CONNECTION ALUMNI NEWS - César Ritz Colleges

February 2011 | No. 47 

ConneCtion 

alumni news 

le Bouveret expands! 

who’s who at César ritz Colleges? 

JoBs, JoBs & more JoBs! www.ritz.edu

EDIToRIAL 

What have we been up to in 2010? 

Well for a start, one of the first changes is in 

your hands! How do you like the new look 

of the Connection Alumni Magazine? 

César Ritz Colleges Switzerland developed a 

new communication concept to strengthen 

our position as an international leader 

in hospitality education and inspire students 

looking to make and advance their 

career in the global hospitality industry. 

In the range of new promotional material, 

you’ll discover the César Ritz passport 

stamp representing the combination 

of our core values – excellence, service, 

leader ship, care and innovation – and 

your career journey. And so, Connection 

also has a new look with the same sort of 

content you want: news about the school, 

pictures and stories of worldwide alumni 

reunions, success stories, updates from 

CREDITS 

The editors take every care in presenting 

the correct details at the time of printing 

but take no responsibility for contribu - 

t ions from third parties. 

“Connection” is prepared for you by: 

César Ritz Colleges Switzerland 

1897 Le Bouveret 

Switzerland 

Tel: + 41 24 482 82 82 

Fax: + 41 24 482 88 99 

alumni@ritz.edu 

www.ritz.edu 

your friends and happy family news. 

In terms of other changes, in order to further 

develop our alumni and career ser vices, 

we enlarged the department. The Dir ector 

of Uni ver sity Centre César Ritz, Daniel 

Gutzwiller, has been appointed as the 

Director of Industry Relations responsible 

for all industry contacts as well as all César 

Ritz Colleges career and alumni activities; 

and Katharina Eyer has been appointed as 

the Career Services and Alumni Manager 

to work in close collaboration with our 

Career Services Manager, Trude Konrad, 

and myself. I’m sure that our dynamic 

team will continue developing alumni and 

career activities. 

I would also like to take this opportunity 

to thank the alumni who contributed to 

the new César Ritz website and film (visit 

www.ritz.edu). While you’re online, please 

visit and register with the alumni database 

‘NetCommunity’ by clicking on ‘Alumni’. 

And for jobs, don’t miss the Job Board 

that will provide you with job opportunities 

and the possibility to post job openings to 

attract qualified employees among our 

César Ritz graduates. You’ll also have 

online access to the Alumni Directory that 

will provide you with contact details of 

thousands of our graduates around the 

world. 

I hope that you’ll enjoy reading this edition 

of Connection. 

Stay in touch! 

Michèle Patry 

Alumni Network Manager 


www.alumninews.ch 

We would like to thank everybody who has contributed to this magazine, 

including our partner colleges, staff, and graduates. We’re looking forward 

to your future participation. The next “Connection” is scheduled for February 2012. 

2 | Connection alumni news | February 2011 | No. 47 

Editorial management, production 

and graphic design: 

Paul English/Heather Dittmar 

English Communications Pty Ltd 

4387 Inglewood 

Queensland, Australia 

info@englishcommunications.com 

Printing by: Imprimerie Saint-Paul 

1705 Fribourg, Switzerland 

The People ‘n’ Stuff and Family News 

sections were collected by Michèle 

Patry, Alumni Network Manager, and 

Marga Cretton, Ambassador for International 

Relations. 

CoNTENTS 

Connection alumni news 

Editorial 2 

Campus News 3–7 

Switzerland 3–6 

Global Partners 7 

Alumni Gatherings 8–9 

People ‘n’ Stuff 8–15 

Success stories 10–11 

Javier Munoz-Calero 

Antoine Rajeh 

Katja Marshall 

Photo gallery 12–13 

Updates 14–18 

Family News 18–23 

Weddings 18–20 

Babies 21–23 

Dear Alumni, please let us know your 

career moves and changes of address 

that can be updated online under 

www.alumninews.ch – User Login – 

Update Your Profile. Don’t forget to 

check our website regularly. This edition 

and further news about César 

Ritz Colleges are published on our 

website: www.alumninews.ch 

Cover photo: Inger Rimestad, Iva Vukelic, 

and Leda Bace during the Annual Alumni 

Reunion in Switzerland in May 2010

martin KisseleFF taKes retirement 

aFter 27 Years with César ritz 

Colleges group 

Mr Martin Kisseleff, President of the Board of U.C. César Ritz Colleges AG is proud to announce 

the change of ownership of the César Ritz Colleges Group, to Invision Private Equity AG, 

a leading Swiss Private Equity firm. 

Mr Schwestermann and Mr Kisseleff on the new construction site in Le Bouveret 

Invision’s new ownership guarantees 

the sustainability and further growth 

of the Colleges in the Canton of Valais 

and around the world. Mr Kisseleff’s 

health does not allow him to continue 

at the required rhythm for the future. 

Invision is the right partner for many 

reasons with more than 12 years 

of experience in running successful 

operations in different economic 

environments. 

Mr Kisseleff and Mr Schwestermann will 

remain on the Board of Directors thus 

ensuring a smooth transition for the new 

management and ownership. 

Extension at Professional Centre 

César Ritz 

Invision also takes over the student accommodation 

buildings Themis and Xenius 

(T&X) in Brig. César Ritz Colleges will make 

significant investments to enhance the quality 

of education and further develop and 

expand facilities for the students. 2010 has 

been the year to start major improvements 

to the facilities in the Le Bouveret Campus, 

especially for the Food and Beverage 

department, accommodation and student 

services. Construction of the additional 

facilities commenced in November 2010 

and should be completed by October 2011. 

Mr Kisseleff and Mr Schwestermann will 

remain owners of all the real estate in 

Le Bouveret and have signed a long term 

rental agreement with Invision. 

Here then, is an overview of what the new 

building will include: 

• One hundred deluxe single rooms of a 

similar standard to the T&X rooms at 

Brig with a 120cm wide bed, WC and 

shower, TV, fridge, wireless internet and 

lots of working and storage space 

• A student cafeteria for 200 students 

• An application restaurant (with Chef’s 

table) seating 80–100 people 

• A student club with professional disco 

CAMPUS NEWS | SWITZERLAND 

and sound system 

• A ultra-modern training kitchen 

• A high-tech demonstration kitchen 

• A pastry and baking kitchen 

• A production training à la carte kitchen 

• A production training facility for self 

service 

• A fitness room with professional-level 

equipment and a view of the lake 

• A student café and lounge 

Naming Competition 

And what about a name for this new 

building? At the moment we use the 

name Bellevue 2 because the new facilities 

are connected to the Bellevue, however, 

we would like to propose a competition 

among students, alumni and staff to find 

a more original and attractive name. 

So if you have some bright ideas, please 

send your suggestions by 25 March 2011 to 

Christian Konrad (christian.konrad@ritz.edu). 

A nice prize will be offered to the winner! 

Connection alumni news | February 2011 | No. 47 | 3


who’s who and who’s new? 

FaCultY and staFF updates 

Diana Vicari George Cocker 

Mr Ronan Fitzgerald has been appointed as Managing Director of César Ritz 

Colleges Switzerland. He took over management of the group’s activities 

in mid-January 2011. Mr Fitzgerald brings great experience in hotel management 

education. For the past three years, he has managed Hotel Institute 

Montreux. With over 15 years of management experience in various 

fields, Mr Fitzgerald is someone who is highly skilled in managing people 

in an international environment. 

