Practical internship at a French Castle!
A great collaboration between the receiving institution and campus Geilo emerged. On November 6th the rest of the class travelled down to France for a 10-day practical mobility at the same hotel. This was only made possible through full funding of Erasmus+.
You can read more about Emil and Simon´ experience in France here.
Caption: From left, Simon Kvile, Mai Kappenberger and Emil Aoki Berg
'We couldn't have expected a better experience'
Full-time graduate student, Emil Aoki Berg, studies Hotel and Restaurant Management at Campus Geilo
I have been provided the incredible chance to travel down and work in France at a 2000-year-old castle.
The castle is currently a hotel with a gastronomic restaurant named 'Chant de la Source'.
The project has heightened my industry interest, especially with reference to hotels, restaurants, and the historical aspect of a hotel brand. The caste dates all the way back to Roman times and is connected to Pontius Pilatus.
During my stay at Chateau de Fontager, my fellow student Simon Kvile and I worked under General Manager, Mai Kappenberger (Forbes Magazine). Together, we have renovated and completed hotel rooms, whilst created SOPs and instituted the castle´s hotel departments, such as reception, housekeeping, F&B, M&E etc.
It was very instructive to observe how the work ethic was in France compared to Norway. Here in France, it is very hierarchical compared to Norway, where everyone is more or less 'equal'. In my observation, work ethics and effort were also somewhat lower here, but this is justified by lower wages and longer working days.
Even myself, who have 7 years of management experience from the Norwegian hotel industry, have gained an incredible amount of knowledge and can now write both 'hotel director' and 'international hospitality' on my CV.
We couldn't have had a more valuable and better experience. We are also well integrated into the process of a hotel a start-up or a pre-opening if you will, both at management level and with the financial factors.
I would recommend all students who get the opportunity to go on Erasmus+ to take advantage of this opportunity.
*SOP - Standard Operation Protocol/Procedure
**F&B Food and Beverage
***Meetings & Events
'My experiences from mobility abroad are only positive.'
Full-time graduate student, Simon Kvile, studies Hotel and Restaurant Management at Campus Geilo.
Mobility abroad provides a fantastic opportunity to acquire a different form of knowledge than what you would get in Norway. This enables you to gain knowledge about a different type of work ethic and what routines are like abroad. You will also get a golden opportunity to explore and to get to know a new country and a new
language. My mobility was of the type which meant that I had long working days, but they were usually filled with varied work, which meant that the days were content rich.
I was so lucky that I was stationed in the middle of one of the largest wine regions in France, thus I got to see and taste an incredible amount of good and exciting wine, something that I would not have been able to do if I had chosen to complete my internship in Norway. I would recommend everyone to take a placement abroad rather than inland, as you will return home with a lot more valuable experience, bot academically and socially. You will also be left with a feeling that you have experienced more than you perhaps would have if you had stayed in Norway.