The recipe for getting through an MBA thesis

There are many internet websites with the magic recipe for getting through an mba thesis. Most involve outsourcing the whole thing to someone for a vast sum of money.
Having immediately dismissed the idea of wholesale cheating, we are all slogging through the material to get stuff written on time for the deadline on Monday.
But in the face of such adversity, we are working out our own recipe for getting through the thesis.
There is, as on the other websites, no magic formula. But its amazing what a difference the closeness of our group makes to the experience. We are all far away from each other, but there are sms's, short notes on email, calls, and facebook exchanges keeping us all going. It makes such a difference to know that there are people supporting you through this mammouth job.
There is another thing that has made tonight's typing easier. Ginger tea.
As usual, with little sleep and a lot of pressure, I am pretty run down. So tonight I made some ginger tea and Marina and Janet came over to my room, mugs in hand, and we all happily slurped tea for a while. The girls liked it, even though Jenny seemed a bit mystified that it looked so much like soup in the pan!
I am now trying to determine whether the medicinal benefits of the tea are good enough to justify a trip out to the Chinese shop tomorrow to stock up on ginger, or whether really, I just need to crack on.
I can always drink tea when I finish. Or for that matter, something more interesting!
Roll on Monday at midnight...

Italian time?

Puctuality is one of the things that makes a normally small cultural gap seem like a yawning chasm. I am no poster gal for puncuality, being the least punctual certainly in the social arena of many of my English friends, and certainly hold that title in my immediate family, which drives my Dad for one, completely nuts.
But in italy, I am pretty much on time. Or at least in the zone. Especially when it comes to work meetings.
Which made the 75 minute wait for someone with whom I had a meeting today pretty much intolerable. 5 minutes, 10, no problem. 15 is pushing it. But 75! And not even a phone call - or an apology at the end - when finally the guy arrived.
Sometimes the cultural gap seems wide. And sometimes I think it has absolutely diddly squat to do with culture! its just people... Especially because the other guy that had to wait with me also waited 75 minutes. And he was also pretty peeved. And he's Italian too!

Internet... The Saga Continues

Long time readers will know about my struggles with (not-so) FastWeb. (An update for you - it is now supposed to be being connected in Sarnano -due August 7th, I've heard nothing and I am not holding my breath!)
So after a year without home internet, it has seemed like a real luxury having internet at the residence in Florence.
Until it stopped working last week - just when we needed it the most.
It was finally fixed on Friday, then crashed again Saturday - not to be seen again until tonight.
And now the wireless is dead, so I am sitting very close to the window typing this on the sofa, as its the only place the cable will reach.
But at this stage in the thesis game, I would sit out in the carpark outside if the internet would actually work! Its somehow worse to lose it once you have had it than it is not to have it at all!
Anyway, here's hoping that we can now sustain the connection at least until Monday midnight when the thesis is due.
It reminds me of listening to the Chief of Karnataka state in India talking about the completion date of the new Bangalore airport at a conference. (He had just come from the groundbreaking ceremony).
He said "So I hope in a few years when you come here, you will be landing at a beautiful new international airport"
"God willing"
"With the kindness of Allah"
"And fortune from Buddha"
"And with the luck of Krishna..."
He made me smile at the time, and now I just think its plain smart to call on whoever and whatever can help with a big challenge.
I am also trying the mantra from the book Lucia at work lent me yesterday. Called re-think, its author, Nigel, says that when faced with something you are not enjoying you just need to try to think that it is interesting and a good way to spend your time.
So I am now repeating to myself that writing an MBA thesis, whilst working full time in a challenging job in a foreign environment is a joy.
Whilst simultaneously calling on every major and minor deity I can think of!
But in case that fails, I am getting straight back to it now!

