Here we go. After spending the last nine months at me first "corporate" position I have booked my travel for NYC to catch up with an old friend and Montreal to meet some new ones. The last nine months have been very challenging for me personally. Converting from a life spent self-studying the pages of text which have prepared me for my position while working night and weekend shifts at restaurants to keep the personal coffers amply supplied. It's been a journey and some days are better than others but overall I think that the work has steadily improved although I doubt that the hours ever will align with my preference.
The beat and rythym of hopping trains between European cities has slowly begun to awake from it's winter slumber where it hibernated deep in the recesses of my being as I investigated source documentation from my clients. I am now poised to fly on Friday and the anticipation is all but completely distracting me from my work. I daydream of walking the streets of a new land, with new people and language. Though I can manage through my French in the streets of Paris I timidly shudder in fear of my probable ineptness to comprehend the idioms and colloquially evolved Quebecois francais. Ca serait dur j'imagine.
No matter the inevitable missunderstandings and missteps which will occur my blood races and my imagination soars towards the horizon of my experiences in NYC and Montreal.
Monday, May 18, 2009
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Returning Home
It has been two weeks since I returned home from my sojourn bouncing around Europe. I was petrified to return because I feel like I want to live in Europe. I could make a good argument for every city that I visited. From Budapest and it's emerging economy and Euro-Turkish architecture to the quiet and serene lakefront in Finnland. I can make my home anywhere. So, here I am in Charlotte, NC thinking that I might be able to handle it for another two years before getting an international placement. Let's focus on the objectives which are to work smart, efficient, and with a sense of urgency to hopefully become a senior as soon as possible. But I choose to enjoy my time, however long and at whatever level. After spending the summer more or less getting to know where I am in life and what's important I have decided not to let things get worked up too much and I am going to take time for me. A weekend off means going to the mountains for a hike, enjoying a football game with my dad, or just taking in a book on the patio...
The point is that I have worked hard to get to this point, so have a lot of people, and I choose to enjoy life and be happy as much and as often as possible. Happy for me means enjoying my friends and family, traveling to new and exciting places, enjoying going to work every morning and satisfaction when the job is completed, discovering new food, wine, beer, and spirits through restaurants, dinner parties, or just plain luck, and perhaps most important to me right now is to continue my dedication to physical exercise because it has given me renewed confidence and inspiration. I have lost 52 pounds since last December and I feel great. I have worked from the very strict diet to get the first 30 pounds trimmed off into a mode now where I don't worry about what I eat, but how much of it. Using this strategy over the summer I trimmed an additional 20 pounds. However, that was during a time when I was walking almost everywhere and sometimes not eating enough because of time or money. Now that I am back I am working on how best to continue to lose an additional 10-20 pounds and incorporate a new phase of workout and diet since I am beginning a career that will require me to travel. It will prove challenging but I look forward to this new hurdle and I think the experiences of the last few years will serve me well to be successful, professionally and personally.
The point is that I have worked hard to get to this point, so have a lot of people, and I choose to enjoy life and be happy as much and as often as possible. Happy for me means enjoying my friends and family, traveling to new and exciting places, enjoying going to work every morning and satisfaction when the job is completed, discovering new food, wine, beer, and spirits through restaurants, dinner parties, or just plain luck, and perhaps most important to me right now is to continue my dedication to physical exercise because it has given me renewed confidence and inspiration. I have lost 52 pounds since last December and I feel great. I have worked from the very strict diet to get the first 30 pounds trimmed off into a mode now where I don't worry about what I eat, but how much of it. Using this strategy over the summer I trimmed an additional 20 pounds. However, that was during a time when I was walking almost everywhere and sometimes not eating enough because of time or money. Now that I am back I am working on how best to continue to lose an additional 10-20 pounds and incorporate a new phase of workout and diet since I am beginning a career that will require me to travel. It will prove challenging but I look forward to this new hurdle and I think the experiences of the last few years will serve me well to be successful, professionally and personally.
Monday, September 01, 2008
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
Cruisin' on a Thursday afternoon?
