Submitted by: Ana Landeta
Photo by: Makin' Memories
It is the year 1998, finally they have transferred me from the Cantina to the San Angel Inn Restaurant. Long waited "promotion" and amazing to be inside with air conditioning because life outside in the Food & Beverage Disney World is tough!
It was a busy afternoon, as usual, the Iconic Pyramid at the Mexican Pavilion in EPCOT attracts hundreds of visitors, and being the first pavilion is definitely an advantage, or in this case also a disadvantage because sometimes, people don't really understand where they have just entered.
The Mexican restaurant is located at the back of the pyramid, the dimmed light makes it a nice ambiance pretending to be night time, as you enter the pyramid you find yourself in a Mexican market where carts are located selling Mexican handcrafts, on the left is a river that takes you on a boat ride throughout the Mexican Heritage and history, and far in the back of the building is the San Angel Inn Mexican Restaurant. From the restaurant you can see the boats passing by, and the tables are allocated along the shore, so it gives you the feeling of being in a terrace where paper mâché is hanging in lines making a fiesta next to the river.
As you approach the restaurant area, the first thing you encounter is the hostess podium. That's where we are.
As a hostess our job was to welcome our guests, give them a table; if it was too busy then, reserve them a space, take their names and call them once a table was available.
In the middle of the busy hour a short Asian gentleman approaches us, he greets us with his head, we reply bending our heads same way; slowly and without saying anything he continues his way entering the restaurant and at the top of the stairs looking down he stops, he takes his camera out, pulls his glasses down, looks back at us, looks back at the restaurant where the waiters are running back and forth, where the boats are passing by. He looks back at us, then looks back at the restaurant, smiles and starts taking pictures as there is no tomorrow, the shooter is on full speed and no one can stop him. He walks a few more steps closer to the tables below him, and continues to take pictures.
We are mute looking in odd... He does it one more time, looks back at us, puts back his glasses, looks at the restaurant again, takes them off again, pulls back his camera and making a 360 he continues to take pictures.
He looks confused and finally we approach him.
ME: Is everything okay Sir?!
GUEST: mmhmm
ME: Sir? Excuse me, is everything ok, can I help you?
He looks back at me and smiles, finally he says.
GUEST: Ha! Yes! Tell me.
He puts on and off his glasses again, calls his lady that is in the back, when she comes, he grabs my arm and comes closer and says...
GUEST: Are they computerized?!
ME: ??????
ME: Excuse me sir?!?!?!
GUEST: Yes! That...
(pointing out at the people eating at the restaurant)
GUEST: ARE THEY COMPUTERIZED?!
ME: eemm Sir? Do you refer to the people eating at the restaurant?!?!?!
GUEST: HA! Yes!! Are they Computerized?!?!
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