Chinese tourist group 

One day, I was working with Karina, and we were the only two agents assigned to the self-check-in area. Karina was one out of not that many people on duty who could speak Chinese, which became extremely important when a large tour group of elderly Chinese passengers arrived at the airport all at once. There were around thirty people, if not more, and most of them spoke only Chinese and very little or no English. They all needed assistance at the self-check-in kiosks, so Karina and I spent a long time moving quickly from one passenger to another, trying to help everyone as efficiently as possible. One thing that surprised me was that while I was assisting one elderly couple, several other passengers approached me at the same time and held their passports directly in front of me, expecting immediate help even though I was clearly busy. I found that frustrating and quite shocking. Later, Karina told me that some passengers had also been rude to her, which surprised me as well. Another thing I found interesting was that some passengers did not want to come to me when Karina directed them for assistance. They told her that since I did not speak Chinese, there was no point in asking me for help because they would not be able to understand me. To be honest, I could understand their concern, as communicating in a foreign language can be difficult and stressful, especially while travelling. Despite the challenges, Karina handled the situation incredibly well. I was very grateful for her language skills. Looking back on that experience, I cannot even imagine what would have happened if that tour group had arrived on a day when I was working alone without someone who spoke Chinese. Honestly, I was very fortunate to have Karina there to communicate with the passengers and help us manage the situation. That experience showed me how important teamwork and language skills can be in an international airport environment.