So my plans to stay a night or two in Stockholm have been scuttled by the ferry line. I wasn’t able to make an online reservation for my voyage to Helsinki from Stockholm because I wanted to use my Eurail Pass in order to receive a 50 percent discount. So I made my way from Göteburg today thinking that I would be able to get place for tomorrow night. After checking the other line, Viking, and learning that it was booked for tomorrow and the tickets were 550 Skr I decided to find the Silja Line office. I was given good directions to the street but told to take a left and not a right. So after a 1km walk I figured I went the wrong direction. I doubled back and found the office only a short walk from my detour, ooops! It was good exercise with a 45 pound backpack.
My original plan was to stay a night and leave on the 28th for Helsinki but since all the places were taken I took today’s ferry instead. It left me one hour to get to the port and board the ship. So after my discount the ticket on the Silja Symphony was 206 Skr or about $35 USD. The taxi ride to the port was 289 Skr or $42.50 USD. I would think that I had been price gouged but this is Sweden and not Budapest. However I find the ship to be comfortable and look forward to getting some food and perhaps doing some gambling a little later before heading to the club. Can I get some luck of the Irish tonight? I love blackjack so I am going to give myself a small bank to work with and see if I can recoup some of my costs. No worries if I don’t as long as I have a good time I reckon.
Hopefully I will have access to a computer and internet connection in Helsinki so that I can post my pictures soon. I have now been to nine countries and been in Prague, Budapest, Salzburg, Vienna, Munich, Amsterdam, Berlin, Copenhagen, Lund, Gothamburg, Stockholm, Paris, and Helsinki. Not a bad little trip before I start work. I can say with certainty that I hope to move to Europe in the next two years and everything I do will aid me in reaching that goal. Once you have felt the pulse of Europe and all of it’s wonder you never let it go…
Tchao fo now!
My original plan was to stay a night and leave on the 28th for Helsinki but since all the places were taken I took today’s ferry instead. It left me one hour to get to the port and board the ship. So after my discount the ticket on the Silja Symphony was 206 Skr or about $35 USD. The taxi ride to the port was 289 Skr or $42.50 USD. I would think that I had been price gouged but this is Sweden and not Budapest. However I find the ship to be comfortable and look forward to getting some food and perhaps doing some gambling a little later before heading to the club. Can I get some luck of the Irish tonight? I love blackjack so I am going to give myself a small bank to work with and see if I can recoup some of my costs. No worries if I don’t as long as I have a good time I reckon.
Hopefully I will have access to a computer and internet connection in Helsinki so that I can post my pictures soon. I have now been to nine countries and been in Prague, Budapest, Salzburg, Vienna, Munich, Amsterdam, Berlin, Copenhagen, Lund, Gothamburg, Stockholm, Paris, and Helsinki. Not a bad little trip before I start work. I can say with certainty that I hope to move to Europe in the next two years and everything I do will aid me in reaching that goal. Once you have felt the pulse of Europe and all of it’s wonder you never let it go…
Tchao fo now!
Monday, August 04, 2008
Leaving for Prague
Yesterday I decided to get ready for the next adventure, Prague! Everyone tells me that its one of the most beautiful cities in the world. I think one of the reasons is because it was untouched by the bombing campaigns of World War II. I've seen the Discovery Channel's Samanatha Brown walking the 700 year old town square and walking Charles Bridge so I am brimming with anticipation.
At the same time however I am beginning to feel sad about leaving a place that I have grown to love in six weeks. I am not sure if it's the call of the European lifestyle or the friends that I have met along the way but maybe it's both. It's funny because this time I really was in a state of anti-Copenhagen at the onset of this trip. I was homesick and having trouble with the cultural differences, which often seem small and then snowball. However, those feeling faded as I began to make new friends and financial worries were eased. Now, I wish that I had more time to soak it all in. Movies in Fredericksberg center, Jazz festivals, nights at Holger Danske having dinner with friends, evenings at Halvandet overlooking the canals, etc... I know I can't stay longer but I hope that I get to come back one day. Maybe Deloitte will have an opportunity for me here or somewhere close by so that I can come back and soak it all in again.
Until then I will enjoy the time I do have and perhaps take a few more photos so that I will always remember my time amoung the Vikings.
