March 20, 2013

Sleepless in Slovenia

This marks my 200th post since I first started this blog. Can’t believe how much I have learned and experienced all because I made some bold changes to go after what I really want. I’ve also been really inspired watching some friends and family go against the grain in order to pursue their passions. It just goes to show that we all have that drive and ability in us to change things up if we want to, we just have to take the first steps. Here’s to more adventures!

 

“Your life always has a Plan B.” - Robert

I met Robert almost one year ago when I was working at Projective Space. He and his friends had a start up and were working out of the space, and we instantly bonded over our love of football (and really, how could you miss a group of tall Slovenes anyway?) When I told him I was heading to Milano for the year, he mentioned how I had to visit Slovenia and how he would show me around next time he goes home. Of course I said yes, but who knew if it would actually happen.

Fast forward to March and I found myself on a train making the trek across Italy to Trieste, the Italian coastal town near the Slovenian border. Robert had invited me over not once but twice when he was home for winter to join him and his friends skiing but ironically both times I was studying for finals. So when he sprung a last minute invitation to join him in Izola, a beach town just a half hour from Trieste, I knew I couldn’t turn it down. And I was extremely excited because I’d be visiting Slovenia for the first time, and nothing beats that high you get when you step into a new country.

Izola

Izola is a sleepy beach town, which if you know me you know is one of my favorite types of vacation spots, so I was all smiles as we arrived into town and checked out the gorgeous view from my friend’s apartment. Mental note: definitely live by the water once you settle down.I have been curious about Slovenia ever since my friend Shawn told me about what an unknown gem it is. Slovenia is a small country, tiny really in comparison to some of its neighbors, but it packs a lot of punch. As we were driving to Ljubljana, the capital (and they really do refer to it as The Capital, almost in an eerie Hunger Games style), I was marveling at how many different types of places this country has to offer: the beach, the countryside, the mountains to go skiing… what the, did we just drive by a shepherd herding his sheep? I love this place! I was given the option to either check out Bled, a town with a lake that’s quite popular among the tourists, or Ljubljana to visit the city center and the main castle. Bled looked beautiful but we in Milan are spoiled by having Como only a short distance away so I opted for the capital. And I must say I am a big fan of the city! Its smaller in size than Milano, and with a river running through it its filled with many cute bridges. The city’s castle is quite nice as well since the city put a lot of money into renovations – you can see an interesting mix of old and new when you visit. The castle’s viewing tower offers a fantastic view, and it’s said that on a clear day you can see up to a third of the entire country.

Aside from visiting the castle we made it a point to have some traditional Slovenian food, starting off with some Slovenian schnapps to keep us warm while we were walking around. We went to one of my friend’s favorite restaurants, Güjžina, which serves food from the Prekmurje region (in northeast Slovenia) – two hours later I was in major food coma from all the deliciousness. The typical drink which many locals prefer is the “prekmurski spricar” which is a spritzer of white wine mixed with mineral water, and the most pleasantly surprising find of the day was trying pumpkin seed oil, the country’s equivalent to olive oil. Ljubljana has a lot of character with it’s artistic expression, for example all around the main streets of the city you can see tons of shoes hanging from wires, and there were also interesting floating orange Monopoly-esque houses that we couldn’t exactly explain. Personally though, what I liked the most was the emphasis on dragons: the dragon is the symbol of the city and is on its coat of arms, and it symbolizes strength and courage. Robert even said the local football teams fans wear green to dress up as dragons at games. Love!

Our main feature: Bujta repa (cabbage with meat), dodoljev tris (potato dish), and ravenska (buckwheat salad)

In addition to checking out Ljubljana, we also visited Izola’s neighboring town Piran which is the oldest Slovenian coastal town. It’s charm, aside from being along the water, has to be its narrow winding streets that lead through the town. Piran is such a picturesque town, and its no wonder that its the country’s main tourist destination. Slovenia in general is a very warm, friendly country. It’s so safe that many people don’t even worry about locking their doors or cars. Robert mentioned that many people here are too shy to speak English, and we actually noticed several times as people started to approach us, overheard our conversation got nervous and walked away! I found it adorable actually, and have to say I can relate after living in Milan these past 6 months and watching some of my guy friends unsuccessfully try to flirt with Italian girls. Overall I’d have to agree with my friend Shawn – Slovenia really is a gem, and I’m glad to have seen it through the eyes of a local.

