Page 25 - ATA JUNE 9,2015
P. 25
reading, in fact about two months’ worth is what I got through before my eyelids felt heavy
enough to put down my iPad. Good to see you’re still going after some of the institutions that
take our money and don’t reciprocate equitably….tax dept & WEB to mention a few. Hot button
issues like new beach policy was not spared – nice. Got another story for you which you may
liberally edit. I am asking how did the Minister of Tourism and the Aruba Tourism Authority
underestimate the cruise ship passenger count, to a great extent. They got the numbers all wrong.
Earlier in the year, we read in the newspapers that cruise tourism in 2015, was going to be equal
to 2014. According to APA, the Aruba Port Authority, cruise passenger numbers are down for
the first four months of this year, which is the height of the cruise season here. The numbers are
down by a whopping 17%. That’s sizeable. If you’re running a business which relies on intel
from these venerated sources, and if you plan accordingly, and the numbers tank, then what? Can
we send ATA the bill? Anyway, when the party on the opposite end of the political spectrum
questioned the optimism, the ministry finally admitted a lesser, 7% downturn, at yearend. Many
of the horseback riding, sailing, snorkeling, and touring businesses, join the merchant community
in asking how we are going to make up a 10% spread for the remaining months, in the low cruise
season. And, at what point should the authorities put the spin aside and just tell the truth! We’re
all adults, says my reader, and we have been in this business long enough to know that dips in
the market can, and do, happen. It’s been a part of our tourism scenario for more than three
decades. Of course you don’t have a crystal ball, but if you see a trend, don’t keep it to yourself,
even if unpopular, because shared bad news are half the burden! Thank you dear reader for your
excellent contribution to this column, which I hardly had to edit. You are a great writer, but don’t
give up your day job as yet, because it doesn’t pay to be a journalist!
LOOKING FOR SOME F&B TALENT FOR BONAIRE. My girlfriend Arlene Nagtegaal
was moved to write to me this week, and ask for Aruba’s help. Apparently, there is a beautiful
Italian restaurant on Bonaire, a very modern and tastefully decorated establishment by the name
of Sonia’s Home. But the owner, Arlene thinks, needs help to run it and make it a success,
because her food is good, yet an effective restaurant and service manager is hard to find. Is there
anyone you know on Aruba that would personally like a laid back lifestyle in Bonaire, and
professionally strive to make this place a success, she asks? Sonia, an Italian, is waiting for the
right person to come along. I looked at the website, it’s gorgeous.
POOP STORIES. A friendly restaurant chef reported the following. His boss asked him to
make sure his new food handlers get a clean bill of health from the relevant government
department. Last Monday, at 9am, he showed up at their headquarters in town and after a thirty
minute wait was told to leave, because it was getting late. Come back tomorrow anytime from
7.45am to 12noon, he was told. Being a pragmatic Dutchman he asked around, and was
instructed to show up early, so by 6.30am, the next morning, he was there, waiting in line with
50 other people ahead. As soon as they opened the door, he found himself #98 because many
other food-handling candidates were saving space for their colleagues. After waiting for two and
a half hours, at 9am, he was again told to come back the following day. In order to clarify, he
introduced himself to #1 in line who arrived at the Health Department at 9.30pm, the night
before, while #44 confessed she arrived at 2.30am in the morning. She was originally #21 but
after being threatened by people who saved space for colleagues, she let it go, seeing that her
husband got slapped on his face in the wake of the same argument, previously, when he was in
line with his green card application. The Health Department handles about 60 applicants a day,
so my calculator shows 60x5x 52 = 15,600 people per year, providing they indeed work every
day at full speed. So here’s catch #22, you cannot handle food unless you have a card, yet the
acquisition of one requires superpowers. And all they want is to poop quietly in a cup and leave.
Really, is that too much to ask?? PS. I remember last year, they ran out of the cards, and were
unable to issue any. RC@visitaruba.com
enough to put down my iPad. Good to see you’re still going after some of the institutions that
take our money and don’t reciprocate equitably….tax dept & WEB to mention a few. Hot button
issues like new beach policy was not spared – nice. Got another story for you which you may
liberally edit. I am asking how did the Minister of Tourism and the Aruba Tourism Authority
underestimate the cruise ship passenger count, to a great extent. They got the numbers all wrong.
Earlier in the year, we read in the newspapers that cruise tourism in 2015, was going to be equal
to 2014. According to APA, the Aruba Port Authority, cruise passenger numbers are down for
the first four months of this year, which is the height of the cruise season here. The numbers are
down by a whopping 17%. That’s sizeable. If you’re running a business which relies on intel
from these venerated sources, and if you plan accordingly, and the numbers tank, then what? Can
we send ATA the bill? Anyway, when the party on the opposite end of the political spectrum
questioned the optimism, the ministry finally admitted a lesser, 7% downturn, at yearend. Many
of the horseback riding, sailing, snorkeling, and touring businesses, join the merchant community
in asking how we are going to make up a 10% spread for the remaining months, in the low cruise
season. And, at what point should the authorities put the spin aside and just tell the truth! We’re
all adults, says my reader, and we have been in this business long enough to know that dips in
the market can, and do, happen. It’s been a part of our tourism scenario for more than three
decades. Of course you don’t have a crystal ball, but if you see a trend, don’t keep it to yourself,
even if unpopular, because shared bad news are half the burden! Thank you dear reader for your
excellent contribution to this column, which I hardly had to edit. You are a great writer, but don’t
give up your day job as yet, because it doesn’t pay to be a journalist!
LOOKING FOR SOME F&B TALENT FOR BONAIRE. My girlfriend Arlene Nagtegaal
was moved to write to me this week, and ask for Aruba’s help. Apparently, there is a beautiful
Italian restaurant on Bonaire, a very modern and tastefully decorated establishment by the name
of Sonia’s Home. But the owner, Arlene thinks, needs help to run it and make it a success,
because her food is good, yet an effective restaurant and service manager is hard to find. Is there
anyone you know on Aruba that would personally like a laid back lifestyle in Bonaire, and
professionally strive to make this place a success, she asks? Sonia, an Italian, is waiting for the
right person to come along. I looked at the website, it’s gorgeous.
POOP STORIES. A friendly restaurant chef reported the following. His boss asked him to
make sure his new food handlers get a clean bill of health from the relevant government
department. Last Monday, at 9am, he showed up at their headquarters in town and after a thirty
minute wait was told to leave, because it was getting late. Come back tomorrow anytime from
7.45am to 12noon, he was told. Being a pragmatic Dutchman he asked around, and was
instructed to show up early, so by 6.30am, the next morning, he was there, waiting in line with
50 other people ahead. As soon as they opened the door, he found himself #98 because many
other food-handling candidates were saving space for their colleagues. After waiting for two and
a half hours, at 9am, he was again told to come back the following day. In order to clarify, he
introduced himself to #1 in line who arrived at the Health Department at 9.30pm, the night
before, while #44 confessed she arrived at 2.30am in the morning. She was originally #21 but
after being threatened by people who saved space for colleagues, she let it go, seeing that her
husband got slapped on his face in the wake of the same argument, previously, when he was in
line with his green card application. The Health Department handles about 60 applicants a day,
so my calculator shows 60x5x 52 = 15,600 people per year, providing they indeed work every
day at full speed. So here’s catch #22, you cannot handle food unless you have a card, yet the
acquisition of one requires superpowers. And all they want is to poop quietly in a cup and leave.
Really, is that too much to ask?? PS. I remember last year, they ran out of the cards, and were
unable to issue any. RC@visitaruba.com
