Arlit: Guide de voyage, prix et hébergement gratuit · 2026

DDariamiata_breath · 28 oct. 2009Lire

Today I woke up because a pigeon living on our balcony knocked over a box of cereal and, as if nothing happened, kept pecking at it. Yes, now I sleep on the balcony, on the 18th floor at Yurka's, in the same room where I stayed the first night of "my new life on the island". Our guys work for Gilbert (the same Japanese guy Ulyana went to work for after leaving Pocho, where she used to hand out flyers). He opened a new business, so now they have endless working hours - painting the kitchen, cleaning ovens, tidying up, cooking rice... True, the pay is $7 an hour, even lower than the minimum... but nobody cares. Cheap labor =) Yurka usually works about 10 hours a day - from 9 to 7 in the evening. I work at the Frog from 6 to 10. The place, as I already wrote, is wild... It's customary here to spray people with a fire extinguisher, whistle in their ears, and the waiters dance corporate dances and sing karaoke... my list of duties includes: Arrives on time in a clean pressed uniform according to the Procedure Personal Appearance and Hygiene Standards. Always has on hand name tag, 2 pens and 1 lighter. Reports to the Mandil and Reviews the Daily Service Board Clocks in. Fills out the Host Opening and Closing Checklist. Checks reservations and reports to the Mandil on Duty. Is responsible for the Waiting List Form. Cordially greets guests in a kind and friendly manner and always with a smile. Gives out welcome souvenirs. Hands out menus. Seats guests accordingly. Introduces the Waiter or Bartender. Identifies all available tables in different stations. Helps guests with special requests Helps with group table organization. Answers telephone in an attentive and cordial manner and puts through all authorized calls Takes reservations. Makes special reservations. Keeps podium clean and stocked with menus, crayons, souvenirs and party promotion pamphlets. Works together with all personnel as a team. Carries out all tasks assigned by the Mandil on Duty according to the Opening and Closing Checklist. Upon completing all tasks, reports to the Mandil. Clocks out at the end of his/her shift. Picks up any trash or papers found lying around. Puts back in its place anything that is out of place. Carries out any task or job suggested by managers or those that are necessary to keep our standards of quality and those that are needed to keep our guests happy. Carries out all the activities written in the SOA (Anderson's Operating System). Knows the Quality Policy. Works towards the accomplishment of the Quality Objectives. Helps in the Continuous Improvement of the Procedures. Skills: Group management and coordination Organization Good conversationalist Good public relations Sometimes I stand upstairs, but most often downstairs. Standing downstairs is very boring, but the responsibility is minimal... Next to me, Señor Frog (an inflatable frog) dances, and I take pictures of people with him, let them look at the menu, answer questions, hand out coupons, call the elevator... Upstairs I am under the constant supervision of Carlitos... and everything works out there, except for phone calls... They put me in a stupor, and in most cases, I just don't understand what these people want from me... it's a nightmare. It's very embarrassing, but at the same time, I'm trying so hard... On the other hand, Yurka said that Carlitos saw right through me during the interview anyway, and if he wasn't satisfied with something, he would have fired me long ago. Despite the fact that sometimes it gets too busy, I try to cope with everything, I smile, and the waiters and runners (the guys who serve the dishes) love me there. The atmosphere in the team is wonderful - everyone is crazy about each other, jokes around, and gives compliments. My probationary period is over, which means I'm working there 100% now... I just need to figure out how to leave gracefully... so that everyone stays satisfied and happy...))) Recently I came home and saw SOMETHING =) Denis brought home 7 c

