Sure, there's around 8 MILLION people here, but ya know what, it's a small world after all. Granted it feels a lot smaller since everyone I know is primarily concentrated in one area consisting of the LBS bubble and the Baker Street area, but I am still baffled when I run into people or find out so-and-so knows so-and-so, etc. Case-in-point, I am sitting in my office (and by my office, I mean my favorite Starbucks on Baker Street). It's my fave because it has an underground area lounge, basically a cave with no windows, where you can go once you've got your coffee at street level. It's like a hide out. Anyway back to my story. I am tap tap tapping away on my laptop and I briefly look up and who is sitting at the table directly in front of me, but my professor from my first class at LBS. My only professor I've had so far at LBS actually since I've only had 1 official class so far (I waived stat thank goodness).
In other updates, I had lunch with my study group earlier today. The guy in our group from Tokyo took us to a very authentic Japanese restaurant. Had some good sushi and sashimi.. quite yummy and indeed authentic. Also noteworthy - I have booked my trip to Stockholm and will be traveling there with a ton of other LBSers the first weekend of October. 30 quid for a flight to Sweden? Don't mind if I do! Oh and also - 5 Brunswick Mews will be holding a housewarming party this Saturday night hosted by yours truly. M and I plan to head to the liquor store later this week in search of a case of champagne. yes people, a case. Unfortunately with the student budget, it won't be Veuve Clicquot, but we'll throw a strawberry in there and people won't know the difference, right? Aaaanyway, gotta run to school to print some stuff. Hope all is well with everyone back stateside. xx
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Friday, September 10, 2010
Notting Hill Carnival!
"Held each August Bank Holiday since 1966, the Notting Hill Carnival is the largest festival celebration of its kind in Europe. Every year the streets of West London come alive, with the sounds and smells of Europe's biggest street festival. Twenty miles of vibrant colourful costumes surround over 40 static sound systems, hundreds of Caribbean food stalls, over 40,000 volunteers and over 1 million Notting Hill carnival revellers."
Ah the Notting Hill Carnival... one of the highlights in London of the year. Think of it as London's take on the Carnival in Brazil. I viewed it more as a cross between Carnival and a massive State Fair (minus anything and everything on a stick). The parade was quite fantastic, very ornate costumes, and there were local flavors of countries around the world. I got to try authentic South African food, for example. The crowds were horrendous though and Notting Hill Gate tube stop was even closed due to all the people flooding in. Luckily I was close enough at Marble Arch to walk along Hyde Park to the event, but I must say, it was a bit MENTAL! The area was trashed as well - rubbish piled up next to every tree and fence - and lost of drunken people wandering around with open bottles. Note-to-self, need to mentally prepare for this event next time (I had come straight from class and wanted a leisurely stroll through Notting Hill lol). Fun times nonetheless! I've provided a few pictures I snapped (not the best photography skills here, sorry!)
Thursday, September 2, 2010
My flat: part dos
I’m finally settled into my flat at 5 Brunswick Mews. Loving my flat and my new ‘hood. It’s a short walk from all the amenities including TONS of adorable cafes, a street lined with authentic Lebanese cuisine, Marble Arch and Hyde park a couple blocks away, Pret A Manger and Starbucks down the street, Waitrose and Tesco grocery stores… and the list goes on. It really is the lovely charming 4-bedroom flat that I share with 3 other MBA 2012 students: 2 guys and a girl. It’s a Brazilian (from Brazil), an Egyptian (from Egypt), a New Yorker, and me. I feel oh-so-European as a flat-share like this is quite common abroad.
Since the flat came unfurnished, we rented the big items, but one thing was evident: we had to go to IKEA. What better way to bond with the new flatmates than a trip to IKEA? As fun as it is to move in and get situated, I was dreading the trip to IKEA. You always end up spending way more time than allocated, way more money than anticipated, and way more stuff than you really need. But off we went in search of select items that would fit our student budgets…
A successful trip indeed and 700 quid later, they delivered everything to our door step that night. Sa-weeeet.
My hands may still be raw from building Swedish furniture, but the outcome was quite nice…
Plenty of room for visitors indeed! So glad I brought my 1000 thread count sheets, West End duvet, and heavenly pillow with me from the states. What a pain to schlep them over but I am thankful every night I sink into my bed. This city makes me so tired, and I am happy to report that I have been sleeping like a rock every night – no ambien needed – and the lovely mews that we are in protects us from the noise of the thousands of tourists shopping on nearby Oxford Street or the echoes of Hyde Park/Speaker’s Corner.
So the boys. They crack me up. I think the Egyptian had maid service of some type his whole life because he does not know how to use an oven. I looked over at the oven the other night and sitting in there was a dinner plate of food. He had put his dinner on a plate and proceeded to cook it in the oven ON the dinner plate! I laughed for a good 20 minutes. He looked perplexed.
Another thing I find funny. They slip their shoes off immediately at the steps {see photo}. Wouldn’t want to waste any time putting them neatly to the side right? After all, b-school is all about time management!
Since the flat came unfurnished, we rented the big items, but one thing was evident: we had to go to IKEA. What better way to bond with the new flatmates than a trip to IKEA? As fun as it is to move in and get situated, I was dreading the trip to IKEA. You always end up spending way more time than allocated, way more money than anticipated, and way more stuff than you really need. But off we went in search of select items that would fit our student budgets…
A successful trip indeed and 700 quid later, they delivered everything to our door step that night. Sa-weeeet.
My hands may still be raw from building Swedish furniture, but the outcome was quite nice…
Plenty of room for visitors indeed! So glad I brought my 1000 thread count sheets, West End duvet, and heavenly pillow with me from the states. What a pain to schlep them over but I am thankful every night I sink into my bed. This city makes me so tired, and I am happy to report that I have been sleeping like a rock every night – no ambien needed – and the lovely mews that we are in protects us from the noise of the thousands of tourists shopping on nearby Oxford Street or the echoes of Hyde Park/Speaker’s Corner.
So the boys. They crack me up. I think the Egyptian had maid service of some type his whole life because he does not know how to use an oven. I looked over at the oven the other night and sitting in there was a dinner plate of food. He had put his dinner on a plate and proceeded to cook it in the oven ON the dinner plate! I laughed for a good 20 minutes. He looked perplexed.
Another thing I find funny. They slip their shoes off immediately at the steps {see photo}. Wouldn’t want to waste any time putting them neatly to the side right? After all, b-school is all about time management!
Monday, August 30, 2010
Embracing my Inner Londoner
In a matter of weeks, I have become a Londonite.
I shop at Marks & Spencer and occasionally step foot in Primark (if I'm feeling brave)
I run in Hyde Park.
I play football in Regent's Park.
I enjoy my lovely charming flat tucked inside my quiet mews.
I can navigate the bus system and the tube with ease.
I order take-away instead of take-out.
I schedule events in my diary instead of my calendar.
I throw on a jumper when it's chilly out.
I talk in Celsius, kg, cm, and liters.
I carry an umbrella with me on even the sunniest of days.
I actually enjoy talking about the weather -- an exciting and popular topic here in London.
I use a 24-hour clock to tell time.
I use a drying rack; it will always be a mystery why my clothes are in the washer/dryer combo for 2.5 hrs and they come out soaking wet.
I bought a kettle to make coffee and tea -- and I actually use it.
I forgot what air conditioning is... does it exist?
I party in Covent Garden, Piccadilly Circus, and Oxford Circus.
I've got the whole of Europe in my backyard waiting to be explored... and I'm looking forward to it!
So with that said, where should I go on my first side trip?
A. Madrid
B. Florence
C. Budapest
D. Other
Thoughts?
I shop at Marks & Spencer and occasionally step foot in Primark (if I'm feeling brave)
I run in Hyde Park.