Asian foodfest

This week has been a culinary adventure so far.
I love Italian food, but honestly, there is not as much variety as I am used to. Maybe its just that I have grown up on Asian food, but I find myself craving dim sum at yum cha on a Sunday morning. And a lamb biryani. And Tom Yum soup. And vietnamese spring rolls. And the list goes on....
So this week, as there is a heap of stress with the thesis deadline thundering down upon us, and the work deadlines too, I decided it was time to satisfy an Asian culinary craving.
Sunday night I made Chicken Red Curry for Marina and Flavio, who was here for the weekend. At the end of the meal Marina scraped the last drops onto a plate to eat later, so I guess that's a favourable rating!
For lunch today I was offered rabbit with olives. The chef told me it was great and when I turned it down he said "Why, is it too heavy?" to which I replied.... "errr... no.... its too rabbit!"
So tonight the Asian experience continued with sushi for aperitivi in Sushi Mania - combined with green tea before we moved on for dinner. We tried the Chinese restaurant on Viale Strozzi - Ristorante Osir (rice backwards in Italian). Its a little Italianised, but the waitress from Shanghai nearly fell over when we left and Jenny said thank you to her in Mandarin! She made the girl's night.
And mine, because the dinner was Jenny's treat - and meant the girls got to try dim sum at last!
Tomorrow its back to pasta - a least for one day!

Banned in Beijing?

Becky, who has just moved to Beijing from Hong Kong with her family and is now living surburban life in what appears to be the world's largest ever house, tells me that this site is banned in Beijing.
I would love to hear suggestions from anyone as to why that might be the case! Is there too many references to students not hitting the books? Is it the colour of the sky here, clear blue, that might set unrealistic expectations?

Fulin Market

In a week that has been mainly filled with work and thesis writing, one of the key developments has been the discovery of Fulin Market. Near Santo Spirito on the other side of the river, it is a small dark Chinese store, that stocks things that are tough to get elsewhere. I was delighted to find some really good ginger, coconut milk, some garam masala, and some of those chemical noodles in the red packet that you get on the ferries in Hong Kong, putting yourself at risk from the swollen seas as you carry them back to your seat with the boiling soup lapping at the sides of the polistyrene container! I have kept the receipt so I can go back for more Asian shopping.
This weekend as we carry on with the thesis writing marathon, my new Asian purchases mean that I can also rustle up some Thai curry to satisfy my craving for spicy food while I work.

A Welcome visitor

Aeidin, a friend and ex-colleague from Hong Kong came to visit Sarnano and Florence for a summer mini-break. Her presence gave me a great excuse to abandon my thesis-writing for a few days of travelling about.
We saw some of the highlights of a Marchegiana summer together - fire-eaters and a capoeira spectacular in Sarnano, a fabulous meal at the Ristorante Duilia in Sant'Angelo in Pontana, with its incredible views, and great food.
The trip back to Florence included a stop at Visso, beautiful and coloured like candy, up in the mountains, where I bought some ciabuscolo, a spreadable Marche salami, that's only available locally, in a Slow Food recommended store. and the enormous Piano Grande, with the lentil growing village of Castellucio perched on its edge. The sun shines on the plane, 10kms across, and at 1400 metres above sea level, whilst the mountain known to locals as "the cloud factory" towers above.
Aeidin has been in Florence before so did the alternative tour - which mainly consisted of prosecco and ham in Nanut of Florence, steak and wine in the trattoria nearby and a lot of wandering around the streets, just exploring.
Aedin has a theory that most of the time I have been in Italy, and in most of the pictures, I have been drinking wine and eating ham. I think the time that she spent here only served to reemphasise that impression.

The earth moved

The other night I woke up with a fright at 4 am thinking I had had a bad dream. It felt as though I was on a plane in the middle of some rough air, but wasn't sure whether it was a dream or not.
Then this morning when I was awake and reading a book at 0230am, I heard a loud rumble, like a truck passing (thanks for the analogy Aeidin!). The bed shook like one of those vibrating machines they advertise on the telly that are supposed to help you lose weight, and the old Chinese wardrobe rattled horribly. I thought it was a rare and unsettling experience, but everyone I have told about it so far has said, 'oh, yeah, the last time I felt one was....' So it turns out that while it was unsettling, it is far from rare. It didn't even make the local paper!

I am never going to watch the Palio again...

