There is a Cheese School in San Francisco and although I’ve never taken any of their classes I do subscribe to their newsletter because I have good intentions of taking a class one of these days. And I have to confess that I’m a little giddy over a new offer of theirs – a 3-Day Intensive Cheesemonger Program.

This is an example of a random thing that I think sounds like terrific fun for no other purpose than my own edification. The class is actually intended for “working and aspiring cheese professionals and others in the food service industry, including cheesemongers, chefs, servers and other front-of-the-house staff, caterers, wine and specialty food retailers” and that’s not me but it still sounds fun. And it does say that it’s also for “anyone else with a serious interest in deepening their understanding of cheese”.

At a price of $1100 I’m not actually planning to take it. I actually know very little about cheese other than that I like it a lot and it would make a lot more sense to take one of their basic classes. But doesn’t this sound like so much fun?!

The three-day class includes:

• Education by a cheese expert who among other things has been an international cheese competition judge. I just like the idea of knowing someone like that!
• Classroom instruction to learn how to “procure, sell, care for and serve premium cheeses”.
• Take-home materials for additional instruction.
• A local creamery tour.
• Certificate of completion. You know, to hang on my wall and express my coolness since I’m not actually planning on being a cheese professional.

Tags: cheese school, cheesemonger, classes, education

I recently wrote on article about culinary school vacations which is a type of travel that includes learning to cook local foods during your stay in an area. This seems like it could be a really great experience for someone who really enjoys cooking, learning and tasting local foods. Although I somewhat like those things, I don’t think that I enjoy them enough to truly have an interest in culinary school vacations. However, writing the article got me thinking about the different types of classes that you can take as a part of your travel and there are certainly some that interest me.

Language classes are the most obvious. I think it’s important to try to learn the local language any time that you travel somewhere. While it’s good to get some of the basics out of the way before the trip, I think an inmmersion class at the start of your vacation is a great idea if you’re going to be there long enough to benefit from it.

Classes that are specific to things that are popular in a local area are also coming to mind. I’ve gotten very interested in visiting Buenos Aires recently so I’ve read a lot of books by people who have traveled there. All of them seem to suggest that it’s a good idea to take tango classes while you’re there since it’s such an important part of the culture and it’s the best place to get good instruction in the dance.

Mostly I think I’m interested in shorter-duration classes than all of these, however. I’m interested in taking classes that can be completed in a day or two but which will add to my overall experience of the trip. For example, I might take a class in scuba-diving and then go diving at my destination. Or I might take a class in the history of the area or the area’s art movements while I’m there to learn more about those aspects of a destination. This suits my attention span and travel style better than a continuing class.

Tags: classes, education, hub pages, kathryn vercillo, specialty travel, Travel, vacation