I play football in Regent's Park.
I enjoy my lovely charming flat tucked inside my quiet mews.
I can navigate the bus system and the tube with ease.
I order take-away instead of take-out.
I schedule events in my diary instead of my calendar.
I throw on a jumper when it's chilly out.
I talk in Celsius, kg, cm, and liters.
I carry an umbrella with me on even the sunniest of days.
I actually enjoy talking about the weather -- an exciting and popular topic here in London.
I use a 24-hour clock to tell time.
I use a drying rack; it will always be a mystery why my clothes are in the washer/dryer combo for 2.5 hrs and they come out soaking wet.
I bought a kettle to make coffee and tea -- and I actually use it.
I forgot what air conditioning is... does it exist?
I party in Covent Garden, Piccadilly Circus, and Oxford Circus.
I've got the whole of Europe in my backyard waiting to be explored... and I'm looking forward to it!
So with that said, where should I go on my first side trip?
A. Madrid
B. Florence
C. Budapest
D. Other
Thoughts?
Friday, August 27, 2010
Hot off the Press
London Business School ranked top b-school outside US
The creator of BusinessWeek’s influential MBA rankings has named London Business School as the best business school in the world outside the US, in his new set of rankings.
John A. Byrne, editor-in-chief of business school community website Poets & Quants, cited the “stellar quality” of London Business School’s faculty and students, and how it has “smartly leveraged its location” in the financial centre of Europe.
The rankings were based on dozens of surveys and polls and amalgamate the findings of each of the five major MBA rankings – BusinessWeek, Financial Times, Forbes, The Economist and US News & World Report. This is a further accolade for the School, after it topped the Financial Times Global MBA Rankings earlier in 2010.
Joining London Business School in Poets & Quants’ top five business schools outside the US are Spain’s IESE and IE Business School, IMD (Switzerland) and INSEAD (France).
"In the past few years, London [Business School] has come on very strong, surpassing in prestige what had long been thought of as the best business school in Europe, INSEAD," said Byrne. "Because the student population and faculty ranks reflect an amazing geographic diversity, London offers the quintessential international MBA experience."
In the US MBA rankings, Harvard Business School took the plaudits, closely followed by Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.
Commenting on London Business School’s achievement, Professor Sir Andrew Likierman, Dean, said: “We are always proud to be rated well by independent commentators but never complacent about being well regarded. We are committed to excellence for our degree students and executive education clients and that means continuing to strive to do things better.
“I’m grateful for John Byrne’s comment about the geographic spread of our student and client bodies and our faculty. The figures show our global spread very clearly, and it’s important to us that this is also the spirit of the place, not just a set of numbers."
Created on 25 Aug 2010
The creator of BusinessWeek’s influential MBA rankings has named London Business School as the best business school in the world outside the US, in his new set of rankings.
John A. Byrne, editor-in-chief of business school community website Poets & Quants, cited the “stellar quality” of London Business School’s faculty and students, and how it has “smartly leveraged its location” in the financial centre of Europe.
The rankings were based on dozens of surveys and polls and amalgamate the findings of each of the five major MBA rankings – BusinessWeek, Financial Times, Forbes, The Economist and US News & World Report. This is a further accolade for the School, after it topped the Financial Times Global MBA Rankings earlier in 2010.
Joining London Business School in Poets & Quants’ top five business schools outside the US are Spain’s IESE and IE Business School, IMD (Switzerland) and INSEAD (France).
"In the past few years, London [Business School] has come on very strong, surpassing in prestige what had long been thought of as the best business school in Europe, INSEAD," said Byrne. "Because the student population and faculty ranks reflect an amazing geographic diversity, London offers the quintessential international MBA experience."
In the US MBA rankings, Harvard Business School took the plaudits, closely followed by Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.
Commenting on London Business School’s achievement, Professor Sir Andrew Likierman, Dean, said: “We are always proud to be rated well by independent commentators but never complacent about being well regarded. We are committed to excellence for our degree students and executive education clients and that means continuing to strive to do things better.
“I’m grateful for John Byrne’s comment about the geographic spread of our student and client bodies and our faculty. The figures show our global spread very clearly, and it’s important to us that this is also the spirit of the place, not just a set of numbers."
Created on 25 Aug 2010
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Why London?
I get this question a LOT. Why uproot myself from the states into a foreign country and embark on an international MBA when there are so many fine institutions offering world renown MBA programs in the states? Why not join the ranks at Kellogg or Wharton or Columbia, etc? Well for one, as I've alluded to in other posts, London was the natural and obvious choice for me given my international work experience and hunger to explore the world. For another thing, when else in my life would I be able to pick up and move to London for 2 years? This was quite the unique opportunity. But beyond that, I wanted to grow and the best way to truly grow is to push myself outside my comfort bubble and expose myself to new cultures, places, and people. What better way to do that than take 2 years off of work and focus solely on my MBA at the top ranked global MBA programme? This type of growth - throwing ourselves into a new world - gives us all depth and will hopefully build my character and transform me into a more interesting and unique individual. There's a misunderstanding that the UK is a lot like the US. After all, we both speak the same language... right? But in fact, we cannot be more different... something I will further discuss in posts to come. So here I am. In London. Sometimes I have to pinch myself.
I have been meeting people like crazy here. Brazilians. Chileans. Egyptians. Canadians. Parisians. Brits. Spaniards. Aussies. Kiwis. Japanese. Chinese. Thai. and on and on. The backgrounds and diversity of the class makes for a great learning environment.
The first indication that we are all so very different was the initial greeting. Upon greeting someone new, I need to quickly decide what action to take: do I shake their hand? Go in for the 1-cheek kiss? Follow the 1-cheek kiss with a 2-cheek kiss? offer a half-hug? give a slight bow? perhaps a high-five? Every culture does it differently. Since it is Europe, I usually assume kissing of each cheek upon meeting someone new, but I often need to quickly assess how the person I am greeting will expect to greet me or it can make for a very awkward encounter... like once I assumed we would kiss cheeks and this was not the case so it ended up having this weird touch of our cheeks and um, well hello, hi, we just met, but err.. this is awkward. Oh Europe...
Onto other items... this week was orientation week... aka the week before classes start and the real learning begins. This week was mainly focused on getting to know each other, lectures from key departments at the school, and meeting our study groups. We have 401 students from 60+ cultures, speaking 45 different native languages, all coming together for a common purpose: to bond together and embark on this exciting 2 year adventure. We're broken up into 5 streams of around 80 people, and from there, into diverse study groups of 6. I'll complete all my core courses during the first year with my stream and all group activities with my study group. In order to get to know each other, we all headed to Reading (about an hour outside London) for a day of "camp" at a high and low ropes course. The challenges we faced were metaphorically connected to the challenges we'll face in our study groups throughout the year... we rocked climbed, pulled each other through a spider web, completed a low ropes course, and even climbed a tall telephone pole where 4 of us clutched onto each other at the top, standing on a small square foot platform. What I thought was impossible, ended up being possible as I had to reach for the hands of my teammates, close my eyes, and trust that they would pull me up! My study group could not be any more diverse. I'm joined by a guy from Russia, a guy from Tokyo, Japan, a guy from France, a guy from London, and a girl from Bangkok, Thailand. It'll be interesting to see how our different work and leadership styles blend together (or contrast). I also look forward to learning how to work with and communicate with these different cultures. We all took a class on harnessing international diversity today which gave me an insight into what I am in for. For example, we talked about what it means to be "on time." If told to be at a meeting at 10am, stereotypically:
The German employee will be "on time" at 9:45am
The American will be "on time" at 10am
The Brit will be "on time" at 10:05am, and
The Latin American will be "on time" at 10:15 or 10:30am
It goes to show how we all interpret something so differently. So much to learn!
