Night Out with the Ladies!

Late afternoon yesterday I was invited to a Housekeeping party as one of the ladies was retiring, and one was promoted to a new position in our other hotel.

So I set out in the pouring rain around 630pm to a Korean BBQ place not too far from the hotel. When I entered, our housekeeping team took up the entire restaurant with about 60 staff. So let my paint a picture here, as sorry I have no photos!

Our housekeeping is 90% female staff, with the average age around 50 years old. No I am not joking. Our hotel has been open for 18 years and almost all of them have been here since the beginning.

So I sit on the floor and enjoy a wonderful BBQ Pork Dinner, lots of beer, and thankfully avoided the Soju. The ladies were in great moods, slamming down Soju like water, eating for a tribe, and laughing and shouting as if it were all a comedy show. I have been out with our Front Office team, whom are half their age, and thier parties are more subdued! Then the speeches came, more drinking with every toast, lots of crying for Mrs. Lee's retirement, lots of cheering for Ms. Kim's promotion and I even made a speech that they all just laughed at, as most did not speak English.

I thought we were all done, but I and a few of the other male managers (all Korean) were strong armed by the ladies and taken to the closest Norebang(Kareoke), were I, 4 men, and 30 ladies dance and sang for almost an hour and a half. I begged and pleaded that my voice was never meant for singing, but I had no choice, so I sang a dreadful interpretation of Tears in Heaven by Eric Clapton. I was then thrown from lady to lady as their toyboy for three minutes of dancing each!, then finally, someone got smart and said it was time to leave. Dont get me wrong I was laughing so hard and having so much fun. Even when I was dancing with one of the ladies I told her my age and she told me her eldest son was the same age as me! She had a cheeky grin on her face. (God help me, what is she thinking!!)

Anyway, we all left, said goodbye, I trudged off in the pouring rain to my wonderful wife, and the ladies went home to see their husbands, children, and for some, their grandchildren.

I think, seeing these ladies at work will never be the same. And I mean that for the good things. Really though I have so much respect for the ladies whom have worked the majority or all of their lives cleaning rooms 6 days a weeks, then heading home and taking care of their families.

For now.....