The Pulse - Issue 10

8/9/2019 The Pulse - Issue 10

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Sustainability Practices in the Hotel Industry

Charitable Initiative by Whittalls Travels

O n the 29 th of November 2014, a group of twenty five staff members embarked on a journey to Rathnapura, which is nowregarded as a tradition. The annual charity project organized by Whittalls Travells donates stationary to students ofPunchigama Sidhuhath Vidyalaya a rural school in Rathnapura. The welcome was warm and sincere, and you could tell

these kids were eagerly waiting all year for this visit. In addition to the gifts they were about to receive, these children alsoloved the attention given to them by the Colombo uncles & aunties who spent quality time with them. There was singing,dancing and acting all done by the students while some of the Whittalls staff chipped in as well. The traditional cricketmatch was played between the boys from Colombo and the boys from Rathnapura which ended in a nail biting tie. By thetime our colleagues headed home, their hands may have been dusty, their tummies empty and their legs aching, but theirhearts were filled with joy.

W alkers Tours Limited in partnership with Cinnamon Hotels and Resorts organized a workshop focusing on thesustainability practices for the hotel industry

Committed to sharing best practices with are valued hotel partners and uplifting the standards of the industry andincreasing the attractiveness of Sri Lanka as a responsible tourism destination was the key drive of this initiative.


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First TimersI n this issue of the Pulse, The editorial team spoke to employees who represented Walkers Tours & Whittalls Travelsoverseas for the first time in 2014. The following article is a recap of their experience representing their company andmore importantly Sri Lanka.

Rehan Senaka

My visit to Australia and New Zealand was one of the most amazingexperiences in my life. I met around 25 agents and I learned a lot on howto improvise when dealing with agents. The most interesting thing aboutAustralia was that I was able to strike up a conversation with a randomstranger on the street. I enjoyed the street musicians so much that Iaccidentally tipped one twenty dollars. The weather in Sydney was goodand I was able to visit the Art Museum and watch the MelbourneOrchestr a during some of my spare time.

Ruwan Kottage

I traveled to China for the Chinese International Travel Mart 2014. The 3 night stayalso included visits to a few agents. The experience was invaluable since it was myfirst time representing the company abroad. One of the downsides of the trip was Ididnt have any leisure time to explore the country since I was fully occupied at theTravel Mart. I was exposed to a bad food experience too, sin ce I dont eat any meat.The seafood there was not ideal either as it is not what Im used to. Everything elseabout the c ountry is absolutely fantastic.

Gayanga Botejue

My visit to UK was exciting as it was my first visit to Europe and to travel

alone for the first time was great! It was very nice to have finally met theagents I deal with. To describe London in one word busy, but highlyinteresting and you would never get bored. The little cafes, pubs , nightlife, the underground tube system was what I found very interesting. Theonly thing I wish I could have witnessed was a Lion King Musical, Perhapsnext time.

Shameema Alliar

Initially I was excited to go on my first sales visit to Doha. But then, I felt pressured &fear crept in as I had not traveled alone prior to this. However to my surprise, as soon as Ilanded in Doha airport, I felt comfortable to agents and sell Sri Lanka as a destination. Iwas further pleased to see my agents were very accommodating and treated meexceedingly well. Sales visits in general make this job ultra-interesting as it introducesyou to a whole new facet of the tourism industry. I am very lucky to be working for sucha company which gives opportunities to the inexperienced, where they can showcasetheir talents when put to the test .


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Heshan Gunaratne

My first Sales call was to Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Even though the four night staywas clustered with visits to agents, I still managed to make time to see the desertsand I was amazed by this experience. I was also taken by the date trees growing onthe side of the road. Each day was packed with around 7 agent visits but I was ableto visit the Dubai Mall and buy some souvenirs for my family and friends. Meetingthe Agents I work with was a great experience and it added value to the work I wasdoing.

Milani Senarat

I was really excited when I got to know that I will be going to France for a sales visit.The main reason was because It is close to home (Italy) and secondly because it was agreat chance to test my sales skills. Effective selling means lots of preparation, meaningthat much of your work will come before you speak to the people you're selling to.Luckily, Arinda, who has gone on sales many times, came with me and Thisara, who issettled in France, was there to show me the selling techniques to use with theagents/clients. This experience gave me more confidence and a better overview of howthis industry runs.

Jayani Jayawardena

My visit to Chi na was indeed a great opportunity and Im grateful that thecompany decided to entrust me with such a responsibility. The Chinese

International Travel Mart was an enlightening experience as I wasrepresenting Walkers Tours over there. I couldnt explore th e countrymuch but I was able to spare some time to buy a few souvenirs. Overall theexperience was a good one and Im looking forward to the next one.