2010 has been a big year for César Ritz 

Colleges and there have been quite 

a number of staff changes. After 22 

years of dedication and loyalty, Hervé 

Fournier decided to leave César Ritz 

Colleges in December 2009 to begin 

a new orientation to his professional 

career. He is now working as Project 

Manager and Mana ging Director 

for Business Valais – Antenne Valais 

Romand for the State of Valais. Mr 

Fournier was a leading member of the 

management team and I would like to 

thank him for all his efforts. 

With the departure of Mr Fournier, we 

decided to implement some organizational 

changes within the company and 

appointed Christian Konrad as Director 

of Operations and Student Affairs, re - 

s ponsible for all student matters at both 

locations in Le Bouveret and Brig including 

all the organization and supervision 


of accommodation, Food and Beverage 

and bars, student services, student activities 

and facilities management. 

While remaining the Director of University 

Centre César Ritz, Daniel Gutzwiller was 

also appointed as the Director of Industry 

Relations responsible for all industry 

contacts, as well as all César Ritz career 

and alumni activities. Mr Gutzwiller’s 

department includes the internship coordinators 

for the Swiss intraining placement 

and assessment. Within this department, 

Katharina Eyer was appointed in 

August as the Career Services and Alumni 

Manager to further develop those activities 

and now works with Trude Konrad as 

Career Ser vices Manager and Michèle 

Patry as Alumni Network Manager. In 

May 2010, the Director of Marketing 

and Enrolment Management, Jonathan 

Hilton, left César Ritz after 11 years of 

service. 

Loyal service to students 

Diana Vicari has been teaching English, 

public speaking, French and humanities 

over the past 20 years (to around 8,000 

students). Mrs Vicari has not only been a 

teacher of languages but also a life coach. 

George Cocker joined the Brig faculty as 

a lecturer in law 15 years ago. Known to 

present interesting challenges in terms of 

subject matter, Mr Cocker continues to 

maintain the highest expectations from 

his students. 

Thank you both for all your hard work and 

dedication. 

I would also like to take this opportunity 

to congratulate Susan Fournier 

for her outstanding achievement of 

being elected Vice President of I-CHRIE. 

Mrs Fournier also obtained her Master 

of Science in International Hospitality 

Management with distinction. 

On a personal note, I am happy to announce 

that Marcel Kisseleff is now working on 

special projects within the marketing department 

together with his fiancée, Jenai 

oliveira, a BIB graduate and currently a 

work-study student in the MSc programme. 

Jenai undertakes projects in sales and promotes 

César Ritz in Brazil, her country of 

origin. Tanja Kisseleff Florenthal started 

as BIB Programme Director in October and 

her husband, Uri Florenthal, works as 

Area Manager for Spanish speaking countries 

and specialized projects. I am proud to 

see my children and their partners taking 

such an interest in César Ritz Colleges. 

César Ritz is a strong brand with an excellent 

worldwide reputation for producing professional, 

entrepreneurial, efficient, disci plined 

and multifunctional graduates. This reputation 

will continue to strengthen and expand 

and I would like to thank you, the alumni, 

for your success. I would also like to thank 

all the faculty and staff (present and former) 

for having prepared you so well, academically 

and professionally. 

Martin Kisseleff 

Passing of Mrs Monique Ritz 

It is with great sadness that César Ritz Colleges bids adieu to Mrs Monique Ritz, 

daughter-in-law of the famous hotelier, César Ritz. Mrs Ritz passed away on 

15 January 2011 at the age of 88. We will forever remain in her gratitude 

for her kindness and support. Mrs Ritz touched our hearts and the times 

we had the privilege of spending with her, will stay with us forever.

the pleasure to please 

georges ortiz 

“Teaching at César Ritz Colleges has not been a job for me; it has been a great experience 

in human relations that has left me with so many joyful and happy moments.” 

multiCulturalism studY 

Dear Alumni, 

Go back and remember your earliest experiences 

as an international student at 

César Ritz Colleges. Certainly you were 

excited at the idea of studying in a multicultural 

environment and, I’m sure, you 

may have even wondered from which 

countries your new friends would come. 

But perhaps you also had mixed emotions: 

perhaps some anxiety, confusion 

or even a touch of homesickness. Now 

remember how you felt a few months 

later once you had settled in! What were 

those factors that helped you overcome 

your initial difficulties? 

Because the internationalization of students 

is considered the greatest issue in 

high school this century (Seddoh, 2001), 

institutions and researchers are throwing 

themselves into relevant studies. Your 

school is no exception! In effect, we 

undertook research related to the intercultural 

integration and adaptation of a 

significant group of indigenous students 

studying hospitality management and 

culinary arts at César Ritz Colleges. The 

Panamanian government sponsored the 

study of the students. 

The 23 students in Brig and 90 in Le Bouveret 

coming from three Caribbean ethnic 

cultures provided the perfect case study. 

As part of the research, it was possible to 

examine their initial difficulties when confronted 

with a completely different world 

and, what is more important, the factors 

that helped them to understand and integrate 

into this multicultural environment. 

The yearlong English language programme 

prepared the indigenous students from 

Panama for their Higher Diploma studies. 

Now that the research part of the project has 

Virginia Meza with students from Panama 

That’s part of how Georges Ortiz recently summed up his 14 years 

of teaching at the University Centre César Ritz in Brig. According to 

George, “the contacts with colleagues, students and even the top 

management have all been a great human dimension to my work 

and many of those became friends.” George told us that he “learnt 

a lot while teaching, not only from colleagues and research, but also 

from students,” and that “it is very pleasant to read and hear about 

their successes all around the world and I feel proud thinking that I 

might have contributed to this success in a very humble way.” 

“Humble but dynamic”, “giving a lot more than class room experience” 

– these are just some of the comments showing how students 

have enjoyed the multiple nuances of Georges Ortiz’ personality and 

competencies. The management, staff and students thank him for 

his great contribution, which he describes as: “hospitality is service – 

good service is the pleasure to please”. 

We are proud and pleased that Georges Ortiz received the Nestlé 

Pro Gastronomia Foundation Award to honor a professional who 

has demonstrated excellence in training, education and developmental 

work in the hospitality industry. This distinction was awarded 

to him during the EuroChrie Conference 2010 in Amsterdam. With 

our best wishes for his future, we hope that we will still see Georges 

from time to time in our Colleges. 

ended, two international conferences have 

accepted this study with the subsequent 

findings being presented in Euro-Chrie, 

Amsterdam (25 to 28 October 2010) and 

in ’Primer Encuentro de Turismo Indígena 

de las Américas’ in Argentina (16 to 19 

March 2011). The programme created by 

the school to help in the adaptation of 

these students generated some academic 

and social challenges, though for us, it 

was an honor to have the opportunity. 

Virginia Meza MSc 

Lecturer 

César Ritz Colleges 



César ritz JoB Board 

Looking for a new job opportunity? Looking for qualified and motivated hoteliers? NetCommunity is the answer! 

Not only does this platform facilitate career 

opportunities in the hotel and tourism 

industry but you can also post job offers in 

different fields. 

