Crying for independence

The hectic first of May holiday is finally over. Today almost the whole hotel emptied and we got some, but only a few new guests. It was nice having the house full of people, especially Italians. We have Italian guests so rarely. We mostly have Austrians and German house guests, and seeing as my knowledge of German is what it is, I’d rather have Italians. As persons they are also different. The Austrians and Germans are maybe nicer as hotel guests, since they always obey rules and do as they are told, but I still prefer Italians, that’s what I am here for.

It’s finally getting warmer...during the last couple of days people have been going to the beach..I think I might join them on Wednesday which is my free day. But people here are funny, as soon as the sun pops out, they walks around in flip flops and bikinis. It’s been around 23-25 degrees, but still I wouldn’t go around like that. In the evening, the temperature drops to about 15, nothing to hurray about.

I’ve noticed there is a lot of tension between the hotel staff, especially between the housekeepers and one of my bosses. He just has a way of acting that even I react to sometimes. He talks to people in a direct way without fumbling with words, almost in a blunt way. But some things he says sound like orders, and that’s what people have issues with. The same thing can be said in so many different ways. I like the fact that in my hotel, the whole staff is on the same level. The receptionists are thought as equal with the bartenders and the housekeepers. Despite me liking this, I don’t like the fact that our boss sometimes asks us receptionists to give orders to the housekeepers. Issues about them cleaning what rooms do not affect us. Sometimes it feels like the management doesn’t realize what duties belong to them and which ones they can delegate to other staff members.

Today a strange man started to follow me when I was returning from a book store. I don’t know when he started to do it, but out of nothing there was this man in his fifties talking to me and walking beside me. He had probably noticed that I was walking alone, and therefore I was an easy target. He kept asking me what I was doing, if I had been to the beach today, if I wanted an ice cream, if I wanted to go out with him tonight, things like that. He kept on following me, and he really did manage to scary me at one point because he kept saying that he will wait for me and stand outside my hotel when I finish work. I really hope he won’t be outside my hotel tomorrow. Things like that are irritating here. It feels like a girl can’t do anything alone without it seeming strange. I miss Helsinki where I can walk around, shop alone and do whatever I want without it seeming odd. Why do I always have to be in the company of a masculine person in order to be seen as normal? That’s why I don’t like walking around here alone. I don’t know how Italian girls do it. It seems it’s impossible to be independent here.

What's your opinion?

@elisabeth.rundlof