I’m always amazed at where life can lead us. A year ago I wouldn’t have imagined that I’d be in Slovenia sharing a glass of wine and good conversation with a friend I made in NYC. And two summers ago as I was visiting my friend in Milan during my month of backpacking, I only wished I could live in Italy and couldn’t foresee that I’d be making it a reality this year. As I was sharing the past year’s highs and lows and my concerns for my future career path, Robert reminded me that years ago we were worried about different things in our lives that have managed to work themselves out today. I’ve had major disappointments and setbacks in the last few years in both my professional and personal life, and yet I could not imagine that those would lead to this moment here today, spending a year learning so much about business, other cultures, Europe and about myself. So when I think about it that way, that our lives will always have a plan B and that it’ll still work out magnificently, it relieves some of the tension and anxiety that I have been putting on myself. This doesn’t mean that I’m going to stop trying for the things I really want; on the contrary I will continue to kick like hell to go after it. But perhaps what is right for me is something that is so big that I can’t even wrap my head around it yet but will be patiently waiting for me when the right time comes. And that is pretty damn exciting.

Thanks to Robert for being not only a fantastic host, but also such a great and inspirational friend!

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March 18, 2013

Serendipitous

Currently reading: Start Something That Matters by Blake Mycoskie

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Back in January, Rachel gave me this book written by Blake Mycoskie, the founder, or “Chief Shoe Giver,” of TOMS. After taking some time for myself away from school to visit a friend in Slovenia, I finally was able to do some recreational reading and dove into this book. It talks about how TOMS got started, but more importantly about how to start your own business venture and not be afraid to dream big and make your ideas a reality. It actually perfectly complements the theme of this weekend as my friend in Slovenia is an entrepreneur with already a successful business under his belt and some fantastic new ideas in the works. Our conversations revolved largely around his experiences and what he’s learned, and my interest in finding a career that I can find meaning in and be proud of the work I’m doing. He asked me if I would consider becoming an entrepreneur, to which I paused and stuttered, embarrassed to admit that I do but don’t feel fully confident just yet to dive in. But still I even I surprised myself with how excited I became as I was telling him about my interest in companies that have a social business model, such as Warby Parker, their partner VisionSpring, and my cousins non-profit Hope Torch. I can’t deny that that’s the type of work that gets me pumped. And for the record, I am well aware that TOMS and WP can be seen as competitors, especially with TOMS in the eyewear business now, but the beauty of this type of work is that an increase in competition should be seen as a good thing since more and more companies are incorporating these kinds of social business models.

“We’re thrilled that TOMS joined us to deliver eyecare to people in need. We started Warby Parker to radically transform the optical industry in the US by charging $95 for $500 glasses and in the process create a new model for how for-profit companies should behave. Our Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program is one of the things we’re doing to serve our many different stakeholders (customers, employees, the billion people in need of glasses, the environment, etc). With one billion people in need of glasses, we recognize we can’t solve this problem ourselves.” – Neil Blumenthal, founder of Warby Parker, on his thoughts about TOMS Eyewear.

So as I’m sitting here on this comfortable scenic train ride back to Milan, I find myself fully immersed in this book, nodding along and bookmarking every page I read. About how all it takes to start something that matters is an idea and a story behind it and how you can’t let yourself be ridden by fear of failure. It all encapsulates not just the conversations from this past wknd, but things I’ve been learning in my classes at Bocconi and questions that have been in the back of my mind for the last few months.

And then I hear the ding that alerts me I’ve gotten a new email, and open it to excitedly see that it’s the new Escape The City newsletter of the week! And serendipitously the email starts with a message that leaves me speechless:

“Welcome to the 150th Monday newsletter. Those of you wondering whether to start something (no matter how modest) without knowing whether it’ll work or not might enjoy reading the text of Rob’s recent TEDX talk at LSE London: Rethink Fear In Your Career. You wouldn’t be receiving this email if it wasn’t for us three embracing the unknown back in 2009-2010 and deciding to build more exciting and entrepreneurial careers for ourselves. Most things worth achieving also come with the possibility of them not working out – worth remembering the next time we are erring on the side of caution.”

Do you ever have moments where everything seems to line up so perfectly that you just can’t ignore it? Maybe it’s time to start listening.

