Sunday, May 21, 2006

Thank You!

I'd like to thank all the ones who congratulated me on my acceptance to IESE.
I must admit that I have been walking on air. My goal of starting an MBA program in the fall of 06 will materialize despite quite a rocky year and arduous process. I have millions of things to do before I am ready to leave for Europe. I need to sell my condo, my furniture, my appliances, my books,my car, (no neck or back though).
I need to secure a loan, see some friends, enjoy more of beautiful Montreal in the summer. I never thought that I would leave Montreal again after coming back in 2004 but I need to move on with my life. I also realized from this experience that happiness doesn't correlate to one's location. It is simply a state of mind. Mos Def's "Travelin'Man" off Dj Honda's "H2" is one of my favourite songs ever. I guess I will be leaving again...

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

I'm In!

I just received the IESE decision and am in!

Thursday, May 11, 2006

Pics from the Mini European Tour

I am back in North America after a week in the Old Continent.
It was my second time in London and I don't know if it is my luck but I've never seen rain in London. It helps that I have never been there in the winter months. On the left is a pic of St Paul's Cathedral from the Millennium bridge. Sure London is beyond expensive but one can do many fun things there for practically nothing. For instance, the white blocks on the next pic is not a giant Lego exhibit but rather art from a leading sculptor at the Tate Modern. What a great museum! I especially enjoyed the Surrealist section. I saw amazing shorts from French Surrealist artists like Man Ray, Picabia,etc.
They were made last century but remained fresh. I don't think someone who works in the City has much time to visit museums but that is a shame since London has so many great ones. I have yet to visit the Victoria and Albert Museum, the Science one,etc.
I remember a great exhibit about Black British style a few years back. It seemed like a great idea. I only spent a day and half in London (that's all I can afford) but I enjoyed my time there. I don't know how different it would be after 13 hours in the office and knowing that rent is due for the week. I wonder how one can successively save in London?

Is it Venice? No, it's Hamburg! A surprisingly interesting city from the crazy Ripperbahn, basically an Adult Disneyland, to the elegant ElbeStrasse mansions, Hamburg has much to offer. I especially enjoyed Blankenese, a posh part of town near the Elbe that had a small town feel to it but that was so close to downtown. It was so quiet. What a contrast to the craziness of Ribberbahn! I am still in awe of how much Germans can drink beer. Canadians just cannot measure. I am surprisingly enjoying Germany (to visit). I am amazed at the efficiency, the marvelous cars on the street, the neat streets. I hope to visit Berlin as well. German cities really have their own identities. It's a very different model to countries like Spain , the UK, or France that have one or two big cities and a multitude of smaller ones with not much economic clout.

Lastly, a few pics from Barcelona's Guell Park designed by Gaudi and the IESE campus, it's beautiful and they serve beer in the cafeteria, which is a good thing. By the way, I really like Lufthansa, especially the fact that alcohol is free and that they actually still serve food unlike many North American airlines.

Saturday, May 06, 2006

Little Break from it All

I finally decided to interview in Barcelona in order to check out IESE´s facilities. Since I don´t cross the Atlantic Ocean every month or even every year, I had to make a few stops before my final destination. London was the first pit stop, checking out Tate Modern, walking around Covent Garden looking for a place to sit down and have a few drinks with a friend, I realized how nice the city was, especially when lookin gat it from a terrace on the South Bank.
I am now in Germany, Hamburg, I haven´t seen much except the area where my friend lives, Blankenese, a haven of peace in a bustling metropolis. I seemed to have arrived a tthe right time since this weekend, the city´s birthday is being celebrated. I usually ty to find out about things like that but I´ve been too busy to read travel guides.