Counting Days

No matter where you are in the world, there's one feeling that stays the same across cultures and countries. The feeling that you get when exams are over!!

I used to feel the same way in High School, in Engineering, and now even in MBA. All my classmates here feel the same way. That feeling of relief, and of having all the time in the world to do whatever you please. Right after the last exam, a Chilean classmate mentioned to me, "Now I have an appointment with my pillow!" And I smiled.

So, the first part of our MBA is done, that constitues one-third of the program. I don't want to comment on how I did in the exams, they are over, and that's a relief. We have a 4 day residential seminar starting from 15th December and then holidays!! Wooohoooo!!!

I shopped last evening and realised how beautiful the streets looked because of all the decorations for Christmas. I hadn't been out of my studio and school since last some days, and hadn't realised that the Christmas season is already upon us.

I am counting days for going back to India. While eating pizza last night for dinner, I almost cried thinking of Mom's cooking and all the food that I will eat when I reach home. I am tired of the Belgian, Thai and Turkish food here and even of my own cooking. I know that I will hog and gain weight at home, but who cares!

Siddharth has booked his tickets for Delhi and I can't wait to see him again. This will only be the second time since we have grown up that I will meet him! Sounds unbelievable even to myself, but it's true. Surprisingly, I never feel that I have met him just once. Perhaps because I know him since I was a 6 year old and because I see him on Skype everyday. When I tell our little story to my women friends here, they get the shock of their lives. "You have met him just once since you grew up! And you really started talking to each other only six months back, out of which you have been in Belgium for four months! Are you sure you want to marry him???" If I use all that logic, I know I would never suggest someone else to do what I am doing. But truly, I have never been so sure of anything in my life. Yes, I do want to marry him :)

Ah! It's time to get ready and head to the shopping streets! It's Christmas season and I wanna shop!!

Autumn Break

If I ever had any doubts about the ability of time to fly, they have been put to rest now. It's been only some time that I came to Belgium, and I am already booking tickets for Delhi and looking forward to my winter vacation. Yeah folks, I will be in Delhi for Christmas and New Year's! I can't wait for it and guess what I am missing most in Leuven?? South Indian Food! Yeah, that's surprising for me too. Not family, not friends, not 'ghar ka khana', but I am missing good old Idli, Sambhar and Dosa here. Would anybody believe that? Maybe because that is the only thing that I could not find here at all so far. I am regularly in touch with family and friends, I cook my own 'Indian' meals but Idli-Sambhar is something that is just not to be found in our little town :(

We don't have any classes for this entire week and I am enjoying the break. Talking for hours with Siddharth, cleaning every minute inch of my studio, listening to songs, cooking nice meals etc. Of course I will also catch up on all the subjects where I am lagging behind and prepare for projects and exams, but that is secondary priority for this week.

Our classes have been progressing at a break-neck speed as usual and I did not even realise when subjects like Leadership, Human Resource Management, Corporate Social Responsibility, Business and Law, and Entrepreneurship zoomed past us. The learning in each was immense and I am in awe of most of our professors here. For example, our Business and Law professor started the course with us by distributing some cases and questions to test our ethics and knowledge about Law. In the first class he told us jokingly that the purpose of his course was to keep us out of jail. The entire class laughed but when he discussed our answers to the cases and questions, we realised how unethical, hypocritical and unaware of the Law we were. If we indeed did those things in real corporate world, we would have been put in jail, and all the while we thought that we were being fair!! I do believe my professor's joke now and realise how difficult ethical choices are in the real world. Wow, I am already beginning to talk like an MBA!

Diwali came and went and I did not light a single cracker. I badly missed home during Diwali but thankfully I have very nice classmates. A chinese classmate called us home for tea on Diwali afternoon and we had dinner at an Indian friend's place. His wife had prepared a delicious Indian meal for us, which we ate while watching the classic 'Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro'. We also played cards, because Diwali without gambling is utterly boring. I explained the concept of Diwali to many of our classmates who wanted to know the story behind the festival and why and how we celebrate it. I hope I gave them the correct version of the story, but anyway they would never know the difference :)

On the day after Diwali we visited a Krishna temple called Radhadesh in Ardenne. It is a beautiful place with rolling hills and dense forests. After the prayer ceremony at the temple we took a walk in the woods and it felt like going back to nature and connecting with the Supreme.

The second pic is of the castle in which the temple is situated.

I hope that after this one week break, I will emerge refreshed and full of energy, specially because it is Autumn and it is so beautiful here. I love taking walks in the park close to my studio and will post pics of the beautiful park soon.