I was talking to my French study group member about this today and he said that he always kissed his father upon greeting him. For if he ever shook his father's hand, oh boy... he would get in huge trouble. It's a much more affectionate culture, for sure.
Anyway, sorry for no pictures today... will try to upload some soon. I'm 2+ weeks in, but it seems like I've been gone from the states for much longer considering all the things that I've done since I've arrived. I am not one to get homesick, but sometimes I do deeply miss everyone in the states. Please call! Please email! Am I busy? heck yes. but I still have time to catch up :)
I have been meeting people like crazy here. Brazilians. Chileans. Egyptians. Canadians. Parisians. Brits. Spaniards. Aussies. Kiwis. Japanese. Chinese. Thai. and on and on. The backgrounds and diversity of the class makes for a great learning environment.
The first indication that we are all so very different was the initial greeting. Upon greeting someone new, I need to quickly decide what action to take: do I shake their hand? Go in for the 1-cheek kiss? Follow the 1-cheek kiss with a 2-cheek kiss? offer a half-hug? give a slight bow? perhaps a high-five? Every culture does it differently. Since it is Europe, I usually assume kissing of each cheek upon meeting someone new, but I often need to quickly assess how the person I am greeting will expect to greet me or it can make for a very awkward encounter... like once I assumed we would kiss cheeks and this was not the case so it ended up having this weird touch of our cheeks and um, well hello, hi, we just met, but err.. this is awkward. Oh Europe...
Onto other items... this week was orientation week... aka the week before classes start and the real learning begins. This week was mainly focused on getting to know each other, lectures from key departments at the school, and meeting our study groups. We have 401 students from 60+ cultures, speaking 45 different native languages, all coming together for a common purpose: to bond together and embark on this exciting 2 year adventure. We're broken up into 5 streams of around 80 people, and from there, into diverse study groups of 6. I'll complete all my core courses during the first year with my stream and all group activities with my study group. In order to get to know each other, we all headed to Reading (about an hour outside London) for a day of "camp" at a high and low ropes course. The challenges we faced were metaphorically connected to the challenges we'll face in our study groups throughout the year... we rocked climbed, pulled each other through a spider web, completed a low ropes course, and even climbed a tall telephone pole where 4 of us clutched onto each other at the top, standing on a small square foot platform. What I thought was impossible, ended up being possible as I had to reach for the hands of my teammates, close my eyes, and trust that they would pull me up! My study group could not be any more diverse. I'm joined by a guy from Russia, a guy from Tokyo, Japan, a guy from France, a guy from London, and a girl from Bangkok, Thailand. It'll be interesting to see how our different work and leadership styles blend together (or contrast). I also look forward to learning how to work with and communicate with these different cultures. We all took a class on harnessing international diversity today which gave me an insight into what I am in for. For example, we talked about what it means to be "on time." If told to be at a meeting at 10am, stereotypically:
The German employee will be "on time" at 9:45am
The American will be "on time" at 10am
The Brit will be "on time" at 10:05am, and
The Latin American will be "on time" at 10:15 or 10:30am
It goes to show how we all interpret something so differently. So much to learn!
I was talking to my French study group member about this today and he said that he always kissed his father upon greeting him. For if he ever shook his father's hand, oh boy... he would get in huge trouble. It's a much more affectionate culture, for sure.
Anyway, sorry for no pictures today... will try to upload some soon. I'm 2+ weeks in, but it seems like I've been gone from the states for much longer considering all the things that I've done since I've arrived. I am not one to get homesick, but sometimes I do deeply miss everyone in the states. Please call! Please email! Am I busy? heck yes. but I still have time to catch up :)
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Hi from London!
Hello to all of you who are stopping by my blog for the first time in awhile (or ever)! I will be using this space to occasionally post funny stories, quick updates, or photos of my adventures over the duration of my time in London. It'll be a great way to keep in touch with all of you! In addition, feel free to use my updated contact info below to get ahold of me:
email: lbailey.mba2012@london.edu or lauraebailey@gmail.com
Skype mobile (this US number rings to my UK phone): 612-235-6622
UK mobile: +44 7766170375
Stay tuned for pictures and updates!! xo Laura
email: lbailey.mba2012@london.edu or lauraebailey@gmail.com
Skype mobile (this US number rings to my UK phone): 612-235-6622
UK mobile: +44 7766170375
Stay tuned for pictures and updates!! xo Laura
Friday, August 13, 2010
London-izing Myself
I love this city! Every day is starting to feel more like home. There is an energy about this city unlike any other... the swarms of people from all over the world, every color, every nationality, every language... it's amazing, really. I've been busy getting acclimated... drinking espresso, daily pints at the local pubs, exploring my new 'hood, watching BBC news, looking left instead of right when crossing, trying to navigate the tube, etc. It's a big city, but already beginning to feel small. M and I can literally walk from LBS down Baker Street and see friends we know every time. We've met so many new admits as everyone's trying to get themselves "sorted" as they say here, so chances are good that we'll run into people at the vodafone store, the starbucks on Baker, the Pret, or any of the number of flats in the area. So glad M and I are basically the same person and have been aggressively tackling our to do list. We are on top of it... definitely a plus since there's so much red tape in this city. I mean, getting the new iPhone4 required a personal letter from LBS, a UK address, a credit check, and a UK bank account, not to mention the fact that we had to bride the vodafone staff with starbucks coffee in order to get them to import the only 2 iphone4 phones in the city from another store. but hey, it worked.
Did I mention we found the most amazing flat? So pumped. Here it is below! We LOVE it and got so lucky to find it after seeing so many dodgy places (yes, another Brit term - get used to it). We wired the money yesterday for 6 months rent, paid in full (required since we're students) Brilliant!
In other news, played real football in Regent's Park today with about 40 other LBSers. Only 3 girls showed up, but soccer is so big over here that the guys were pretty intense and fun to scrimmage with. I dusted off my football boots (er.. cleats) from back in the day and was able to show them all a trick or two. haha. no goals though. maybe next time. Then of course everyone went to the pub after for a pint. That's the London way. Everything we do, we head to the pub after, i swear. We've had flat hunters pub crawl every day this week, beginning at 6pm and running well into the night. It's basically like speed-dating for flat hunters, except all LBSers go whether or not you're looking for flatmates. its fantastic. Oh and I went to Whole Foods today. a slice of America is much needed from time to time. Brown rice sushi what what? so good. Oh and found an awesome frozen yogurt pinkberry type place as well. Anyway! Already so many stories.. where to begin. No time for those now, but I'll leave you all with a pic of new friends and I enjoying dinner in Covent Garden earlier in the week.
love from london! Laura
Did I mention we found the most amazing flat? So pumped. Here it is below! We LOVE it and got so lucky to find it after seeing so many dodgy places (yes, another Brit term - get used to it). We wired the money yesterday for 6 months rent, paid in full (required since we're students) Brilliant!
