To Whom It May Concern:
This is a complaint letter about my homestay. According to the bill, I pay $ 820 Canadian dollars for 3 weeks and an extra day. When I received Mrs., I was assigned a room in the basement of her house and she handed me a copy of the keys to the basement and my room. I could never close the door of my room because it is damaged or stuck.
She was very nice to me but she never explained the rules of the house to me, except when I asked for the wifi I had to pay her $ 18 Canadian dollars for the internet service, which is not included in the homestay, so I had to pay for it.
During the first week for me everything was a new experience, especially the room where I slept. The bed is lined with plastic, as if it were new and never have removed the plastic. This is extremely uncomfortable and hot at night, as well as noisy since moving at night makes noise. Also, in the mornings I wake up with a sweaty back because the plastic prevents any type of ventilation.
In addition the basement is extremely and unbearably humid. The first morning I noticed puddles on the floor. At first I thought that I accidentally spilled a glass of water but I realized that it was simply the humid environment. This basement has no dehumidifier. When I told Norma about the humidity in the room she told me that there was no problem and placed a small heater in my room, which she herself plugged into the socket. This did not work ,since the following mornings were just as humid and I woke up sneezing from the same moisture/mold/mildew.
The basement had a washing machine but no dryer. The only time I used the washing machine my clothes took too long to dry even some clothes I had to use them a little wet. This is terrible and unacceptable. It is actually insanity.
At first she only put a single roll of paper in the bathroom. When I asked for more she was in shock! The basement was shared by two people. Each had their own room but we shared the bathroom, so a a single roll for two people is very little and insufficient.
The homestay payment included breakfast and dinner. At first the food was good because it was fresh and freshly made, for example we were fed lasagna, rice, salad, juice, tea or coffee, beef and chicken. In the second week the food was bad because it was not fresh. It seemed as though the pantry had gone empty and she served us food scraps.
On Friday, August 4, the lady of the house told us that Hansa had spoken to her on the phone because the students had not covered the total payment for the homestay. When I say students, I mean me and my roommate. From that day on many occasions has commented again the same even looks angry and is a bit rude. TO BE CLEAR, I HAVE PAID.
My roommate and I went to the second floor of the Hansa building to ask Emma (Homestay Manager) and we explained the situation. However she said that it was too late to do anything and that we had to report from the first days or second week. I have the impression that the Hansa school does not care about these situations. For the Hansa school it does not matter that a student sleeps in a wet room, in a bed protected with plastic and eat stale remains of food.
In a more positive note, I would like to congratulate the Hansa School because they have extraordinary teachers with a lot of patience and preparation, as well as being very kind. There are teachers who make me have more desire and courage to continue practicing English and never stop. I know it will not be easy but I will succeed, I want to say that with practice my English will be more fluid and understandable.
However, I want to report the teacher J. C. of the grammar and pronunciation classes level 6 because he made fun of my pronunciation on some occasions and on one occasion laughed in front of the whole group while all my companions were silent. I decided to change teachers but I think that someone should do something about this unprofessional lack of respect. Maybe the director of the Hansa school should sensitize this type of teacher to be more compassionate of the education process.
It is definitely possible that my English is very bad, but I am a Mexican citizen who pays her taxes in her country, who went to college, who continues to study to be a better professional, who has a respectable job in her country and above all I am a human being who deserves the same respect as who is reading this letter.
My request is to reimburse me 7 meals that correspond to the days of Thursday, August 10 to Sunday, August 13 (breakfast only), which is the day I leave Toronto. The reason is because since Tuesday, August 8, I no longer want to eat in my homestay for the situations explained in this letter.
I hope to have a favorable response.
Best regards,
Elena Rios read more