If you’re looking for qualified staff – senior 

managers from the hospitality industry or 

management trainees – you can post the 

opening on the Job Board. This is free and 

only takes two minutes! Make sure you tell 

your HR department about this. 

If you’re looking for the next challenge 

for your career, the Job Board gives you 

the opportunity to view job offers that 

are being communicated to the College. 

All this career information is now available 

on NetCommunity, a secure platform 

linked to our online alumni database and 

only accessible to César Ritz graduates 

who are members of our Alumni Association. 

This means that you’ll only reach 

qualified César Ritz alumni. 

Many other options are available on Net- 

Community, including the online alumni 

directory, articles, photos of events, and 

dates of alumni reunions. 

real proJeCts needed 

Working on real projects for the industry is the best way 

to learn about how the industry works in reality, rather 

than just in theory. Do you have a project idea that could 

help our students? 

We would like to appeal for help from our alumni to help our 

Bachelor students find good topics for their individual Industry 

Professor John Swarbrooke and student Varvara Makarova 


Take a minute now to register on www.ritz.edu – Alumni 

To stay updated with all César Ritz Colleges alumni news, 

check out www.ritz.edu/socialmedia 

Scan this barcode for further information 

Need a barcode reader? 

Download it on your smartphone 

from your appstore. 

Search keyword: barcode reader 

Projects (IP). As some of our alumni already know, these are research 

projects that are supposed to be of value to the industry. 

Students have to pass the IP to be able to graduate. 

Unfortunately, some good students find it difficult to get the 

cooperation of people in the industry for one reason or another 

and this is a real pity for the students as these IPs can produce 

very valuable results for the industry. We are therefore appealing 

to all alumni to see if they have suitable IP projects. 

What sort of project would constitute a good IP? Basically, it 

could be an issue or problem that you would like to see investigated 

or perhaps research that you would like to see done but 

haven’t had the time to do. The actual formal project lasts for 

eleven weeks but students can work on it for several months 

(or longer). All they need from you is access to the relevant data 

and you can be assured that confidentiality is guaranteed. Please 

help today’s students prepare for their future careers. 

If you have any suitable projects, feel free to contact Tanja 

Florenthal, the Undergraduate Program Director, or myself to 

discuss your ideas. 

John Swarbrooke 

Academic Director 

john.swarbrooke@ritz.edu 

tanja.florenthal@ritz.edu

go the extra mile! 

ICMS Graduation ceremony on 15 october 2010 

Mr Kisseleff congratulating the winner of the Annual César Ritz 

award for Academic Excellence, Lisa Nussbaum 

The European International College Hotel Management & Tourism 

(EIC) was established with a mission to provide world-class hospitality 

education in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). To fulfill this mission, 

the EIC established an academic partnership with our very own César 

Ritz Colleges Switzerland. A memorandum of cooperation between 

the two institutions allows graduates of EIC’s two-year programme 

to transfer to University Centre César Ritz to complete a Bachelor 

of International Business over four terms. From the inception of this 

agreement, César Ritz has fully assisted the EIC by providing training 

and consultancy services to its faculty and staff. This partnership 

has significantly contributed to strengthening the educational links 

between the two countries. 

César Ritz alumnus Jin Deng (MSc 2008) currently works at the EIC 

as Student Placement Coordinator. 

CAMPUS NEWS | GLOBAL PARTNERS 

Martin Kisseleff congratulated the graduates upon receiving their 

diplomas from the International College of Management Sydney 

(ICMS) in collaboration with César Ritz Colleges Switzerland. During 

the ICMS graduation ceremony on 15 October 2010 Mr Kisseleff 

gave the graduates some personal advice for lasting success: 

“Do not choose a job but a career! Salary and title are not as important 

as loving your job because when you love your job, only then will 

you be motivated and perform in exceeding expectations” 

“Care about your relationships – colleagues at work and loved ones 

at home – find a good life balance, care about your families and 

friends” 

“Be better than your competitors, pretty good is not good enough, 

go the extra mile!” 

eiC and César ritz partnership 

Statements from transfer students Usman 

Saleh Suri (left) and Binny Varghese (right) 

César Ritz and EIC students during the 2010 Career 

Development Trip to the UAE 

Binny Varghese 

Transferred from Jindal School of Hotel Mangement (JSHM) in India: 

“The school and atmosphere are both nice and the people very 

friendly including the faculty and staff who help make such 

transfers so smooth. All this goes to make a very good experience. 

Plus, the exposure you get here is fantastic, not only in 

terms of placements but also in terms of the type of work. I 

worked for the UNWTO TedQual conference at Brig. Through 

these sorts of placements you learn so much!” 

Usman Saleh Suri 

Transferred from the European International College (EIC) in 

Abu Dhabi: 

“It has been a great experience living among people from all 

over the world, understanding their behavior, learning how to 

interact and sharing a part of my life with them. It has been very 

uplifting for me in terms of my confidence and motivation. I 

have acquired a lot of experience at César Ritz and I’m sure my 

learning isn’t over. César Ritz and Switzerland have really given 

me the best experiences in my life so far.” 


ALUMNI GATHERINGS 

la’Chaim! israel alumni meeting 

The alumni meeting of César Ritz hospitality students 

was held at the five-star InterContinental David Hotel in 

Tel-Aviv in october 2010. 

Not surprisingly, four of our graduates just happen to work in the 

hotel. Among our alumni were a hotel chain owner, a vice president 

of a five-star hotel chain, front desk managers, a manager of a desert 

hotel, an expert in wines, a manager of food and beverage in hospitals, 

and many others with exciting positions. With more than 

30 alumni participating, one could see the strength of the César 

Ritz alumni network, one that is a truly global network with 

connections all over the world. 

Uri Florenthal 

Area Manager 

sKills and CompetenCies todaY 

and tomorrow 

Maintaining professional and ethical standards was identified as being one of the key 

competencies required by hospitality managers in order to succeed in today’s industry. 

This insight into the challenges within the hospitality industry was revealed at the 

César Ritz Colleges Switzerland Hong Kong Hospitality and Alumni Reunion held at the 

Hyatt Regency in Hong Kong, on 12 August 2010. 

César Ritz Colleges’ Director of Teaching and Learning, Charles 

Hains presented the findings at the event where many senior managers 

from the hospitality industry were gathered. While the findings 

of the extensive survey conducted by César Ritz Colleges came 

as little surprise to those gathered, they did reinforce that the skills 

and competencies required by today’s managers have changed little 

than those of ten years ago: adaptability, embracing and managing 

change, people management, cultural diversity, strategic thinking, 

problem solving, multi tasking, and being customer focused. All also 

agreed that these skills and competencies will most likely change 

little in the next ten years! 

The research also showed that the number of new employees 

needed in the industry is growing annually. “One general manager 

told us”, said Mr Hains, “that his chain will be recruiting 50,000 


new staff in China alone in the next five years”. For the graduates 

of César Ritz Colleges, this certainly comes as good news. 

During the event reception, Daniel Gutzwiller, the Brig Campus 

School Director in charge of Alumni and Career Services, Placements 

and Industry Relations, welcomed back many César Ritz 

alumni, all of whom praised the College for the skills given to 

them for their journey into hospitality management and other 

closely related industries. 

