A trip to Jouy, Versailles...and basic needs

As we now have a car, we drove to Jouy en Josas for a look around, to sign the contract for the house and to register the car in its new home department for which we had to drive to the Prefecture in Versailles. The house turned out to be quite nice (perhaps even underserving of an MBA student), in a lovely setting overlooking the forest, with daylight flooding the rooms and a huge basement where I can anticipate a few MBA parties! :-) The only hiccup is the slope of the driveway which is rather steep for us to comfortably drive up a car (ah yes, the rent is just as steep!). But, the garden in front of the house makes up for this and I anticipate a few football games with my son in the summer when the sun is out and shining. Time permitted, of course! But then, should one not always have time for one's family? Ain't that the essential message of work-life balance? Let's just wait and see.

Just in case the other half decides to use the car and not the RERs to go to work, I have negotiated a deal with her - who else - to borrow her old bike. After a good pressure wash, and proper air drying, and some sprays of the French version of WD40, it is all ready to speed up and down the hills of Jouy. It is a race bike and the brakes are not positioned where I would like them to be so don't be surprised if you hear of an MBA student from HEC falling off his bike and landing in a hospital! Journalist would die to be able to predict news in such manner! As for Jouy, it is a small town with enough shops and amenities to meet the needs of its small population of inhabitants. I would prefer to live where my wife will work, which we also visited, as it is closer to Paris central, and appears a lot livelier than the quiet, scenic, and mellowed sorroundings of Jouy. Of course, the setting in Jouy is perfect for intellectual enlightenment and for pushing the boundaries of one's knowledge frontiers - we will see about this too. A livelier sorrounding may offer the temptations of the 'devil' at work to distract oneself from the pursuit of an extravagant MBA. Extravagant you ask? Well, HEC Paris, being a part-publicly funded school, is very reasonably priced (Euro 38000 for tutition fees) in comparison to some of the other schools in Europe (don't even mention American schools where 38000 in any existing currency is pittance) but money is money and, as my mother would say, it does not happen to grow on trees. The cost and the value you get out of it, and attending a top international program, are some reasons for doing an MBA from HEC Paris. So, if you are planning on applying, take these into account. But, as HEC Paris gets more popular and its brand name becomes the lingua franca of every MBA aspirant around the world, I see the cost going up. I would love for HEC Paris to prove me wrong! So would you, future MBA. :-)

Alor, I have also found out, thanks to the very efficient HEC intranet for MBA admits, that I have to take a Test d’Evaluation de Français as soon as we start. Seven years of visiting France on and off and attending French classes here and there, I can assure you, have not prepared me for this. I am going to be stumped as if I were Warne's 700th wicket. I can get a hair cut and order a baguette a la boulangerie but, hey, I am not sure if I am ready to negotiate deals in French yet. So I go to HEC!

That's all for today...and I end with a couple of pictures; the house and the cycle. I will create an album on Jouy en Josas later. I have also noticed that active bloggers tend to hibernate once they start school and, hopefully, I won't be one of them but if I do I am just fitting into the crowd. :-) And, you will pardon me!

Picture below is that of our house - invert the image if you are really keen to see it in full glory.

And the cycle...

X-mas, Tacit Knowledge, and East and West Management Styles

So, here we are, it is Christmas Day finally! And, I bet you are wondering what I am doing, of all the things that I could be doing today, blogging! In which case I suggest that you read this funny article on the BBC's website. But, I am in France where people open their gifts in the morning, thank Père Noel, and then get ready for a day-long feast, which I am currently awaiting. Of course, it won't be the first feast. We went out to a restaurant yesterday and had a delicious long lunch...I also learnt a few tips on serving wine the French way. And then, back home and drowsily surfing the net, I found this article discussing a new book entitled 'A history of politeness in France'. I can tell what you are thinking! :-)

Activities relating to HEC Paris have started; I had an email the other day regarding a Tacit Knowledge test, a test that checks your general management skills. It got me thinking as to the differences between Eastern and Western styles of managing and so I did what I always do on such occasions, googled. Which brought me to a very interesting article on 'Cultural Convergence: Western Me Eastern We' by Donald Cyr. He touches upon a point that I discussed earlier about Emotional Intelligence - understanding others as well as being aware of oneself. To manage others, I have learnt, one has to be able to manage oneself and be willing to learn and grow. To end, I quote the last paragraph of the linked article: "Americans negotiate contracts, while Asians negotiate relationships. In the West we look at systems for mechanical answers. Systems offer direction but not answers, they offer discipline but not commitment, they offer focus but not participation. In balance, both offer advantages. Like logic and intuition, Western individualism and Eastern harmony are complementary to each other." Now, I better go get ready for our Christmas feast! :-) Merry Christmas!

Bonjour de France!!!

Salut tout le monde! I have arrived in France...well, been here for a few days now and we will be celebrating this festive season here. Unlike past years, it is not very cold nor is there any sign of snow. Having said that, things can change overnight and, if it does snow, I will upload a photo for you. We have also bought a car to use in Paris - can't believe we had to sell two cars in the UK to buy one car in France! I know there are a lot of factors involved but, generally, cars appear to depreciate faster in England than here. It probably is a numbers game - more cars, less value in England.

We are leaving for Paris on New Year's eve and hope to take our son along with us too. And, I intend to take him for a walk to HEC Paris to show him where daddy is going to study. :-) But, before he can move permanently to Paris, we need to sort out a creche for him...which we are told is not easy as parents need to book well in advance with nannies, not nurseries, to get a place. We shall find out, I guess. He has just woken up so excuse me but I better go and play with him. Au revoir for now.

Goodbye England!

