Reaching the end of the line

Little less than two weeks left in school and boy can you tell. Ofcourse it is partly my own fault for not working with projects more frequently throughout the semester, but there´s crazy much to do. Interestingly enough I don´t feel particularly stressed out about it. But lately there has been almost only school.

Temperatures has alos been going up and down - two days with quite cold weather and today sunny and warm. But just in case, Me and Magda have booked a four day retreat to Los Cabos on the pacific 3rd of december - just to et a hint of a tan before going home fro christmas. It will be nice, we hand in our final paper, off to the airport and olé; drinks on the beach two and a half hours later!

Tonight I´m going to a concert with a mexican artist Juan Miguel. He´s like a old ousehold anme artist in mexico, kind of like the Julio Iglesias type. I am really looking forward to it, a healthy dose of mexican musical culture. I´ll report tomorrow.

Now...back to Service Management project.

X /J

Friday DD-dinner & Mountain climbing

You remember i wrote about our dinner with or fellow double degree students Tom and Steven a few weeks ago? Well, this friday it was our turn to host the reciprocal dinner. Magda and I invited them, along with their roomie Thibaut, our neighbor Ole and his girlfriend Sofie as well as our roomie Genesis to this very sophisticated soirée. We made pasta with blue-cheese sauce, sautéed champignons with sunflower seeds and parsley and a salad. And of course baguette. As you can see, it all looked very nice. However, I would not really consider it to be such a sophisticated dinner as much as an excuse to meet, drink and get ready for the nights events. The only sophistication came from the classical music we played during eating (mutually agreed to be the standard for all upcoming events). On my behalf though, the drinking was limited to one glass of wine, much dependent on the pills my doctor ordered me to keep popping for a week. But it does look delicious doesn´t it??

Dinner buffet and Genesis & Magda

Saturday I went with a my friend Erick outside of Monterrey to go hiking. I have so been missing nature, and I was glad when such an option arose. We went to La Caballo thirty minutes from here; a national park from which most of the drinking water for Monterey is collected through watersheds, waterfalls and streams. It was so beautiful and nice; you hike alongside the stream up the mountain. This time of year there is not so much water in the stream so you do not get all that wet, but other times you have to climb up the waterfalls. We met a group of mexicans who were climbing up the fall and then jumping (!) down into the basin formed by the constant stream of water. Loco I say; not only is the water around ten degrees, but the basin looked smaller than a hot-tub. I looked like such a fun experience though, and I am so going back when there is more water. Maybe then I will not be on antibiotics and more free to get cold. The evening was spent Bbq-ing at Ericks house together with his friend Anna and Magda. Just what you need after a good day of hiking; a Carne asada :)

Me surrounded by nature and Erick climbing the side of one of the waterfalls

Hasta Luego J

A little Cemex, a little infection..

Ok, start with todays visit to the doctor. I have been having this sore throat/loss of voice now for a couple of days. That in combination with light fever and cough (and Magdas loving nagging) finally made me go see the campus doctor. When the doctors immediate response after looking down your throat is a sharp inhale, then you know its not good. And it wasn´t. I have a severe throat and tonsil infection. "Why did you wait three days before seeing a doctor, he asks me. What am I supposed to answer; "Im Swedish and do not believe in bothering a doctor unless I think I might be terminal??? I mumbled something about having to much to do (which is not a lie) and he answered by prescribing me no less than four different drugs. So here I am with my new-found friends Celestamine, Nimesulida, Amoxicilina and Tempra; better get to know them good because they will be around for a week, 1-3 times a day!

Now the other news. I had the meeting at Cemex Wednesday regarding my thesis. They have very nice office premises in San Pedro; the neighbouring city integrated with Monterrey, not too far from EGADE. I think it all went well, our contact seemed eager to get us on board and both me and Magda got offered very interesting and challenging projects. So with a little luck, I will be working on a project regarding cultural adaption with the communications department starting in january. How awesome wouldn´t that be???

J

Oh what a party

Halloween is celebrated more methodically here than at home. Atleats when it comes to dressing out. I am not a big fan of dressing out - dressing up and dressing off is fine but there is something about costumes that just feels like alot of effort. So naturally when saturday came, neithe rme nor Magda had anything to wear. We are however quick-fixers, and Magda came up with a brilliant theme; french young dandy with governess. I think it worked, what do you think?

Maybe not much of a disguise but it did work. I got a lot of positive feedback from people in the club ( including two indecent proposals and a few ass-pinches) so something was obviously working for me. What did not work I noticed during the latter part of the evening (which ended at eight am sunday) was my voice. Somehow amidst all the fun and games I lost it! So for two days now I have sounded like a castrated Beaver. Its not good and I do not want to go to a doctor. Magda has a box of happy-pills, aka the medicine box, in which I hope to find some remedy. So mother, this is the reason I have not called home as usual.

Other exciting news; on wednesday we have a meeting at Cemex regarding our thesis. I am a little nervous about that one, I really want it to work out because the project offered is so interesting and the merits of working for them... The project would involve analysing their global communications strategies with focus on Cross-cultural behavior. So interesting and challenging! More details will follow ex-meeting, but keep a finger crossed.

Now I will round off the evening with my fourth cup of honey herbal tea. Pray to god it will help since I have a presentation in Venture Capital tomorrow!

/J