September 3, 2009

Week 3 ^{1}

By: Dennis Category: Hotel School

This is my third week here at the International University of Hospitality Management here in The Hague, the introduction week has finished and the real study is now starting.

My timetable for this week is quite busy with is filled up almost everyday.

Monday we had some lectures and were introduced to our personal / group tutor that will be available throughout the year. The tutor is there to help us and check our progress towards our EC (European Credits) goal in order to go on practical placement. Getting up early is not really my strong point (I am working on it though) as on Tuesday we woke up a bit late so we rushed to the bike shed and biked as fast as we could to our BS (Basic Skills) class which starts at 08:00 skipping breakfast altogether. After running through the school we arrived at the designated class at 08:03 (which normally they don’t let you in if you are more than a minute late) however the lights were off and the door was locked to the restaurant and nobody was there.The reception told that our group / team weren’t scheduled for that class today, after a quick check online we went to the scheduling department which couldn’t tell us anything useful either.

After waiting in the class for around half an hour another teacher walked in and told us that he would take the class as he wasn’t sure what had happened exactly to the scheduled class. The teacher however doesnt teach in the subject of BS (Basic Skills) so we did some alcohol testing. Basically we smelled every alcoholic drink from Whiskey to Gold Label in and were told how and where it was made.

In the afternoon after lunch we headed to the NovoHotel in The Hague were had a guided tour of the hotel and asked our questions  about the hotel for our assignment which was quite interesting and also fun. The assignment is a poster presenting all the information we found important about the hotel and its guests. The poster has to be presented in week 9 or 10 by our team.

Today we started of with a lecture for BS Teamwork (Basic Skills) which was very interesting and also very enjoyable. After lunch we had another team building exercise which we had several activities to do. For one of the activities we where split up into groups and we had to debate about random topics with summaries during the debate to show our listening skills. The afternoon went by quite quickly and was fun to participate in.

The school provides us with a very nice lunch and other meals at school, we have a sort of “La Place” which has many different sections for different types of food ranging from a salad bar to a cook while you wait pizza bar with juice bars is well. Everyday is a different menu with many different items and choice. At the other side of the building there is also a coffee / snack “station” where you can get freshly made sandwiches,  fruit smoothies and juice, this “station” is open most of the day with many seating areas where you can study / work.