Thanks to Rachel for this book and for always supporting me!

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March 11, 2013

Z is for Zurich

Anyone who’s a fan of the British clay animation series Wallace & Gromit knows that they’re just nuts about cheese. I used to love that show when I was younger, so its not much of a stretch that as I was walking through the streets of Zurich, enjoying the sweet smells wafting through the air, all that kept popping into my head was Wallace exclaiming “The cheeeese, Gromit!!” And some cheese it is!

Even if you haven’t been to Switzerland, you are probably still familiar with their love for cheese. As we just had another set of finals (4th set in 6 months!), it was time for our obligatory celebration weekend getaway and so a few of us hopped on the train to Zurich. I was also fortunate enough to be reunited with a close college friend who was in Europe on business, so celebrations were most definitely in order. And for our first official order of business: fondue, of course!

As they set the giant pot of cheese in front of us, I had my doubts about whether or not we could finish it. The typical Swiss fondue is pure cheese, even though it is possible to get other things in it. We opted to try the classic style (when in Zurich!) which is a mix of cheeses and it generally only comes with bread to dip.  Fondue is seen as the main course, not the appetizer. I’m quite proud of us for handling it like champs though, it was delish albeit ridiculously filling. Other than the fondue, the fan favorite of the night was the gruyere mac and cheese topped with fried onions and with a side of apple sauce. Perfection! Also to note – chocolate fondue is definitely not a common thing there, unless you include tourist restaurants which may serve it.

All cheesiness aside, Zurich is really a lovely town. Coming from Milano where, even though its awesome the streets are pretty dirty, it was a real treat to be able to walk through Zurich’s pristine streets and quaint cobblestone streets. No graffiti, no dog poop, no trash – amazing! Zurich is pretty small (we even ran into people that we met on Sat night the following day), you can walk everywhere, and their tram system is very efficient as well. Don’t worry about trying to stay in Old Town either if you can’t swing it – it’s generally pretty pricey. We opted for an Airbnb choice located close to the artsy nightlife area of Langstrasse. We were only a few stops from the main train station and with the tram stop right outside the door we were well connected to check out the old town area, walk along the river, go do some shopping, etc. That being said, I would avoid the business areas as well because things shut down pretty early and it’d be pretty dull. The downside of Zurich is of course the ridiculous prices – I don’t even want to admit how much I paid for my Starbucks! But the people we met were very cool, the town (and its architecture) is awesome and the atmosphere is very easygoing. All in all, it was a perfect spot to unwind for a few days.

Oh, and don’t forget the Swiss have a different currency so prepare for that if you visit (you know foreign currency is my favorite!)

Fun fact: Zurich has clean drinking water since it gets its water from the nearby mountains, and throughout the city you can find fountains where you can fill up your water bottle. Very cool!

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February 16, 2013

Restorations

Sometimes its nice to feel like a tourist again. Especially when you’ve only lived in a city for 6 months and have hardly had any time to play tourist yet. This week the school set up a tour of The Last Supper for us. We were led through a church and a convent, and got the coveted 15 minutes alone with the painting. Well, almost alone if you don’t count the short but surprisingly feisty woman working there who almost took one of my classmates heads off for mistaking that she took a picture (she didn’t, but in all fairness someone else in our group snapped one and she mixed up the blondes – it happens!) It was very cool to see a mural from the 15th century, and its a shame that it hasn’t lasted very well over the years due to da Vinci’s method of painting directly on the wall using dry plaster, the fact that the convent is built over a river and the water soaked up through the wall, and that many restorations that were done centuries ago weren’t 100% accurate. Our guide said that even with all the restoration efforts made recently they were able to save only about 40% of the original painting (not to mention the fact that Christ’s feet were removed to make way for a door to the reflectory!) The most fascinating thing about the painting is the composition and how all the lines bring your focus back to Christ’s head. Our guide first started by telling us all about the painting while we were up close, but it was only after he had us move to the back of the room and see the painting from far away was this really evident and awe-inspiring.

