Buzz The Bridge

Two more to the next round

So doing a little further research, it's looking like both HEC and the Rotterdam School of Management (Erasmus) should also be included on this next initial round of apps. Otherwise the other schools on my previous list still seem like the way to go -- though there's always the potential of getting rejected from all major one-year programs. In which case the University of Austrian Corrections may end up being my only realistic safety.

 
HEC Paris. Actually audited this class back in April.

Anyway, multiple forums such as this one continue to mention both HEC and Erasmus in high regard -- specifically with respect to a marketing concentration. HEC indexes high in discussions around luxury marketing, and Erasmus features an "Advanced Marketing" concentration that could result in a pretty on-target alumni network. Though there was significant discussion around the Erasmus offering, I couldn't find any specific information on their site about it.

 
Pretty sure this arcology isn't Erasmus but it's still the best photo that came up in Google Image Search

Hm. Seems like there might be a potential financial opportunity with most of these schools to help offset the cost of tuition by helping them get their site design up to a place where people can actually use them.

This means you, Oxford. I challenge anyone to find MBA info on your site in fewer than ten clicks.

Friday: La Forêt de Compiègne

Friday got up early at Caroline's, grabbed the kids, packed some picnic baskets and grabbed some baguettes, then met up with her parents and sister at their place in Neuilly. After some complicated swapping of cars that I didn't understand we headed an hour and a half north of the city to the forest of Compaigne for a long day hike and picnic.

The treaty for the end of World War I was signed here and the forest absolutely had a great sense of peace about it. We spent about half an hours heading into the forest before stopping briefly for lunch, a little beer and building of "des cabines!" before heading out on the trails for real.


Okay, seriously?


Is that my godson?


That is definitely my godson.


If Abraham Lincoln had seen my log cabin he'd have been rips*#%.
Fortunately Lulu was far less judgmental than Lincoln.

From there we headed out for a good four hours (with a baby strapped to my gut for most of it -- I know now well how pregnant women feel). Though a long walk, the place felt serene enough to feel more like a massage for the soul. Except that here a Happy Ending was a tour of a 13th century church.











After getting the two grandparents to go back for the cars while the kids sat on our asses and waited to get picked up, it was a short drive to St. Jean-Aux-Bois to see the church. It's a little bizarre being inside something that was already four hundred years old when the first settlers came to Block Island, and all the stone was worn smooth by the countless thousands of lives that had passed through there.

Panorama of St. Jean-Aux-Bois, click to enlarge







We finally drove back into the city and dropped off Valerie and the kids, then Caroline and I headed out to a great little Portuguese place near her apartment, where we were served by an insane woman and two rather hot twin waitresses. Valery could not have been more gracious of a host all week, but it was nonetheless nice to have some time just to catch up with Caroline. We later made our way back after a couple carafes of white wine, some fairly decent cote du boeuf and an strong attempt by the Portugeuse to get us to dance.

Its distance from the center of the city aside, Boulogne has a lot going for it, not the least of which seems to be a rather special kind of diversity.

Sunday: Becoming Un Parrain

Sunday morning we awoke, gathered my friend Caroline Morange and her husband Valerie Kim's children, and headed out for the baptism of her youngest, Alexandre -- also known as Sasha. I was given the lines I had to read as part of becoming a godfather, and after much stumbling of the pronunciation managed to get it down okay.

We met with Caroline's family and friends outside a small church in Neuilly-Sur-Seine where she grew up, which was just facing the park leading from the Arc de Triomphe to La Defense (see photo below), and headed in for a short, beautiful ceremony. Only falling down on the altar once, Sasha did marvelously, and his year-older sister Lulu was also extremely fired up. Me, I was nervous as hell reading the lines in front of a church full of the French but since I couldn't understand any criticism and ignored all their giggling at my accent it worked out fine.

L'Eglise a Neuilly -- click to enlarge


My new godson, Alexandre "Sasha" Morange-Kim

Elodie, Sasha and Caroline


Lulu and Sasha


Somehow they got Larry David to play the priest


Caroline's brother Phillipe, Sasha and M. Morange


This very-much-not-a-vampire kid from another group adored the holy water


... so much so that he had no problem drinking it


Lulu wanted in on the holy water action


Sasha passed out afterward

Later in the day Caroline's parents threw an afternoon party at their place nearby, where I caught up with her parents, her younger sister Marie, her younger brother Phillip and his fiancee, Caro's friend Elodie, and many others. Everyone was incredibly kind, and I was able to dodge most of the "how many children do YOU have?" questions by focusing on watching Sasha and changing diapers.

Ended the day back at Caro's, tired but happy -- for a reason to come visit France I've definitely had worse. Can't wait to see Sasha and his family again Thursday evening.

The Rules

Some things in life are so complicated that they need to come with instructions printed all over them. Figuring out where to stand on airport moving walkways is not one of them.

Somerville ain't all bad

...sometimes.

Pizol Hike

Last day of the trip Irina and I headed south out of Zurich on the train toward a ski mountain called "Pizol", which in the summer kept its gondola and lifts open to take up to the top for the start of a hike around a massive ridge past five alpine lakes.

More cows and cowbell than you could believe, whole damn mountain was ringing constantly. Amazing views, check out the rest of the pics.