In other news, played real football in Regent's Park today with about 40 other LBSers. Only 3 girls showed up, but soccer is so big over here that the guys were pretty intense and fun to scrimmage with. I dusted off my football boots (er.. cleats) from back in the day and was able to show them all a trick or two. haha. no goals though. maybe next time. Then of course everyone went to the pub after for a pint. That's the London way. Everything we do, we head to the pub after, i swear. We've had flat hunters pub crawl every day this week, beginning at 6pm and running well into the night. It's basically like speed-dating for flat hunters, except all LBSers go whether or not you're looking for flatmates. its fantastic. Oh and I went to Whole Foods today. a slice of America is much needed from time to time. Brown rice sushi what what? so good. Oh and found an awesome frozen yogurt pinkberry type place as well. Anyway! Already so many stories.. where to begin. No time for those now, but I'll leave you all with a pic of new friends and I enjoying dinner in Covent Garden earlier in the week.
love from london! Laura
Monday, August 9, 2010
Day 1
First full day today in London. amazing day. Marilyn and I are on cloud 9. Started out flathunting all day long and were a bit frustrated at the reality that we'd have to live in an old/dodgy place, but low and behold we randomly agreed to view a 4 bedroom out of our price range at 5pm and it was the most amazing place ever! Walked in the door and were like this is it! it's in a mews (quieter off a side street) - a house rather.. kind of like a townhome. kitchen/living area - brand new refurnished is on the bottom floor - 2 BR on the 2nd floor, and 3 BR on the top floor. Marilyn and I will most likely take the top floor and we'll have Ben and unknown boy take the middle floor. 2.5 bath. unreal. had to take it on the spot. landlord accepted our offer and we put money down immediately. after the sh*t boxes we saw earlier in the day for basically the same price, we knew we had found truly a diamond in the rough. cannot wait for visitors! We move in in a week. location is between marble arch and baker street - perfect. 5 minute bus ride to LBS. best day ever and it's only day one!
Also ordered my iPhone4. it will be in stock tomorrow. can't wait. love from london. xx
Also ordered my iPhone4. it will be in stock tomorrow. can't wait. love from london. xx
Saturday, August 7, 2010
Dear Travelpro
Today is the day! I am leaving on a jetplane... don't know when I'll be back again... I've got a one-way ticket to London leaving this evening! I've got my UK visa, I've said my see-you-laters (in the form of around a dozen going away parties/dinners/drinks), my bags our packed, my blog is back in action, I am ready. It only took 12 vacuum packed space bags, 3 suitcases, 2 XXXL duffel bags, 1 backpack, 300 lbs of luggage, and plenty of blood, sweat, and tears to get here, but ya know what, it was worth it.
I am now putting my Travelpro suitcases to the ultimate test... I have stuffed and overstuffed them with everything American I can't live without. Now please please please make it to London fully intact... in need of some fairy dust from the airline gods!
See ya on the other side of the pond :)
Monday, August 2, 2010
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
And. I'm. Back.
Hello my blogging friends. It has been awhile. A long while. 14 months and counting to be exact. But I am back, and I hope to stay awhile. Much has happened while I was on my blogging hiatus. Namely, I got into business school and will be moving to London in precisely 3 months. You may have remembered a post in January of 2009 when I professed my love for the London Business School. Well I got in, and although Kellogg was a close second, London ultimately prevailed. Sometimes you need to listen to life’s subtle (or not-so-subtle) hints. Like the fact that every time (EVERY TIME!) I tried to visit another school or attend an info session or go to an admit weekend, something would happen that would stall me from attending. Kellogg admits weekend? Blizzard of the century in PA - flight was cancelled. Stern info session? Happened to be the one day a year that it was cancelled. Columbia? Flight cancelled out of Dallas! And on and on.
But although it’s completely obvious that London is where I belong, it’s still met with some degree of hesitation: can I really DO this? Is this the best path for my career? Will this yield the best investment for the long term? Can I really leave everything I’ve built over the last 26 years? I can continue with these questions for days, but what it ultimately comes down to is this: my gut.
So I’m moving over the pond soon. Packing up 26 years of memories, armed with my American clothes, my American roots, my American education, and my American ways, unsure of what exactly to expect apart from a whirlwind of change.
How did I get here? It’s funny how life works sometimes.
According to Elizabeth Gilbert, acclaimed author of Eat Pray Love, the key to a well-lived life is to: “Screw up (often, and boldly), learn from your mistakes, repeat.”
So maybe that’s how I got here. Gilbert goes on to say:
“Let's just anticipate that we (all of us) will disappoint ourselves somehow in the decade to come. Go ahead and let it happen …While you're at it, take the wrong job. Move to the wrong city. Lose your temper in front of the boss, quit training for that marathon, wolf down a truckload of cupcakes the day after you start your diet. Blow it all catastrophically, in fact, and then start over with good cheer. This is what we all must learn to do, for this is how maps get charted-by taking wrong turns that lead to surprising passageways that open into spectacularly unexpected new worlds. So just march on. Future generations will thank you-trust me-for showing the way, for beating brave new footpaths out of wonky old mistakes. Fall flat on your face if you must, but please, for the sake of us all, do not stop.
Map your own life.”
I couldn’t agree more.
But although it’s completely obvious that London is where I belong, it’s still met with some degree of hesitation: can I really DO this? Is this the best path for my career? Will this yield the best investment for the long term? Can I really leave everything I’ve built over the last 26 years? I can continue with these questions for days, but what it ultimately comes down to is this: my gut.
So I’m moving over the pond soon. Packing up 26 years of memories, armed with my American clothes, my American roots, my American education, and my American ways, unsure of what exactly to expect apart from a whirlwind of change.
How did I get here? It’s funny how life works sometimes.
According to Elizabeth Gilbert, acclaimed author of Eat Pray Love, the key to a well-lived life is to: “Screw up (often, and boldly), learn from your mistakes, repeat.”
So maybe that’s how I got here. Gilbert goes on to say:
“Let's just anticipate that we (all of us) will disappoint ourselves somehow in the decade to come. Go ahead and let it happen …While you're at it, take the wrong job. Move to the wrong city. Lose your temper in front of the boss, quit training for that marathon, wolf down a truckload of cupcakes the day after you start your diet. Blow it all catastrophically, in fact, and then start over with good cheer. This is what we all must learn to do, for this is how maps get charted-by taking wrong turns that lead to surprising passageways that open into spectacularly unexpected new worlds. So just march on. Future generations will thank you-trust me-for showing the way, for beating brave new footpaths out of wonky old mistakes. Fall flat on your face if you must, but please, for the sake of us all, do not stop.
Map your own life.”
I couldn’t agree more.
Friday, March 20, 2009
Made it to Tokyo
Hi All,
This will be my last post! I am writing from the American Airlines Admirals Club during my 5 hour layover at the Narita Airport in Tokyo. The flight from Singapore to Narita wasn't too bad. I had a bit of a sleeping pill hang-over when I landed, but I just had a cappuccino and feel a bit better. oh and good news! I got the Admirals club to look into my upgrade status and they were able to find a seat in b-class and confirm the upgrade. wooooo hooooo. That means I will be able to sleep! And the food is WAY better in b-class. Thanks for all the prayers - it worked!
Ok now to some photos...
This is an awesome German Beer Bar (and restaurant) that we frequented while in Singapore.
They had a big garden salad (I began to crave vegetables while I was in Singa due to the fact that I rarely got them) and they had Jager shots for only $9 Sing$ so it was a natural first stop on the way over to chijmes across the street. It was also cool because it was open-air and right on the corner of a busy intersection. Read: prime people-watching spot. As I may have mentioned earlier (?) there's quite a large prostitution industry in Singapore (though not so many lady boys like thailand - Singapore is more discreet), and on this particular intersection we'd often "see a deal" beginning. ew. It shocks me that you can get hung for having drugs, shot for gun possession, caned for littering, fined for spitting or chewing gum, but hookers on the streets are a-ok. hmm.. Anyway, sorry for the tangent, here's Chijmes, a large area where they have tons of cool bars, restaurants, and live bands playing at all hours of the night:
Holland Village is a neat little area about 15 minutes by cab from the center of Singapore. There are lots of little stalls with jewelry/clothes, in addition to a bunch of cute restaurants and bars. Neat place to go for dinner (and take a date). I was flying solo though. haha.
This is the area we went to on Thursday night for dinner... just so happened that there was also a live band playing near the water. cool cool.
Dinner - group shot.
