Radisson Blu - My Silent Dinner Place ++

I didn't stay at Radisson Blu this time around. Not that my 'sponsor' had no money hehe, the hotel just ran out of rooms due to a big event in the city, where the proponents were first to grab all their rooms.

Well, all issues be told, my event (just a small workshop at one of the meeting rooms) still went forth even if I had to stay at nearby Sugbutel. I prefer it that way, walking distance from sleep to work areas!

So eto na nga..,

After my lively fun but physically taxing workshop at San Cristobal (meeting room), I had dinner!

And what better way to have it than at my favorite Urban Table - Radisson's garden and poolside bar.

Unfortunately, there was another solo diner (guest in a blue shirt) at that bar which happens to be my favorite sitting area. Eh I know the "social routine" (syempre itinuturo ko kaya yan!), you have to mingle or at the very least talk to people around. But, after a whole day of talking, I usually want utter silence.

So I instead sat at one of the garden tables - I'm also used to this area - mahamog nga lang pag gabi!

Excellent serene place to enjoy a glass (or two) of beer while doing a silent mental review of my whole day's training workshop activities. Baka lang meron akong hindi nasabi o nasobrahan ang elucidation!

Muni-muni lang, until dinner comes. And I cannot even remember what this is, that I had. Praaamis!

Basta, my bottomline is, I never had anything that my tongue or stomach did not like from the kitchen of this place. Their food is not the "highfaluting difficult to pronounce or discern" types. Of high quality yes, but nothing too alien to my 'probinsyano' taste buds! Example, that one is feeling ko "fish-n-chips"!

So, the above story covers what I call my "Silent Dinner". It is not really silent in this place, and it is not deafening silence that I also want during dinners after conducting training sessions. It actually means ako ang 'silent' - minimal talking dahil gasgas ang lalamunin ko after croaking for a whole day. Ganun!

Mind you, this area does have piped-in music, and usually soothing, unless na lang there are events or affairs that require thumping tunes, na, nasasakyan ko rin naman. At times, this is even a party place!

Usually though, music here is generally chillax (for me) - from ballads to reggae jazz and the likes.

What about the ➕➕ I placed on the title of this article? I'll explain that, and I am very proud of this!

After dinner, I usually need somewhere to smoke. That brings us to the edge of Radisson's pool area...

Smoking is okay at that 'edge of everything' - turn right after emerging from the hotel's main building.

In the past, you could do it anywhere at the pool bar and the tables above where I had my dinner. Ever since DU30 declared war on us smokers heheh, we the silent minority (ako lang noisy) were banished to that edge, still amidst plants and trees but near giant exhaust fans and whatever machines. Ok fine!

However, most of the K and J guests would hub there, dahil nga many of them are yosi-kadiri like me, right? Then I chanced upon a 'power that be' of the hotel and asked "do you want these crowds to go elsewhere in Southeast Asia"? Whose wallet is more important, the non-smoking "karens" of the Phils na bihira lang din naman magka-pera to enter this hotel, or these K and J groups who fill your rooms?

I continued... I'm not saying make the hotel a smokers' paradise, but di pa pwede maglagay man lang kayo ng dos-por-dos o tabla na mauupuan o masasandalan habang nagbibisyo kami? That was 2016.

Tonight.., just a little over a year after that conversation.., this was what I stumbled upon.., tsadaaan!

A respectable designated smoking area with ashtrays, enough sitting areas, a vine trellis for a canopy, nang 'di naman sila (kami!) nagmumukhang mga busabos, since they are not! Mga paying guests yan!

Maiitim na kung maiitim ang mga baga - hindi budhi at hindi kaluluwa ha?! Ang cigarette smokers, tao rin ang mga yan. Kung puro kayo dyan reklamo about the human rights of drug pushers and convicted criminals, ba't ang smokers 'di nyo mabigyan ng konting dignidad doon sa liblib na sulok? Upuan lang!

So ayan, all is well. In behalf of all smoker guests, thank you Radisson Blu. Tapos! Awat na!

But it actually doesn't end there hahaha! In this hotel business industry, many customers (tourists) are smokers. That is a fact! When they drink alcoholic beverages or "cocktails", they like to smoke. That is another fact! Guests kept going to the pool bar, to buy drinks, then back to this spot to smoke & drink!

Then I called up the hotel's 'power-that-be' and told her 'why not just relocate that bar to this very spot, since most of it's clientele are smokers anyway? She said "sumusobra ka na sir, but you have a point"!

Ang akin eh, kung makakalusot lang naman hehehe. Although I know it's an economic reality - you sell where your buyers are. Look at my pic of the fantastic bar above, isa lang ang customer. While dito sa smoking area, tatlo kami. To maximize sales, maglagay na lang ng mini-bar and waiter dito! Ayos yan!

Reminder to all: karamihan ng smokers are owners of their family's wallets. The rest is... kayo bahala!

Whaahehehehe, that's all about the ++ in this story's title! Panalo ako!

Oops, talo pala! After the sumptuous dinner and the dignified smoking area, I needed to walk back to Sugbutel. No can do! Nag-taxi ako! But, that was not because I was drunk with the beer, nor lasing sa mababaw na kaligayahan ng smoking. The fact is, after training, ang dami kong dalang parapernalya!

The end!