The Palio is the medieval games that takes place in Sarnano every year, and I have been going religiously since I bought the house here. But this year, I was doing my thesis and didn't go.
And Abbadia, my contrada (team) won!
I am not going again next year,to see if the same can be repeated!!

Gara Podistica Number 4

Today a big event in Sarnano, the 4th annual “Gara Podistica” – like a road race. There were races for all, the littlies dashed once around the Piazza Della Liberta, to great cheering on the way over the finish line. The teenagers were few in number, but the lively dash between the first and second places kept the race interesting. The main race set off towards the Hotel Eden I think – it’s a heck of a climb so good luck to them!
As I am typing this so that I can load it later onto the internet, the walkers in the 3 km event are strolling past, and the first placed people are cooling down by the church the other side of the terrace.
Something that I have noticed about Italy is that all the participants in these events have sponsors of one kind or another. The top runners are from organized groups, with branded t-shirts and identical stretchy micro shorts. But even the pedestrian strollers are wearing matching tracksuits, branded with a construction company or butchers or similar. The same is true of the cyclists that you see about – all have their sponsors. Thinking about it, the sponsor in many cases could be the company that the participants own themselves, given that the largest part of Italian business is still family owned. Otherwise I can only imagine the bid for sponsorship – “Hello Mario. Me and my friends are going to walk the 3Km route in Sarnano next month. We are taking the dogs and the kids and making a day of it, with lunch somewhere on the mountain in the sunshine. We won’t come in first or last, and have no intention of appearing in the paper, or doing anything else to raise visibility – its just a laugh.”
“Oh, right then, would 8 branded tracksuits do you, or should I sling in the t-shirts to match?”
Seems unlikely!
Arguably though the most hotly contested moment this morning was between the various Caribinieri and Corpo Forestale who were in attendance to deal with the traffic. Resplendent in their fabulous uniforms – the Caribinieri were in control and the Corpo Forestale there to follow instructions. Except there weren’t really any forthcoming! The Chief, an unsmiling tall thin man clearly had a plan in his head about what to do with the cars, Apes, trucks, tractors and horse trucks that make up the average Sunday morning rush hour in town, but when he left his post to go to check on the other sections of traffic control, the guys in grey from the Forestry Department clearly didn’t know what they were supposed to be doing. Then traffic started to flow – mingling with the teenagers running their carpark circuit. Then the irate mums weighed in, going over with bags of bread fresh from the bakers to harangue the poor guy left in charge. I was interested to see everyone communicating by mobile phone – a few walky-talkies wouldn’t go amiss – especially as they are currently on offer in Andrea’s Comet Shop on the High Street. But they are bright green and would no doubt clash with the uniforms, so that would never do! Needless to say when the boss came back, he was making it clear to the aggrieved mother that if only the guy had followed his instructions… much hand waving and cross gesturing all around.

DHL and Drummers

I remember the DHL ads from the TV in Hong Kong, as the man in the van fought through the markets, with the clued-in following in his wake, knowing that he knew the streets and the best way to get to his destination – irrespective of anything as inconvenient as a bustling market in his way.
I guess the DHL guy who came yesterday with the books has not done the market-navigation part of the training yet. He rang me, laughing, to say that it would in fact be infinitely better if I could come to the Piazza and collect the parcel myself. He was waiting in his van outside the Farmacia. And if I could be there in 5 minutes that would be great, ‘cos he was in a bit of a hurry.
I tried to give him directions to the house from the piazza (not difficult) and he was having none of it. But in need of the parcel, who was I to argue. 5 minutes later I was in the piazza, and had been thinking that maybe if he had come from Ancona and didn’t have a GPS system, he might not know my road. I was a little surprised to see the San Ginesio van – signifying that he had come from all of – oh – 2 valleys away, and likely knew the road all too well. Still, he enjoyed the delivery experience, laughing continuously throughout – and at least I have the books now – and have even already read one.
The evening performance of the Echoes of War was excellent – noisy and dramatic, and all credit to the guys (and 2 gals!) in the drummer troop. The fireworks at the end of the show seemed to surprise all, and spurred on a regimented big step forward from the drummers! (They were good the fireworks, but nothing quite beats the fireworks from a few years ago, during the spinning section of the gym display, when a rocket hit the branch of the tree it was being fired from, and came careening in a straight line towards the collection of elderly gentlemen in the front row – prime position for salivating at the women in leotards on stage. Hilarious scenes followed!)