Nilusha Amarasinghe

My visit to Japan was an enlightening experience and I was honored to be givensuch a responsibility as this since meeting with agents is one of the most importantaspects of our business. I didnt have much time to visit places but I was able tovisit Shibuya city. The food was a 50/50 experience since it was mostly sushi andother raw meat. We had to travel by train everywhere and keeping up to the train

schedule was tough but a good experience nevertheless .


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Kumendra Dharmadasa

My visit to Thailand was to meet our existing agents and also to expand the existingagent base. Visiting 10 agents in two days is deemed to be challenging, however, I

was inspired to take up the challenge. Being stuck in one place for two hours on theway to m eet an agent isnt ideal, but Im happy to put that down as an experience.The experience I gained by meeting agents was invaluable and I didnt hesitate topick up key pointers for the next time around. I couldnt explore much on the foodline but I did manage to try out some street food.

Nifraz Nowfal

I was Representing Walkers Tours at The Matta Fair 2014 in Malaysia. Theexperience was enlightening and it felt good that I was given such a responsibility.Although I was fully occupied by the fair, I also spared time to visit some of myagents and also went on the lookout for new business. During my spare time, I wasmostly out on the streets exploding my taste buds with a variety of street food. Theexperience is one that I would least likely forget!

Travel Bloggers Conference

A sias first ever Travel Bloggers Conference organized by Cinnamon Hotels and Resorts was held from the 14 th to 18 thNovember 2014 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. The Bloggers consists of a diverse group of travelers from all around the globe. Theylanded on the 13 th of November and began their tour the next day. The tour included a Safari at Kaudulla National Park,Visit to Sigiriya National Heritage Site, Visit the Temple of the Tooth and a train ride to Colombo. The ground handlingpartner for this entire tour was cvisit.com, the first online comprehensive travel booking site in Sri Lanka. The Bloggersconsists of over twenty five nationalities and had a massive reach on Social Media. The publicity received added immensevalue to Sri Lanka.


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Yohan Peiris

Yohan PeIris, with over 20 years of experience heads the French market and has thefollowing view to share about his team. He commended on the Strength of the overallteam members and the Brilliance of each and every individual. The knowledge and skilleach one possesses is unique and blends well to complement each other. The team wasrather new and inexperienced and had to face many challenges along the way. Howeverthe determination, Commitment and the hunger to achieve great heights took the entireteam towards achieving success. With few experienced members continuouslysupporting the rest was a solid foundation to the team. I see a very strong bond withinthe team that keeps it alive, they make it through the tough times because of the nevergive up attitude they all possess. The beauty of this team is the continuous support they

offer each other and the positive attitude

The Other Side Team France

Trevin Reid

Trevin has been leading the French Market for almost two years and is now is wellseasoned in the market, even though he cant speak the language. His team functionwell in that regard, as he has five French speaking colleagues, one based in France. Hestill finds it challenging from time to time as the team is still relatively new but theymake up for it through hard work and dedication and they are willing to give 110percent every time.

Arinda Bulanawewa

Arindas introduction to the French market was rather a challenging task since he waspulled out from his comfort zone the Indian Market. He found it very challenging atfirst, but now he is well settled with the team. He feels the key to the success of themarket is down to the trust they have in each other. Arinda sees huge potential andgrowth for the team.

Ridma Withanage

Ridma joined the company straight from university and is now well settled in theFrench Market. She feels the added pressure as French is an unique language and triesto deliver the best she can all the time. She feels the team is very open and helpful andthey always help each other out. According to Ridma the team experiences excellentleadership and the bond between them is very unique.

F or this issue of The Other Side, we take a look into the French Market and the special bond this team shares.


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Milani Senerat

One of the Language Specialists working in the market, Milani just loves working with this

team. They are really supportive towards her and has helped her alot with the transition ofworking in Sri Lanka. The best characteristic of the team is they solve all issues withought aproblem and also the fact that they start each day with an innocent gossip session. Over thepast year the team has become close friends, crazy funny and like family to her.

Manori Karunarathna

The thought of changing markets was tough on Manori, but now she looks back andthe team has been more than helpful and has treated her like family. There is a drasticchange to the work she does and is grateful to receive more exposure. The team hassupported her all the way and she loves every minute she spends in the French Market.

Tarusha Fernando

The baby of the team, often dubbed Kolla finds the French Market very

interesting. He feels his team members are very chilled out people and they canbe a crazy bunch sometimes. According to Tarusha, the success of their team isdue to the way they get along and the 110% effort everyone puts in.

