Yesterday I wrote a post about me becomming a chef and my way towards it. You can read the post here if you like.
Although I wanted to wait a little with the next post about me becomming a chef I decided to follow up instantly. I got so many cool and warming comments yesterday, from which I want to thank you all, that I have decided not to let you waiting for to long :).
This post (after reading it) zooms a bit more in on the time at the hotelschool......
A hitch
Source
Yesterday I stopped (with the post) at my second internship at the Timmerie where I had learned a lot and where I had a great time. After that internship we had some troubles at school (in Arnheim), there were several students who made life at school terrible, they were dictating things and (in my opinion) the school didn't do enough about that to stop them. They weren't acting on a personal level with me but the atmosphere had turned completly. That was also the time I was starting playing truant. In stead of taking the train every morning I stayed in Zutphen, just because the fun at school was (for me) over and I was turning into this rebellious boy. I had'nt told my parents of course.
My day's looked quite dull at that time, I left home in the morning (like if I went to school) and came back at a certain time. My parents didn't had a clue I wasn't at school. I spent most of my days hanging around in local cafeterias, I didn't had much money at that time so I only ordered the necessary things to be able to sit there for a long time :).
Friends of my visited me in breaktimes from their schools in Zupthen so I had some distractions, but I do remember it were long days.
The funny thing is that every day I have been away from school it was harder / more difficult to decide to go back to school, although I knew this wasn't a option that I could hold on any longer. So after a few weeks I came home and was still thinking my parents thought I was at school. I remember the face of my father, he was angry. They asked me to sit down and they asked me where I have been. For a moment it slipped my mind to say that I was at school all day, but I felt already they knew I wasn't. So I confessed that I haven't been at school for some time. Normally my parents would explode, at least that was the normal behaviour at our home, but they didn't. They were disappointed for the fact I wasn't going to school but more about the reason. I remember my father asking me why I didn't came to them with my problems....
Looking afterwards to that, I really never did... We weren't the family to run to eachother with our problems, because often they were misunderstood or not understood totally. But that is a whole different story.
for the first time I felt that I had a real and good conversation with my parents, they promised me to go to school with me to talk to the board about my absence, so I felt heard...
With lead in my shoes to school
My parents made the apointment with the school to discuss my situation. We drove to Arnheim and I felt bad, bad to sit face to face with the rector to openly explain to him that I hated the way things went on school and that is was partially his fault (a real teenager brain lol)...
But I must admit the conversation went quite well actually. Althoug the school had to give me some kind penalty because I was skipping school they did understand the reason why (later I found out there were a lot of other students and parents with the same problem that I had with the school).
So with new enthousiasm I got back to school again, my teacher even arranged a weekend job for me. It was at "Bakkerij van Helvoort" in Gorssel (near Zutphen). It was a bakery, I had to start at 01.00 AM at fridaynight untill 10.00 saturday morning. At the bakery I was (together with the chef Pastrie) responsible for the pastries and cookies. I had a lot of fun overthere and learned a lot about pastries and how to create them. Still use the techniques every now and then on special occasions.
The last internship
In the last year of my education I had to do the last internship, this was at "Restaurant het Schellinkje" in Apeldoorn. This restaurant was part of the local theater "Orpheus". When I heard that it was at the theater I thought it wasn't going to be fun because the focus is on the theater. I couldn't have been more wrong.
Then kitchen was a very large one with 6 people working in it. They had their own pastrie-section where all pastries where made by hand (that was something you don't see often no more) by a older pastrie-chef( Mr. van Diee) who was a real master in his profession.
The real chef was a man of middle age (I really can't recall his name, to bad) and used to be the chef of "The echoput" a famous restaurant in Apeldoorn. He was such a great guy. I immediately was part of the brigade and he showed me all the techniques that were (in his opinion) important to master for becomming a chef. But in fact the whole team was great. Every morning the work and planning was discussed and I could choose which things I wanted to do that day to learn the most. So one day I walked along with the chef, the second day I was making pastries and the third day I was preparing the meat. It was awesome.
One day I arrived at 'work' and the chef told me, keep your jacket on we are leaving. So I asked him where are we going.
He told me we were going to the wholesale to do shopping for the restaurant. We went to "De Hanos" a very large wholesale in Apeldoorn. The sell about anything for restaurants. Ingredients, cutlery you name it, they've got it.
I didn't know what I saw, so much goods.
He showed me about anything and explained a lot about ingredients, how to notice if things are really fresh (or not). A lot of things you won't see when you are only in a restaurant without the process before. I was impressed by his knowledge and his teaching skills... This man has learned me a lot.
One day he told me that there was going to be a very big party in the theater organised by one of it's sponsors. The party was with all the luxury one can imagine. There was even fresh lobster. The chef asked me if I have ever prepared fresh lobster, which I didn't, because it is quite controversional with the animal rights parties and perhaps I was against it. Nice of him to ask but at that time I didn't had anything against it. So he told me he would learn me to prepare freshlobster as human as possible.
He took a lobster, tight it on to a metal plate and put it into boiling water on the plate upside down. The plate sank to the bottom from which the lobster was instantly dead. While I am writing this down it doesn't sound human at all. But his explanation at that time made sense. People were discussing the pain the animals are in, being throwen into boiling water. They tend to make a lot of noise while being cooked and being able to 'try'to get out of the water (which they couldn't). Being on the plate they are immediatly under water with no change to fight and try to get out. This way death was in a second....at least that is what he wanted to show with that theory... Still made sense..
With the party I got to be in the guest-area to serve people and cutting porcmeat from porc on bbq. I even got some high fancy clothing to wear in the hall :) The party was a big succes and I enjoyed myself every single minute, and again I learned a lot in hospitality and techniques.
Besides a good grade for this internship I got (again) a very nice present. A got a complete knifeset for my study and free tickets to a show of choice in the theater. It was just awesome. Every now and then I still think of that time which I enjoyed very much. I do not know what happend to all the chefs of the restaurant, but they were a golden team...
I see this post is again a long one, which I love, so I guess I just have to write a third one again tomorrow :)...
Thank you for reading...
Have a great day !!!
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