Inside Asian Gaming

IAG SEP 2022年9月 亞博匯 76 INDUSTRY PROFILE Oscar Guijarro: Vinzenz, you’ve come a long way from Austria to reach Macau. What are your memories of childhood back home in Europe? Vinzenz Rosa de Pauli: I had a beautiful childhood, but it was more like a very Central European childhood, with a very stable family situation, going to school, in the afternoon enjoying life, playing football, tennis, golf … and skiing and snowboarding in winter. I became a snowboard and skiing instructor. I was skiing and snowboarding my entire life. At the age of two it was the first time I was put on skis. That's like in our blood. It’s a national sport. At 15 or 16 I applied for a job in a skiing area because I wanted to be a snowboarding instructor. And this skiing school took me which had hotel restaurants and entertainment facilities. I was recruited as a snowboarding instructor for the entertainment division, but when I arrived they said they were also looking for a bar keeper, so from 9am to 12pm and from 2pm to 4pm I was a snowboarding instructor, then I would have a rest and in the evening, at 8pm or 9pmwhen the bar opened, I would work behind the bar. But I didn’t see it as work. I loved barkeeping and I loved skiing and instructing because it's fun that you can teach people. Then I was a bit naughty in high school and my father said, “Let’s send you a little bit further away to somewhere you’re not so comfortable.” And he sent me to one of his business partners in Hong Kong knowing that he had all his factories in Qingdao. The target was to send me to Qingdao to show me how life in China was back then. That’s now more than 20 years ago and it was a good learning moment for me, but in the end, it was not a punishment for me. It was such an amazing experience that I returned after completing my studies and work experience in Europe.