Submitted by Christopher Mitchell on the 2012 summer session program in Switzerland and Italy sponsored by the Department of Hotel, Restaurant, and Institutional Management…
The Jungbrunn in Austria was amazing. It is a world class spa resort with state of the art facilities. While staying there I received four treatments: a facial, full body massage, foot massage, and a sports peeling which was the most interesting of the treatments, but I enjoyed all of them very much. We had a six course dinner the first night at the Jungbrunn and a seven course dinner the second night, both of which were absolutely delicious. I don’t know that I will ever be more impressed by another spa resort for the rest of my life. There are European students now staying at the school who are receiving training for their internships. We have made friends with many of them and I will be sad to see them go this coming Saturday.
Our free weekend began Thursday and ended Saturday evening so a group of us decided to go to Munich, Germany. While there, we visited the Dachau concentration camp which was a very moving experience. I now have a new respect for the military and a greater appreciation for everything that I am blessed with. There were three U.S. soldiers staying at the same hotel in Munich and we hung out with them a lot while we were there. One soldier was younger than me and I have an immense respect for what they do. Although I only got to know them for a short time, I know that I made friends for life. They will be in my thoughts and prayers until I see them again. Leaving Munich was very difficult because we had to say goodbye to them. We spent the last two days in Bad Ragaz, Switzerland at the Quellenhof five star resort for a Hotels Bridging Healthcare Conference. It was very informative and we met a lot of industry professionals. Some of which may be able to help us get jobs in the future. This is our last week in Switzerland and I hope it will be even more memorable than the last two. After that, we leave for Italy on the 24th of June.