Cruise Steward Awkwardness S/O B&B Awkwardness

[ladyknight1]

Hysterical!

[Bijou]

The towels they use for folding are in addition to the towels left in the bathroom.

Also, most housekeepers/stewards use gloves and change between rooms.

Oh, I see.  It gave me the creeps to think about it, especially the going from room to room cleaning.

[Kestrels Nemesis]

Is it just me, or does the first one look like a trussed up Turkey waiting to go in the deep fat fryer?   What was it supposed to be?

[LeveeWoman]

Is it just me, or does the first one look like a trussed up Turkey waiting to go in the deep fat fryer?   What was it supposed to be?

It looks like that to me, too.

[mrs_deb]

One of my favourites.

:-)

I must say I had a hard time at first getting used to being 'served' on cruises.  I felt terribly guilty watching the staff bustle around, catering to one's every need, while I sat there with a cocktail.  It took a long time before I could convince myself that this was their job, and that they expected to 'take care' of me.  It doesn't mean I treated them badly; it just meant that I let them do what they expected to do.

[ladyknight1]

The first picture is supposed to be an orangutan.

[Thipu1]

The first picture is supposed to be an orangutan.

That was the one that creeped me out. 

[gellchom]

Once on a cruise we returned to our cabin to find that the towel art for the evening was ... ME!  The steward had used a LOT of towels to construct a slightly larger than life sized woman sitting on the sofa, wearing my hat, scarf, sunglasses, and tote bag.  On the table in front of her were a few items of my makeup from the bathroom and a mirror, which she seemed to be looking at.  It was amazing.  My brother and his partner had a life-size towel snake charmer sitting cross legged on the floor, with a towel cobra in front of him.  The steward had used one of the ship's signature bread sticks for the flute.  Just adorable.
It didn't bother me at all that she had used a few of my items.  We really liked this steward and chatted with her every day, and anyway she dusted and cleaned around all that stuff, which was either on the dresser, hanging from hooks in the closet, or on the bathroom counter; she didn't go through drawers.
Thipu is exactly right about keeping your stateroom reasonably tidy.  It's considerate of your hard-working steward, and you'll be very glad.  I always unpack immediately and get the suitcase under the bed, even when we have plenty of room.

[VorFemme]

The first picture is supposed to be an orangutan.

I was trying to see a sloth.....

[NyaChan]

I prefer that it be a turkey

[Thipu1]

We also have to remember that service personnel on ships get lodging, meals and uniforms but not much pay. They also sign on for a contract, don't get ashore much and have other duties such as safety drills that passengers don't see.  It isn't an easy life.

  These days, there's usually a daily service charge added to tip cabin stewards but no one would turn down an extra 50 USD or so at the end of the voyage.  We make sure they get it. 

Giving good, cheerful service goes a long way towards getting a nice tip on the last night.  A massive towel sculpture just might do it and the one described above sounds amazing. 

[ladyknight1]

Our stewards and assigned waiters have been wonderful each time we cruised. We always bring little gifts and cash for the tip. Phone cards are very popular, since they only see their families for a few weeks a year.

[sunnygirl]

The one time I took a cruise, I folded my tip for my steward at the end of the cruise into an origami shape. It wasn't as nice or complex as the towel origami, but I hope he appreciated it anyway.

[AuntieA]

Towel art - not on a cruise, but at a five-star all-inclusive resort in Playa del Carmen. Among the towel creations were a mermaid, a dinosaur, an octopus, two snakes in a tree, and an elephant.

[Figgie]

A lot of the Disney resorts do the towel sculptures too.  And there were huge fights on a Disney board about people taking home the towel sculptures. 

Some people refused to understand that the towels belong to the place they were staying and that taking those towels (even if the were in the shape of a rabbit) was stealing.  Fortunately, that was a fairly small sub-set and most people understood that pictures of the towel sculptures were all they were allowed to take.