Anyway, back to the drummers, I remain intrigued as to whether they are buying their medieval-looking tights from a costume shop with one blue leg and one white leg, whether they have to team up with a colleague, one buys blue, the other white and they share that way, or, in fact, given the popularity of the drummers at this time of the year, they have 2 sets of tights. If I see them tonight at the Spanish and Mexican Flamenco Show in the main Piazza, I will try to check if the legs that were white last night, are today blue, and vice versa.

Rain stops play...

I spoke to DHL first thing this morning. The less than charming 'Customer Service Operator' informed me in a a furious voice that yesterday it was RAINING in Bergamot, so the workers were not able to get in to dispatch parcels. And what did I want her to do as it was clearly not her fault (nor mine, I added!)and that MAYBE the parcel would arrive on Monday. At lunchtime, or later.
But if I really wanted to know, I would need to call again.
At the time we were on the phone, it was also raining here, but nonetheless I was working. And keeping my fingers crossed for sunshine in Bergamot!
I see now that the parcel is in Ancona, only 1 1/2 hours from here. But there are clouds sitting low over the mountains at the moment... It might be a bad sign!
A bright point tonight I hope as there is a show on in Sarnano called Echoes of War, which will combine the fabulous Sarnano drumming troop with fire eaters and dancers. Its free and starts at 10pm, so I think Chris, Irene and I are going to eat at the medieval Taverna Della Luna first. Pictures to follow.

Missing in action

I decided that the time had come with the thesis to get some books and really crack on with the work. So I went to Amazon, searched a bit, and parted with some hard earned euros for the books - and stumped up almost the same amount again for 'priority express' - in other words, DHL, to deliver the parcel.
I almost jumped on the courier man that pulled up outside the apartment today in my eagerness to get to the contents of the parcel. Unfortunately, his parcel was for someone else....
So now I am back in the internet cafe (yes, Terence, back in the 90's at best!!) and checking the status of the parcel online.
Amazon write confidently 'Dispatched!' Expected arrival 8th August.... errr... yesterday. I have been waiting in for 2 days for it so far.
So I made my way to the DHL website. They tell me the parcel is in Bergamo in the warehouse, waiting for the customer (me) to arrange delivery. And there was me thinking that a) I had and b) they were the delivery company.
Facing off rising panic that the 50 Euro books will never arrive, I dialled the help desk number. Only to be told that they had, in fact, closed some 3 minutes previously. But that I would nonetheless be charged for the call at a premium rate for using my mobile to ring.... Which I will need to do once again in the morning and hopefully this time be able to speak to a human being and find out why, when I am in Sarnano, and the dispatch is in Ancona, the books are collecting dust in Bergamo.
I suspect that this won't be reason enough to get an extension on the thesis, (24 days and counting).
Ah well, there is always the work I have to do for the office to fill my time!
Benissimo...

1st Anniversary

Today is a momentous occasion for me. It is the first anniversary of my arrival in Italy. Exectly one year ago, I got off the plane in Trieste. At the time I remember thinking 2 things - firstly "What on earth have I done? Why am I here?" and secondly "Maybe if I don't think about it, it will seem easier!"
Looking back now, it's hard to believe that I was ever so unsure of being here. I have spent this year learning a lot about business in class, & a lot about Italy out of class! I have made some amazing friends, and seen some wonderful things. And I will crack Italian properly if it kills me! (I can have conversations ok, but the writing - uffa!)
And now I am living in Florence, working hard in a really interesting job, and today, setting off back to Marche for a couple of weeks.
So all in all - La vita e veramente bella!
Thank you to everyone who helped to make this year everything that it has been for me, and thanks all of those who read the blog and send me comments!
And if anyone is wondering about making their own changes in life to do something completely different, or go somewhere completely different, or both! all i can say is that its worked out brilliantly for me so far.
But I can't help wondering where I will be this time next year.... the adventure continues!

