Chris, Jerusha and I managed to have a mini "FBC" gathering last Sunday. We met in church and then caught up over a gourmet burger meal in Westfield London shopping center. It was my first time being in the new biggest mall but I was more delighted being in the company of Kuching friends. I actually felt very much liberated to be honest because every other day at work, there's no chance to speak like the way we are.
Following yesterday's case, the news had reached head office. The guy has now made an issue about the hotel security, perhaps thinking that his wife could have stabbed him to death that night. Well, who can blame her even if she did. Am expecting a certain kind of memo to be passed around soon that'd probably be along the line of maintaining the same level of hospitality while bearing in mind that anyone who walks in could be a murderer or some psychopath. It's difficult enough that we have to smile at the dial all the time and sound like the happiest person on earth.
And there's no escaping as the head office conducts mystery shopper calls from time to time and record some of the conversations for assessment and training purposes. And this is no joke because when I first had my training, they actually played a few bad examples from their recent round of mystery calls and got us to comment on the tone, mood and mistakes. Gosh, actually after hearing some of them, I was trying so hard not to laugh out loud cos it was so so funny. But in the same breath, I'd have instantly died of embarrassment if that was me.
Anyway..the other training last Thurs in Burnham was a fabulous treat.
A room to ourselves, welcome drinks, 3-course dinner and free flow of wine, traditional
English breakfast buffet the next day and luncheon. Simply too grand for just half-a-day of information feeding but what a privilege to finally experience the whole mid- to upper- class British lifestyle that used to seem so out of grasp.
It's officially the end of the British summer. The clocks were turned back one hour at 1am last night, which gives me an extra hour of sleep before my early shift at 7am this morning. But so annoyingly, at around 2.30am, got woken up by a persistent knocking on the door of the room nearby which completely disrupted my sleep. By the time I felt sleepy again, my alarm went off and it was time to get ready for work. Don't you just hate it when that happens. It makes me feel like the day started off with the wrong beat and the rest of the day will just go out of rhythm.
As far as the job goes, I am happy that I've progressed into something completely new. I think I've fairly mastered the technical part of the job which is the hotel software system. It's an extremely sophisticated internet-based hotel information system that I feel anyone who has learn it deserves to be given a certificate. Seriously, I cannot remember learning anything more complicated than this. Ok maybe not. Chemistry in secondary school is still the most impossible to understand.
We had a rather interesting situation today. Witnessing infidelity and having to put up with it professionally is almost a daily routine. But today's case was major because the guest demanded an explanation and thorough investigation on how his wife managed to find out exactly which room he was in and caught him cheating with another woman in the room. All I can say is "Serve-him-right" but he blamed the hotel staff for allowing it to happen and breaking the marriage. We still have no idea how his wife found out cos we were all strictly warned when we first started to never ever give out room information to anyone based on a similar case which happened before.
But the difference with this situation is that his wife ALREADY knew which room he was in. She walked into the hotel and confidently told reception that she needed the key to room 14 because she left the key in the room and her husband was already asleep. Because she was so convincing, the reception staff at that time didn't suspect anything and just made a new key card for her. And of course..u can guess the rest of the story. I don't know what will happen next but all those on reception will definitely be questioned, like we've committed a crime.
Anyway..am not too bothered by it because I do not recall giving anyone claiming to be somebody's wife any room number though to be honest, I am glad the bloke got busted big time.
I've got an early shift again tomorrow. Gonna continue with some reading if I'm not too tired. Books are just so affordable here that it'd be a waste not to take advantage of it. But most closest to my heart are memories of my mom and dad and wishing that I can share every moment of every single day with them.
We made it to Bath two weeks ago and it was simply gorgeous. Home to some of the finest architecture in Europe, historical attractions and museums, fabulous selection of shops and stylish boutiques, manicured gardens, scenic views of the hills and river, there's something for everyone and even more if you're a fan of the famous novelist, Jane Austen. I love the pleasant atmosphere and how it's compact and diverse at the same time. All the attractions are within easy walking distance and there's always a nice cafe or pub when you feel the need to sit and relax.
I've posted most of the pics on FB and because I'm close to reaching my 1G limit on my prepaid broadband, I won't be repeating any uploads here. Am trying to stretch some precious bandwidth before I have to top up again. Oh god, I cant' believe how spoilt I was previously by BT's unlimited fast-speed internet or even Telekom's streamyx back home.
The "Chicago" musical on the following night was excellent. The entire 2-hour performance was flawless; the acting, the dance, the choreography, the music. One of the best live stage performances I've seen in my life and I felt like running to the next musical theater to catch another one the moment it ended.
Will be joining the Loh's again for a trip to Oxford this Fri (so excited!) and probably ice skating on Saturday with another bunch from church. It'll be my first ice-skating experience in the UK, if the plan goes well.
Am also looking forward to my job training with 3 other colleagues next week in another branch hotel in Burnham Beeches near Windsor with the Corus group's Revenue and Distribution team. A wonderful opportunity to stay in one of their classier hotels and finally dine like a guest! Being in the hotel business was the last thing on my mind when I was younger and look where I am now. Life is indeed full of surprises and surprisingly, I'm beginning to enjoy working in the hotel line more and more.
I should really be out on a shopping spree right now and having a three-course dinner in a Michelin-starred restaurant to celebrate my first official paycheck. But most unfortunately, I'll just have to stick to canteen food and settle for used clothes in charity outlets for now, no thanks to this country’s super ridiculous tax deduction! In total, I actually lost £407 to tax and National Insurance (NI). It’s too embarrassing to disclose how much I actually earn but what I can tell you is that it’s an elephant chunk of my measly salary.