Life as a MBA student in Belgium

My life has changed. I have changed. And I am very happy!!

Amidst all the excitement and millions of things to do to adjust to the new life, my blog was neglected. It is the easiest thing to neglect and so it is neglected first of all. When I started getting comments and messages from some blogger friends about my whereabouts, I decided that it indeed has been a really long time and I should better blog about my new life.

I don't know where to start. I have been in Belgium for a month now and many things have happened since then. Mom and Dad came with me to Belgium to drop me here and then to go on a short Europe trip. I am immensely glad and thankful to them for coming with me because with all my luggage (almost 60 Kgs), I would have broken a few bones and all my suitcases before reaching my destination. Leuven is a small town, at a distance of 30 mins train ride from Brussels. I love the town. It is only 3 Kms in radius! You can see the entire town in half a day. And because it is a student town, you can see students and university buildings everywhere. It is almost like one huge campus.

That is the Town Hall in Leuven. A beautiful building at the heart of the town.

The weather here is gray most of the time and it rains almost every second or third day. The two awesome things about Belgium are its beer and waffles. They have hundreds of varieties of Beer in Belgium. I knew about Leuven's beer connection before coming here and that people here love drinking beer but I had no idea that someone like me who hates it would become an ardent beer fan. Waffles have a similar story. I have never had a sweet tooth but the sight and smell of a freshly baked waffle can make anyone drool. In Brussels I tried a just-baked waffle topped with strawberries and chocolate sauce. I have no words to describe how good it was.

That was my first beer in Belgium!

Now about the MBA life - My classes started on 1st September, so I have been into the program for 17 days now. The first week was all about lunches, dinners, drinks with classmates and alumni, getting to know the school, and even a party at the Dean's house (and what a party!). It was fun at the beginning and before we knew it, the grind started. In just 2 weeks, we have completed 3 subjects!! From the very first day of classes, I have been immersed in team assignments, tutorials, reading for the next day's classes, networking and trying to stay in touch with friends and family back in India. I did not realise when waking up at 5 AM and sleeping at midnight started sounding normal. I did not realise when going to the school on weekends to work with your team for group work became usual. I did not realise when the book shelf in my studio was piled high with thick binders and heavy books. I did not realise when reading 300 pages everyday started seeming achievable. I did not realise when I actually finished an impressive amount of reading. If I collectively count the number of pages for all subjects I have read so far, then that is probably more than I read in an entire year before starting my MBA.

But you know what.... it is fun! I like it! Every moment of sitting in class, every moment of group work, every moment of reading micro and macro economics, financial accounting, statistics and managing across cultures.... I love it. Even when I crib, even when I tell my boyfriend in India that all this work will make me die early (he is a MBA so he thankfully understands), even when I don't get time to cook, even when I am too tired to update my blog, I am loving every moment here and I can see that I am changing as a person. My thought process, my stamina, my ability to cope with pressure, my social networking, everything has already changed drastically. And that is when I am only 1 month into my MBA!

To top it all I joined French classes here which will start on the coming Monday. I have no idea where in the world will I find time for studying French but I have still joined.
Oh and by the way, before my classes started, I managed to visit Amsterdam and Den Haag in Netherlands. Beautiful places would be a gross understatement for them. The canals of Amsterdam give it the romantic feel of a quintessential European city and Den Haag has these beautiful buildings and a mix of the old and new in Europe.

I have made some new friends. We are 90 students divided into 2 sections of 45 each in this year's batch. Among these 90 students we have 42 nationalities, so our class is one of the most diverse in the world. Conversation topics during lunches with my classmates include; Geisha in Japan, our upcoming trip to China, the integration of Europe after the second world war, Barrack Obama's political campaign, Mexican food, Life in Nigeria, the Australian boyfriend of my batchmate from Peru, French versus Dutch language courses, and other equally diverse and interesting topics.

I am sure that my year at Vlerick is going to be a life changing experience for me. No matter where I land after the MBA, no matter what job I get (or don't get!) the learning that I am getting here is immense. My only regret is that I am not able to blog regularly. Some of my classmates have blogs and they post every few days, although I don't understand where they find the time and energy to do it, but taking inspiration from then I will try to blog more often. I suppose that I am just not that great at managing my time.