At the same time however I am beginning to feel sad about leaving a place that I have grown to love in six weeks. I am not sure if it's the call of the European lifestyle or the friends that I have met along the way but maybe it's both. It's funny because this time I really was in a state of anti-Copenhagen at the onset of this trip. I was homesick and having trouble with the cultural differences, which often seem small and then snowball. However, those feeling faded as I began to make new friends and financial worries were eased. Now, I wish that I had more time to soak it all in. Movies in Fredericksberg center, Jazz festivals, nights at Holger Danske having dinner with friends, evenings at Halvandet overlooking the canals, etc... I know I can't stay longer but I hope that I get to come back one day. Maybe Deloitte will have an opportunity for me here or somewhere close by so that I can come back and soak it all in again.
Until then I will enjoy the time I do have and perhaps take a few more photos so that I will always remember my time amoung the Vikings.
Friday, August 01, 2008
København Nightlife
As the saying goes "time flies." It's pretty amazing that we are already entering the six week of our time here at the Copenhagen Business School. It really feels as if only a few days ago I arrived at my first residence covered in sweat and tired from my long train ride from Paris. Having been in a conundrum in Hamburg after getting off at the wrong station and jetting to the train station with a new friend from Paris who also made the mishap.
So today after spending the week with friends and needing to work on my paper I instead decide to pour out the emotions, thoughts, and events of the past weeks into this little portal to my world. I have experienced a range of emotions. Having been happy, sad, ecstatic, angry, annoyed, overjoyed, etc... These last two and a half weeks have been the most rewarding. Having learned to survive while waiting for bank transfers on less than $5 a day and making the most of it. Walking the streets of Copenhagen when money was scarce and hanging out at a residence called Holger Danske with the Poles Karol and Filip, Marianne and Cristina from Norway, Justus and Roman from Germany, Mèlanie from France, David from Amsterdam, and of course the fabulous Tuesday night dinners with Brandon and Vaughan.
It's hard to encapsulate all the memories and friends that I have made in mere words on a webpage but everyone of those people has a special place. For instance on Wednesday night we decided to check out a little bar on the bank of the canal we heard about from David who had visited it with his girlfriend the week prior. Just as we are leaving we realized we were short one bike because the one I had been using had a flat tire. So we grabbed a spare that the Polish guys had left upon their departure but the chain fell off shortly after leaving. In a showing of solidarity everyone waited on me for about 30 minutes as Cristina decided to fix the bike she will be using for the next 2 years while attending the MBA here in Copenhagen. I chipped in on the 100 kroner cost since I get to use the bike until I leave. However, everyone decided to wait until I could make it even though it was getting late.
Finally the bike was fixed and we were on our way. We trekked across the city to Cristiania and beyond. Moving towards an old abandoned set of industrial buildings as we wound towards this place called Halvandet. David knew the way but we were all skeptical as we moved through this urban jungle wondering how this bar even existed. Then as if an Oasis in the desert of abandoned buildings we arrived a beach bar located on an old canal inlet used for shipping docks. We parked our bikes and strolled through the sand and found a packed bar open air bar complete with beds, tables, a volleyball court, sand soccer, and of course a spectacular view of Copenhagen.
We drank beers, lounged, talked about life, played some volleyball and soccer enjoying the new friendships we had created. It was absolutely fabulous. So fabulous in fact that we decided to return the following night for Cristina's Copenhagen birthday. Although it's hard to repeat a fun, rare night of beautiful weather and friends it turned out perfect. We had some dinner, which was expensive but I figured that I had been very frugal all summer long and I could manage one or two nights of R&R. After last night we headed to a farewell party at one of the dorms and even though we are at the final leg of this program I am still meeting new friends and faces.
There are always ups and downs in life and sometimes when you are living abroad they can be magnified. However, the people that I have met exemplify why, with all the problems in the world, there is still hope for humanity. Building lasting friendships across borders and cultures is one of the most amazing experiences. Maybe the world would be a little better if everyone got outside their comfort zone and learned a little bit about the neighbors past the fences. I look forward to seeing Prague, Warsaw, etc... but I must admit that I am already feeling a little sentimental for the great friends I will be saying goodbye to next week.
So today after spending the week with friends and needing to work on my paper I instead decide to pour out the emotions, thoughts, and events of the past weeks into this little portal to my world. I have experienced a range of emotions. Having been happy, sad, ecstatic, angry, annoyed, overjoyed, etc... These last two and a half weeks have been the most rewarding. Having learned to survive while waiting for bank transfers on less than $5 a day and making the most of it. Walking the streets of Copenhagen when money was scarce and hanging out at a residence called Holger Danske with the Poles Karol and Filip, Marianne and Cristina from Norway, Justus and Roman from Germany, Mèlanie from France, David from Amsterdam, and of course the fabulous Tuesday night dinners with Brandon and Vaughan.