Speaking of our guide, he was awesome! He is from Touring Club, and was so knowledgable and friendly. I couldn’t help but notice how content he seemed with his job as he gave us facts about da Vinci and his painting in a hushed, reverent tone with a slight grin on his face. I have to admit, watching him made me a bit envious that his job is to to talk about something he’s so passionate about throughout the city. Right now is prime internship hunting season for MBA’s, and it forces us to really look at where we want to take our careers and what company will be right for us. While everyone has different motivations depending on where they are in their lives, my number one priority is finding something that makes me happy. And from watching our guide and secretly wishing I was an art history pro so I could lead tours and wow people with the secrets of 15th century artists all day long, it reminded me that the end goal in finding job (and ultimately personal) satisfaction is being proud of what you do each day and who you affect. And if I can spend all day talking people’s ears off then even better!

When it comes down it, this year is a type of restoration period for all of us in the program. So as I hit the books in anticipation for next week’s finals, I need to remind myself why I’m putting in all of these hours of grueling classes, projects and exams, and trust that the hard work will all pay off. Back up plan just may have to be PT art history classes.

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January 31, 2013

The Soapbox Chronicles: Why The World Needs Football

So the latest news is that Balotelli’s coming over to AC Milan and the Milan fans of the city are stoked. He is such a beast of the field. It’s fun to have a new player to talk about and get more people excited about football and going to games, and it’s coming at a pretty convenient time too…

I grew up in Cali playing soccer. Wait, rewind, I tried out tennis, basketball, the clarinet, the piano and soccer, but soccer was the only thing I truly loved. When I spent a term on an exchange program in Spain, I was thrilled to be a part of a culture that embraced The Beautiful Game, whereas back home soccer was not nearly as popular. My friends and I would get frustrated everytime a big match would be on but our favorite bars weren’t playing it, and I would constantly gripe that we should have been born in Europe or South America. But we eventually did find our football bars in NYC (where all the expats were hiding), and a few friends and I even joined a co-ed team on Friday nights. Of course, a part of me was still pretty jealous about all the football love going on in the rest of the world.

So naturally you can guess just how excited I was when I found out I would be living in Milan for a year while getting my MBA. Finally, I’d be among people just like me! I was so happy imagining going to games, reading updates about players in the newspapers, playing matches with my classmates….

Wait, what? Did I hear that right? Girls don’t play football in Italy? Back up.

Instantly my dreams were crushed. How come in a country where football is religion half the population doesn’t take part in the sport? I know that girls get into rooting for their favorite team and go to watch the games, but I’m surprised that there isn’t more active participation for women. Well, that needed to change.

As some of you may know, a few of us students decided to start up the school’s Football Club this year. Aside from weekly games, we also made it a point to have the first co-ed football tournament last term. It was so great to get back out on the pitch again. We had five on five games going, and I was reminded about what I love so much about the sport. No matter what current issues we had with any classmates, when it came to game time we HAD to work together. Crossing, calling for the ball, (willingly) passing, scoring, celebrating… all of the stress and frustrations that existed back in the classroom melted away. Business school is such a group-focused program, and even though during this time the goal (yay for puns!) is to learn to work better with people that have different styles and backgrounds, it doesn’t always happen as effortlessly as we’d like. But on the field, when it’s either work together or get beat down by the other team, I was pleasantly surprised at just how well the teams all united. And what was even more fun is that it was such a great opportunity to get to know my colleagues better, especially the ones that I am not currently taking classes with. High-fiving, commending each other on that great assist, yelling at each other to make a mad dash for the goal (in the most positive, supportive way of course!) – all of this sure beats catching up over drinks at aperitivo. It would be wrong for the girls to not be able to enjoy this, too!

So even though I wasn’t as thrilled back home with the lackluster appreciation for the sport, now that I look back on it I wouldn’t trade anything for all the practices, games, tournaments, and orange slices I’ve had growing up. It’s ironic that it took coming to Europe to realize how fortunate I am that football’s such a welcomed sport for girls in North America… now let’s see what we can do with Italy! More on the formation of the SDA Bocconi girl’s football team to follow!

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January 13, 2013

Move On Over

“Research shows that living abroad expands your mental horizons and increases your creativity. However, merely traveling abroad doesn’t produce this benefit. Executives report that it takes at least three months to become immersed in a place and appreciate how the culture, politics and history of a region affect business there.”

Pankaj Ghemawat, Global Strategy Professor at IESE

Hey all you business professionals, its time to start figuring out your next big move!