I will post some pictures of Brussels, Amsterdam, Den Haag and Leuven in my next post!! :)

Shaken And Stirred

Here I am after a little hiatus! Some of you might have even forgotten me, but hey, I am still on blogosphere :)

During the past month my blog's first birthday came and went (25th July), my 26th birthday came and went (26th July), but I did not as much as post a 'Happy Birthday Dear Blog', one-liner post. Honestly, I am so drained out these days that I don't feel up to even a twitter-like post. Anyway, belated birthday wishes for my online journal.

'Happy Birthday Dear Blog. You mean so much to me' :D

You guys may wish too.

I celebrated my birthday for 2 consecutive days and to such an extent that I promptly fell ill with exhaustion on the third day. Late night dancing and partying with friends, bringing three girlfriends home to stay for the night, and then chit-chatting till the small hours of the morning. It was fun! Almost like engineering college hostel days, all over again. And then, a quiet homely party with family on the following day. I couldn't have hoped for a better start to another year of my life.

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Exactly 16 days are left for me to pack, shop, prepare, study, say goodbyes, etc. I am beginning to panic now. My things-to-do list has started appearing like a monster that is impossible to slay. The more tasks I finish, the more are added to my list. I actually have a to-do list that is growing bigger by the day.
I bought my ticket, bought a new laptop (HP Pavilion dv4), booked hotel and temporary accommodation in Belgium for 4 days, started my Statistics Course and did other stuff that I cannot even recall now. I read something about time somewhere long back, that how time goes by in lumps when we are in a state of high anticipation or excitement. Sometimes it seems like a large chunk of time just disappeared from my life and at other times, even few minutes seem very long. Yes, time is going by in irregular, unpredictable lumps.
Many a time, I notice myself saying and doing routine things like an automaton, because my mind is busy figuring out what is the next thing-to-do on my list. This is the first time in my life that I am marveling at the powers of habit. I don't need to think while talking to many people. I can give correct responses and expressions out of habit, keeping my mind on other matters all the while. And what's more, people don't even notice!

I will try to write another post before flying to Belgium, but going by the frequency of posts on my blog lately, it seems unlikely. Wish me luck folks, I need all of it that I can get :)

Oh, and by the way, the blog title has got nothing to do with drinks, as you guys might have figured out by now. It is about how I feel presently :)

A Fresh Beginning

I never thought that I would ever be too busy to post on my blog or to read posts of my favorite bloggers. It has happened now and I am not too happy about it. I started this blog last year and whatever crap I wrote here gave me immense satisfaction and an outlet to burst out. Moreover, reading blogs of unknown strangers (who I now feel I know since ages) gave me a sense of belonging. I am too busy to write posts and read blogs regularly now and it feels that some part of me is locked up and getting suffocated. I feel guilty when I don't post for long periods and then coming back to the blogosphere is even more difficult. It is like facing a close family member whom you have been avoiding since long.
I have lost track of what is happening in the lives of my blog friends and I feel left out. Is this weird? My blog friends would know, I guess.

A quick review of what I did all the while I was missing from blogosphere:
~I got my Visa (yippeee).
~I read MANY books, To Kill A Mockingbird, Rebecca, The Kite Runner, The Firm; to name some of them.
~I entertained guests and relatives at home. Many relatives came to visit and live with us for few days because they know I will be leaving soon for a long time. That was sweet of them. I had an awesome time gossiping, shopping, eating with them. I have gained a lot of weight after these visits and screwed my daily routine, but it was all worth it. I will miss them all in Belgium.
~I completed my French classes. Yes, sadly my French classes are over. My teacher can't continue for the next level so I have to now learn on my own.
~GO came back from US and I watched 2 movies (17 Again and Paying Guest) back to back with him again, after knowing that the last time I did that was a disaster. It wasn't so much of a disaster this time, except that Paying Guest is the most pathetic movie that I ever watched. By-the-way, Zac Efron looks cute in 17 Again.

It was enough to keep me occupied if you add it up with social networking, trying to read business related books and articles, and sleeping :)

I can see that life ahead will be even more hectic. My School has e-mailed a list of recommended pre-MBA reading and will make us take 3 online courses (Stats, Financial Accounting and Economics) in July. I have to shop and pack and generally prepare for going.

But, all said and done, I have no intentions of staying away from my blog, like I have been doing for some time now. I have realised that it is important to me, and I am going to make it a part of my routine. It is strange how we neglect many things, knowing that they hold a lot of value for us. Like family, friends, learning new things, and in this case, blog :)

It has started to sink in, now that the initial excitement is getting stale, that I am indeed going for at least 13 months. Away from people who care for me, food that I love, and the life that I am used to. It will be fun and a great learning experience, but I think it would also be difficult. All I have in my survival kit is my enthusiasm, passion (which I hope won't fizzle out too soon), common sense and intellect. I have realised that another survival tool is my blog, just rant here and it becomes easy to get along with things. More so, when unknown strangers (with blogs that I am only too familiar with) post comments that are all concerned, supportive, hopeful, energizing and considerate at the same time. I love my blogger friends. There comments are sometimes all that you need for a doze of energy :)

I changed my blog template. The new one looks fresh and professional, and goes with my present mood; to make a fresh beginning.