Congratulations to Evan Chiu who was inaugurated as the new 

president of the César Ritz Hong Kong Alumni Chapter. All in all, 

the evening was a great success and a special thanks to those 

who attended including the seven César Ritz Colleges staff 

members.

JourneY BaCK in time – Brazilian 

alumni Chapter launCh 

Hospitality alumni from César Ritz Colleges Switzerland went back in time during the launch 

of the Brazilian alumni chapter in São Paulo in September 2010. Cristhina Lima was elected 

President of the chapter. 

“With graduates from both Le Bouveret and Brig attending, 

so many stories were relived about the good old days as 

students in Switzerland. But it was the launch of the new 

chapter that took the limelight at the cozy and charming 

25 Years! our malaYsia reunion 

In order to celebrate their 25 years of graduation and 

catch up with old friends again, a group of hospitality 

alumni who had studied in Brig and Lax between 1985 

and 1987 decided to organize an event for their former 

classmates. All alumni from 1985 to 1987 were invited and 

about 40 people in total (alumni and families) ended up 

coming to be part of the happy crowd who came mostly 

from Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia. 

The reunion was held from 25 to 27 June 2010 and the reunion 

dinner was on the Saturday evening. Lucky draw prizes were given 

out as well as the major prize offered by César Ritz Colleges: 

a voucher for a round trip to Switzerland to attend the Annual 

Alumni Reunion in May 2011, inclusive of accommodation. The 

lucky winner was alumnus Chee Foo Low. 

Upstairs Lounge Bar of the Grand Hyatt Hotel where two César 

Ritz alumni are currently working in managerial positions.” 

Cristhina Lima (grad. 2002) 


PEoPLE ‘N’ STUFF | SUCCESS STORIES 

Javier muÑoz-Calero 

Javier Muñoz-Calero graduated in 

1999 from the César Ritz Hotel Management 

Programme in Le Bouveret 

before following his passion for 

cooking with the Cordon Bleu School 

in Paris and the Royal Thai School of 

Culinary Arts in Chonburi, Thailand. 

Javier has worked in different countries 

around the world and recently 

opened his own restaurant with a 

very special concept. 

t.a.r.t.a.n. is the place to meet and be 

seen (ver y ser visto) in Madrid. It is also 

the place to enjoy Javier’s amazing culi- 

nary creations. Javier realized the dream 

of having his own successful restaurant 

right in the heart of Madrid, so successful 

that it is always fully booked and he has 

to refuse many customers every night. 

Since the opening in February 2010, the 

national and international press has regularly 

contacted Javier for interviews. During 

these, he never forgets to mention 

that his success has been based on his 

studies with César Ritz Colleges. “Again 

and again, César Ritz is in my mind and 

in my heart,” Javier told us, and “I am 

so grateful to all of you and lots of love 

an ameriCan dream – 

antoine raJeh 

Like most of the students enrolling 

in a hotel management school, 

Antoine Rajeh (Lebanon), wanted to 

become the general manager (GM) 

of a luxury hotel and not only a GM, 

but also one in the USA. Antoine’s 

César Ritz Colleges diploma was 

the first step towards achieving this 

ambitious goal. 

After graduation in 2001, he set out on his 

‘American Dream’. While working as concierge 

at the Loews Miami Beach Hotel, 

Antoine discovered that his true passion, 

and something in which he excelled, was 

in making a guest feel special. This he did 

so well while at the famous Setai Hotel in 

Miami and, later, at the W Hotel. 

While becoming more experienced as a 


concierge, Antoine also started to realize 

his entrepreneurial skills and it wasn’t long 

before he started to follow that potential. 

Today, together with his partner Kristine, 

Toni owns and manages the company 

Luxury Rentals Miami Beach, a company 

renting out hotel condominiums and private 

villas. 

Asked what César Ritz Colleges brought 

into his life, Antoine says that he learnt 

the importance of “details, service, etiquette 

and tradition”. “Most important 

of all”, said Antoine, “was learning about 

real professionalism and patience”. For 

Antoine, the time spent at César Ritz 

was definitely the key to bringing him to 

America and starting his business. “I truly 

thank César Ritz Colleges for the opportunities 

that I received.” 

”Again and again, 

César Ritz is in my mind 

and in my heart, and 

I am so grateful to all 

of you and lots of love 

from all the family.” 

from all the family.” 

On a personal note, on 6 January 2010, 

Javier’s other big wish came true. He had 

wanted a son and received two when 

wife Marta gave birth to twins: Javier 

and Jacobo. 

Javier Muñoz-Calero 

Spanish, Hotel Management 

Diploma, 1999 

Owner 

t.a.r.t.a.n. restaurant, Madrid, Spain 

javiermcc78@yahoo.es 

www.unrestaurantellamadotartan.es 

Antoine Rajeh 

Lebanese, Hotel Management 

Diploma 2001 

Owner 

Luxury Rentals Miami Beach 

Miami Beach, FL, USA 

tony@luxuryrentalsmiamibeach.com 

www.luxuryrentalsmiamibeach.com

Career and motherhood – 

KatJa marshall 

Katja says that besides offering her new 

international horizons, the College opened 

her eyes to details and the diversity of 

Food and Beverage. It also gave her the 

ability to recognize and look after the 

special wishes of each guest as a unique 

individual. 

It all started in Switzerland when Katja 

decided to take advantage of the international 

study options with César Ritz Colleges. 

Starting in 1993 at the Le Bouveret Campus, 

she transferred for her second year to 

the sister school in Washington, 

Connecticut. 

Having learnt to appreciate the details in service and customer 

care that the school provides in line with the philosophy of 

César Ritz, Katja developed a strong feeling for the well being 

of the guests and also discovered her passion for Food and 

Beverage. Benefiting from the international contacts César Ritz 

Colleges offered, Katja spent a few years with the Ritz Carlton 

Hotel Group at Amelia Island and then in Mauii, Hawaii. This 

was followed by several years in Arizona with Fairmont Hotels 

& Resorts. 

Returning to Switzerland and a short time as Restaurant Manager 

at Mosimann’s Restaurant in Olten, Katja then followed 

her wish to get back to a more international career and started 

in 2006 as Assistant Food and Beverage Director at the Fairmont 

Hotel in Monaco. When the position as Food and Beverage 

Manager at the Fairmont Montreux Palace Hotel became 

vacant, she applied for a transfer and today, fully enjoys this 

new and exciting challenge on the Swiss Riviera. 

Katja is passionate about working in Food and Beverage and 

the enthusiasm she dedicates to her activities is based on the 

pleasure of working not only with people in general, but more 

especially, with the guests she serves. 

What did she gain from César Ritz Colleges to successfully 

implement in her career? Katja says that besides offering her 

new international horizons, the College opened her eyes to 

details and the diversity of Food and Beverage. It also gave her 

the ability to recognize and look after the special wishes of 

each guest as a unique individual. 

How does she cope with being in an area that is still mainly 

in masculine hands? According to Katja, that has never been a 

problem and she has always enjoyed doing what she was doing 

while gaining the necessary experience needed to move 

forward. This, she says, works out perfectly well – even in her 

private life. 

