【Bengali Archives】

Plenty of people travelling for work end up staying on Bengali Archivestheir own at hotels.

It can get lonely, too. Some may alleviate this with a call to the family or a friend. Others put a film on, or get room service.

If you're staying at a specific hotel in Belgium, though, there's another option.

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Yep, according to Michelle Cooke from New Zealand, her friend was offered the option to "rent-a-fish" for company at the Hotel Charleroi in Belgium.

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It sounds far-fetched, but it's true. David Dillen, the hotel manager, confirmed to Mashablethat they've been renting fish to customers since 2013.

Dillen described the offer as a "gimmick" that gets a lot of attention on social media.

But while a lot of people responding to Cooke's tweet did find the idea funny, there were also some concerns raised about the wellbeing of fish.

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Dillen stressed that the hotel takes "very good care" of their fish.

"They also have a big fish-tank in the housekeeping department, with a shelter in it, oxygen and plants," he said. "When we think it’s necessary, we put them there for a few days."

He went on to explain that the fish have been with the hotel for four years now. 

"If they were not taken care of they would have died a long time ago," he said.

"I think it’s a pity people nowadays tend to look at the glass being half-empty instead of half-full."