Michael Lück reflects on his visit to Germany
As part of my Research and Study Leave (RSL), I am currently in Germany, spending four weeks at the Hochschule Harz (University of Applied Sciences) in Wernigerode. Professor Sven Gross, who visited New Zealand about 1 1/2 years ago, and spent some time with NZTRI, invited me to teach two full papers (Sustainable Tourism and International Tourism, 30 hours each) within this time. This means, lots of block teaching, including 6-hour blocks - yikes! Students here are quite different from the kiwi students, but not less fun at all! Especially the sustainable tourism students are great, since they are more advanced, and have a very different attitude towards their studies. Interestingly, I was asked to hold all classes in English, since - along with many other universities in Germany these days - the HS Harz is very keen on turning internationalisation into practice!
In addition to teaching, Sven and colleagues got me involved with many different things as well. A few days ago I met the VC (Rektor) of the HS Harz, and we had a very nice little chat. I was amazed to see how interested and supportive he is, and I anticipate very good future opportunities in terms of staff and student exchanges, as well as research connections, between HS Harz and AUT/NZTRI!
Last week, Sven and I went to Rotterdam and Breda in Holland, where we presented a paper at the ttra conference with the theme "Transport and Tourism: Challenges, Issues and Conflicts". Our paper, entitled "Flying for a Buck or Two: Low Cost Airlines in Australia and New Zealand", built on Sven's work on low cost carriers (LCCs) in Europe. We realised that there is next to no academic work being published on LCCs in NZ/OZ and the South Pacific, and this paper was pretty much a preliminary content analysis of the LCCs' business models, and will lead to a more detailed project ("hard numbers"), which Sven and I plan for the time he will come back to NZ during his next RSL!
In the next couple of days, we will sit together and finish up a book chapter on cruise tourism, which we had written a while back and now received the editors' comments, and I am working on the final touches of a report/digest on whale and dolphin watching research for the International Whaling Commission, which Chris Parsons (George Mason University, USA), Carol Scarpaci (Victoria University, Australia) and myself prepare for the IWC Annual Meeting (this year on Madeira, Portugal). We have done so for the past few years, and also published the digests in Tourism in Marine Environments.
Sven is also involved in a larger project on hiking as a tourism and leisure acitvity. The HS Harz is at the door step of the Harz National Park, and thus a great location for such research. He had also included NZTRI in a smaller sub-project recently, which explored the famous hiking/tramping/bush-walking trails in New Zealand and Australia. Sven was so kind and organised a workshop on hiking and GPS during my stay here, so that I was able to attend. It was an exciting workshop, and a day later I received a mail from one of the commercial GPS providers, asking if I (NZTRI) was interested in doing a project in New Zealand, since they already have some links to NZ. Who knows, there might be exciting opportunities ahead!
Last, but not least, Sven also invited me to speak at a Round Table meeting here in Wernigerode. The Round Table here is an organization similar to the Lion's and Rotary Clubs, but less "posh". I presented on tourism in New Zealand, with a specific focus on the natural environment and national parks. It was a presentation well received (well, if you present about NZ and show lots of beautiful photos, you are well receievd almost anywhere ;-), and I got some very interesting questions afterwards...
And of course, there is not always work! I am living in an apartment in a historic house on the main street. A colleague is renting out this apartment as a holiday home, and it is a really nice place.I feel like a famous film star though, since whenever I look out of my window I look into cameras! This is because there are lots of tourists here, and they all take photos of the historic building. The "Krummelsches Haus" is actually one of the well-known houses here in town. My daily walk to HS Harz is about 20-25 minutes and leads me through the old part of town, which is a pedestrian zone without any traffic, and loads of beautiful half-timbered houses. Then the walk continues along a small creek on one side, and the the other the historic Harzer Schmalspurbahn (Harz Narrow Gauge Railway), which is still operating steam trains, with the most famous route going up the the Brocken Mountain, in the Harz National Park.
Anyway, the time is ticking - I have just a bit more than a week left here, before I'll head back to Auckland. Already, I can say that it was/is a great time here in Wernigerode, and I was/am warmly welcomed wherever I went/go. Even Baerbel at the Burg Bakery knows me already, and is very friendly. Her "Feierabendbroetchen" - a whole bag of mixed bread rolls for only 1 Euro after 5pm - are just delicious! A great experience, that leaves me with sincere thanks to Sven and his department for having made this possible. Already, Sven has secured Dr John Hull to come over for a similar experience next year, and we know that Sven and his family will spend their next RSL in Auckland again! The spririt lives on :)
Cheers
micha
