CATERING students have been inspired in their learning and future lifestyles by a taste of Thailand.
Eighteen Level 2 and 3 culinary skills students and three staff from Darlington College spent 15 days in Bangkok learning the intricacies of Thai cuisine.
The trip, designed to hone their skills and broaden their horizons, was funded by the Department for Education’s Turing Scheme.
Students attended the Suan Dusit University and at the end of the course were presented with a certificate as part of the London-Bangkok World City Links Traditional Thai Cuisine initiative.
For mature student and Darlington College learning support worker Tina Snowball the trip has inspired thoughts of retiring to Thailand.
“It was the first time I’d been to South East Asia and I loved it,” said Tina, of Darlington. “I can’t wait to go back. It was brilliant, incredible and I am thinking of retiring there.
“It is so nice, cheap and cheerful. The people are extremely welcoming and there are so many nationalities that you don’t feel out of place. My husband used to be in the Army and we have friends out there.
“I have always loved cooking, it’s been a passion of mine and it was absolutely amazing learning about Thai food. The trip has certainly inspired me.”
Alisha Goddard, 17, of Catterick Garrison, was equally motivated. “It was the first time I had been to Asia and I didn’t want to come back,” she said. “I loved how different it was from here and I would certainly go back. I now don’t want to stay in the UK and this has encouraged me to work abroad, possibly on cruise ships.”
Darlington College lecturer Dawn Cobb said: “The trip was absolutely incredible and our students threw themselves into the Thai food culture with such enthusiasm. The Thai people were the perfect hosts and we all learned such a lot from the whole experience.”
Students shared their experiences by hosting an Asian theme buffet in the college’s Glasshouse Restaurant where they recreated some of the dishes they learned to cook in Thailand, including chicken satay, spicy river prawn soup, papaya salad, Thai green curry, massaman beef curry, spicy grilled beef and mango with sticky rice.
For more information on opportunities at Darlington College visit www.darlington.ac.uk.