Guests of five-star hotel in Zimbabwe can get bucket if they want hot water

Zimbabwe’s five-star Meikles Hotel has warned its guests that hot water is no longer coming out of the taps and that the air conditioning in the rooms and lobby has been turned off. “If you need hot water for your shower a bucket will be delivered,” a bill reads. That bizarre message is now doing the rounds on social media.

The hotel in the capital Harare is an institution that opened its doors in 1915. However, the management is now struggling – like the rest of the country – with water and electricity problems. Because of unsustainable debt, international donors have abandoned Harare, and inflation is spiraling even further. Food, gasoline, and other basic commodities are therefore extremely difficult to obtain.

In the announcement, hotel director Tinashe Munjoma writes that the hotel has been running on a generator since June 11. The problem got fixed yesterday, but the bill continues to circulate online.

Pranksters are taking to it, posting, for example, a photo of Rihanna wearing a bucket on her head. “Rihanna checking in with Meikles as she visits Zimbabwe to see how Fenty Beauty sales are going,” reads the caption. There are also references to the British series “Keeping up Appearances. Hotel guests should ask for a “bouquet,” not a “bucket,” reads the joke.