Last day of work - me w/ some local resources
I hope everyone has enjoyed following my travels. I would definitely recommend Singapore as a great place to visit, especially if you are going to Asia for the first time. I feel like I'm ready now for "real" Asia (i.e. less clean, less safe, less English spoken, poverty... like most of Asia) such as Bombay, Tokyo, Hong Kong, etc. I would love to go back to Thailand and spend more time there actually. Anyway, hopefully the blog has kept me from completely falling off the earth although I do feel very behind on everything that is going on in the U.S. I look forward to catching up with you all!
Until next time.........
xo Laura
This will be my last post! I am writing from the American Airlines Admirals Club during my 5 hour layover at the Narita Airport in Tokyo. The flight from Singapore to Narita wasn't too bad. I had a bit of a sleeping pill hang-over when I landed, but I just had a cappuccino and feel a bit better. oh and good news! I got the Admirals club to look into my upgrade status and they were able to find a seat in b-class and confirm the upgrade. wooooo hooooo. That means I will be able to sleep! And the food is WAY better in b-class. Thanks for all the prayers - it worked!
Ok now to some photos...
This is an awesome German Beer Bar (and restaurant) that we frequented while in Singapore.
They had a big garden salad (I began to crave vegetables while I was in Singa due to the fact that I rarely got them) and they had Jager shots for only $9 Sing$ so it was a natural first stop on the way over to chijmes across the street. It was also cool because it was open-air and right on the corner of a busy intersection. Read: prime people-watching spot. As I may have mentioned earlier (?) there's quite a large prostitution industry in Singapore (though not so many lady boys like thailand - Singapore is more discreet), and on this particular intersection we'd often "see a deal" beginning. ew. It shocks me that you can get hung for having drugs, shot for gun possession, caned for littering, fined for spitting or chewing gum, but hookers on the streets are a-ok. hmm.. Anyway, sorry for the tangent, here's Chijmes, a large area where they have tons of cool bars, restaurants, and live bands playing at all hours of the night:
Holland Village is a neat little area about 15 minutes by cab from the center of Singapore. There are lots of little stalls with jewelry/clothes, in addition to a bunch of cute restaurants and bars. Neat place to go for dinner (and take a date). I was flying solo though. haha.
This is the area we went to on Thursday night for dinner... just so happened that there was also a live band playing near the water. cool cool.
Dinner - group shot.
Last day of work - me w/ some local resources
I hope everyone has enjoyed following my travels. I would definitely recommend Singapore as a great place to visit, especially if you are going to Asia for the first time. I feel like I'm ready now for "real" Asia (i.e. less clean, less safe, less English spoken, poverty... like most of Asia) such as Bombay, Tokyo, Hong Kong, etc. I would love to go back to Thailand and spend more time there actually. Anyway, hopefully the blog has kept me from completely falling off the earth although I do feel very behind on everything that is going on in the U.S. I look forward to catching up with you all!
Until next time.........
xo Laura
and I'm spent.
Going home tonight.
Singapore has been great!
But I’m ready to come home now.
I’m sick of the clothes I brought.
I beyond need a hair cut.
I am out of orbit gum (and they don’t sell gum here because it’s illegal to chew it in public).
I crave Eatzis.
I am sick of the music on my ipod.
I miss my super comfortable mattress (even the beds at the Ritz are hard).
I miss talking on the phone for under $2/minute.
Miss my frieeeeeends!
Don’t get me wrong.
It has been a great trip.
Wonderful actually.
I completed my Singapore bucket list this week.
I will do a final post either tonight or tomorrow in Tokyo with a few more pictures.
The quick overview is:
1. Celebrated St. Patty's Day at Dirty Nelly's Irish Pub, down the street from the Ritz
2. Checked out Holland Village and enjoyed a mojito at Wala Wala
3. Enjoyed dinner at a German Beer Bar
4. Had the team gala farewell at the Esplanade last night
Checked out of the Ritz this morning and I must say, the service there is impeccable. They practically make you feel like a celebrity. I'm not sure how my client negotiatied the rate that I got, but it was an awesome deal complete with complementary breakfast buffet every day (I will miss my egg-white omlette man).
Dreading the flight tonight.
Still on wait-list for b-class.
hopefully I have enough drugs to get me through.
one of my (new) client friends that flew home last Monday took 6 valium on his fight back. lol.
Here's my itinerary:
leave Singapore at 11:20pm enroute to Narita
Arrive in Tokyo around 7am... layover for 5 hours
Noon Saturday - flight from Tokyo to Dallas
arrive Dallas around 9:30am Saturday (gain 14 hrs)
blah.
blah.
Luckily I just downloaded the whole first season of Lipstick Jungle, the latest GG episode, and 2 episodes from a UK drama series
Need prayers that I get upgraded!
stay tuned for pictures lata!
Singapore has been great!
But I’m ready to come home now.
I’m sick of the clothes I brought.
I beyond need a hair cut.
I am out of orbit gum (and they don’t sell gum here because it’s illegal to chew it in public).
I crave Eatzis.
I am sick of the music on my ipod.
I miss my super comfortable mattress (even the beds at the Ritz are hard).
I miss talking on the phone for under $2/minute.
Miss my frieeeeeends!
Don’t get me wrong.
It has been a great trip.
Wonderful actually.
I completed my Singapore bucket list this week.
I will do a final post either tonight or tomorrow in Tokyo with a few more pictures.
The quick overview is:
1. Celebrated St. Patty's Day at Dirty Nelly's Irish Pub, down the street from the Ritz
2. Checked out Holland Village and enjoyed a mojito at Wala Wala
3. Enjoyed dinner at a German Beer Bar
4. Had the team gala farewell at the Esplanade last night
Checked out of the Ritz this morning and I must say, the service there is impeccable. They practically make you feel like a celebrity. I'm not sure how my client negotiatied the rate that I got, but it was an awesome deal complete with complementary breakfast buffet every day (I will miss my egg-white omlette man).
Dreading the flight tonight.
Still on wait-list for b-class.
hopefully I have enough drugs to get me through.
one of my (new) client friends that flew home last Monday took 6 valium on his fight back. lol.
Here's my itinerary:
leave Singapore at 11:20pm enroute to Narita
Arrive in Tokyo around 7am... layover for 5 hours
Noon Saturday - flight from Tokyo to Dallas
arrive Dallas around 9:30am Saturday (gain 14 hrs)
blah.
blah.
Luckily I just downloaded the whole first season of Lipstick Jungle, the latest GG episode, and 2 episodes from a UK drama series
Need prayers that I get upgraded!
stay tuned for pictures lata!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
More Thailand
(More) Thailand through pictures.
Beauty.
We saw wild monkeys from the boat.
We love you love time.
Beach bars.
"Broken English Spoken Here Perfect" lol.
Breakfast at the Indigo Pearl. Best. Breakfast. EVER. Bar none. I'm talking lots of homemade jams (have you ever had Banana jam on your toast?), fresh exotic fruits, fresh fruit juice (yeah, they had fresh watermelon juice and carrot juice to name a few). So delish.
Out in Patong... we stopped for a happy meal (and I stopped for a coffee - I was getting tired at this point!). Here's me completely clueless that one of my clients was making funny faces behind me. We're super mature ouside the office.
My $5 Pedi. Why can't it be this cheap in the states?
Mom- found you a necklace!!! 7 little strands of freshwater pearls. There was this little store near the Indigo Pearl hotel that hand-made tons of jewelry and I literally wanted to buy the whole store. I walk in and they are stringing pearls and stones in the back and meticulously hand-making all this jewelry. I bought some things the first day and then I went back the next day and bought more. Anyway, hope you like it :) If it's not what you had in mind, I'm sure I'll be able to find a good home for it :)
Beauty.
We saw wild monkeys from the boat.
