CT Wine Trail By: Danielle Clavette

     Recently, I have come to join my Mother in one of her favorite hobbies, wine tasting. She has always been a big fan of the experience since her trip to Napa Valley. Almost every weekend she takes a day trip to a different winery. I never really found this to be a very appealing pastime, but now that I am twenty-one and can actually taste the wine, I have begun to join her. There are many wineries throughout Connecticut. It is easy to find the site map on the CT Wine Trail’s Website. The trail is divided into two sections, the East and West. So far I have only joined her for four of the trips, including Chamber Vineyards in Clinton, Gouviea Vineyards in Wallingford, Jonathan Edwards Winery in North Stonington, and Stonington Vineyards in Stonington. Each was beautiful and unique in its own way and offered a different experience.


     My favorite part of the experience is being able to see how the wine is made and being greeted with kindness and hospitality by the winery staff. They will take you through each and every aspect of the wine making process and answer any questions you may have. Sometimes you can even have the chance to meet the owner who is usually also the creator of the wines. I find it interesting to talk to them about how they became the owner of the vineyard and to hear about their passion for wine making and tasting. Each bottle is particularly different in its own way with different tastes and aromas.

     Most people would not think of Connecticut as the best spot for wine tasting, but it actually has one of New England’s best climates for grape growing. Connecticut also has great views and landscapes for an outdoor wine tasting. Different wines are very complementary to different foods. If you do decide to have lunch at one of the vineyards, it can be pricey but definitely worth it. The wine staff will assist you in finding the perfect bottle to complement your meal. If you end up enjoying the bottle, you can purchase another to take home. Some of the vineyards offer a free bottle with your tour.

     I really enjoyed the Jonathan Edwards Winery in North Stonington. It was a beautiful 4-acre vineyard with views of Long Island Sound. The tour was very informative and we were able to have a picnic afterward. The vineyard offered a variety of wines from California and Connecticut. The tour allows you to taste each and compare how they differ. In the main building of the winery there was art painted by a local artist of Westerly, Rhode Island. It made for great atmosphere and was like being in a small gallery.

     I have enjoyed each and every experience of the tours I have done so far. It is very interesting to me to be able to see the process of wine making. Now I really enjoy having a glass of wine because I have a better understanding of what went into it. My new hobby has also given me a chance to spend time with my Mom and gives us something we both can relate to. Maybe someday I’ll be able go to Napa Valley myself.

    

FIFA World Cup + Tourism = Economic Boost

While tourism is considered to be one of the fastest growing and most likely to succeed industry in the world, sports tourism contributes about 600 billion dollars a year to the tourism industry.

When talking about sports tourism, what better place to start with than the FIFA World Cup?

The FIFA World Cup brings out what is best in certain cultures and attracts tourism like an ultraviolet light attracts flies. Take for example the 2006 World Cup, which was hosted by the European nation of Germany. Considering that the Germans are known for their ability to guzzle down large quantities of beer, it is obvious that beer sellers would jump on the opportunity to heavily attack the tourist with their tasty product during the popular summer event.

“The World Cup no doubt helped push up beer consumption in Germany.  Overall, Germans consumed a total of 92 million hectoliters (2.43 billion gallons) of beer, which was 0.5 million more than in 2005, according to the Federal Statistics Office. It was the first annual increase since 1999 following a declining trend in imbibing the golden ale.

Domestic and foreign tourists coming for the games also spent 500 million Euros on goods and services, and temporarily boosted occupancy rates in hotels.” (Oliver Samson)

This beautiful game of football, which is a lot of times referred to as “soccer” by the “Yanks” is known for contributing heavily to the global economy but most importantly it does wonders to a local economy:

During the 1994 World Cup, the United States of America had the privilege of hosting its first major soccer event. Considering the fact that the sport of soccer has been overshadowed by more popular sports such as basketball, baseball and football, the World Cup was very successful and contributed greatly to the economy during the summer of 1994 due to the impact of tourism.

“In Los Angeles, the site of the final, which was played at the infamous Rose Bowl, there was a total economic profit of 623 million dollars that went directly into the metropolitan economy. In order for one to better understand this figure, in comparison of that same year the Super Bowl only accounted for 182 million dollars” (Nodell)

As previously stated, the FIFA World Cup brings out what is best in certain cultures.  Dr. Danny Jordaan, the CEO of 2010 FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee South Africa said it best during the World Travel Market conference in London when he said, “I know you know the one South African who is very warm and hospitable in the person of Nelson Mandela. But come and discover the other 47 million South Africans who are also warm and hospitable”

With the 2010 World Cup less than a year away, the first ever African World Cup should attract tourist from all over the world.

