Tough times don’t last, tough people do and it is indeed true at V. M. Salgaocar Institute of International Hospitality Education (VMSIIHE), one of the best hotel management Institutes in India.
The year 2020 saw the world come to a halt over the COVID-19 pandemic as fear and isolation gripped the hearts of many.
However, there is a silver lining to every dark cloud. We asked students and faculty of VMSIIHE what their silver lining was for 2020.
Professor Irfan Mirza, Director/Principal, VMSIIHE
The pandemic has had a severe impact on the world in terms of the global economy, travel habits and education. It has thrown up a lot of challenges for these sectors. Education in particular has had to make a shift from physical mode to online mode. This has been challenging for students and faculty alike. However many of us have made use of this time to upgrade our knowledge and skillsets through online courses, workshops and webinars. The silver lining for me is that as a community we have learned to appreciate the small things in life like cleanliness and hygiene which people used to take for granted. Moreover, Covid- 19 has shown that power and money cannot buy us our health. It has taught us that values and ethics are important in life. This has prompted a huge change in lifestyle. People have started taking care of themselves being self-sufficient, growing their own produce and eating home-cooked meals. People have also taken up to fitness by focussing on physical activity, mediation and yoga. Most importantly family bonding has improved as families spend more time together.
Meurel Beverly Viegas, TY student, VMSIIHE, resident of Margao
First of all, the year 2020 has been a very different experience and something that was unexpected. I was at my internship at J.W. Marriott, Marquis, Dubai when the pandemic hit and had to come down to Goa early and it has definitely not been easy this entire year. We had to get accustomed to so many new things, be it our online classes, wearing masks and the new normal way of life. The online classes and group projects made connecting with each other a little challenging and to put up events virtually is a task. Through this, I have learned to be more grateful for everything and the people around me as a lot of people have lost their lives, their family members and friends and also faced the loss of jobs. This year, just to know you’re surviving and to know that you’re alive is the biggest blessing we could have. Another positive aspect of this year is technology is used to its maximum to communicate, connect and even learn and work remotely. We have not let the pandemic hamper our lives as we are still doing the things we used to do just in a different way. Every day we are learning something new, it’s just important to have gratitude each day.Meurel Beverly Viegas, TY student, VMSIIHE, resident of Margao
First of all, the year 2020 has been a very different experience and something that was unexpected. I was at my internship at J.W. Marriott, Marquis, Dubai when the pandemic hit and had to come down to Goa early and it has definitely not been easy this entire year. We had to get accustomed to so many new things, be it our online classes, wearing masks and the new normal way of life. The online classes and group projects made connecting with each other a little challenging and to put up events virtually is a task. Through this, I have learned to be more grateful for everything and the people around me as a lot of people have lost their lives, their family members and friends and also faced the loss of jobs. This year, just to know you’re surviving and to know that you’re alive is the biggest blessing we could have. Another positive aspect of this year is technology is used to its maximum to communicate, connect and even learn and work remotely. We have not let the pandemic hamper our lives as we are still doing the things we used to do just in a different way. Every day we are learning something new, it’s just important to have gratitude each day.
Ashley Rodrigues, TY student, VMSIIHE, resident of Dubai
2020 has been a different year, to say the least, and has been nothing but a roller coaster ride. Even though all the ups and downs one thing that I’ve learned is that the positive things are the ones that you work on. At the start of the year, I was still in the middle of my internship which has by far been the best learning experience of my life, the next being the amount of time I was able to spend with my family and get back to my old hobbies in Dubai. During the pandemic, I started working out with Calisthenics as all the gyms were shut down to embrace a new lifestyle, and nine months later, looking at the changes, I can gladly say it’s the best decision I’ve taken this year of working on myself. The silver lining amongst all that happened this year was the fact that it made me more adaptable than what I was a year ago. This year has forced me to think out of the box and make the most of what you’re given. I’d like to end by saying that ‘preparation is ideal but adaptability is the key’.
Alethea Baracho, Counsellor, VMSIIHE, resident of Curtorim
The positives of the year 2020 according to me is that I have learned to appreciate the little things in life, the people that surround us and it has helped me connect more with myself. As individuals, the pandemic has helped us bring our hidden abilities and gifts that we possess to the surface and appreciate them. We have unleashed our creative talents. All the things that we earlier didn’t have time for are now a priority.