We love you love time.
Beach bars.
"Broken English Spoken Here Perfect" lol.
Breakfast at the Indigo Pearl. Best. Breakfast. EVER. Bar none. I'm talking lots of homemade jams (have you ever had Banana jam on your toast?), fresh exotic fruits, fresh fruit juice (yeah, they had fresh watermelon juice and carrot juice to name a few). So delish.
Out in Patong... we stopped for a happy meal (and I stopped for a coffee - I was getting tired at this point!). Here's me completely clueless that one of my clients was making funny faces behind me. We're super mature ouside the office.
My $5 Pedi. Why can't it be this cheap in the states?
Mom- found you a necklace!!! 7 little strands of freshwater pearls. There was this little store near the Indigo Pearl hotel that hand-made tons of jewelry and I literally wanted to buy the whole store. I walk in and they are stringing pearls and stones in the back and meticulously hand-making all this jewelry. I bought some things the first day and then I went back the next day and bought more. Anyway, hope you like it :) If it's not what you had in mind, I'm sure I'll be able to find a good home for it :)
Monday, March 16, 2009
In Love
... with Thailand! If you don’t have it on your travel list, ADD IT NOW. Such an amazing, beautiful place. Despite the fact that it's half-way across the world from the U.S., it makes for a perfect vacation spot to rest, relax, and recharge the ol' batteries. A weekend was far too short - I think all of us that went would have loved to stay the whole week, at minimum. It didn't help that our hotel was absolutely incredible. I'm talking paradise. The pictures will not do it justice – not even close. I'll post some below though. It's called the Indigo Pearl. You can view the website here. It was a huge resort off Nai Yang beach which is on the North Western side of Phuket, Thailand. Every part of the hotel was pristinely decorated with careful attention to detail. Also - Thailand is super cheap. Hotel was only $150 per night... Did I mention that I had my own VILLA? And where else can you get massages for 300 baht an hour all over the place ($10 USD)? What's more, all the people are sooo nice. They do this bow thing everytime you pay for something or if you leave or even if you're walking by. Anyway, I can't begin to explain it all so here are some pics:
Pool #1:
Pool #2 w/ Swim-up bar:
Pool #3:
Landscaping:
View outside my Villa
Beach:
Brief overview of what we did -
oh so first off, 5 of us ended up going from the project, both client and Deloitte side. We got in on Friday around 8pm Thailand time, checked into the hotel, and grabbed drinks on the beach at one of the cute little huts. Saturday, the 5 of us relaxed by the pool, then got a boat and a guide to take us out on the water and snorkeling on the Adamaran Sea, then got a massage late afternoon, then went to Patong Beach for dinner and an evening out. Sunday, got a pedicure (for $5 USD... yeah.), did some shopping, relaxed at the beach, left the resort at 6pm for flight. We didn't get to the Phi Phi Islands which I would have liked to do, but it required a full day commitment and waking up at 7am, and with only 2 days, it just wasn't feasible.
More pictures...
Strip of shops along the beach:
Boat trip on Saturday - snorkeling on Adamaran Sea:
Patong (Saturday night) - this was an eye opening experience for me. I have NEVER seen anything like it. So wild and crazy; I think I was bug-eyed with my mouth hanging wide open in awe the entire evening. Lady Boys every which way I looked. (Lady Boys = trannys) The 5 of us had so much fun, but it was a dirty dirty town (read: morally shocking). I'm so glad we decided to stay up the island (45 min away) where the beaches and town are nicer/cleaner. The food in Thailand - amazing. We ate authentic Thai - so delish. I could eat chicken satay for every meal. Group pic of dinner in Patong:
Patong...
Need to go to bed now - will post more pictures/details/stories tomorrow! xoxo
Pool #1:
Pool #2 w/ Swim-up bar:
Pool #3:
Landscaping:
View outside my Villa
Beach:
Brief overview of what we did -
oh so first off, 5 of us ended up going from the project, both client and Deloitte side. We got in on Friday around 8pm Thailand time, checked into the hotel, and grabbed drinks on the beach at one of the cute little huts. Saturday, the 5 of us relaxed by the pool, then got a boat and a guide to take us out on the water and snorkeling on the Adamaran Sea, then got a massage late afternoon, then went to Patong Beach for dinner and an evening out. Sunday, got a pedicure (for $5 USD... yeah.), did some shopping, relaxed at the beach, left the resort at 6pm for flight. We didn't get to the Phi Phi Islands which I would have liked to do, but it required a full day commitment and waking up at 7am, and with only 2 days, it just wasn't feasible.
More pictures...
Strip of shops along the beach:
Boat trip on Saturday - snorkeling on Adamaran Sea:
Patong (Saturday night) - this was an eye opening experience for me. I have NEVER seen anything like it. So wild and crazy; I think I was bug-eyed with my mouth hanging wide open in awe the entire evening. Lady Boys every which way I looked. (Lady Boys = trannys) The 5 of us had so much fun, but it was a dirty dirty town (read: morally shocking). I'm so glad we decided to stay up the island (45 min away) where the beaches and town are nicer/cleaner. The food in Thailand - amazing. We ate authentic Thai - so delish. I could eat chicken satay for every meal. Group pic of dinner in Patong:
Patong...
Need to go to bed now - will post more pictures/details/stories tomorrow! xoxo
Friday, March 13, 2009
Rockin - Part 2
Thursday.
Started off the evening with a huge group dinner since some people are heading back to the states today. It was a huge (really nice) buffet which is fun because it gives me an opportunity to try things I would never normally try. Case-in-point: The black-peppered crab. As the Singapore Sling is Singapore's singnature drink, the black-peppered crab is (one of) Singapore's signature dishes. The other signature dish here is the Fish Head Curry, which I haven't quite psyched myself up enough yet to try it. So one side note, I really hate high-maintenance food - I don't like fish with bones (or heads), I don't like meat with bones (even if it's chicken), and I'm not a fan of shell-fish. Too messy and too much work. But carpe diem right? So I got my hands messy and went at it:
...and it was actually quite good!
Group photo:
After dinner, some of us went home, and some of us went out. The going-out crew ended up at Le Baroque again for live music - Shaggy was playing again. gosh they are so good. I had to take another video.
Shout out to Jonathan - you would really enjoy this band (and all the live music everywhere in Singapore). Ok I can't get the video to upload... stay tuned.
So we were drinking away listening to the music and all of a sudden they call up my colleague from the other night to come on stage and join them as bass guitarist. He was like "uhhh.. (kind of intoxicated, but don't want to turn down the opportunity) SURE!" haha
Checked out of my hotel this morning. I leave for Phuket tonight and when I get back, I'll be at the Ritz Carlton Millenia for the remainder of my stay. A few of us decided we needed a change from the Swissotel so we're moving down the street. I'm hoping the beds are a little softer, the elevators a little faster, the shower doesn't drip, and the sink doesn't clog. The Swissotel was REALLY nice, but when you stay for a long period of time, you start getting picky and noticing little annoyances. With that said though, I would highly recommend the Swissotel Stamford :)
Have a good weekend everyone!
xoLaura
Started off the evening with a huge group dinner since some people are heading back to the states today. It was a huge (really nice) buffet which is fun because it gives me an opportunity to try things I would never normally try. Case-in-point: The black-peppered crab. As the Singapore Sling is Singapore's singnature drink, the black-peppered crab is (one of) Singapore's signature dishes. The other signature dish here is the Fish Head Curry, which I haven't quite psyched myself up enough yet to try it. So one side note, I really hate high-maintenance food - I don't like fish with bones (or heads), I don't like meat with bones (even if it's chicken), and I'm not a fan of shell-fish. Too messy and too much work. But carpe diem right? So I got my hands messy and went at it:
...and it was actually quite good! Group photo:
After dinner, some of us went home, and some of us went out. The going-out crew ended up at Le Baroque again for live music - Shaggy was playing again. gosh they are so good. I had to take another video.
