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Captain Sandy Steps In to Deal with "Next-Level Rude" Guests: "Did I Get My Point Across?"
Below Deck Mediterranean's Captain Sandy Yawn subtly confronted a "difficult" group of charter guests about their behavior.
While the Below Deck Mediterranean crew is used to dealing with demanding charter guests, the latest group to board Mustique was so "difficult" that Captain Sandy Yawn felt the need to subtly confront them about their behavior.
When the group of guests arrived for their charter on Below Deck Med Season 9, Episode 11, they didn't waste time putting in their requests — and complaining.
"This is a bad tender," the primary guest said as they boarded the small boat to head to the yacht. Another guest agreed, calling it a "fishing boat." While en route to Mustique, another member of the group wished aloud, "I hope they have mother-of-pearl spoons."
Aesha Scott Reacts to "difficult" Below Deck Med Charter Guests
As Aesha Scott gave the group a tour of the yacht, the primary guest stated the couches on one of the decks were an "eyesore" and asked her to move them. Suddenly, Aesha knew this might not be the easiest group, declaring in an interview, "Thank god this is a shorter charter."
Aesha's struggle continued just a few moments later in the August 12 episode when the primary guest asked Aesha to bring her a martini that was placed just a few feet away.
"I am more than happy to go and grab your very, very close drink for you," Aesha said in a confessional. "Just ask me politely." She then whispered to Elena "Ellie" Dubaich, "She seems like she's going to be hard work."
Unsurprisingly, the guest difficulties didn't stop there. After telling chef Johnathan "Jono" Shillingford that the caviar they were eating tasted "like a washcloth," the group sat down for dinner. Although they seemed to love the meal, one of the guests had questions about her silverware.
"Why do I have a butter knife?" she asked, to which Aesha clarified, "That's a fish knife. I've worked in service a very long time. That's a fish knife." The back-and-forth didn't seem to sit well with the guest, who stated, "I'm so uncomfortable now."
Still, Aesha had no regrets about defending herself: "I am experienced enough and I'm good enough at my job that I actually don't care if biting back at these guests gets me in trouble because I've got to stand up for myself at some point."
There were more fish-related issues after dinner when the primary guest asked for fish as a late-night snack. When Aesha told her Jono was already in bed but had prepared sandwiches, the disgruntled guest responded, "I don't eat sandwiches, though."
When Aesha left to bring her berries instead, she muttered, "I can't even."
Captain Sandy Yawn Warns the Charter Guests
After hearing about the guest difficulties, Sandy decided to step in. After one member of the group told the captain, "Your staff that you have here is really, really good," she took the opportunity to subtly warn them about their behavior.
"I always say this: If you beat character down, you're going to kill their spirit, but if you're gracious and you're thankful, you're gonna build them up, they're gonna wanna do more for you," Sandy told the group before adding, "I had a client spend a million euros on a charter. They were so rude to my crew, I pulled the primary in and said, 'I'll cancel your charter in tomorrow if you don't turn it around.'"
Sandy was hopeful they would get the message.
"How you treat others is really important," she explained in an episode interview. "From what Aesha and the other crew are saying to me, these clients are difficult. Did I get my point across?"
It seems she did. From that point on, the dynamic changed between the guests and crew.
"All of a sudden, the guests seem to have this base level of decency," Aesha noted. "Maybe they reflected and realized how horrible they were and this is their way of saying they're sorry."
In the Below Deck Med Season 9 After Show above, Sandy shed new light on the crew's experience with the guests.
"Seeing the footage, I was like, 'Oh my god. That's like next-level rude,'" she said in the clip.
See more of the crew weigh in on the experience by watching the video above.
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