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January 8, 2013

Winter Break Continued: NYC

Blog post from Monday, December 31st, 2011, written at Brussels airport at 8:53am:

Back at the airport. I’m starting to feel like Tom Hanks’ character in The Terminal. At least the shopping is pretty good. I’m at Brussels airport today, having a three hour layover before my leg to NYC. Yesterday morning I flew from India to Milan with a layover again in Dubai (what a cool looking city by the way),  and had about three hours of sleep before 4am hit and I was off to Linate (Milano’s La Guardia, if you will.) I’m pretty wiped but so happy to be going home for a week. It will be so great to see my close friends and my cousins, and to relax and visit some of my favorite spots in the city. Also, lately (or perhaps intermittently for the last few months) I think I’ve been glamorizing up NYC more than it should be due to frustrations living in a new place. Ooh, Time Warner Cable would never make me wait a month before setting up my Internet! ::cough FastWeb cough::  Somehow I managed to conveniently forget how much I loathe TWC and their infamous 1 hour hold times. This morning I  had a “it’s good to be back home in Italy” moment when I arrived at the airport for my departure and was thankful I won’t have to deal with the chaos of the Chennai airport, only to wait in lines for an hour before finding which was the right line I was even supposed to be in for Alitalia. At least the world can unite over airport frustrations.

I think getting a little piece of home will be just what I need to reenergize myself and make me ready to hit the ground running for next term…

 

::Fast forward a week (and a day)::

Yes, that extra day is important! Because had I been writing this yesterday, fresh off my flight from JFK all groggy, jet-lagged and not really in school mode, I’d still be mentally in NYC. The trouble with an amazing vacation is of course the post-vacation blues that come with it, and this trip back home was no exception. And I’d be lying if a small part of me wasn’t questioning why I didn’t look at NYC schools as I was having dinners with my close friends and shopping at my favorite stores (Pookie & Sebastian is a must NYC boutique for you out-of-town ladies!) I had to remind myself of what compelled me to move to Italy and how much I wanted to broaden my global thinking, yet that voice in my head became a bit distant as I sat down to dim sum at my fav spot in Chinatown with the gang… mmm, pork buns and egg custard. ::pause for savory moment of reflection:: It was only today, after walking into class and giving hugs to my friends who had all gone their separate ways in the world for winter break, that I started to remember many of the positive things that come out of this experience, just one of them being the many fabulous people I’ve met. Oh, and one new exchange student made me laugh as she exclaimed that she had the best cup of coffee in her life yesterday. There’s nothing like a fresh face to show you what things you take for granted, even after living in a new place for only 4 months. It’s also a reminder to be appreciative of all the new opportunities and experiences I’m having Here and Now, while still being grateful for whats in my life back home (and how lucky I am to be able to call three great places home now.)

 

Fun fact: Milano is about 4,000 miles between both Bangalore AND NYC! (Am I the only one who thinks that is kind of a cool coincidence?)

 

 

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December 28, 2012

Back in India

It’s 12:18pm. I’m currently sitting in my cousin’s pink bedroom – still adorned with stuffed animals and horses even though she is now 32 and has long since flown the nest – and looking out the windows at the many palm trees that surround the house. I’m back in Pavoorchatram, a tiny village near the southern tip of India where my aunt and uncle settled down years ago. He is an aerospace engineer, she is a doctor, and they both left their professions because they felt called to start a school here. And today that school is still thriving. So when our group of 10 adults and 2 kids got off the 13 hour bus ride from Bangalore looking a little worse for wear, we all squealed with delight when we saw that my uncle had brought the school bus to take us home in. I love coming back here – electric current only runs 14 hours of the day, bucket baths are a must (and you must carry the hot water from downstairs), and mosquitos are rampant, but there’s a lot of charm here too. My aunt’s property is amazing – plenty of space for the kids to run around and lots of chickens and icky bugs to look at. Today three of us cousins (and one 2 yr old) stood in awe as we watched my uncle skin chickens in a blink of an eye. It was pretty cool until the whole taking out the intestines thing happened – that was enough learning for one day. Last year I watched my uncle chop coconuts for us to drink coconut milk from – hes so resourceful, that one!