Amrick Andrado

One of the new members of the French Market, Amrick has enjoyed his stay at Walkers Toursso far. He feels he has found a job where he wakes up in the morning and looks forward towork. The French Market is like family to him, and they would go the extra mile for eachother. When asked about the team environment, Amrick replies Arinda Brings a sense of

unity to the group. Both Trevin and Arinda are easygoing characters but they also make sureobjectives are met.

Ryan Perera

Ryans second stint at Walkers Tours began in the French market. He settled into his role in no time and was comfortable with everyone since day one. He

describes the team as a dysfunctional family who co-exist with each other.

Thisara Devasurendra

Thisara is the French representative of Walkers Tours based in Paris. His first stint with WalkersTours was based in Sri Lanka which gave him the exposure in to the tourism industry and alsohelped him identify his ancestrally roots. He finds the team based in Sri Lanka to be extremelyreliable and goes onto say that each and every member is complimentary of each other. He seesgreat potential in terms of growth for the French market and is excited about the journey ahead.


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Christmas with a Glow


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W e had an Invasion of Mustaches in November! Movember (the month formerly known as November)is a moustache growing charity event held during November each year that raises funds and awarenessfor men's health.

Movember At Inbound

Inbound Force

Left to right Anjali (Finance), Imeshi (Finance), Nilushika (Trailfinders), Dhanushka (cvisit.com), Natasha (Web Sales),

Pavithra (IT),

Dinidu (WBTL), Nicola (Travel Counter), Yudesh (Sustainability), Lavanga (France), Sithum (WBTL), Lakshimal (NatureOdyssey)


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Run For Their Lives

Walkers & Whittalls emerged runners up to Sri Lankan Airlines at the Travel Trade Swimming Meet 2014. Our Swimmerspreformed to the best of their ability and finished second in a fiercely competitive battle with Sri Lankan Airlines.

Travel Trade Swimming

For the second year running, 10 individuals from Walkers and Whittalls teamed up to run for the lives of cancer patientson the 13 th of December 2014. The members managed to successfully complete the 5km distance which was a charity runwith a bit of jogging and plenty of walking. This was a project organized by the Rotaract Club of Colombo Uptown for thefifth consecutive year.

Kids At WorkWalkers & Whittalls celebrated childrens day 2014 on 22 nd October under the theme Bring Your Child to Work Day An init

y John Keells Group HR. The kids got a chance to be a part of their parents work day and were also entertained by some of themployees. They were treated with yummy delightful treats and ended the day watching a kid s movie whilst the ice cream maaid a visit.


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Answers to Caesars Cipher Puzzle No.01

We Are The Champs! Travel Trade Tag RugbyWalkers & Whittalls emerged joint champions of the cup along with Cinnamon Grand. After the heartbreak last year, ourplayers put in a spirited performance to come from behind to level the scores just before full time. There was no score inextra time. The B team won the bowl, while Rameez Rafeek and Shanendra Fernando won the Most Outstanding PlayerAwards for the Cup and Bowl respectively.

Rangani DKNY Mevantha Gladiator

Madura Pradeep Dilini White

Maldini Egg Rotti Shannon Jayawadanagama

Ishendra Suits Nifraz Lie to Me

Richinda Richie McCaw Shavinki Butterscotch


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Caesars Cipher Puzzle No.03

Are you a trendsetter us?

The full albums can be viewed at

http://www.facebook.com/CareersatWalkersWhittalls

Ashiq

Lives in Cvvkfkac

Key Date of Birth (Date)

In cryptography, a Caesar cipher is one of the simplest and most widely known encryption techniques. It is atype of substitution cipher in which each letter in the code is replaced by a letter which is a fixed number of

positions down the alphabet (Anticlockwise). For example, if the key is number 3, D would be replaced by A,and if the key is 10 E would become U, and so on. The method is named after Julius Caesar, who used it in hisprivate correspondence.

Anjali

Favourite brand is Atqadqqx

Key Age

Arinda

Middle Name is Lmapisi

Key First digit of his address

Lakshimaal

Favourite colour is Cmvf

Key Last digit of his extension

Randika

Favourite celebrity is Mzlm Ofhprfs

Key Date of Birth (Month)

Prabuddha

Favourite food is Xzgrfwnsj

Key Last digit of his mobile number

Upekha

Favourite sports team is Qvwqouc Pizzg

Key Date joined

Amrick

Favourite movie is Jowjduvt

Key Last digit of NIC number

Micaela

Favourite ice cream flavour is Mrymyvkdo

Key Month joined

Nilushika

Favourite tv series is Ysgrrborrk

Key The inches in her height
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptographyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encryptionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Substitution_cipherhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alphabethttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_Caesarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_Caesarhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alphabethttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Substitution_cipherhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Encryptionhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryptography

Documents

The Pulse - Issue 10