Friends, this is my last blog from England, the country I adopted as my home country in 1998. We are leaving tomorrow. It is time to move on and take on new challenges in France, in Brazil, in India, in China, wherever fortune takes me and my family.

It is sad yet exciting, gloomy yet bright, sentimental yet encouraging to give up and sell everything one owned to move to a new country with whatever fits in a Vauxhall Vivaro. We have a new life awaiting us in Paris. And, we also have a car waiting for us to check out! And, a home ready for us to move into in Jouy-en-Josas. So, life can't be that bad but it is just sad to leave England, my adopted homeland.

Quite fittingly, speaking of a sad and sentimental moment, I have embedded a video called 'Time to Say Goodbye' featuring one of my favorite tenors, Andrea Bocelli, singing along with Sarah Brightman. Goodbye England, I will remember you, always!

Power to the People: Time Magazine Says I am The Person of The Year...

...And So Are YOU!

Everyone is a winner this year. Web 2.0 generation, yes, you are the winner. And that can be anyone with internet access who today has the power to change the world. So, congratulations to YOU!

Now, "Meet 15 citizens—including a French rapper, a relentless reviewer and a real life lonely girl—of the new digital democracy".

The video of the French rapper is below. Click on it to play. How could anyone sing about cows and be so famous??? Web 2.0 is the answer, matey.

Bkker and Swiftlabel

One of the things I wanted to mention from my trip to Bangkok was this really cool shop that I found during my endless walkabouts. The shop is called Bkker and it sells high quality t-shirts with unique messages, messages that stand out. I bought one, but with a more moderate message, and the idea of a shop selling customised t-shirts, though not really new, reminded me of a blog I had been reading. The blog is by an alumnus of HEC Paris who has just started a company called Swiftlabel. Both are good ideas and appear to be reasonably similar in concept though, if Swiftlabel can give you the right 'cut', it may be a more personalised service. Both even link to the same site; American Apparel! Check out the sites to find out more...Bkker's website also plays some cool music.

Scouting for sponsorship...

I have been busy the last few days scouting for opportunities to find a payer for my MBA, either through a sponsorship or a scholarship. It is not easy but I am optimistic - my meetings have gone well and I hope something positive will come out. Even an offer of an internship would be useful as I can then focus on my courses and not worry too much about finding an internship place. The fact that HEC Paris is now the top European Business School has also come in handy. Go HEC! :-)

In the meantime, I have uploaded a whole bunch of my collection of photographs from around the world and you can view them here.

HEC Paris is the TOP Graduate European Business School of 2006

"A meta ranking of European business schools based on their results in the five other FT rankings for the year" shows that HEC Paris is number one! Faaaaantaastic news...I knew I had made the right decision by applying to HEC Paris only. I hope we can climb higher in the international rankings next year.

FT European Business School Ranking 2006

I am back...14142 miles later!

Sawatdee Khrab! Was it amazing or what? India is a familiar location for me but Thailand just never stopped amazing me! When I saw the network of roads from air, I knew Thailand was going to be very different from what I had visualised. Bangkok is highly developed which, for unknown reasons, surprised me! The airport was just like any other other airport in western Europe or the US, if not better. Even the English announcement on Thai Air had an American accent. Despite this development, the Thais are still very friendly people and ever ready to help a lost citizen. I say citizen because I was always confused for a tall Thai with people often initiating discussions in Thai! Well, at least until I utter my first few words. :-) As soon as I landed, I took a taxi straight to my friend's apartment in Sukhumvit Suite and, following a quick shower and change of clothes (BKK was 33°C), I headed out for the river front. I then took a boat to the Golden Mount stop followed by a few hours of walking visiting various temples and historical sites. I returned to the apartment in what has become the symbol of Thailand, a Tuk-Tuk (autoriksaw in India). On the second day, I took the SkyTrain to Siam centre, in the heart of the city for a walk about and then a motorcycle taxi to the Oriental Pier. From there, I headed up north, along with a zillion other tourists, on a boat to Thien Pier to visit Wat Po, the temple of the reclining Buddha. I visited so many temples in Thailand I would hope that my sins have been cleared! Walking through China town and Little India, I went past the Statue of Rama I at the Phra Buddha Yodfa Memorial Bridge and then right up to the top of the Golden Mount - if you are in Bangkok, you ought to as the view is just breathtaking - before walking back to Siam centre. Got long legs so might as well make the best use of them. In the afternoon, I headed back to the centre and stayed there until late evening watching a concert/fashion show right by Siam Paragon mall. In all this time, my travel guide was a free map from the Amex counter at Bangkok International Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK).

Early next morning, I flew to Chiang Mai to spend a couple of days with my cousin and his family (the lady at the check-in counter seemed rather surprised when I asked if Chiang Mai was north or south of Bangkok but I had done no preparation at all for this trip!). My sister-in-law showed me around on the first day and took me shopping at the local Sunday market and then the night market - as a Thai speaker, she did most of the bargaining! If there is anything you want, you will most probably find it in Thailand. I promised that I will buy nothing on this trip but the temptation of 'cheap' goods was just too much - I ended up buying quite a bit for my family, and a laptop for myself. C'mon, I will need a brand new laptop for HEC Paris, right? :-) On the second day, I walked around Chiang Mai and, after lunch, we headed up to Wat Phra Borommathat Doi Suthep, the temple on top of a hill over-looking Chiang Mai. Another sin cleared.

Overall, I really enjoyed my time in Thailand - the buddhist temples, the people, the general environment, the sites, and most of all, the food. I could live out there, if only I can convince my wife to follow suit. :-) Now, enjoy the pictures from Thailand!