Finally Shopping - update

So first things first, I bought nothing! It's true that the outlet is enormous, and the discounts too, but given that I had had to park almost 10 minutes walk away, and that the shops include Calvin Klein, Coccinelle and Charactere, it was still a little expensive for my tastes right now. Its true, I could have spent money quite easily on something but the numbers of folk were off-putting, now I know why Florence is empty on a Sunday, everyone is at the outlet! There must have been 500 cars at least.
There were some great jeans, reduced to Euros 40 from Euros 195, but I don't know of anyone who can take them up, and am worried that they will go the way of the last way-too-long trousers I bought - they languish beautiful and pristine at the back of the wardrobe. Come back Hong Kong tailors.....
Also, something that will not be a surprise to my mates here, I got lost on the way to the outlet. Actually, I guess that's not really fair on myself. It is more that I bombed out the door without double checking the direction to take. When I found myself near Arezzo - about 45 minutes away - I figured that as I had gone that far I might as well go the rest of the way and pretend it was an outing to the city instead!
And I am glad I did! Arezzo is really lovely. Much smaller than Florence, it has a real charm to it, augmented today by the antiques market (1st Sunday of every month). There was the usual collection of other people's rubbish, but some of the things were beautiful. If the lady on the chandelier tent hadn't been so officious looking, I would have taken a picture - amazing to see so much crystal hanging from the canvas roof, amidst old tea towels and smock dresses.
Parts of Life Is Beautiful were filmed in Arezzo, and I can see why Benigni picked it. Without the summer tourists and hoards of old-tat (and some nice stuff) vendors, it would feel like exactly the kind of pocket sized italian paradise he wanted to convey.
The shops looked pretty fab too.
I will be going back before I leave Tuscany!

Finally Shopping

The Florence Outlets are famous in italy. When I knew I was moving here, most of the girls, and many of the guys were telling me how fabuous the outlets are - with many examples quoted of Armani jeans for 30 Euros, and handbags as cheap as chips.
Now that I am alone here in the city, with Janet, Marina and Massi all on holiday, I have decided to take my Bancomat in hand and get out to the outlet and have a look for myself.
I am not sure that even with the 70% discount on regular prices, I will be able to afford much of the things on offer. But I figure if I don't go and look, I will never know. So tomorrow is the day.
Especially as I have a lot more work to do, so I won't be tempted to linger too long!

The best panini in Florence

The Slow Food guide has been the source of many gastronomic outings in places all over Italy in the last year, and Florence is no exception for the quality of the picks they have on offer. One of my favourites for lunch in Florence is the place near the Ponte Vecchio for panini. It is a small place, very modern, but the panini are amazing, and the staff lovely - they will always suggest the best things to fill the sarnies with. All the ham is cut by hand, and there were 6 options of pecorino alone today! ino is highly recommended for anyone who needs a break from the tourist trail, and when I was eating my sandwich, sitting on the wall in the sunshine outside the Palazzo Strozzi, there were worse (and more expensive) places to have lunch in Florence!
The rest of the day I spent at the residence, a dull way to spend a Saturday, but I have a lot of work to do before Monday, when I am going into the office for a meeting. And that's before I even start writing the thesis (now due September 3). Its going to be a busy few weeks....

Daylight robbery no more

My friend Justin tells me that he thinks I bring bad luck to my mates, as there have been tales of woe of bags stolen, and cars broken into and towed away since I arrived, just under a year ago.
But maybe my friends bring me luck! I found out a parking place near to the station, thanks to a tip from a friend, that charges 2 euros for 2 hours, and after 8, nothing. A huge improvement on the 2 euros for hour 1 and 3 euros for every subsequent hour that the station carpark charges. It comes to something when the parking costs more than the night out!
So from now on, I will be parking outside the hotel, and paying a lot less for the parking.
The good news is that I also have the doormen who look after the car. They tell me that the bonnet of an old Panda is a lot more comfortable to sit on than these new-fangled models... mainly cause they were dead embarrassed when I arrived and caught them mid-repose....
I think I have earned myself car watchmen for at least the next month!