Katja is the proud mother of a three-year-old son, Raphael, and 

lives with her life partner on the Swiss Riviera. Katja has, she 

says, a perfect symbiosis between motherhood and career with 

all the inherent challenges and responsibilities of being a Food 

and Beverage Manager. 

Katja Ehrensperger – Marshall 

Swiss, Hotel Management Diploma 

(Le Bouveret Campus) and 

Associate Degree (Connecticut Campus) 1995 

Food and Beverage Manager 

Fairmont Montreux Palace 

Montreux, Switzerland 

katja.marshall@fairmont.com 


PEoPLE ‘N‘ STUFF | PHOTO GALLERY 


1 2 

4 5 

6 7 

3

8 

10 

13 

1. Hotel Managers attending the 2010 

Annual Alumni Reunion in Switzerland 

with Messrs Gutzwiller and Kisseleff 

2. Kenya alumni reunion (June) 

3. 2010 Annual Alumni Reunion in 

Switzerland (May) 

4. Weekend ski excursion for the 

members of the alumni chapter 

in Bulgaria (February) 

5. ITB alumni reunion in Berlin (March) 

6. Dr Petri at the 2010 Annual Alumni 

Reunion in Switzerland (May) 

7. Xi’an alumni reunion (June) 

8. Oslo alumni reunion (September) 

9. Grace Ngan-Mook with her family 

visiting the Le Bouveret Campus (July) 

10. Portugal alumni reunion (July) 

11. Alumni reunion in Vancouver (May) 

12. Japan alumni reunion (March) 

13. Will Allan with his family visiting 

the Le Bouveret Campus (July) 

Connection alumni news | February 2011 | No. 47 | 13 

9 

11 

12

PEoPLE ‘N’ STUFF | UPDATES 

Graduate personal news. 

Who’s doing what, where have they been and where are they now? 

Fabiana D’Angelo (grad. 1997) works as General Manager of ‘27 Hotelaria e 

Turismo Ltda’ in Brazil. 

“It is a small company being established in Brazil. We are building a 41-room charm 

hotel by the beach. As the two owners are Italian, live in Europe and only come to Brazil 

once a year, I am their administrator handling the project. In addition to that responsibility, 

I am teaching ‘Menu Engineering’ and ‘History and Culture of Brazilian Regional 

Cuisine‘ at a University of gastronomy.” 

Fabiana is trying to reach all her PGD former classmates so if that is you, please send her an 

e-mail at fabianadangelo@terra.com.br 

Prashanth Gurumurthiah 

(grad. 2004) 

“After my graduation (PGD in Hotel & 

Tourism Mgt), I gained hospitality experience 

working with international chains 

in Zurich and England. Then in 2007, I had 

an opportunity to move to Dubai where I 

joined the Meeting and Events team at the 

Radisson Blu Hotel, Dubai Deira Creek. In 

2009, I moved to Corporate Sales and in 

June 2010 I was promoted to Regional Sales 

Manager of The Rezidor Hotel Group, one 

of the world’s fastest growing hotel companies. 

I enjoy working in this challenging 

position and travelling to many countries. 

I like living in Dubai which I believe is currently 

the most dynamic, vibrant and exciting 

place to be.” 

prash_gr@hotmail.com 

“I like living in Dubai which 

I believe is currently the 

most dynamic, vibrant and 

exciting place to be.” 


“We are building a 

41-room charm hotel 

by the beach”.

Philippe Harb (grad. 2001) 

Philippe has been appointed Director 

of Food and Beverage of the fivestar 

Al Murooj Rotana hotel in Dubai. 

Originally from Lebanon, Philippe has 

10 years of extensive hospitality experience 

with specific expertise in Food 

and Beverage and had occupied various 

posts in other five-star properties 

across the Middle East. Prior to joining 

Al Murooj Rotana, Philippe was the 

Food and Beverage Manager at Al Ain 

Rotana. 

philippe.harb@rotana.com 

Claudia Doron-Zahner (grad. 1995) 

is involved in humanitarian activities. In 

line with the nonprofit foundation, Rivers 

of Hope, Claudia, her team and sponsors 

support the project ‘CIPERFOOT 

– football is more than just a game’. 

They opened a football school in Sanga 

Mamba, a suburb of Kinshasa, the 

capital of the Democratic Republic of 

Congo. In Sanga Mamba, approximately 

500,000 people are thought to live 

in slum conditions where even basic 

needs like drinking water and electri city 

are barely met. Most children do not 

have the opportunity to attend school 

so CIPERFOOT aims to get them off the 

streets and offers an education that 

they would otherwise not receive and 

possibilities for a future. Via football, 

children experience social integration, 

learn about health and hygiene as well 

as qualities like respect, tolerance and 

how to deal with anger, frustration and 

violence. We take advantage of the special 

power of football, to give children a 

chance to find happiness, discover their 

hidden talents, and for a few hours, forget 

the tough reality in which they live. 

claudia.doron@ariverofhope.org 

www.ariverofhope.org 

Philippe has been 

appointed Director of 

Food and Beverage 

of the five-star Al Murooj 

Rotana hotel in Dubai. 

“We take advantage 

of the special power 

of football, to give 

children a chance to 

find happiness, discover 

their hidden talents, 

and for a few hours, 

forget the tough reality 

in which they live”. 

Claudia with her God-child Marina together with Carina from Don Bosco (on the left) and Sister Josephine (on the right) 


PEoPLE ‘N’ STUFF | UPDATES 

Stephan Kau (grad. 1997) is back in Brazil working for the Amadeus IT Group in Sao 

Paulo. Stephan met his wife, Fabiane, while studying at our sister College in Sydney 

and followed her to Brazil. After some years with Amadeus in Germany, Stephan, and 

Fabiane returned to Brazil with Felipe (four years old) and Sofia (two years). One of his 

colleagues is our alumnus, Fernanda Monasque, and this is how we got in contact again 

with Fernanda and gained a few new members for the Brazilian alumni chapter. 

stephankau@msn.com 

fernanda.monasque@amadeus.com 


Alice Disch (grad. 1993) is successfully 

operating Alice Teaching and Translation, a 

very busy English language school located 

in the small Swiss village of Schwaendi. 

Besides translating and also selling 

language courses abroad, Alice is busy 

as president of an organization called 

EMBRACE, supporting young Mongolians 

in their studies. Why Mongolia? Because 

Alice taught English there a few years 

ago and was confronted with lots of 

intelligent and bright young Mongolians 

who did not have a chance of an education 

because of lack of money. So she decided to 

help and says that “it’s really rewarding and 

we have already given many people a start 

towards a better life.” 

aliceteaching@bluewin.ch 

www.aliceteaching.ch 

Register now 

Haven’t registered in the alumni 

database yet?? 

Take a minute now and go to: 

www.alumninews.ch – 

User Login 

This will enable your César Ritz 

friends to find you! 

Avantikka Raghumandan from India 

(grad. 2010) was sponsored by César 

Ritz Colleges to attend the EuroCHRIE 

Conference. 

During the conference that was held in 

Amsterdam in October 2010, Avantikka 

presented a paper based on her final year 

project ‘Agri-tourism in India – the potential 

for sustainable development and economic 

growth’. 