Shout out to Jonathan - you would really enjoy this band (and all the live music everywhere in Singapore). Ok I can't get the video to upload... stay tuned.
So we were drinking away listening to the music and all of a sudden they call up my colleague from the other night to come on stage and join them as bass guitarist. He was like "uhhh.. (kind of intoxicated, but don't want to turn down the opportunity) SURE!" haha
Checked out of my hotel this morning. I leave for Phuket tonight and when I get back, I'll be at the Ritz Carlton Millenia for the remainder of my stay. A few of us decided we needed a change from the Swissotel so we're moving down the street. I'm hoping the beds are a little softer, the elevators a little faster, the shower doesn't drip, and the sink doesn't clog. The Swissotel was REALLY nice, but when you stay for a long period of time, you start getting picky and noticing little annoyances. With that said though, I would highly recommend the Swissotel Stamford :)
Have a good weekend everyone!
xoLaura
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Rockin
There’s a band called Shaggy that plays at a bar near the hotel. They. Are. Awesome. They can play a huge genre of songs... top 40 to 80’s & 90’s, even an incredible rendition of Bohemian Rhapsody. It was my first time going to watch them play on Tuesday night and it just so happened that one of our very own from the client side was doing a guest performance on stage with them too (he’s in a band back in San Francisco)! As background, this has been a really really really long project. I was in Amsterdam for 2 of the cycles and now I’m in Singapore for the last cycle, but some people have been in Singapore for all 3 cycles, so I guess the guy from my project and the band got to talking at some point over the past 6 months and they invited him to join them for a few songs. I took a video of the band (a pretty terrible video, but good sound quality nonetheless - before the guest performance)
I’m also posting a few pictures showing my colleague on stage – he’s the base guitarist on the far right.
In other news….. I finally got status and made it into the Club Swiss Gold Rewards club at the Swissotel. Woohoo. I think that entitles me to free upgrades and the executive lounge, but it doesn’t really matter because I’m checking out tomorrow. No I’m not flying back to the states... per my previous update, I won’t be flying back for another week (landing in Dallas the morning of March 21st). We don’t have a work this weekend though so some of us have decided to go to (drum roll)
THAILAND!
I booked my flight yesterday and reserved my hotel room today – how’s that for spontaneity??? We fly out Friday around 6:30 (a little under a 2 hour flight), and then fly back to Singapore Sunday night. We’re going to Phuket rather than Bangkok because Phuket has nicer beaches and according to some of the people at the office, Bangkok is "just a bunch of hookers." lovely. lol. Here's a map of where Phuket is located in proximity to Bangkok and Singapore...
I haven't thought too much about an agenda for the weekend besides maybe a massage, snorkeling, riding an elephant, and enjoying the serenity :) I think we might take an excursion over to the Phi Phi Islands (also known as James Bond Island). My research says that "Phi Phi is Thailand's island-superstar. It's been in the movies, and it's the topic of conversation for travelers all over Thailand. Phi Phi's beauty is a large chunk of the allure. The islands, when approached by boat, rise from the sea like a fortress. Sheer cliffs tower overhead, then give way to beach-fronted jungle. Secondly, it's the attitude: few places on the planet are this laid-back. Of the two islands, one is completely free of human inhabitants (Phi Phi Lei), and the other is without roads (Phi Phi Don). There's no schedule, no hustle-and-bustle, no reason to be in a hurry."
Yes, I will make sure to wear lots of sunscreen :)
I’m also posting a few pictures showing my colleague on stage – he’s the base guitarist on the far right.
In other news….. I finally got status and made it into the Club Swiss Gold Rewards club at the Swissotel. Woohoo. I think that entitles me to free upgrades and the executive lounge, but it doesn’t really matter because I’m checking out tomorrow. No I’m not flying back to the states... per my previous update, I won’t be flying back for another week (landing in Dallas the morning of March 21st). We don’t have a work this weekend though so some of us have decided to go to (drum roll)
THAILAND!
I booked my flight yesterday and reserved my hotel room today – how’s that for spontaneity??? We fly out Friday around 6:30 (a little under a 2 hour flight), and then fly back to Singapore Sunday night. We’re going to Phuket rather than Bangkok because Phuket has nicer beaches and according to some of the people at the office, Bangkok is "just a bunch of hookers." lovely. lol. Here's a map of where Phuket is located in proximity to Bangkok and Singapore...
I haven't thought too much about an agenda for the weekend besides maybe a massage, snorkeling, riding an elephant, and enjoying the serenity :) I think we might take an excursion over to the Phi Phi Islands (also known as James Bond Island). My research says that "Phi Phi is Thailand's island-superstar. It's been in the movies, and it's the topic of conversation for travelers all over Thailand. Phi Phi's beauty is a large chunk of the allure. The islands, when approached by boat, rise from the sea like a fortress. Sheer cliffs tower overhead, then give way to beach-fronted jungle. Secondly, it's the attitude: few places on the planet are this laid-back. Of the two islands, one is completely free of human inhabitants (Phi Phi Lei), and the other is without roads (Phi Phi Don). There's no schedule, no hustle-and-bustle, no reason to be in a hurry."
Yes, I will make sure to wear lots of sunscreen :)
Tuesday, March 10, 2009
as promised
the FULL weekend update...
It was another fun (yet exhausting) weekend.
Friday Night.
Pretty much the whole team went out including local resources from the client side. I skipped the group dinner since I wanted to get a workout in and instead ended up going to a Japanese Hibachi place called Gyu-Kaku with a colleague, located down the road from our hotel in the Chijmes complex. It’s one of those restaurants where you grill your own food right at your table. You pick your meat, veggies, and whatever else you want to grill and set it on the hot coals. Very cool restaurant; unfortunatly, I didn't get any pictures of the neat decorations, but I did get one of the food:
Post-dinner plans –
Met up with everyone else for drinks in Boat Quay at a Bollywood bar. This was a really cool experience because I got to see all the Indian guys and girls on the team in their element, per se. For those that don’t know, Bollywood refers to the Indian film industry (or a part of it), and I believe the name stems from Bombay + Hollywood and there's usually this type of dancing in the films... so you know how at the end of Slumdog Millionaire, everyone breaks out in dance? That’s quite common for Bollywood films and is a very popular form of dance that most all Indian people are accustomed to. Don't quote me on the exact details of the above and the origin, but it's a little background. The people on the team from India were loving it... their music, their dance moves, their culture... and I must say, it was quite entertaining to watch. Here's a group pic:
We stayed for awhile and then a few of us left the big group for a different scene. Next stop was Zouk, a large multi-level club, and after that, Loof for one of their delicious Pear martinis, and finally, we went to Chijmes for some late-night live music. Since I do want my blog to be an honest depiction of my travels, I'll include one picture displaying the level of fun we were having by the end of the night - yeah, probably an 11 on a scale of 1 to 10:
What can I say... we work hard. we play hard.
Saturday.