Alethea Baracho, Counsellor, VMSIIHE, resident of Curtorim
The positives of the year 2020 according to me is that I have learned to appreciate the little things in life, the people that surround us and it has helped me connect more with myself. As individuals, the pandemic has helped us bring our hidden abilities and gifts that we possess to the surface and appreciate them. We have unleashed our creative talents. All the things that we earlier didn’t have time for are now a priority.
Sarah Shania Miranda, TY student, VMSIIHE, resident of Raia
2020 started with the COVID-19 pandemic, bringing the world to a complete standstill, exposing weaknesses in the medical and financial readiness of governments across the world. Under the lockdown, one got to see visuals of humanity facing its lowest low and how mankind reacts when the blanket of safety and luxury is lifted. It humbled us to connect to our basic needs and necessities only. It also gave us ample time to introspect our lives in general and our spiritual connection with God. The silver lining is that it made us realize that the world is not as big as we imagined and that we are all connected and reachable through any social media platform. In spite of being in a lockdown, 2020 will be known as the year when the world came together, and became accessible through the internet, losing the human touch and grand gatherings.
Lionel Minguel De Noronha, Assistant Manager-Front Office, Le Méridien Calangute, resident of Loutolim
When you have so many things around you, it is important to find positives in the year 2020. The best thing that has happened to me this year is that due to the hotel being closed from March till September, I got a lot of time at home with my family. That is not very common in our industry where you’re working 12-hours a day with long shifts and with just one-off a week. Staying away from home an entire week becomes a bit tough. Having a few weeks at home with the family really helped a lot with bonding us more closely. I also used my free time to focus on hobbies that otherwise I don’t get time to do, online streaming and just take some time to relax. Since the operations were closed from March, we were able to stay at home for a month and after that, even though we had low guest occupancy, as a responsible manager, I took the initiative to train my staff by calling them on every alternate day or every day. Not having to focus on the guests helped me to get to know the staff, their struggles, their ambitions and prepare ways to welcome the guests in the new normal expected ways. The silver lining of this year is that the hotels have started again with the tourists coming in, we are thankful that no one was laid off and that there’s no salary cut now. We should appreciate the things that we already have at this moment, a job, family and all basic needs.
Lionel Minguel De Noronha, Assistant Manager-Front Office, Le Méridien Calangute, resident of Loutolim
When you have so many things around you, it is important to find positives in the year 2020. The best thing that has happened to me this year is that due to the hotel being closed from March till September, I got a lot of time at home with my family. That is not very common in our industry where you’re working 12-hours a day with long shifts and with just one-off a week. Staying away from home an entire week becomes a bit tough. Having a few weeks at home with the family really helped a lot with bonding us more closely. I also used my free time to focus on hobbies that otherwise I don’t get time to do, online streaming and just take some time to relax. Since the operations were closed from March, we were able to stay home for a month and after that, even though we didn’t have any guests, I, as the manager, took it upon myself to call my staff every alternate day or every day for training. Not having to focus on the guests helped me to get to know the staff, their struggles, their ambitions and prepare ways to welcome the guests in the new normal expected ways. The silver lining of this year is that the hotels have started again with the tourists coming in, we are thankful that no one was laid off and that there’s no salary cut now. We should appreciate the things that we already have at this moment, a job, family and all basic needs.
Yoshika Brooks D’silva, Assistant Professor, Front Office, VMSIIHE, resident of Betalbatim
As difficult as the situation is for the students, it is equally challenging for me as a lecturer during the pandemic. This shift has required me to use creativity and innovation for the most critical assessments while highlighting the importance of the teacher-student relationship. VMSIIHE is ensuring that ‘learning never stops’ amid COVID -19 by continually implementing new and improved technologies and resources. The shift to remote learning and online teaching has changed me as a lecturer at the VMSIIHE. I can wholeheartedly say that the change has been, and will be, for the better.
