Letters..

Be nice or adios

I AM a British citizen living in Spain. My husband is Spanish and has had more than 50 years of experience in catering.

He learned English, French and Dutch to make sure his customers were well attended.

Last week, our eldest daughter, her family and another Spanish family were on holiday in London. On July 3, they entered a cafe in Leicester Square to have a snack.

My daughter speaks good English, with a slight accent. Street musicians outside made it difficult to hold a conversation with the waiter. Nevertheless, she successfully placed her order. While waiting to be served, a different waiter stepped forward and asked her if she spoke English.

She replied that she was Spanish and he retorted: “If you don’t speak English, what are you doing in MY country?”

My daughter was taken aback and told him, this time in Spanish, what she thought of his attitude and walked out.

When she told me what happened, I felt so ashamed.

It was the first time her husband and friends had visited Britain. Is this the lasting impression they will have of the British people?

The Spanish people, in general, know their economy relies a great deal on tourism and they all make a great effort to learn languages and show respect to their visitors.

This waiter is an absolute disgrace to his profession and I hope he is an exception to the rule but the sad aspect of this whole incident is that he doesn’t seem to realise that his attitude could be putting his job and workplace in jeopardy.

After Brexit comes in, tourism might become an even more important part of the British economy. Tourists won’t go where they are mistreated. Kathleen Martinez