Work day – 10ish to 4ish. I know I haven't talked a lot about the actual work part, but for the record, we are working. We are having trouble meeting our very aggressive targets, hence the working on Saturdays and the extension of the cycle by another week. None of us were too thrilled about working, but we made it through the day... with the help of a Venti Cappuccino from Starbucks :)
Saturday evening -
I headed to the Singapore Zoo with a colleague for the Night Safari! The Safari takes you on a tour through eight geographical zones including Southeast Asian rainforests, African savanna, Nepalese river valley, South America, etc., and allows you to see tons of nocturnal animals (this is why it's only offered at night). The zoo uses special lights that simulate moon-light which allows everyone to see the animals, but you still need to look closely and carefully for moving objects in the distance. Many of the zones have walking tracks, but we decided to stay on the tram – didn’t want to get eaten by the striped hyenas! We saw elephants, giraffes, tigers, lions, rhinos, buffalo, and many animals I had never heard of. We couldn’t take pictures on tour tram since the flash would frighten the animals, but I got a few pics outside of the safari, including some at the pre-safari show:
Also at the zoo - fish reflexology. Remember how I experienced foot reflexology in Chinatown two weeks back? Well there’s another (common) type of reflexology where you stick your feet in water with a bunch of little fish who suck on your toes and apparently suck away your dead skin. It sounds rather gross, but someone on the team did it and said it was cool. I took a pic of this in action for all to see (no I did not partake in this):
After the Safari, we headed over to an area called Dempsey Hill which is a little square that reminds me a lot of something you'd see in the U.S. We were craving some non-asian food and there's a good Italian spot there. Yes, we actually went out for Italian food in Asia. Haha. The bruschetta was delish! My Salmon was just Ok; it had bones in it which makes it harder to eat. We went for mojitos after dinner and then called it a night since I was a bit tired.
Sunday.
Phone date w/ the P's in the morning. Got all caught up w/ Mom and Dad, and then headed to Chinatown. As stated in the previous post, it was so hot! I tried to shop around for some good finds, but ended up just buying a slice of watermelon from a street vendor and that was it. I decided that the shopping at Raffles is more my style - its kind of a mix of the shopping in London (and some in America)... Top Shop, Miss Selfridge, Dorothy Perkins, Coach, Guess, etc.
Sunday late afternoon I finally got to Sentosa!! Here's what the website has to say about Sentosa Island:
The 500-hectare Sentosa Island is a unique blend of leisure and recreational experiences including family attractions, sandy beaches, water sports, golf courses and hotel resorts. By 2010, the Sentosa-HarbourFront masterplan will house a 10,000 strong residential community, along with the much talked-about integrated family resort. Coupled with the multi-concept entertainment hub of St James Power Station and Singapore's largest retail and lifestyle mall in VivoCity, Sentosa-HarbourFront is poised to become Asia's premier leisure and entertainment destination.
It's basically a very touristy area full of fun for all ages... several bars and restaurants, beaches, a butterfly park, dolphin lagoon, laser shows at night, flying trapeze, underwater world... (also fish reflexology). Anyway, we took the cable car from Mount Faber. It was a 1.6 km very beautiful scenic ride over. We didn't have a ton of time on the island, but I was able to get some good pics of the massive Merlion as well as drink several mojitos at the Cafe Del Mar pool party. We forgot to wear our swimsuits, but the people watching was fun in of itself. Pics below!
It was another fun (yet exhausting) weekend.
Friday Night.
Pretty much the whole team went out including local resources from the client side. I skipped the group dinner since I wanted to get a workout in and instead ended up going to a Japanese Hibachi place called Gyu-Kaku with a colleague, located down the road from our hotel in the Chijmes complex. It’s one of those restaurants where you grill your own food right at your table. You pick your meat, veggies, and whatever else you want to grill and set it on the hot coals. Very cool restaurant; unfortunatly, I didn't get any pictures of the neat decorations, but I did get one of the food:
Post-dinner plans –
Met up with everyone else for drinks in Boat Quay at a Bollywood bar. This was a really cool experience because I got to see all the Indian guys and girls on the team in their element, per se. For those that don’t know, Bollywood refers to the Indian film industry (or a part of it), and I believe the name stems from Bombay + Hollywood and there's usually this type of dancing in the films... so you know how at the end of Slumdog Millionaire, everyone breaks out in dance? That’s quite common for Bollywood films and is a very popular form of dance that most all Indian people are accustomed to. Don't quote me on the exact details of the above and the origin, but it's a little background. The people on the team from India were loving it... their music, their dance moves, their culture... and I must say, it was quite entertaining to watch. Here's a group pic:
We stayed for awhile and then a few of us left the big group for a different scene. Next stop was Zouk, a large multi-level club, and after that, Loof for one of their delicious Pear martinis, and finally, we went to Chijmes for some late-night live music. Since I do want my blog to be an honest depiction of my travels, I'll include one picture displaying the level of fun we were having by the end of the night - yeah, probably an 11 on a scale of 1 to 10:
What can I say... we work hard. we play hard.
Saturday.
Work day – 10ish to 4ish. I know I haven't talked a lot about the actual work part, but for the record, we are working. We are having trouble meeting our very aggressive targets, hence the working on Saturdays and the extension of the cycle by another week. None of us were too thrilled about working, but we made it through the day... with the help of a Venti Cappuccino from Starbucks :)
Saturday evening -
I headed to the Singapore Zoo with a colleague for the Night Safari! The Safari takes you on a tour through eight geographical zones including Southeast Asian rainforests, African savanna, Nepalese river valley, South America, etc., and allows you to see tons of nocturnal animals (this is why it's only offered at night). The zoo uses special lights that simulate moon-light which allows everyone to see the animals, but you still need to look closely and carefully for moving objects in the distance. Many of the zones have walking tracks, but we decided to stay on the tram – didn’t want to get eaten by the striped hyenas! We saw elephants, giraffes, tigers, lions, rhinos, buffalo, and many animals I had never heard of. We couldn’t take pictures on tour tram since the flash would frighten the animals, but I got a few pics outside of the safari, including some at the pre-safari show:
Also at the zoo - fish reflexology. Remember how I experienced foot reflexology in Chinatown two weeks back? Well there’s another (common) type of reflexology where you stick your feet in water with a bunch of little fish who suck on your toes and apparently suck away your dead skin. It sounds rather gross, but someone on the team did it and said it was cool. I took a pic of this in action for all to see (no I did not partake in this):
After the Safari, we headed over to an area called Dempsey Hill which is a little square that reminds me a lot of something you'd see in the U.S. We were craving some non-asian food and there's a good Italian spot there. Yes, we actually went out for Italian food in Asia. Haha. The bruschetta was delish! My Salmon was just Ok; it had bones in it which makes it harder to eat. We went for mojitos after dinner and then called it a night since I was a bit tired.
Sunday.
Phone date w/ the P's in the morning. Got all caught up w/ Mom and Dad, and then headed to Chinatown. As stated in the previous post, it was so hot! I tried to shop around for some good finds, but ended up just buying a slice of watermelon from a street vendor and that was it. I decided that the shopping at Raffles is more my style - its kind of a mix of the shopping in London (and some in America)... Top Shop, Miss Selfridge, Dorothy Perkins, Coach, Guess, etc.
Sunday late afternoon I finally got to Sentosa!! Here's what the website has to say about Sentosa Island:
The 500-hectare Sentosa Island is a unique blend of leisure and recreational experiences including family attractions, sandy beaches, water sports, golf courses and hotel resorts. By 2010, the Sentosa-HarbourFront masterplan will house a 10,000 strong residential community, along with the much talked-about integrated family resort. Coupled with the multi-concept entertainment hub of St James Power Station and Singapore's largest retail and lifestyle mall in VivoCity, Sentosa-HarbourFront is poised to become Asia's premier leisure and entertainment destination.
It's basically a very touristy area full of fun for all ages... several bars and restaurants, beaches, a butterfly park, dolphin lagoon, laser shows at night, flying trapeze, underwater world... (also fish reflexology). Anyway, we took the cable car from Mount Faber. It was a 1.6 km very beautiful scenic ride over. We didn't have a ton of time on the island, but I was able to get some good pics of the massive Merlion as well as drink several mojitos at the Cafe Del Mar pool party. We forgot to wear our swimsuits, but the people watching was fun in of itself. Pics below!
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