An Invitation to all Vlerick Admits

The world has become a far smaller place than it was decades ago. More and more people are traveling across the globe for fun, business, study etc. However, going to a foreign land involves more and more hassles. On one hand, we are shrinking the world and on the other, we are making it difficult to get a simple permit to enter a foreign land, the Visa. Protectionism was a hot topic in the latest G-20 summit and I believe that getting work permits, student visas and even tourist visas will get tougher by the day (at least as long as the recession and its aftermath last)

There are 8 Indians in the 2009-2010 Vlerick batch and all of us are finding it difficult to understand the Visa requirements. All of us are well-traveled people and none is applying for a foreign Visa for the first time. However, there are so many confusions regarding the Belgian Student Visa process that I have really started wondering whether I would make it in time. The problem is not just for Indians. We have 2 batch mates from Chile and they too are facing similar difficulties, maybe even more so.

Anyway, this post is not about the Belgian Visa. I found that some of my batch mates have come across my blog while searching for Vlerick related blogs. I feel that I can reach out to other batch mates across the globe if they do find my blog. We have a dedicated Facebook group for the 2009-2010 Vlerick batch, created by one of our batch mates. All the Indian admits are already part of the group and our Chilean counterparts too found the group and joined. We have all introduced ourselves to each other and have some very informative discussions going that are benefiting all. It feels great that we already know each other well, months before starting the program. I know when Shrini's brother is getting married, I know what food Sanjeed likes, I know what problems Julio and Javiera are facing with their Visas, I know who got their loans cleared and at what rate of interest, I know when Abhi started his French classes. That is the level of interaction we already have.

I invite all 2009-2010 admits of Vlerick Leuven Gent Management School to join our Facebook group and be a part of all informative as well as personal chit chat. We have plans of taking the group forward by forming various interest groups and by inviting suggestions from everyone. Whoever has the latest bit of info, he/she shares it with others on the group and the rest of us save a lot of time and energy. It would be great to have all the batch mates there and the sooner the better :) I am really looking forward to know the group of people with whom I am going to share a very exciting year of my life.

Life And To-Do-List

Life has suddenly become very busy. There are numerous things to do on my list and there is a deadline for everything. I came back from Kanpur on 12th and had an exam for my HR diploma on 15th. I have the next exam tomorrow but since 15th I have been busy with my registration at Vlerick. I met GO and his friends day before to catch up over drinks and dinner because GO is going to US for 3 months on a business trip. I will be done with my HR exams on 25th and after that, I have to rush things to get a loan and then apply for Visa. Meanwhile, I also have to join French classes (it will look good on my resume during placements next year) and keep learning until August. With all this work and the deadlines threatening to zoom past, I am also trying to keep in touch with my future batch mates at Vlerick. They are a nice bunch, all of them from varied backgrounds and age groups. I know only about the Indian admits yet, and hence I can imagine the kind of diversity we will get in the class once we are actually there. The Indian admits are all brilliant people and I am looking ahead to an intellectually stimulating and exciting time at Belgium.

I have to visit Parneet while she is in Delhi. Amit has promised to come to Delhi from Hyderabad before I leave, so I have plans to catch up with him too. Golly, I need to meet everybody in these few months.

Life is revolving around a 'To-Do-List' these days and I guess it is going to get busier and busier. I have heard and read about the horrid working and sleeping hours at B-Schools, and I think I need to prepare myself for the grind. Already, I feel that I have stopped thinking coherently. My thoughts all start with, "I need to ..." and a new thing-to-do is mentally added to my already miles long list. :(

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.11) I need to brush up my cycling skills. It has been years since I rode a bike and in Belgium people prefer to pedal down to wherever they want to go.

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.20) I need to do a lot of boring reading before I go. Business Reviews, Economic Times, Business Blogs.

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55) I need to learn all about Internet Marketing and professional writing. It might help me earn during my studies. Just an Idea :D

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.79) I need to reduce my sleeping hours :(

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.100) I need to stop needing rest :(

.101) I need to stop talking about Vlerick :D