff who stayed at the same floor had similar experiences with the water.
Many of Aleeya’s followers were disgusted and asked her to ask for a refund. A majority also asked her to reveal the hotel’s name.
Perhaps the lesson we can all learn from this is to check the water whenever we stay at a hotel, no matter how reputable it is.