A small delegation from César Ritz Colleges 

joined over 200 other delegates from around 

the world. Avantikka’s paper received very 

positive feedback from the audience and 

many were quite surprised to learn this was 

an undergraduate project! We’re sure that 

this will not be the last time we hear from 

Avantikka and about her project. 

avantikka.raghunandan@ritz.edu

omar Ghassan Ehssan Edilby 

(grad. 2002) 

“I obtained my PGD in 2002. It was a great 

experience both academically and socially. 

The skills and knowledge I gained during 

my time at César Ritz were greatly beneficial 

to my career. After graduation, I worked in 

some five-star hotels in Amman and Dubai, 

then I shifted towards sales and marketing. 

To my surprise, the skills and know ledge I 

received from the PGD were also very helpful 

in different industries other than hospitality. 

I am currently pursuing my career in hospitality 

education as a service instructor at a 

culinary school in my home country. So I am 

now the new Mr Ortiz of Jordan!” 

omar.edilby@ritz.edu Mr Gutzwiller, Omar, Sanjay Chib and Mr Ortiz at the Brig Campus in March 2010 

In loving memory of Wan othman Mohd 

Noor and Haji Rahman bin Abu Samah 

It is with deep sorrow that we announce 

the passing of two of our former students, 

Wan Othman Mohd Noor and Haji Rahman 

bin Abu Samah, both from Malaysia. 

Wan Othman passed away on 15 September 

2010, due to heart complications. 

He was in the Summer Batch 1984 

and graduated in 1985. 

Wan worked three years with Malaysian 

Airline System, Malaysia’s national airline 

(MAS). In 2006, he was Station Manager 

at MAS Brisbane and in mid-2009, he was 

back at the KL MAS HQ. 

Haji Rahman (also known as Samah Raman 

Abu) passed away in November 2010 after 

a long illness. He studied in Lax in 1986 

and his classmates will remember him 

as a jovial person who was always making 

fun. After graduating, he worked for 

some years running a restaurant in Japan 

with his uncle before returning to Malaysia. 

“It shows that the experience gained at César Ritz Colleges 

helps our students to apply their knowledge and cultural 

experience and adapt to any industry.” 

Michael Museler (grad. 1997), Night 

Manager at the InterContinental in Hong 

Kong, writes: “It all started a year ago 

when my wife Monica was offered a position 

in Hong Kong with her company to 

assist in a merger in which her bank was 

involved. We have always moved for my 

job but felt that this was an important 

career move for her and I knew that with 

my experience, I would be able to find a 

job in Hong Kong.” 

And so he did and now they live not far 

away from Hong Kong in a nice town on 

Wan Othman Mohd Noor 

He was a consultant and celebrity chef for 

Adabi, a spice manufacturer in Malaysia. 

Wan Othman and Haji Rahman will be 

missed. May they rest in peace. 

Lantau Island, close to the new airport. 

They found a domestic helper to look 

after their son Max and all is going well. 

Michael is in touch with the Hong Kong 

alumni chapter and was surprised to see so 

many former students working in various 

industries outside of the hotel business. It 

shows that the experience gained at César 

Ritz Colleges helps our students to apply 

their knowledge and cultural experience 

and adapt to any industry. The Museler 

Family wishes everyone the best and success 

in their travels and work. 

mmuseler@msn.com 

Farewell to Heinz Javier Colby 

It is with great sadness that we announce 

the passing of our former student and friend, 

Heinz Javier Colby, who graduated from the 

Hotel School Zillwald in Lax in 1986. 

Heinz was the Group General Manager 

of three properties in the Blue Mountains 

west of Sydney in Australia. He passed away 

unexpectedly from an undiagnosed heart 

disease condition on 27 January 2011 at the 

age of 48 years. 

Heinz will be deeply missed by his wife, two 

children and many friends. 

Heinz Javier Colby 


PEoPLE ‘N’ STUFF | UPDATES FAMILY NEWS | WEDDINGS 

where are theY now? 

Graduate career news. What jobs have they had and where 

are they working now? 

Nicolas Tasiounis (grad. 1992). After almost 20 years of a successful career in the 

international hotel industry, Nicolas has changed his orientation and is now teaching at the 

Institute of Culinary Arts and Hotel Management in Santiago de Chile. “Nevertheless”, he 

says, “sometimes I miss the professional career after nearly 20 years of work”. 

nicotasiounis@gmail.com 

Rahim Azad (grad. 1994), has a long and successful career with Serena Hotels in 

Serengeti, Mombasa, Zanzibar, Jaipur, Mozambique, and Uganda. He recently opened 

the Polana Serena Hotel in Mozambique as Hotel Manager. 

raheem.azad@gmail.com 

Tuomas Laakso (formerly Thomas Holtman, grad. 1997). After many years in an 

international career in operations and consulting, mainly in the US, Dubai and London, 

Tuomas has taken up a new challenge with Marriott International in Zurich as Director 

of the International Hotel Development – Europe. 

tuomas.laakso@marriott.com 

Wolfgang Bendl (grad. 2001). After some exotic experiences in Curacao and 

St. Lucia, Wolfgang is now back in Europe and has taken up the role of Financial 

Controller at The Augustine Hotel in Prague in the Czech Republic. 

wbendl@roccofortecollection.com 

Natalie Mik – Stadelhofer (grad. 2001) and her husband Joe moved from London 

to Geneva. Natalie is happy in her new life and enjoys her new position as Head of the 

Geneva Office of Alpine Homes International. 

nmik@alpinehomesintl.com 

Florian Kittler (grad. 2001) enjoys a new challenge in Shanghai where he is heading 

Portfolio’s Hotel Executive Recruitment Business as General Manager for Shanghai & 

Greater China. Worldwide, Portfolio employs over 50 consultants in the hospitality, 

leisure and travel industries. Florian focuses on senior appointments, like chief 

executives, general management and senior executive committee members. Having 

worked for five-star chains like Shangri-La, Mandarin Oriental and Hyatt, Florian gained 

significant hospitality experience in Europe, Middle East and Asia. 

florian.kittler@portfolio-asia.com 

Katja Beyer (grad. 2008) from China to Schwaben! Katja met the love of her life while 

working in China. She returned with him to Germany and enjoys working in a small town 

in the south of Germany for the Tourism Organisation of the Ostalbkreis in Aalen. 

katja.beyer@ostalbkreis.de 


Several alumni have tied the 

knot since we last heard from 

them. Here’s a round-up with 

brief news about what the 

graduates are up to now. 

Mukarram Dadajonova (Mickey, 

grad. 2003) and Marcelo Castro Vera 

(grad. 2004) met when they were 

in Le Bouveret in May 2003 and 

have been together ever since. 

“We married on 22 August 2009 in 

the charming town where we live of 

San Miguel de Allende in Guanajuato, 

Mexico. It was a small, civil ceremony 

with 80 guests followed by a delicious, 

casual buffet lunch with excellent wines. 

The evening finished with a fun karaoke 

with our closest friends. The day was 

full of emotion and there were many 

kind words spoken by our loved ones. 

