I stayed at GH Shenzhen on 30th December, 2009. It was my second time staying at GH Shenzhen.

Using my diamond suite upgrade, I was lucky enough to get a Grand Suite King room (90sqm). My aunty, who is a platinum member, also booked a Grand Twin room on the same night (45sqm). The plan for us was to use the two rooms for family gathering -- the kids (including me) could play Wii in the suite's sitting room for the whole night while the adults could rest in the two bedrooms.

Unfortunately, I caught a serious flu that night. So instead of passing my flu to everyone, I decided to swap rooms with my aunty to 'contain' my germs (I wore a mask too) while everyone else had fun in the bigger suite.

As a Diamond member, I have received VIP treatment on my previous stay. I thought I might get neglected in my 'Platinum' room, but I later realised I was worried over nothing.

I couldn't eat anything during dinner because I was coughing all the time. I got hungry at 2am, so I tried to order congee via room service. Room services said they had no congee, but they could make some for me after they realised that I was sick. I was grateful.

When the door bell rang, I went to open the door (with my mask on). The waiter saw that I was sick, so he said, "Mr XXX (he mixed up my surname with my auntie's surname), please allow me to set the table for you. You are sick, so please do not get up."

The waiter then came in, set the table, and said, "Mr XXX, I hope you will enjoy your congee. Please eat lots and ring me when you have finished."

After I ate my congee, I called the waiter to get the trolley table. He came in and said, "Mr XXX, I hope you feel better after eating the congee. Please sleep lots and I hope you will get well soon."

I was totally surprised by the kind regards from the waiter. I could imagine if I was on a business trip without my family looking after me, such kind words could really make me feel at home.

The thing that impressed me most was that not only the managers and concierge at GH Shenzhen were hospitable. The staff were so well trained that everyone -- waiters, cleaners, bellboys, etc -- were hospitable.

As a matter of fact, the waiter's story made me think about what 'hospitality' really means. I think hospitality is not about treating guests as kings or masters, but rather as equals. They look after you like a family member would when you are away from home.

Anyway, this is a little story that I would like to share with everyone. I hope GH Shenzhen will maintain this level of hospitality forever. n^