I have once thought this myself, and perhaps have even said it in jest, but the man behind the counter was quite serious in making this statement. It was Friday night, the weekend here in Iraq, and at the particular establishment we wished to enter, it was couples night. My friends who have been to the restaurant before had never heard of this, and as it was my last night in the city, and it was the only Chinese restaurant, they weren't going to back down without a fight!
The location: a hotel with a Chinese restaurant on the 6th Floor, which we were attempting to go to in Sulaimaniya, Kurdistan, Iraq. We exited the cab in front of the hotel, and entered through the main door: a large rotating, glass door that places you right in front of a metal detector. I take my phone, my money clip, my wallet out of my pocket and place them on the machine. Since there is no place to put my coat, I wear while I walk through the machine knowing it will go off. When it does, I start to take off my jacket. The guard stops me when I have opened it enough to show that I am not carrying a gun. A wonderful beginning.
It was after going through this rather minor inconvenience that we realized that we had entered through the wrong door, and that the old adage "you can't get there from here" actually did apply. So we went right back out the door and attempted to go in the correct one when we were stopped by the security guard who informed us that it was "Couples' Night".
The two friends I was with, an Iraqi and an American, decided that trying to deal with security was pointless; we returned to where we had just left. Fortunately it had been such a short time that the security guard allowed us to just go through. We approached the front desk and asked them about this rule and see if we could bypass it.
--It is couple's night. You must be a couple to go.
-- Well, in some places a couple can be two men, a boyfriend/girlfriend.
--That is country to country not universal. We have to listen to what the restaurant says.
-- Is it possible to sit down here and have them deliver the food to us.
-- No. But you can enjoy our Italian food.
-- My friend is gluten intolerant. He can't have pasta or pizza.
-- You can come back another night.
-- My friend is leaving tomorrow, and we are leaving not to long after that.
-- I am sorry.
-- Couldn't you just let us go.
-- It is the rules; you need have at least on woman. It is couple's night on weekends.
-- Do you know where we can get a woman?
We decided to try the Italian Restaurant. However, when we turned to leave, the person at the desk asked us to hold on. We sat in the lobby and waited. After the time it takes a person to smoke a cigarette, we were told that someone had come to take us up to the Chinese restaurant! We were escorted to the guard at the other entrance where we were stopped and told to wait. The security guard made a couple of calls on his radio, and begrudgingly let us enter.
The restaurant was almost completely empty, and never became any fuller the whole time we were there! Not too long after we ordered, what appeared to be the head of security approached us and asked us if we were "in the hotel". Of course we were not guests, and we told him so, though I am not sure it should have made a difference. He noted this on his clipboard and walked away scowling. We never saw him again!
Apparently, rules are rules, even if it costs you money, and you can get around those rules if you are persistent and the people feel there is benefit from doing so.... Oh, how I miss Iraq!
The location: a hotel with a Chinese restaurant on the 6th Floor, which we were attempting to go to in Sulaimaniya, Kurdistan, Iraq. We exited the cab in front of the hotel, and entered through the main door: a large rotating, glass door that places you right in front of a metal detector. I take my phone, my money clip, my wallet out of my pocket and place them on the machine. Since there is no place to put my coat, I wear while I walk through the machine knowing it will go off. When it does, I start to take off my jacket. The guard stops me when I have opened it enough to show that I am not carrying a gun. A wonderful beginning.
It was after going through this rather minor inconvenience that we realized that we had entered through the wrong door, and that the old adage "you can't get there from here" actually did apply. So we went right back out the door and attempted to go in the correct one when we were stopped by the security guard who informed us that it was "Couples' Night".
The two friends I was with, an Iraqi and an American, decided that trying to deal with security was pointless; we returned to where we had just left. Fortunately it had been such a short time that the security guard allowed us to just go through. We approached the front desk and asked them about this rule and see if we could bypass it.
--It is couple's night. You must be a couple to go.
-- Well, in some places a couple can be two men, a boyfriend/girlfriend.
--That is country to country not universal. We have to listen to what the restaurant says.
-- Is it possible to sit down here and have them deliver the food to us.
-- No. But you can enjoy our Italian food.
-- My friend is gluten intolerant. He can't have pasta or pizza.
-- You can come back another night.
-- My friend is leaving tomorrow, and we are leaving not to long after that.
-- I am sorry.
-- Couldn't you just let us go.
-- It is the rules; you need have at least on woman. It is couple's night on weekends.
-- Do you know where we can get a woman?
We decided to try the Italian Restaurant. However, when we turned to leave, the person at the desk asked us to hold on. We sat in the lobby and waited. After the time it takes a person to smoke a cigarette, we were told that someone had come to take us up to the Chinese restaurant! We were escorted to the guard at the other entrance where we were stopped and told to wait. The security guard made a couple of calls on his radio, and begrudgingly let us enter.
The restaurant was almost completely empty, and never became any fuller the whole time we were there! Not too long after we ordered, what appeared to be the head of security approached us and asked us if we were "in the hotel". Of course we were not guests, and we told him so, though I am not sure it should have made a difference. He noted this on his clipboard and walked away scowling. We never saw him again!
Apparently, rules are rules, even if it costs you money, and you can get around those rules if you are persistent and the people feel there is benefit from doing so.... Oh, how I miss Iraq!