DDariamiata_breath · 27 oct. 2009Lire

While I was standing there for 3 hours a day handing out flyers, I met a ton of people. They were the same characters who lived and worked on that street. In the first few days, Pocho's promotional campaign was quite successful - people really "flocked" in. A couple of times I even helped him in his little food truck since he couldn't keep up on his own... that's when I learned how to make tacos and burritos, the famous Mexican salsa, and also learned how to work the register. All of this brings me huge pleasure because people come back and say it was delicious, they leave tips, and you feel like you're not just standing there for nothing... But after a couple of weeks, the locals got tired of me shoving the same flyers at them... Some would turn away and walk by, pretending not to notice, some would smile and nod but wouldn't take one. There were also some funny Japanese guys who asked to take pictures with me (one came twice with a yacht catalog and poked at the pictures, showing me where he was ready to take me). There were a few really cool dudes I chatted with for a long time - a guy named Jesse from a tattoo parlor, a man walking his huge German Shepherd wearing a Hawaiian lei instead of a collar :)))) I also regularly saw a strange old man with a red beard who, every time he walked past me, would ask questions like "What was Russia's GDP in 2008??", "What do you think about the president??", "How much do they pay you??"... there were a bunch of cheeky Latinos who tried to hit on me :))) All these people made my 3 hours of work go by faster, so I was genuinely glad when I saw any of them =) One day, some guys walked past me speaking Russian, so I addressed them in Russian too, asking them to take some flyers... That's how I met Anton and Igor, who have been hanging out in Honolulu for the last few years =) Anton plays tennis for the university and his tuition is paid for, but I didn't quite get it about Igor. They were the first people to say they were fed up with Hawaii. It's cool for one month – living in a tropical paradise, but 2 years is just depressing. Igor said he worked at Señor Frog's and could talk to the manager about me getting a job... I didn't take those words seriously – a bunch of people had already told me that someone knows someone somewhere and maybe someone needs a worker... as a rule, absolutely nothing ever came of it. But a few days later, I met the guys again, and we decided to go anyway. Señor Frog's is a completely insane, debauched, fun, and very bright place that manages to combine healthy humor, vulgarity, family vacation vibes, and a spot for unforgettable drinking sessions. Ulyana was there at a party a few weeks ago and was shocked by the freedom of morals =) Igor told me right away that I had to be outgoing, stupid, and charming. While he was negotiating with the manager about me, I walked back and forth, acting enthusiastic, chatting with the waiter and the bartender... At first, the manager said they didn't need anyone, then he looked at me and still scheduled an interview for Wednesday. We prepared thoroughly for the interview. We came up with a backstory for how I met Igor, my experience, and well... everything. =) The guys stopped by my place before the interview and I had a beer with them... as a result, I went to Carlitos completely relaxed, uncoordinated, and a little tipsy. Carlitos was 40 minutes late, and while I had nothing to do, I started chatting with a lady who was also waiting for him just like me. It turned out she had her own marketing agency and she does advertising for Frog's and had brought some samples. We had a very interesting conversation, and at the end, she gave me her business card, expressing a sincere hope that he would hire me specifically. She left, and I stayed to wait for him... and so... we sat and talked. The interview was very unconventional. He didn't ask for my references' phone numbers, he didn't ask for the addresses of the places where I worked.

DDariamiata_breath · 30 oct. 2009Lire

10 hours after my last post about how wonderful my life was, I got fired from Señor Frog's. YOU CAN NEVER PLAN ANYTHING. Carlitos hired an awesome new hostess, Crystal, who was a total go-getter, spoke English, Spanish, and Japanese, and also had an impressive C-cup. Working with her was a pleasure... except for the moment when, 2 hours later (just as I bent down to hide my tea cup under the hostess stand), Carlitos came up to me and said we needed to talk... - Dusha, when are you leaving??? (he insisted on writing my name as Dusha on all the lists) - Actually, I am going to stay for the next few weeks... It became clear whose favor his decision was in... A Russian girl with an accent who is leaving, or an awesome new local girl who the whole restaurant is crazy about... What was unclear was what he said next. "Dusha, you know... every day when I came to the restaurant, everyone was complaining about you... clients, staff... managers. Everyone was complaining." And he, poor guy, endured it all because he is, first and foremost, humane, and second... humane (quote). He wanted to give a poor Russian migrant a chance to earn money and not starve to death. He asked me not to be upset, but advised me to socialize more and say that I am from Scotland, not Russia... After that monologue, I couldn't even pick my jaw up off the floor. I liked the Scotland part the most. And I don't even know... there was no resentment, because I understood he was right. He lied a little, since there were no complaints - he would have scolded me immediately, pointing out what I did wrong... he didn't provide a single argument about when I messed up. But he was right that, as a manager, he made a smart decision. And what killed me... was that I am uncompetitive. I spent the whole evening messing around, deciding what to do with my meaningless Hawaiian existence. Losing a job at the moment when you changed your return tickets, counting on the best... losing a job at the moment when your boyfriend, whom you don't see anyway because you're working or he's working, just got hired there... Losing a job because of the language, when 2 months ago you thought there were NO problems and pronounced 'can't' as 'kant', 'the' as 'ze', and 'thanks' as 'senks'. Yeah... and the main thing is that Carlitos was right. All this happened on Saturday... and then... at night the condom broke, and all Sunday I walked around hating myself, until Monday, when everything changed very coolly again...

