So many attendants!

There was not much to report from yesterday, it was a "free day" with nothing scheduled and it was raining outside so we were kind of stuck in the hotel.

We have noticed though that they are very service oriented around here, and not just in the tourist souvenier shops where they are eager to take any money you are willing to spend. We haven't figured out how many staff the hotel employs, but it must be a lot. There are attendants everywhere! Each floor has someone standing at the elevators that pushes the button for you, holds the elevator, and gets anything you need. You step onto the floor and they even point right toward your room - how do they keep track of all that? Outside the front lobby there were 5 people - 1 to greet cars, 1 to take luggage, 1 to hand you an umbrella, and I'm really not sure what the others were supposed to do. There are people standing around various places in the hotel apparently just waiting to help direct you. There was someone even in the bathroom we stopped in. As I walked toward the sink he wiped it down, after I washed my hands it was wiped clean again, and I had a shadow to the door that was then held open for me! The moment you walk in any shop you have an instant friend that will not leave your side no matter what, and even chases you out the door still trying to entice you with something.

All in all the personal attention is sometimes a bit overwhelming, our room seems to be our only retreat. We even once left our room and the floor attendant was standing there and said "can I clean your room now?" - aaaahhhh! There everywhere!

Today we have our U.S. Consulate appointment. Maybe we can find some respite in the friendly attentiveness of dealing with our good 'ol government bureacracy.