Dr. Jordaan goes on to say that “We have more than enough accommodation for all the fans and tourists that will visit our country next year. As well as the hotels (including more than 30 new world class facilities) there will also be low-cost bed and breakfast as well as student accommodation options available,” said Jordaan, adding that, “during Germany 2006 you could see the British fans camping in every available open space, from the train stations to camp sites.”

“We are more than ready to host all the fans during the 2010 World Cup and hopefully thereafter they will return as tourists without their teams. This World Cup will offer visitors a chance to explore the country's attractions and major tourism spots and allow the world to get to know and appreciate South Africa and the continent better.”

One major thing that will help tourist to get a full experience of the beautiful nation of South Africa is that this time during the group stages of the tournament teams will never play in the same stadium twice meaning that fans will get to see and experience at least two of South Africa’s diverse nine host cities and more if their team progresses.

This will also help local business’s get a boost in their profits as hotels, restaurants and other major accommodations will be needed in order to hospitably welcome fans and tourist from all over the world.

Being an avid soccer player and a fanatic of the beautiful game, I hope that with years to come the most popular sport in the world: football (soccer) will not only contribute to the tourism industry, but also continue to bring nations and people together, with the efforts of eliminating racism and close social gaps. But in the mean time, as us Brazilians always say…"Joga Bonito"



Raphael Guimarães

An American Girl in France

France evokes scenes of the Eiffel Tower, fashion, romance, history, and but of course bread, wine and cheese. For all these reasons and more I decided to take the leap of faith required to study abroad at a small city university called the Universite de Caen Basse-Normandie. Located very close to the English Channel and World War II D-Day beaches, Caen is both the capital and center of the Lower Normandy region of France. I knew hardly anything about Caen before leaving, besides what the obligatory search on Wikipedia had to offer.

This study abroad experience was not my first foray into the beauty that is France. I had taken a two week trip in high school to Paris and the Eastern side of the country, and it was what I consider a love affair from then on. That experience is exactly the experience that I accredit for instilling a passion for travel and Europe into my blood. I fell in love instantly and became a tourism major upon entering college, a rather quick and easy decision. I also always knew that I wanted to study abroad, but where to study abroad, I was not entirely sure. With a gentle suggestion by an encouraging professor I went to France, to an all speaking French school, as in no English. Mind you, I had a three year high school French background, but non-the-less everyone, myself included, thought that I was slightly crazy to take on such a huge endeavor.  And so I went.

The initial arrival into my new home for the next four months was not an easy one. I could not speak the French required for essential paperwork and orientation, I had no initial way to reach my family, and my single bed dorm room had no internet or TV connection. The culture shock was immediate and severe in my case. Once classes started up a couple days after arrival things got slightly better because of the help of terrific French professors and a classroom full of foreign exchange students from all over, all of whom were in the same position as this lonely, terrified American. These fellow students and I developed quite a bond over our four month stay with each other and I am proud to call Rita from Panama, Xavier from Ecuador,  Zhou Shou from China, Mariko from Japan and many others as friends.

Nothing has made me learn more about myself in such a short period of time as studying abroad completely out of my element as I was. It forces you, and nothing less, to quickly learn what you are capable of doing and adapting becomes a second nature you hardly notice. The experience was priceless, not only for what I learned academically, but for what I took away personally. During our two week spring break I backpacked through Europe visiting Italy, Germany, and Belgium. The cultural awareness has been so very worth it as well the understanding of what I am fully capable of. What started as such an intense shock turned into a priceless, once in a lifetime, lesson on what I am able to accomplish when I want something so very bad, and I am already itching to get back to France immediately, if for nothing else than a fresh baguette and sparkling glass of wine.

For more information on France please feel free to visit: http://www.us.franceguide.com

Tourism and Hospitality Studies @ CCSU

This Tourism and Hospitality Studies blog is a tourism and hospitality industry (THS 300) class project initiated as one among many ways to integrate technology into the classroom and course. The project design also exposes and affords students the opportunity to explore myriad aspects of the profession, internships, careers, study abroad, etc., and also how the industry operates today in the world of tourism, travel and hospitality blogging et al.