It's hard to encapsulate all the memories and friends that I have made in mere words on a webpage but everyone of those people has a special place. For instance on Wednesday night we decided to check out a little bar on the bank of the canal we heard about from David who had visited it with his girlfriend the week prior. Just as we are leaving we realized we were short one bike because the one I had been using had a flat tire. So we grabbed a spare that the Polish guys had left upon their departure but the chain fell off shortly after leaving. In a showing of solidarity everyone waited on me for about 30 minutes as Cristina decided to fix the bike she will be using for the next 2 years while attending the MBA here in Copenhagen. I chipped in on the 100 kroner cost since I get to use the bike until I leave. However, everyone decided to wait until I could make it even though it was getting late.
Finally the bike was fixed and we were on our way. We trekked across the city to Cristiania and beyond. Moving towards an old abandoned set of industrial buildings as we wound towards this place called Halvandet. David knew the way but we were all skeptical as we moved through this urban jungle wondering how this bar even existed. Then as if an Oasis in the desert of abandoned buildings we arrived a beach bar located on an old canal inlet used for shipping docks. We parked our bikes and strolled through the sand and found a packed bar open air bar complete with beds, tables, a volleyball court, sand soccer, and of course a spectacular view of Copenhagen.
We drank beers, lounged, talked about life, played some volleyball and soccer enjoying the new friendships we had created. It was absolutely fabulous. So fabulous in fact that we decided to return the following night for Cristina's Copenhagen birthday. Although it's hard to repeat a fun, rare night of beautiful weather and friends it turned out perfect. We had some dinner, which was expensive but I figured that I had been very frugal all summer long and I could manage one or two nights of R&R. After last night we headed to a farewell party at one of the dorms and even though we are at the final leg of this program I am still meeting new friends and faces.
There are always ups and downs in life and sometimes when you are living abroad they can be magnified. However, the people that I have met exemplify why, with all the problems in the world, there is still hope for humanity. Building lasting friendships across borders and cultures is one of the most amazing experiences. Maybe the world would be a little better if everyone got outside their comfort zone and learned a little bit about the neighbors past the fences. I look forward to seeing Prague, Warsaw, etc... but I must admit that I am already feeling a little sentimental for the great friends I will be saying goodbye to next week.
Monday, July 28, 2008
"Or did you get lost in Amsterdam?" -Guster
Well I made it to the lovely and incredible Amsterdam this weekend past. It was a beautiful city of canals and cannabis! I can't say that I took advantage of the latter but I had a great time in this city by the sea. It was spectacular when we arrived so we decided to make quick use of our I amsterdam Card. Which is a brillant idea if you haven't been. I think every city should do it. You can buy them in the tourist offices and hotels and it's packed with valuable museum entrances, a transport voucher, and lots of free goodies. It's available in 24, 48 and 72 hour increments and it paid for itself almost twice!
The first day we took advantage of a free canal tour prvoided with our cards and so I got a lot of cool photos on the canals of different historical buildings in Amsterdam. I wish I knew the names of all of them but I cannot remember. Probably because we took the night train and had to sit in second class for about 15 hours!!! I didn't get much sleep and what I did get was hunched over my knees as I got the middle seat yet again, Murphy's Law. LOL.
We did some walking around the city on Friday and got some free coffee and snacks thanks again to the card. One was a really cool sandwich called a croquette. It is a fried dumpling that is filled with beef and a pastry made of flour and butter. Definitely not healthy but we needed a good gut grenade to keep us from getting too hungry and spending that precious cash money!
Toured the Red Light District which was very interesting. It's definitely something you have to experience for yourself and a must-see for any tourist. In fact, there is really no way to describe it so you will have to make the trip and see for yourself=)
On Saturday we enjoyed our complimentary breakie and headed to the museums. Brandon had already seen the Van Gogh Museum so we decided to divide and conquer so neither of us would get too annoyed and waste time waiting. I spent at least two hours in Van Gogh. It was awesome. I have already seen some of the ones that aren't there and are most well known like Starry Night, Sunflowers (blue and yellow background), etc... But it was nice to see the progression of his work and the defiance of conventional thought that lead to his fame. It was a great experience. Afterwards I went to see the great Rembrandt across the way at Rijksmuseum. I was really surprised at how small the place was based on the appearance from outside. But I got to see the famous "The Militia of Captain Fran Banning Cocq" I was very happy to see that and the Vermeers.