Being back in India with my parents is fun too – my dad hasn’t been here in two decades, and for my mom its been about 12 years. My sis and I have been fortunate to have been able to visit a few times in the last 5 years, and seeing my parents see where they grew up and take us to their favorite places is super cute. My mom already did the typical complaining of how much the city has changed since she was there, and how the construction of the new metro has ruined the beautiful streets, etc. etc. And we went and visited my grandparent’s property that my mom grew up on (and my sis and I, for that matter) which unfortunately is now owned by a hotel and several offices including the Japanese Consulate. I saw just how central my grandparent’s house was, and wished we could have kept the property intact with all the trees and the fish pond that I remember so fondly (minus the monkeys that would hang in the trees and terrify me.)

Adjusting to life in India always takes a while, but this time was especially brutal coming from such a long week of finals and just an exhausting fall term in general. Not that I’m complaining – in the 4 months I’ve been in Milano I’ve been stretched so far out of my comfort zone in terms of classes, working with different types of people, learning a new language and just navigating through the daily aspects of life in Italy, that I feel much more confident in myself and what I can accomplish. It’s exciting to see how much my classmates and I have progressed in just a few months together, and in a year when we are graduating together it will be interesting to see how much more we have grown. On Christmas, when I was at my dad’s cousins house with 30 some of his closest relatives, I got into a long conversation with several uncles about social entrepreneurship in India, and the need for smart business models and a solid understanding of the way of life here to ensure success in a program (especially one that is partnered overseas.) It reminded me of, regardless of people’s good intentions, just how important it is to invest the time visiting and traveling through different countries, and connecting with people there to foster mutual understanding. And on that note, even when we travel for leisure, whether it be a trip to Milan or visiting Africa, we are still continuously seeing how other people are living and how other systems work even though its different from ours. I’m still getting used to paying monthly for my phone bill in Italy – its definitely a hassle to have to go recharge my data plan each month. But then when I think about how I don’t have to worry about going over my limit accidentally and getting stuck with a 200euro phone bill, it makes sense.

Two more days in India with my family before I head back to Milano for a day, and then onto NYC for the New Year. I hope 2013 holds this much travel!

 

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December 7, 2012

Crash Course in Italian: Apartment Hunting

December is here! Time for hot spiced wine and decadent desserts, christmas lights on the streets and glittering christmas trees at every corner. And today marked Milan’s first snowfall of the season too! ‘Tis the season to be jolly! Except for those pesky 5 projects and 6 exams that are due in the next two weeks. And then theres the small issue of that apartment hunt…

For those of you that don’t know, I’ve been busy spreading yuletide cheer to those far and near by calling up strangers multiple times a day with the most friendliest “BUONGIORNO!”  I can muster and basically inviting myself into their homes. Due to some inconvenient circumstances I’ll most likely be moving soon, and in an attempt to reduce the burden on my stress level and my wallet I was hoping to do so well before finals hit. Everyday after school this week I’ve been filtering through school emails, bulletin postings, website listings, and yes even the AFFITTASI signs plastered on buildings around the neighborhood. While it has unfortunately put a dent in my study time, in terms of building my language skills its been pretty helpful – it’s quite possible I’ve spoken more Italian in the last two weeks with landlords than since I moved here. The best part is that when I apologize and say I only speak a little Italian, they continue to speak at the same speed. So I try my best, but making appointments to see places when you only understand about half the conversation can sometimes lead to, errr, interesting situations…

Apt #1) Checking out a 1br that an alum tipped me off to. The apartment is a little far, but its in a great area and just a stones throw away from all the good shopping (WIN.) I meet the landlord, a nice man who I’d guess to be about 60 years old, at the bus stop and proceed to have a lengthy conversation in Italian with him about where I’m from, what I’m doing, etc. Great street, great building, but upon walking into the apartment I realize the the 1br I thought I was seeing was actually a studio with a pull out couch for a bed. What are the chances that he probably told me already? I’d say 75%. And the probability that he was hitting on me when he told me I’m beautiful and invited me to coffee or gelato? NEXT.

Apt #2) Ok, this time I’ve seen pictures of the place, I’ve talked to the guy a bit on the phone, I know what I’m walking into right? Thought so, until I shook his hand, and then shook the hand of his roommate (or MY roommate) who would also be in the apartment. He also threw in a good MBA/NBA joke that, due to my mental translating delay, only registered a good 5 seconds after he had laughed and I had already stared blankly at him. Woops.

