Review: Katse Lodge in Bokong, Lesotho

T here was no record of any reservation for me at Katse Lodge in Bokong, Lesotho, where I was to stay for the night. Neither I nor the two security guards — one for the lodge and one for the entrance to Katse Village — knew what to do…

…but I could not believe what did happen next:

“Here is a room key for room number one,” said the security guard for the lodge after thinking about my dilemma, knowing that I had no place to go for the night. “You can straighten it all out with the woman who will be here in the morning.”

I was incredibly thankful that there was finally a bed calling my name — especially as he had no proof that I had a room reserved for which I already paid. Starting off with a ride to the airport, three flights — this was one of them — and greater than 14 hours in a car later, I realized that I literally arrived there straight from the United States.

No wonder I was so tired.

I wearily followed him towards the beginning of a short hallway where he opened the door to room number one.

The key to the room. I have not seen an old-fashioned key like this in years. It was rather cool, actually. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

I do not believe I have ever stayed in a Room 1 before, come to think of it.

I walked in; and here is what awaited me:

This is the bed, which was more comfortable than it appeared. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

A nice large flat-screen television hangs on the wall. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

Artwork hanging over the bed. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

These were the amenities which awaited me on the bed. There were two sets of them; plus two unprotected bars of soap in the bathroom. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

The desk. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

The coffee area of the desk with its complimentary offerings. There were what I assumed to be two cookies of some type in the jar on the right. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

This is the first time I have ever booked a room with a can of air freshener sitting on the tank of the toilet. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

The shower and tub. The empty box on which the soap was sitting was sopping wet. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

The mold on the wall of the shower area. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

A medicine cabinet? Yes, I had to check — there was nothing in it. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

The closet and a mirror. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

The closet with its doors opened. Photograph ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

On the left is a photograph of the shelves on the right side of the closet area. The photograph on the right shows how high the ceilings were in the room — almost high enough to install a second floor. Photographs ©2015 by Brian Cohen.

I did not take a photograph of outside the window of my room because all I saw was a fluorescent light against a wall outside next to the window in the pitch black darkness.

I really do not want to sound ungrateful; but this room just did not look appealing — especially with the mold on the wall of where the shower and bathtub are located. In fact, the photographs actually depict the room better than it appeared in person; and I contemplated sleeping on the bed while still wearing my clothes as I did in Kenya because of the chance of vermin…

…but I inspected the bed carefully and found it to be free of any evidence of vermin, so I got undressed and slipped into the bed. The last thought I remember was that the bed was comfortable. I was out cold after that.

After a short but restful and needed sleep, I woke up not long after dawn the next morning — and I could not believe what my eyes saw…

All photographs ©2015 by Brian Cohen.