Also checked out a cool photography museum called FOAM which had a great collection of a Dutch photographer spanning a period of ~40 years. It was really cool to see the evolution of his work and his family which seemed to be a major influence. However, I am not going to try and explain it because I will just sound silly because I don't have the slightest idea about fine culture! His name is Kors Keuze and you can try to find him if you're interested.
Both nights we started at Belgica which is a Belgian beer bar that has a plethora of great Belgian beers and high gravity so we definitely got a good bang for our buck. Unfortunately couldn't get together with some of the other CBS students because we didn't know how to reach them but we wandered the Red Light District sampling beers along the way and occastionally stopping for a coffee to keep us going. I think I was the only person going to the coffee shops for a coffee! It was a good times.
Not much else to say. I had a great time in Amsterdam and enjoyed it's cultural beauty as well as it's pop culture and diverse population. Hope you enjoy some of the photos below. Although the first is from our arrival back in CPH for the Polish goodbye party last night. They made us some bread and it was " Awe-somme" as Karol from the photo would say.
The first day we took advantage of a free canal tour prvoided with our cards and so I got a lot of cool photos on the canals of different historical buildings in Amsterdam. I wish I knew the names of all of them but I cannot remember. Probably because we took the night train and had to sit in second class for about 15 hours!!! I didn't get much sleep and what I did get was hunched over my knees as I got the middle seat yet again, Murphy's Law. LOL.
We did some walking around the city on Friday and got some free coffee and snacks thanks again to the card. One was a really cool sandwich called a croquette. It is a fried dumpling that is filled with beef and a pastry made of flour and butter. Definitely not healthy but we needed a good gut grenade to keep us from getting too hungry and spending that precious cash money!
Toured the Red Light District which was very interesting. It's definitely something you have to experience for yourself and a must-see for any tourist. In fact, there is really no way to describe it so you will have to make the trip and see for yourself=)
On Saturday we enjoyed our complimentary breakie and headed to the museums. Brandon had already seen the Van Gogh Museum so we decided to divide and conquer so neither of us would get too annoyed and waste time waiting. I spent at least two hours in Van Gogh. It was awesome. I have already seen some of the ones that aren't there and are most well known like Starry Night, Sunflowers (blue and yellow background), etc... But it was nice to see the progression of his work and the defiance of conventional thought that lead to his fame. It was a great experience. Afterwards I went to see the great Rembrandt across the way at Rijksmuseum. I was really surprised at how small the place was based on the appearance from outside. But I got to see the famous "The Militia of Captain Fran Banning Cocq" I was very happy to see that and the Vermeers.
Also checked out a cool photography museum called FOAM which had a great collection of a Dutch photographer spanning a period of ~40 years. It was really cool to see the evolution of his work and his family which seemed to be a major influence. However, I am not going to try and explain it because I will just sound silly because I don't have the slightest idea about fine culture! His name is Kors Keuze and you can try to find him if you're interested.
Both nights we started at Belgica which is a Belgian beer bar that has a plethora of great Belgian beers and high gravity so we definitely got a good bang for our buck. Unfortunately couldn't get together with some of the other CBS students because we didn't know how to reach them but we wandered the Red Light District sampling beers along the way and occastionally stopping for a coffee to keep us going. I think I was the only person going to the coffee shops for a coffee! It was a good times.
Not much else to say. I had a great time in Amsterdam and enjoyed it's cultural beauty as well as it's pop culture and diverse population. Hope you enjoy some of the photos below. Although the first is from our arrival back in CPH for the Polish goodbye party last night. They made us some bread and it was " Awe-somme" as Karol from the photo would say.
FCK (FC Købehavn)
So last week we got free tickets to see the FC København football game. We all hopped on a bike and made our way north to the stadium. It's a cool stadium that is a big square and has a retractable roof which I believe is the largest in Scandavia but don't quote me.We watched the game, enjoyed some beer and the company of good friends. In the end the game was 1-0 FC København -Awesome! But the game was eclipsed by good times with friends. 
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