We chose not to do a typical wedding 

and went for a small, unique and a 

little quirky mood in purple and chocolate 

palette. I think we managed to pull it off!” 

mukarram.dadajonova@gmail.com 

marcelo.vera@realdeminas.com 

Tanja Kisseleff (grad. 2003) 

Tanja and Uri Florenthal married on a special 

day: 01.10.10. They first had a civil ceremony 

with only close family members present and 

then a party with friends and family. “It was 

a small, elegant and fun wedding!” 

tanjakisseleff@gmail.com

Jess Jiyoun Choi – Fanelle 

(grad. 2000) 

“After completing my management training 

at the Park Hyatt Chicago, I wanted 

to specialize in accounting and finance in 

the hospitality industry so I went to Hilton 

College at the University of Houston to 

do a Masters. After graduation, I worked 

as Assistant Controller at the Warwick 

Hotel, then as Controller at the Forest Club 

in Houston, then as a Controller at the Oak 

Hills Country Club in San Antonio, Texas 

where I have now been working for the last 

three and a half years. During this time, I 

undertook another Masters in accounting at 

the University of Texas. Currently, I am in 

the process of becoming a Certified Public 

Accountant (CPA). 

I’ve learnt so much at César Ritz and also 

met so many great people. The experience 

made a great impact on my life and 

I really cherished every moment. I always 

wanted to somehow share my student 

life with my partner and I did during our 

honeymoon during a visit to Brig. My 

husband’s name is Frank Fanelle and we 

were married on 6 March 2010. Frank is a 

wonderful person with a huge heart and 

works in the pharmaceutical industry.” 

jiyounchoi@hotmail.com 

Liina Pikver Heffernan (grad. 2001) married Jim Heffernan 

“Our wedding day took place in the deep Värmland forest in Sweden, on 26 July, 2008. 

We were joined by friends and family from Sweden, Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, 

Norway and Ecuador. Some very good friends from César Ritz were among those that 

shared this beautiful day with us: Julia Hacker (Gruber), Michael Rosenström and Maria 

Fernanda Hidalgo Rosenström and their daughter, Emma. We now live in Kristianstad, 

Sweden and I work at Kristianstad University. I am always happy to be in touch with 

old classmates!” 

liinapikver@gmail.com 

Dima Musharbash (grad. 2006) 

“Every now and then the good old days 

cross my mind and I miss the great times 

we had at school and in the Tonkin and 

Student Bars! For those of you who don’t 

know, I married on 7 August 2009 to 

Saro Assayan with the wedding ceremony 

in St. George’s Cathedral. A lovely dinner 

party followed with family and close 

friends, including my César Ritz classmate, 

Mira Lawn, who came from Beirut with her 

family to attend our big day. After graduation, 

I pursued my education with an MBA 

with a focus on Marketing. Currently, I 

am the Assistant Marketing Manager for 

Jordan Insurance Company, one of the largest 

insurance companies in Jordan. I hope 

we can always stay in touch and keep 

hearing the good news from friends and 

alumni from all over the globe.” 

dimagfm@gmail.com 


FAMILY NEWS | WEDDINGS 

Violeta Dimitrova-Salama (grad. 1999) 

Even though Violeta, originally from Bulgaria, was married two years ago (and now has 

a baby girl, Isabella), we are delighted to share her happy news. 

“My husband Magdy and I met upon my return to Egypt after I had spent seven years 

living in the UAE. We were married in 2008 in the picturesque town of Split in beautiful 

Croatia. We are now settled in Cairo where I work as a publishing executive for the 

Egyptian Chefs’ Association.” 

queenpurple77@hotmail.com 

Mirasari Halim (grad. 1992) 

“My husband Ridwan Judhianto and I 

married on 14 February 2010 in Jakarta. 

It was a nice and simple wedding. I’m 

still running my own business called 

‘It’s Brownies Time by The Cookie Lady’ 

and specialize in brownies and cookies. 

Besides that, I am also running ‘pernik 

[aikon!]’, that specializes in a natural 

material used in handcrafts.” 

thecookielady_01@yahoo.com 


Although Belén Gallo-Martinez (grad. 

1997) and her husband, Joaquin 

Batanero, celebrated their marriage 

already in 2006, we would like to share 

their wedding photo together with 

the information that the happy couple 

now lives in Mallorca where Joaquin is 

working at the Sol Meliá headquarters 

in charge of the openings of Sol Meliá 

hotels. 

begallovi@hotmail.com 

Katharina Darisse (née Rutz, grad. 

2004) and her husband Julian met in 

Beijing where Katharina was working 

for Kempinski and Julian for Shangri-La. 

Being Canadian, Julian did not speak 

German but learnt one sentence to propose 

to Katharina! He must have said 

it correctly because her answer was a 

definite ‘yes’. The wedding took place 

on 3 July 2010 in Katharina’s hometown 

of Egestorf, near Hamburg in Germany, 

with Julian’s family from Canada and 

lots of friends from all around the world. 

“We were very grateful to have so many 

friends celebrate this very special day with 

us and we even had guests from China! 

Also my best friends from my César Ritz 

time joined the wedding weekend and 

that made it extremely special: Barbara 

Kahl, Margarita Sannikova, Vanja Lindsay 

(née Kranjec) and Katharina Franz. 

Lubna Ali was dearly missed by all of us 

as she was nine months pregnant at the 

time and couldn’t travel. After spending 

our honeymoon in a beautiful old castle 

close to the Baltic Sea in Germany, we 

returned to Shanghai and have been 

enjoying married life.” 

katharina.darisse@gmail.com 

Elina Murina from Russia 

(grad. 2009) 

“I was married on 2 October 2009 to 

Laurent Damasse and we have been living 

in Algiers for the past two years due 

to Laurent’s work. We are planning to 

stay two more years until the end of his 

contract. I would like to send my kind 

regards to all my wonderful professors 

and amazing friends!” 

elina.murina@ritz.edu

Several graduates have welcomed new arrivals. The César Ritz family wishes them a lot of 

happiness and joy in their personal lives and success in their professional lives 

Sabine Achkar and Philippe Abou Jaoude (grad. 2004) 

“Our life has new meaning since we became the proud parents of our first daughter 

Tiffany, born on 21 May 2010 in Laval, Canada. Our bundle of joy made our life busier 

but definitely more gratifying and momentous. Despite Philippe’s busy schedule in his 

restaurant and my new appointment as Coordinator for the Le Cordon Bleu programme 

in a reputable university, we always manage to spend some quality time with Tiffany.” 

sabinachkar@yahoo.com; philip.aj@ritz.edu 

Violeta Sanchez Dakovic (grad. 2000), 

sent this lovely photo of her little daughter 

Amalia, born on 30 April 2010. Violeta 

writes: “I was living in Cancun, Mexico for 

the past two years, married Jorge Sanchez 

Rovirosa Sanchez and just recently moved 

back to the UK. In Cancun, I worked 

as a store deputy manager for Groupo 

Ultrafemme, a luxury retail company. 