DDariamiata_breath · 27 oct. 2009Lire

I'm just going to copy the letter I sent to my friends back home here, so you can fully feel my emotions =) Remember, two weeks ago I told you I went for an interview at a Mexican restaurant, the wildest one in town - Señor Frog's??? When I had already had a beer before the interview???? Anyway... yesterday I was in a really bad mood because the side job I was counting on turned out to be a scam. Irochka, Ulyana's friend, sent me her gig - she was offered to hand out flyers for 4 hours for 40 bucks at a party... That's considered really good... but she couldn't do it because she's working at that time... and she gave me the number, told me to meet this woman... the woman turned out to be Russian, she has her own beauty salon. I drove God knows where to see her (far from the center where I live in downtown (that's the business district). She was explaining everything about the products, what I should say, showing me the price list... and then she shows me the place where the party will be... It turned out to be just a street that will be blocked off and there will be a lot of people pushing around... nothing special.... when I asked how she would pay, she said from sales... and that means she won't pay anything... and when I asked how long to work, she replied ONE HOUR. So, I have to travel 1 hour there, work there 1 hour for free, and then an hour back... but I agreed, because in the long run, maybe she would help me with something, she said she has a lot of contacts and she would help me find something related to babysitting or cleaning... in short, I was stupid. I returned home very upset. And then I remembered something. Two days ago, when I was handing out flyers, a woman came up to me on the street and started asking how I work, how many hours a day, how much I get... actually, I chat with everyone on the street, otherwise it's very boring to stand... I've already been offered American citizenship twice and about 700 times to go to the beach (at night))))))). In short, when she started asking me all these questions, I wasn't surprised and answered honestly... and then she gives me a piece of paper with the restaurant's address and a recommendation from her. She says, like, if you need a normal job, go there, they need a hostess right now. A hostess seats people, gives them menus. Worse than a waiter, salary is higher, but no tips. I went to that restaurant that same evening, they told me they were busy (meaning, a lot of clients, everyone is occupied), to come during the day. I came during the day, they told me the managers were in a meeting, to come the next day.... and in short, yesterday I already had everything ruined with that side job, I decided to add to it and stop by this restaurant to ask about work. I came, talked to the manager, smiled, he gave me an application list, I wrote everything about my work experience (fictional), wrote people in the recommendations (we always write each other). He read all this and said to come tomorrow at 2 for an interview (that is, today already). Well, that was a RESULT, because usually they say, we'll call you back. I left a little happier than I was... I got home and then I remember that I still have Señor Frog's (where I came half-drunk for an interview, I reminded you at the beginning of the letter). Usually, if they can't or don't want to hire you, they say, we'll call you back within two weeks. And, of course, they don't call back. Well, I didn't care about that, dressed decently and went there... I arrive, I say, Carlitos, like this and that... you promised to hire me, I need a job... I came to work, exactly two weeks have passed. Let's do it already. He says, how long are you here for. I say, the visa expires at the end of September, he's like, what, only for a month???? (you can never say that it's for a month, they won't hire you otherwise). I say, well, actually I'm leaving earlier than in a month... and I continue. I am Russian, it's hard for me to find a job in Amer