Abhijeet Chaudhary, TY student, VMSIIHE, resident of Dehradun
With all the tragic things that are happening in the world because of the pandemic, now might seem like an unusual time to talk about being positive. Yet staying positive is a core ingredient in the recipe of successfully coping up in a crisis situation. Now, more than ever is time for us to be proactive about creating small moments of happiness in our days. Even during lockdown I still have many small moments to savor like the smell of coffee, the feel of the warm shower on your back, and so on. It has helped strengthen my connections, it was the perfect opportunity to spend quality time with our loved ones and that was the positive side of the year 2020 for me. 2020 gave us free cooking classes from one of the best chefs in the world with Spotify releasing a daily wellness playlist as well.
I’m incredibly fortunate to have had a number of positive things that have come out of this crisis.
Abhijeet Chaudhary, TY student, VMSIIHE, resident of Dehradun
With all the tragic things that are happening in the world because of the pandemic, now might seem like an unusual time to talk about being positive. Yet staying positive is a core ingredient in the recipe of successfully coping up in a crisis situation. Now, more than ever is time for us to be proactive about creating small moments of happiness in our days. Even during lockdown I still have many small moments to savor like the smell of coffee, the feel of the warm shower on your back, and so on. It has helped strengthen my connections, it was the perfect opportunity to spend quality time with our loved ones and that was the positive side of the year 2020 for me. 2020 gave us free cooking classes from one of the best chefs in the world with Spotify releasing a daily wellness playlist as well.
I’m incredibly fortunate to have had a number of positive things that have come out of this crisis.
Lorna Fernandes, Assistant Professor, Accommodation Operations, VMSIIHE , resident of Candolim
There is a quote I like, ‘I don’t think outside of the box, I think of what I can do with the box’. I personally relate this quote to the year 2020. The sudden lockdown in March 2020 was horrendous. It taught us to value time, people, tools, raw materials and money and exist with limited supply. As a professor, I did not know what to expect or how difficult it would be to take an online class. The only question I always had was ‘How would I be able to connect with my students?’. I learned how to approach the student learning experience. My students have taught me that their personal experience can be a device for improvement and from their experience, I am able to identify a bigger picture of how they can learn from self-reflection. The pandemic situation and the lockdown has awoken my hidden talent of being creative in baking and even craft. It’s not only for me but for most of my students and colleagues at VMSIIHE. In 2020, despite the pandemic, the learning for me is that knowledge is power and nobody can take knowledge away from you.
Nelissa Andrea Alcasoas, Assistant Professor, General Management, VMSIIHE, resident of Carmona
This pandemic, I have been an ardent learner through this whole process, whether it is learning to use virtual mediums like Microsoft Teams or learning a new skill. I’ve adjusted my classroom activities to the online mode by preparing online quizzes and fun activities for the students. It is definitely more work but it has been an enriching experience.
Recently the students of event management organized an event called ‘Meraki’ which they hosted online. It was nice to see the level of engagement involved in the process. I am proud of my students and their achievements in 2020.
Nelissa Andrea Alcasoas, Assistant Professor, General Management, VMSIIHE, resident of Carmona
This pandemic, I have been an ardent learner through this whole process, whether it is learning to use virtual mediums like Microsoft Teams or learning a new skill. I’ve adjusted my classroom activities to the online mode by preparing online quizzes and fun activities for the students. It is definitely more work but it has been an enriching experience.
Recently the students of event management organized an event called ‘Meraki’ which they hosted online. It was nice to see the level of engagement involved in the process. I am proud of my students and their achievements in 2020.
Martha Rebello, Compliance Officer/Academic Coordinator, VMSIIHE, resident of NavelimThe year 2020 was like the time you never had, but you have it now! 2020 has been extraordinary for creating a perfect storm that the world is still coming to terms with – the sudden outbreak of COVID-19. What we realized during this time was that, suddenly, the concept of traditional education changed radically. Online education became the crux of the education system as one could teach or study from any part of the world. Everyone got tech-savvy as avenues to certificate courses, short term courses, and degree courses were available at the click of a button, while business ideas, start-ups, home-based businesses and entrepreneurship were propagated through a series of webinars for those interested in these initiatives.
The western world and popular universities remained shut and admitting foreign students remained a big question mark. However, amidst these uncertain times, it is crucial to remember that this crisis is temporary. We shall bounce back with vigor and fresh ideas and new potential avenues. We are hopeful that the years to come will present a silver lining around the dark clouds as it is up to all players to take full advantage so as to improve the quality and relevance of education and business.