More unlucky was I went to the bank today to withdraw from my starving account and my card got swallowed up by machine. I think cos I keyed in the wrong pin no., but it was only my first attempt! And the card was retained without any warning. I'm pretty sure that it's usually 3 tries and there will be a warning before the third time. What the hell is the problem with this country?? Now I gotta wait until next Tues to get a new card and MY MONEY.
On happier thoughts, I’ll be joining Chris, Susan and their mom to Bath this coming Sunday. We’re also probably going to catch the “Chicago” musical together on Monday night. It’s already so exciting to meet strangers from your own country, what more to say when we’ve known each other for years.
I also found out that I’m entitled to 10 days (pro-rate) of paid holiday this year. Since I can’t bring forward the days to next year, I need to start making a good solid holiday plan, best before winter and that means by November!
After a long tiring week of pure work, I had my first weekend off last week. As soon as my shift was over on Friday, I packed my bags to go sleep over at Christine's (also Lewis') in Enfield. Lewis and family were away in New York so we had the whole house to ourselves. We kept going on and on about how nice it would be to own a place of our own. We spent all Saturday checking out the town and it's honestly one of the more pleasant towns I've been to; not too crowded and buildings were neat. There's also a nice modern shopping area with a wide range of popular brands. The only thing to complain about is there's no Burger King.How can!!??!
On Sunday, we made our way down to
London as we wanted to attend one of our favourite churches (usually the ones
with great songs and music). It was either Hillsongs or Holy Trinity Brompton
(HTB) but it was easier to get to Hillsongs as we were hanging around Oxford
Street. Their service is usually held in a theater not too far down the road. When we
got there, we were greeted by two friendly girls who informed us that their
usual service has been changed to 5pm that day and was going to be held at the O2 Arena as they
were celebrating their 10th anniversary. Upon hearing that it was gonna be
massive and that Christian band Delirious was going to be in the house, we were so looking forward to it, even
though it required us to take another train to Greenwich. Since there was still
time, we headed over to Lewis' church for their 21st anniversary combined
service and managed to persuade Lewis (who just got back from NY that same
morning) and Charlotte to come with us to the Hillsongs service in O2.
The excitement to be a part of the Hillsongs event was pumping hard and we could nearly hear the music rock in our heads as we approached. When we got there, tons of ppl were waiting to get in and we quickly got behind them hoping that we'd get in before the whole thingstarted. It took an announcement on the loud speaker for us to realize that the queue wasn't getting anywhere. The event has been oversubscribed and they had to close the doors. We were among the unlucky ones. A huge disappointment indeed. At the end, Chris and Lewis went home. Charlotte and I stayed back to catch a movie to make ourselves feel better. Unfortunately, the movie Dorian Gray was a bad choice. But overall, it was a good weekend. Could have been better but it was still good.
Hi guys and girls, the next time you go to a hotel, try to be less demanding and be more patient ok. I am seriously going to do the same cos I realize how difficult it is being the person working at reception. EVERYTHING, and I mean E-VE-RY-THING goes through reception. From a simple toothbrush to cashiering to reservations to all other complaints. For this hotel at least.
So next time, pls be kind and remember that the poor lady/gentleman at the front desk is just one person to a hundred others.
Welcome to my new home!.. I WISH!..maybe in a 1000 light years time. This is where I work. .To avoid any potential trouble, I will not state the name of the hotel here. For the benefit of those who loves history, it was originally a house in the 1550s, turned into a private country club in early 1930s and began operating as a hotel in the late 1960s.
Unfortunately, I only took the front view of the hotel. At the back, there’s actually a nice terrace connecting to the bar with views overlooking central London. I honestly think it’s a perfect place to hold a wedding as it’s quiet and private, away from all the noise in the city, and not mentioning the 10 acres of beautifully landscaped gardens and natural woodlands that surround it. I’ve already witnessed 2 gorgeous yet simple weddings. It’s usually over in about 2 hours or so. I love to see how everybody is so well dressed for the occasion, especially the men. All of them reminded me of Mark Darcy in Bridget Jones.
Occasionally, we get celebrities and VIPs at the hotel (not that I have seen any). The more famous one was Tom Cruise. My colleagues have met actors/actresses from television series. We also frequently get people from the Big Brother series who have been evicted, but tend to act like they are a celebrity. They’re a noisy bunch so we’d normally put them in the far rooms, away from the normal guests.
The job, on the other hand, is not as simple as I thought. There are times when we are expected to do the impossible, and I really mean IMPOSSIBLE. During a serious case of bad timing, we have to carry out multiple check ins/outs, complete payment, print out invoices, and while doing all that, answer the phone within 8 beeps and take down new reservations ALL AT ONCE. The problem is…. only 1 receptionist is on duty in one shift. The reception manager is one I salute. Her multi-tasking skill is out of this world.
Am staying at the staff lodge for now for convenience and financial reasons. It's not great but will do for now.
Will be getting a new change of carpet for my room tomorrow cos the current one looks awfully dirty. If u notice, the curtains are too short for the window...oh well..a place to sleep is all I need. `
While waiting to start my new job tomorrow, here's something from last Sunday.
My aunt has made it a point that we go somewhere on Sundays. So last Sunday, she suggested that we go to St Albans. Coincidentally, while we were at Hemel Hampstead for a church service, we happened to be in the midst of the Vintage Bus Running Day. You just pay £6 for the schedule booklet and the whole family gets unlimited travel on any route available. So we hopped on bus 330 to St. Albans instead of driving. All sales proceeds from the schedules, books, collectibles, magazines, back issues etc actually go to the restoration and maintenance of these buses which have been around for more than 60 years. As you can see from the pictures, the buses are so well preserved and I can testify the same for their interiors. Such a timely opportunity.
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