Culinary Arts Program Provides Virtual Travel Experience

By Dr. Charles Broz, Assistant Professor, Family and Consumer Science

It seems like everyone wants to travel. There are at least two cable channels devoted to nothing but this subject! When you ask someone what they’d do if they won the lottery, inevitably the subject comes up. But what about us regular working stiffs? Is traveling the globe only accessible to the wealthy? Well, I did some research, and I can say with some degree of certainty that, yes, travel really is only for the wealthy!

But this doesn’t scare ENMU Culinary Arts students. In fact, several students from the program have been bitten by the travel bug. After doing their own research, they have plans to experience the excitement of travel, tourism, foreign culture and cuisine…and get paid for it! That’s right. There are currently three students (one senior, one junior, and one sophomore) who are seriously investigating careers with cruise lines.

In fact, two former students who wanted their fair share of the tourism industry, are currently employed by large themed resorts (I won’t say which, but one rhymes with “Quisney”). Another group has found a welcoming culture at the Four Seasons Santa Fe, a major name in the travel and lodging industry.

Of course, you don’t have to work in the hospitality industry just to experience other cultures. The Culinary Arts program has ample opportunities for everyone to come and take a class. You could learn the ancient cooking techniques of the far East in Cuisine of Asia. You could eat your way through Greece, Turkey and Italy in Mediterranean Cuisine. You could even try your hand at recipes of the European master chefs in Classical French Cuisine.

It was a wise person who said: “wherever you go, there you are.” But just remember, traveling is a state of mind; and it is never farther away than your plate.