Apt #3) Alright, I have a good feeling about this one. I had a 5 minute phone conversation with the landlord, texted him a few times, and got a pretty good description of the place. I meet with him and he mentions something to the effect about the girl being there for another two weeks, no big deal. I walk in, look around, notice that theres two single beds instead of one – not the best thing but I work with the landlord on that. As I’m wondering if I could see myself living here, the girl (a Bocconi undergrad) transitions into English and starts telling me about how shes doing an exchange in the fall and is leaving in Sept. Ok…. why is she telling me this? Ahhh, its because she doesn’t WANT to move in two weeks, but the landlord may be kicking her out if she doesn’t find a roommate. Information that was most likely relayed to me before I walked in. So suddenly I was faced with the options of either living with this chick or kicking her to the curb if she can’t find someone to live with and taking it for myself. Awesome! Needless to say, I did the classic “Don’t call me, I’ll call you” move and peaced out as fast as I could.

While admittedly I have a lot of work to do before I can master Italiano, I always admire those people who, when visiting or moving to a new country, are not afraid to speak the language even if they don’t know how to say things perfectly.  Its the kind of student and traveler I want to become. After all, they say the best way to learn something is to make mistakes first, right?

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November 22, 2012

A Thanksgiving Tradition

Happy Thanksgiving! I can’t believe its the start of another holiday season. Thanksgiving in Italy is, err, a little different from back home. I had to remind myself that for most people in Milano (not to mention for 95% of my class) it is just another day.

What do you mean we have 7 1/2 hours of class today, its THANKSGIVING!!

Well, for those that don’t celebrate Thanksgiving, I’m sure you at least know about the gigantic Thanksgiving feast that marks the day. However, aside from the immense amounts of deliciousness that goes on, one of my favorite Thanksgiving traditions is contacting friends and fam and sharing greetings, reasons we’re thankful, and reflections on the past year together. Tonight I ducked out of the typical Thirsty Thursday routine in order to catch up with some loved ones, and I also had a chance to read my last blog post from last year’s Thanksgiving when I was in Chennai. Then, of course, I had no idea that I would be on this incredible b-school journey in Italy, and I can say with some certainty that a lot of the reason I’m here today is because of that experience I had last year. So maybe I owe my backpacking friends and hosts a little more after all!

 

Here are just a few of the things I’m thankful for from my time thus far in Milano:

One fantastic location: London was awesome and what was just as good as getting on a two hour flight to the UK was knowing that on the way back we were going back Home to Milan. While I wish I could be jetsetting everywhere my class schedule (and my wallet) can’t exactly afford it right now, but at least Milan’s positioning in northern Italy is pretty great  for being a quick train ride to other amazing Italian cities.

Orbit gum, peanut butter, and Aleve: Justt kidding, what I’m really thankful for the person that traveled thousands of miles to bring this, and many other important essentials, to me - my mom! (Truth be told I think she was using it as an excuse to visit Italy, but she’ll never admit that.) I’m thankful to have parents that are so supportive and encouraging in all my endeavors. What parent doesn’t love to hear that their kid is quitting their job/income to pick up and leave the country for a year, right? On that note, I’m also thankful for being a part of such an international family. My family’s Thanksgiving destinations this year: Italy, Japan and Costa Rica. But Christmas: only India. :)

Fresh produce and delicious desserts: Pretty self-explanatory, but I’m not sure if there’s ever been a time in my life where I’ve ever eaten better! As the saying goes, “If you ever have a bad meal here, you’re doing something wrong.”

Supportive and fun classmates: We study together, we goof off together, we stress out together, and we party together. Moving to a foreign city is hard enough, but adjusting to an intense grad program simultaneously is demanding as hell. My classmates have been a lifeline for me when I was teetering on the verge of a meltdown (or had maybe freshly fallen into it.)

Before a deadline...

...And immediately after!

The constant “wow” factor of technology: iMessage, you may win the Coolest Tech App Gadget Thingamajig Award in my book. The fact that I can text friends and family back in the states for FREE is so freakin’ cool. Same goes for WhatsApp, Skype, FaceTime, Gchat, Facebook, good “ol-fashioned” email… pretty much anything that helps me stay connected to those back home and make it seem as if I’m not thousands of miles away.

Thanksgiving FaceTiming with the BFF back in Cali

Honorable mentions:

Songza

Tubeplus.me

My Nespresso machine

 

Next mission: Find a real Christmas tree for my real tiny apartment. Will I have to make some expat compromises on the Christmas traditions this year?

 

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