Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
corporate hospitality image of feminized attrac-
tive receptionist, e.g. we wore pink uniforms,
which made us look very feminine and docile.
We were expected to look attractive at all times;
we were often sent back to the locker rooms to
put on make-up if we came plain-faced or if we
wore a lipstick colour that our manager thought
was too bold or too pale; we were reprimanded
if we wore fl at shoes or didn't wear stockings.
Although, what follows is an extreme example
of the predatory gaze, it represents a commonly
encountered element in the receptionist experi-
ence. All names and locations have been allo-
cated pseudonyms to respect confi dentiality.
The long-staying guests would often come
around for a chat in the late evenings as most of
the receptionists were generally on top of the
administrative work by then and were waiting to
receive guests. The conversation would some-
times revert to mild joking and teasing by guests,
but not many receptionists were comfortable
with this form of communication because of the
social distance between the guests and the
receptionists. The following story explores an
uncomfortable episode for a receptionist sub-
jected to the gaze of an affl uent, long-staying
guest at the hotel called Mr Abubakar. The story
is recounted in the words of the receptionist
involved.
especially as his eyes would move up and
down my body as if I was a tasty morsel that
he'd like to savour. Often I caught him, trying
to look deeper into my cleavage through the
deep-cut neck of our uniform. He was a shrewd
man who would try to break my defences by
poking his tongue at me, or sometimes even
winking as if we shared a secret.
He always approached nearer than was
necessary, so that I could almost smell his
breath. He would sometimes blow cigarette
smoke into my face and say 'have you got a
smile for me, sexy eyes?' Occasionally he would
reach over to brush off something from my face
or pick imaginary lint off my blouse, making me
very tense. He intimidated me with petty
intimate nicknames, like 'cheeky face', 'miss
prim and proper' and 'sexy eyes'. Mr Abubakar
was never too explicit in his sexual comments,
so I felt that I did not have any concrete
evidence to take to management to complain
against his harassment. Moreover, I wasn't even
sure whether management would do anything
about it given the fact that he and his cronies
were valued customers. I also didn't have much
confi dence about such a claim because other
receptionists didn't seem offended by him. They
often said, 'well he is only a looker! Oh! He
gropes sometimes, but it's not that bad as he'll
pays you well for it after'. Hence, I was not sure
whether I was over-reacting even though I knew
he was harassing me.
On the day I recall, he came over to the counter
in the early evening and I was on my own
behind the counter. There were no other guests
waiting for service. I saw him approach from
afar, and tried to look very small and blend into
the surroundings, hoping that he would not
notice me; but I had no such luck. As he came
towards the counter, as usual, his eyes moved
slowly up and down scanning my face and
body while holding my gaze; it was as if he was
mentally undressing me, or as if I was a pawn
in some distorted game he was playing. His
gaze was not only lingering, but was penetrat-
ing with a leering quality, the fear of which
caused goose bumps in my skin. I felt trapped
in his intense gaze, with no way to exit. It was
as if I was a rabbit confronted by the headlights
of a car, unable to move away and acutely
aware of his presence and power.
Portrayal - The gaze of Mr Abubakar
Mr Abubakar was a well-to-do business man
who stayed at the Goldmark hotel for extended
times. He often behaved as if he owned the
hotel and all of us in it; he would strut across the
lobby and, direct us to change the background
music, or adjust the air-conditioning; sometimes
he would re-arrange the furniture in the lobby to
suit his needs. He expected that rules would be
broken for him. He often took his guests to
house guests-only areas (such as the gym) or
would go to the restaurant without a booking
and expect to be served. Sometimes he would
enter our back-offi ce or behind-the-counter as if
to test the limits of his privileged position within
the hotel.
I found Mr Abubakar very intrusive on my
personal space. He always peeped at me and
breathed into my face, sometimes he would
blow cigarette smoke into my face, making me
really mad inside. His eyes had a sleazy, shrewd
quality to it and it made my skin creep
Still holding my gaze, he came to stand very
close to me. I got a gush of his strong after-
shave and looked-up more closely to scrutinize
him, I noticed then, that he was wearing a
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