Ever been in a situation so uncomfortable it turns seconds into hours, lifetimes?
One of those moments that remain stuck in the air, as if time had completely stopped, and had no intention of starting ever again….
I have, and a few times… but for me this story deserves the palm of honor in the category :
In 2013, as I was working in Brunei, at the Empire Hotel and Country Club, the tiny Sultanate was assuming the Chairmanship of ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations).
More on ASEAN here : http://www.asean.org/asean/asean-chair/
A Member State assuming the Chairmanship chaired the ASEAN Summit and related summits, which means that Brunei was a busy place in 2013!
It also means that many more short stories are coming!!)
The summits involved many European and Asian countries, and the USA.
I was, as an “EAM (Executive Assistant Manager) in charge of Food & Beverage” –another one of those fancy titles which hospitality absolutely loves!, present whenever there was an important visit, and there were many, as we constantly welcomed members of the Royal Family or Heads of States.
Under the guidance of my then General Manager, a very professional and diplomatic Irishman, I had been eagerly been thaught the tricks of presidential and royal protocols, which were fascinating to me… Oh how I miss those red carpet days!! (I do, really!)
Official protocol Rolls… have a story on her too:)
My biggest fear, in those moments, was to address the guest we were expecting with the wrong title : A “Your Majesty” would definitely not be suitable for a prince or President… although it could sound flattering, the opposite was to be avoided at all costs! (protocol FAQ coming up soon, I promise )
So, one sunny and warm day of 2013, as most days in Bruneï, we were receiving Malaysian Prime Minister Dato’ Sri Haji Mohammad Najib bin Tun Haji Abdul Razak, the then Head of State of the country…
PM Najib Razak
As usual, the General Manager and I, along with other members of management, were all standing by the huge glassdoors leading into the enormous and glittering lobby at The Empire Hotel & Country Club…
Main entrance…
In most cases, for such visits, the welcome protocol went like this :
• Greeting by General Manager (or myself in his absence, although he usually was around on such occasions!)
• Escort the visitor to the main lift, about 50 meters further down, pass the reception – quite a challenge as literally ALL of the entourage (35 to 50 people) want to be as close as possible to the main protagonist
• The lift is “privatized”, meaning that a maintenance technician blocks all the requests made to it. The lift is then programmed to remain with its doors open, until the visitor enters. Once inside, a hotel’s security agent pushes a button and the lift directly goes up –without possibility of stopping- to the top floor, where the Presidential Suite is located…
The aquatic section of the Presidential Suite…
• Visitor is escorted to the suite, wished a pleasant stay… we then stand by outside the suite for a few minutes, awaiting any further instructions, attending to any requirements… no other member of staff is usually allowed near the room, for security reasons.
It was a beautiful day, every single detail had been checked, and re checked, and checked again, many days before the visit… it was a typical tropical day in Brunei, although it felt quite cool in the building, due to the energy guzzling AC compressors beneath the hotel…
Once we got into the overcrowded lift, the doors closed, and… nothing happened…. As discreetly as possible, I slowly bent my head down, to catch a glimpse of our security agent, and noticed a slight element of stress in his eyes…
Hmm, I thought to myself, not a good sign… the temperature rose, and I started feeling a drop of sweat forming on my forehead, which slowly started rolling down toward my cheek….I stood there, frozen!
I was facing the General Manager, who kept silent as a grave, seemingly totally in control, No one spoke… no one smiled, no one cried, no one showed anything…now that I think of it, reminds me a lot of the metro in Paris
But it was no metro ride, just a 4 floor affair, which should have taken less than 10 seconds! Suddenly I felt a slight jerk, the lift was moving… in the wrong direction!!!!! It was going DOWN!!!
That is it, I thought, we are going to hit the bottom and nothing worse can happen after that!! The poor security guy was now heavily sweating, and he was kneeling down, fiddling about the electric cabinet…
Centuries after, the lift slowly started its ascent, and eventually made its way up the 7th floor…. And stood there.
The doors opened… and there was a moment of grace, and a sigh of relief when the Prime Minister smiled and said something in Malay, that made his entourage smile…
Man on a wire, told you so! Banqueting Assistant Manager… a true lesson in Food & Beverage
Have a happy weekend, keep reading and sharing if you like
