Home Away From Home

Yes, it was indeed a short trip but worth no doubt every single minute. London even greeted my long absence with a stunning sun and a not too cold weather. Friday I hung out in canary wharf for the morning, after no sleep in the flight and a five am arrival to Heathrow. I was able to catch up with some friends and see how the emotions are tough right now. Sorry for all of those I ended up not seeing, I really wish I did but unfortunately time is always constrained in short trips like this. Next time I will try to be more organized and actually let you know in advance that I am heading there and not just call you when I am downstairs of 20 Bank Street. I am glad however that there was time for most things this weekend, mostly spending quality time with Bernardo with my sister but also some good time with some friends. It’s funny how I did not have a blog at the time but London was indeed a home away from home. And it still feels like such. It is nice to be back and it is nice to know ...

No matter airline I end up flying, there is one lounge that always makes me feel like home. As weird as it may seem to feel like home at a lounge, the truth is the BA Lounge does it. Always wondering why this student still has a gold card and typically the only woman around (at least until 5 minutes ago) I always play professional, have my orange juice and connect my laptop to the plug and to the free wi-fi. You got to love it. In case of doubt and small price difference it always makes me choose BA, to think that in a way I am ensuring the sustainability of this little yellow card. But enough with superficial stuff today. I am happy and I am sad today. Well, I am mostly happy, I am on my way to London and I could not think of a place I would rather be. But I am sad for Rosa and João. It is Rosa’s birthday today, and yesterday, as they went for a drink in Maputo to celebrate, someone decided not to like that they were white and started a fight. All ended up in the police, with the cops...

Days have ups and downs, mine are just like any other person’s. However, nothing gets me more down than the hours running by me and feeling like I leave important things behind. Now, when you are a person that values highly about 10 things in life and very highly another 5, how do you go about sleeping, eating and all those human things that are meant to be in your day as well but do not always make it to the priority list. Have you ever tried to make a list of all the things you absolutely value and those that would make you very happy to accomplish every here and there? I am going to start doing mine and I will let you know how it ends up. Today I already took a nap, read my cases, emailed friends, booked an hotel for a Bachelorette weekend in Miami and I even ate and went to classes. On the list for the day, a panel, a dinner, recruiting, NGO emails, Craig’s list, rent a piano, and whatever shows up in the meantime… Good luck!

Yesterday (or maybe two days ago given the time) was the famous and up to expectations Ibiza White Party. The idea is to dance the summer away in white to reinforce the beautiful tans. The reality is to try not to freeze while queuing at the club and try not to be the less tanned in the room. We started off with a dinner that promised to be just like any other but had a particularity that made me come here and write. It was the most international dinner I have ever had. We were 13 people at the table (no, I am not superstitious) and we were 13 nationalities! I considered myself very privileged to be amongst such diverse crowd and that set the stage for a great night. Indeed no one failed the dress code and the music was “Euro Trash” as we so much hoped it would be. Section A was widely represented and many RCs started to make a point about their partying spirit. It was probably my most fun night since I got here and it was worth the sleepiness through my Operations Strategy class. In I...

Yesterday we went for a Polo game in Newport, Rhode Island. Truth be said, when I got the email reminding me that I had signed up for it a month ago I was not thrilled. But staying in the house is not always easy these days so I decided not to be a slacker and go. Mia threw the idea that we would dress up and wear big hats and as hard as that was to believe (at least for Pato), we decided to give it a try. I did not have a hat but I had good intentions so wore my white dress with brown butterflies. But I was in no way up to Teeba’s outfit, in her colourful dress but most of all, in her pink straight from Paris hat We had a picnic, had wine and cheese, snacks and beer as we “camped” by the Polo lines. As the game started some of us did try to pay attention and suffered those moments were the US was falling a lot behind the South African team. But I must admit most people thought the breaks between the “Chakas” were the true reason for us to be there so we could all run like maniacs to ...

Back to Boston, back home, which home… Leaving Lisbon and London was very tough, beyond description, coming back to Boston was not so bad. The emptiness of the house yesterday was contrasted by the huge amount of furniture I am selling for Bernardo and it makes me go out of the house to get some space. And then some things never change. I read one case out of four for today, which is a pretty good way to start the year. Then I just read cases from one class to the other but that clearly can not go on. This year, I have classes that get me tired after 10 minutes of trying to follow an insane discussion about stuff that I trust they are speaking in English but I am still not sure. Oh, and even better, this year, I have the phenomena of cold calls irrespectively of how much you speak. I had prevented cold calls for an entire year, by simply speaking frequently in class, but now it seems that does not work as a good strategy anymore. It was my first one but I can figure out not the l...