Hi everyone!
Wow, what a 4 months it has been! I feel as if I’ve learned more this semester than I ever have before.
One skill I feel like I’ve picked up is knowing how to communicate with new people and how to read them. Because I’m constantly meeting new faces, I’ve had to learn to pick up on behaviors and personalities quickly. This skill will be very helpful considering that I am a hospitality major. Understanding people is very important to be successful in this line of work, so I am very grateful that this experience has brought me out of my comfort zone, pushing me through the awkwardness of meeting someone new. I’m hoping that this experience as a whole builds up my resume, showing that I am willing to go the distance required to get a job done. Also, it’ll hopefully show that I am more than willing to take up a job of going out and connecting with other people.
I have yet to make the travel back home hopefully it goes smoothly. It will be nice to be back and see all my friends and family. I have missed them a lot. Also, to be able to drive or even shower without having to wear shoes will be very nice haha. I’ll miss having my own space here and being involved with all the happenings. I really enjoyed the people and friends I made in my classes. I know I’ll see some of them again through the clubs we will continue in together. And speaking of clubs, I got accepted to go to the CMAA world conference this year in Las Vegas. I am super excited. I’ve always wanted to go there. I hope to learn a lot and see how the hospitality industry functions in one of the biggest tourist destinations in the country. We leave on March 3rd and will be there for a week, getting back just in time for spring break.
I feel like I’ve learned the most in the Restaurant Operations class I took this semester. I had never worked in a restaurant before, so this definitely built up my front of house and back of house skills. I now have a better understanding of all the intricate details it takes to run a business like that. I don’t see myself ever working in one as a long-term career, but it’s always good to have those skills in case an employer needs someone with a bit of food and beverage experience. Another skill I’ve picked up is how to travel without the use of a car. Public transportation is such a big deal up here, I think I have the bus routes memorized by heart at this point. I now know that it’s always best to travel by plane if you can, and from there try and use the bus or Amtrack. Uber is a lifesaver sometimes, it’s gotten me out of a lot of situations where I would’ve had to either take a bus or simply walk home in the rain.
I believe my expectations for up here were more than met. I’ve enjoyed it immensely and think it was one of the best decisions I’ve made so far. I couldn’t have picked better classes that allowed me to go out and experience the hospitality industry on a deeper level. Boston and New York are some of the biggest cities in America, and through UMass partnerships, I’ve been able to experience their most famous hotels and clubs from a behind-the-scenes view. I had not expected to be able to tour those places as much as I have, so I was happily surprised when I discovered that there were going to be trips that either my Global Hospitality Leadership class or the CMAA and AHLA clubs would take.
I remember before leaving I discussed that I was worried about professors not being personal, or the stereotypes of everyone being rude up here would turn out to be true. Each of those things ended up being further from the truth. All of my professors have cared immensely for me and have been more than helpful with me and my situation. They’ve understood that some things are new to me, and have been willing to talk and check up on me from time to time. And I have yet to meet a rude person. Everyone has been just as nice as people back home. I believe that people up here are given that stereotype because some out-of-towners may see them as more straightforward, or maybe from the crazy and reckless driving in big cities. But looking past those things, they are some of the nicest people you will ever meet. I am happy that I am still able to say people are people no matter where you go, now I believe that 100%. I’ve met people from all across the world and from very different backgrounds when compared to my own. It is nice to know that although there is so much conflict in the world at the moment, we are all more alike than we are different. I think if people had the change to realize that, this world would be better off for it.
I am looking forward to next semester and can’t wait for what lies ahead. I’ve already met my new roommate and she seems super nice. I hope we end up becoming good friends. I plan to continue blogging about my trip, so make sure to check up on my writings when the next semester starts come February!
With that I’ll say goodbye for now and leave you with a saying I learned from my roommate and the rest of the Dutch crew:
Als het niet Nederlands is, is het niet veel
(If it ain’t Dutch, it ain’t much)
-Aarah <3