At the moment, I am in the process of 

starting a new job back in London.” 

violeta.dakovic@ritz.edu 

Flor Berman (née Molina, grad. 2007) 

from El Salvador 

“I married a little more than two year ago 

and now live with my family in Hoboken, 

New Jersey, near Manhattan. We are 

the proud parents of Alyssa Marina, now 

two years old. I’m currently doing a Master 

in Education and, hopefully, will be 

graduating next year. I’m also working 

as a language teacher in some New York 

City public schools. Achieving a Masters is 

an important step in my career and it is all 

possible thanks to the outstanding teachers 

I had at César Ritz. I always keep everyone 

from Brig very close in my thoughts and as 

a source of inspiration.” 

flor_sanchez@hotmail.com 

FAMILY NEWS | BABIES & FAMILIES 

Lubna Ali Rahman (grad. 2004) 

Leen Adnann was born in Amman, Jordan 

from the love of Lubna and Adnann. Lubna 

writes: “we welcomed our baby daughter 

into the world on 6 July, 2010 and she really 

is our little ray of sunshine.” Lubna has 

been working with the César Ritz Colleges 

team as the Director of Regional Development 

for the Middle East Region since August 

2009. She was very excited to assume 

this new job and responsibilities and get 

back in touch with the César Ritz family 

again. 

lubna.ali@ritz.edu 

Alexander Schillinger (grad. 1995) 

Born on 25 December 2009, Annabel 

made a happy Christmas entrance into 

the lives of her mum Genie and proud father, 

Alexander who is currently working 

as Director of food and beverage at the 

Dusit Thani Hotel in Bangkok. 

alexander.schillinger@dusit.com 

Tina Asamoali-Dammenhayn (grad. 

2002) lives and works with her husband 

in London. They wish to proudly announce 

the birth of their daughter Naomi who 

entered their lives on 12 January, 2010. 

tinadammenhayn@web.de 


FAMILY NEWS | BABIES & FAMILIES 

Simone Harms (née Mueller, grad. 1997) 

Another happy mother working with the Fairmont Hotel Group is Simone Harms, Director 

of Operations at the Fairmont San José. Her daughter, Zoe Hannilisa, was born on 17 May 

2009. 

simone.harms@fairmont.com 

Veronika Ganz (née Schwarzmayr, 

grad. 1997), her husband Dave and 

little son Leopold, are extremely happy 

about the birth of Florentina, born 

on 19 November 2009 in St. Gallen, 

Switzerland. 

v.ganz@mac.com 

Marie Kristiannsson-Bchara (grad. 

2001) enjoys spending time with her 

boys four year old Yakoub and eight 

month old Noah. The family is still living 

in Dover in the UK but might be moving 

back to Sweden. 

mariebchara@gmail.com 


Adalheidur Hannesdottir 

(grad. 2005) 

Viktoría Dögg arrived in the lives of 

Heida and Gummi on 23 June 2010 on 

her mother’s birthday! Kristófer is very 

happy to have a little sister to look after! 

adalheidur.hannesdottir@ritz.edu 

Constanze (née Minten, grad. 2001) 

and Boutros Khalil 

Khalil Daniel arrived like a Christmas present 

in the life of Constanze and Boutros on 

21 December 2009. He added 3.6 kg 

worth of new happiness to their busy life. 

Constanze is back running The Americas 

Operations for IFH® – Institute for Hospitality 

Management and conducting training in 

U.S. and South America for hotels as well as 

managing the team of Mystery shoppers and 

callers. Boutros joined Hojeij Branded Foods 

as Director of Operations for the Washington 

D.C. area. This is one of the leading airport 

concessions companies and run restaurants 

at airports throughout the U.S. 

constanze.minten@ritz.edu 

boutros.khalil@ritz.edu 

Angel Lobo has been promoted to GM 

within Sol Melia Hotels & Resorts. His 

challenge now is to open the first Innside 

by Melia hotel outside Germany, (open in 

April 2011) in Barcelona. Here Angel is with 

Marco, his six-month-old son. 

angel.lobo@solmelia.com 

Kristian Gundersen (grad. 1994) 

“We are back in South Africa after 

three years in Chile but with an addition 

to the family, our son Neo who was 

born in Santiago de Chile on 5 May 

2009. The Hotel and Casino project 

(Monticello) was completed but suffered 

some damage after the earthquake in 

February, hence I was asked to stay on 

and supervise the repair and construction 

works. It has since opened and 

is trading well. I am back at the Head 

Office of Sun International Management 

Ltd. in Johannesburg as Development 

Manager.” 

kristian.gundersen@za.suninternational.com

Bjoern C. Loesch (grad. 2002) and fiancée, 

Anne-Kathrin are thrilled to an n ounce 

the birth of their first son, Maximilian 

Christoph born on 27 July, 2010 in Lucerne, 

Switzerland. “We’re very proud and happy, 

and thank God for our healthy son”. 

bjoern.loesch@ritz.edu 

Trude Konrad (née Gulbrandsoy, 

grad. 2003) and Christian Konrad 

“Greetings from Switzerland! 2010 has 

been a very special year for us. After 

being a couple for over eight years, we 

finally decided to make it official and on 

13 March became Mr and Mrs Konrad. 

Three months later, on 24 June, our lovely 

little daughter Sophia Michelle was born. 

Christian also changed his job this year 

and is now Director of Operations for 

both Campuses in Le Bouveret and Brig. 

A great responsibility with a lot of challenges 

and one that he really enjoys.” 

trude.konrad@ritz.edu 

Heike Schnell 

Little Margarita is the newest addition to 

Heike’s family. She was born on 13 September 

2010. Just like her young family, 

Heike’s London based yoga and loungewear 

company, Wellicious, is also growing. 

Wellicious is selling in over 100 exclusive 

spas, hotels, and yoga and pilates studios 

worldwide. 

hschnell@wellicious.com 

Simona Ritter (grad. 2001) and Mihai 

Tudoran are the happy parents of Ana 

Emilia, born on 29 September 2009. As students 

at Le Bouveret in 1999, one Swedish 

and the other German, they soon found 

out that they both had Romanian roots. 

Following the completion of internships 

in Geneva, they went their different ways: 

Simona continued in Brig before moving 

to the UAE, while Mihai transferred 

to our sister school in Australia and then 

moved to Spain and changed from hotel 

management to sports management and 

a Masters at the FIFA university. After five 

years with Radisson Blu and speaking 

Romanian, Simona was sent to Bucharest 

to be part of the opening team of the 

new Radisson Blu. She checked for friends 

in Romania and got in touch with Mihai! 

They met during César Ritz alumni reunions 

and then became a couple and their 

happiness became complete with Ana 

Emilia. Simona is still on maternity leave 

from being Director of Sales and Marketing 

at the Crowne Plaza Hotel and Mihai 

is a licensing and event manager for the 

marketing agency for the Romanian Football 

Federation. 

maria_simona@hotmail.com 

Christina Wieland, (née Mika, grad. 

2002), writes about her son Philip, born 

on 2 December 2009: “he is a great boy 

who gives us lots of joy while we watch 

him grow, is very active and tries to eat 

whatever he finds on his way.” 

wieland.christina@web.de 

Tarsila Fercher-Geis (grad. 2003) and 

Matthias Geis (grad. 2005) 

Hannah is the name of the little girl who 

entered this world on 21 September 2010 

and added a new touch of happiness to the 

lives of her grateful parents, Tarsila Fercher- 

Geis and Matthias Geis. 

tarsila.fercher@ritz.edu 

matthias_geis@gmx.de 


César Ritz Colleges Switzerland 

Alumni Office 

1897 Le Bouveret, Switzerland 

Tel. +41 24 482 82 82 

Fax +41 24 482 88 99 


www.ritz.edu

CONNECTION ALUMNI NEWS - César Ritz Colleges

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