If you were not doing your current job, what might you do?
I have no idea what else I would do. I love this job, seeing results and satisfied customers.

Ce faci?
Foarte bine, multumesc!

Do you, or have you, ever had a nickname, and if so, what?
'Kurti', when I was a child.

What is your earliest memory?
When I was 31/2 years old, I was given a toy rabbit from the Easter Bunny. It had black and white checked pants, exactly like the trousers a chef would wear.

What were you like at school?
A relatively good student, and reasonably popular. I wasn't in a gang.

Are you a good dancer?
Not really - but I'm not bad at the waltz and the foxtrot.

What is the last good book you read?
The most recent update of the crisis management plan from Marriott International. It's a real book, with over 200 pages.

What film have you enjoyed recently?
My Big Fat Greek Wedding, which was great fun.

If you went on 'Mastermind', what would your special subject be?
Culinary art and cooking - I come from an F&B background.

Do you collect anything?
Yes, restaurant menus and cookbooks.

Have you got any scars?
Yes, two on the same leg, on my knee where I fell over in the garden when very little, and from a motorbike accident in the Bermudas.

Where did you spend your most recent holiday?
On a houseboat in the Danube Delta, with some close friends. We did a lot of sightseeing. It was wonderful - I didn't expect it to be so good.

If you could holiday anywhere, where would it be?
At home, by the pool.

Honestly?
Yes, because when at a resort, going to a hotel is like going to work for me. There's nothing quite like home.

If you could live anywhere, where would you live?
Six months of the year in Mallorca, and six months of the year in Austria.

What is your greatest personal sporting achievement?
I ski and cycle, but just for fun, never competitively.

What is the most memorable sporting event you have attended?
A soccer match between Bayern Munich and 1860 Munich at the Munich Olympic stadium in 1982. The experience was all in the atmosphere, which was fantastic.

Describe an enjoyable meal.
It would be a dinner with my wife in an elegant, outdoor restaurant by the water - a lake or the sea. We'd start with caviar with traditional garnishes followed by lobster thermidor, then a nice medium roasted rack of lamb, with Kenya beans and gratinated potatoes. Dessert would be just an assortment of fresh sliced fruit, and we'd finish with Turkish coffee, medium sugar.

And winewise?
The good bottle of red wine.

Describe the best party you ever went to.
A Turkish wedding at the Ciragan Palace in Istambul, but there have been many other business parties and it's really difficult to choose one. But the best parties are those to which people come as business partners, and leave as friends.

What is your most recent extravagance?
A dinner with my wife at the Castle Piber, in south-eastern Austria.

What is your favourite musical instrument?
The grand piano.

What five words best describe you?
Positive, outgoing, meticulous, honest, familial.

What do you like least about yourself?
That I cannot spend as much time with my family as I would like.

What's your worst habit?
Smoking, definitely. I will give up soon though.

Is the glass half-full, or half-empty?
Well, if you see half a glass, it's half-full, isn't it?

Where were you on 31st December, 1999?
I was in Moscow, working. We were all very anxious about the Y2K bug. We had iridium phone systems just for the occasion, and weren't allowed to drink during the evening.

What is your most prized possession?
My family.

What do you always carry with you?
My Nokia phone and meeting planner, and my no-brand watch.

What might you be reincarnated as?
If I came back as the son of a hotel owner, I'd be happy.

What is the most you have ever paid a hairdresser?
29 euros, in a mall in Austria. But my most recent was the cheapest, at the Royal Duni Resort in Sosopol, Bulgaria. We had an all-inclusive holiday - even the haircut was included.

Name some personal heroes.
Bill Marriott Snr, who began the company with a root beer stand in 1927, and opened his first hotel in 1957. And Bruno Kreisky, the former Chancellor of Austria.

What was your first car?
A green, 1974 Volkswagen Golf.

What do you do in hotel rooms?
I inspect them, and make sure they are clean and ready for the guest's arrival.

What is your all-time favourite television show?
I wouldn't say 'all-time', but I've always liked the X Files.

What is your all-time favourite work of art?
Ephesus, the town on Turkey's Aegean coast. The whole town is a work of art.

Who is your favourite James Bond girl?
I like James Bond films, but I wouldn't know one of the girls from the other. I wouldn't even know their names.

Have you had any interesting jobs before this?
I've only ever worked in hotels, and all my jobs have been interesting.

Have you got any pets?
Yes, we have Mitzi, a kitten we found in the street in Mallorca, almost dying and very small. She's grown up to be very independent.

If you were an animal, what would you be?
An eagle, seeing and controlling everything from above.

How much money have you got on you now?
About 9 million lei, 8,500 forints and 22 leva.

What is your favourite website?
I've a few: the intranet of Marriott International, my bank account's website, and competitors' websites.

Is the art of letter-writing dead?
It's always more personal to receive a letter through the mail. I think it will be revived one day.

Have you ever written a letter to a newspaper or magazine?
The most recent letter I wrote was to Die Presse, the Austrian daily, complaining about the poor light in which they portrayed Romania in a special insert they did.

Can you recite a line of poetry?
''Only what gets measured, gets done''.

Who said that?
Karl Killberg, Senior Vice President of Marriott International for Continental Europe.

Aha. When was the last time you were in a fight?
I've never been in a fight, but I did intervene in one last year, in which two guests were really having a go at each other in our Executive Lounge. I tried to break it up. They were very apologetic.

Who is the sexiest person in the world?
When she was alive, Marilyn Monroe, definitely.

When did you last have too much to drink?
In Moscow, at my first evening out with the executive team. The first vodka went down OK, but after a couple more, I knew that if I had one more I'd be unconscious. I walked out of the restaurant, got on the metro, went home and went to bed.

What is the best rock concert you were ever at?
Chris de Burgh in the 30,000-seat Ephesus amphitheatre, in 1992. A real event.

If you had three wishes, what would they be?
(1) That the good times and laughter between my wife and I would never end, (2) that I could live healthily for as long as I like, and (3) that I had enough money to do whatever I like.

What is best about living in Romania?
Knowing and working with Romanian people, who are friendly, open and willing to learn, and the vibrant expat community.

What Romanian would you most like to meet?
Ioan Holender, who is the director of the Vienna State Opera.

What question would you most like to answer?
Why would a customer choose the JW Marriott Bucharest as his home away from home?