Weekend in Mazatlan

Weekend in Mazatlan
I have been very bad when it comes to updating this blog – my apologies. It is strange, but somehow there´s not enough time to go around.
Last week was very busy at work but with the great advantage of being a short one (at least for me). Magdalena and I had planned to go away for some sun and beach, and decided to go to Mazatlan. It is a town on the pacific coast and a good place to get some much needed r´n ´r. So Thursday afternoon, we left the office in beachwear, said goodbye to colleagues and headed off to the airport. Mazatlan is only about one hour away with plane so perfect timing to get in, have dinner and start relaxing. Like most of these cities there are a few obvious drawbacks. One is the exploitation; the hotel zone by the beach reminded both of us of how it can be in Thailand (all of you who have been pack-packing there knows what I mean) with neon signs, palm trees and small tuk-tuk-like cars with drunk Americans in them. That brings me to the second drawback; Americans. There is just something about them, especially the ones you find in these kinds of places that makes me so happy I am a European. I wouldn´t go as far as calling all of them self absorbed, loud and obnoxious, but unfortunately enough of them are to make it slightly annoying. The good thing about Mazatlan is that if you leave the hotel zone there is a very beautiful older part of town as well. So when we got tired of the sun, pool and beach (and Americans) we went downtown to see some old colonial houses and more local environment.
All in all it was a great weekend with just the right amount of activities. We spent quite a lot of time at the pool (of course) working on our almost non-existing tan, but we also managed to:
- Crash a magazine launch and get wasted with the local wannabees
- Use boat taxi
- Sneak in to mass at the cathedral
- Almost sell a lindex dress to a beach saleswoman
- Attend a beach party
- Pet a goat (Magda) and a donkey (me) at Stone Island
- Visit an amateur flamenco show (god damned they were bad!)
- Buy souvenirs at the local market
- Find what is probably the only techno club in town and dance ourselves silly

I will get some pics for you as soon as I can to underline the fun and games we had. Now I have to get ready for bed; tomorrow is another work day. But I have this weekend to look forward to; Friday we have tickets to David Guetta. Ea eah!

Oh, and by the way; not burned at all despite the vast amount of sun oil and carotene used :)

/J

Hello 12 hour workdays!

I am becoming a corporate slave (well intern-slave) and I am barely even noticing it! The last days of last week plus this one has been crazy - preparing quarterly meetings, getting assignemnts and objectives done and spending an awful alot of time in teleconferences with different countries. Twelve hour later I am out of the office, home for a jog and dinner and then sleep. Not much time for other things and the wierdest thing is I am not minding it that much; I really like what I am doing. Ok, I am swedish and we are used to overtime pay and leaving the office at six the latest, but I am slowly adapting to this mexican way of working.

It is however not all work and no play; the weekend presented itself to be quite interesting (again) and just like last weekend I made up for all the overtime by partying into overtime. Went to bed around 9:15 am on saturday and boom, there went the entire day. So annoying - especially since it is starting to become warm and nice now (25-28 degrees). I am thinking about taking a vow of abstinence for this upcoming weekend - no more drinks and parties only enjoying the days and exercising. We´ll see....

Other good news; me and Mags booked a trip to Mazatlan for next weekend; finaly some sun and beach! Looking at hotels now, so I have to focus so I do not end up somewhere totally off. More on this later.

besitos! Juanito

Random sick-day

First, let me comment on the weekend by saying that it was wild. Atleast Saturday were I went to a birthday party at eleven and came home around eight. There went my Sunaday :)

Yesterday was such a random day. I woke up as normal but feeling sick - headache, sore throat and no energy at all. Unfortunately my day was scattered with meetings at work, including a 7pm teleconference with Asia, so I could not stay home. One big cup of coffee washed down two alvedon, and off I went. The first meeting (team-meeting) I managed to get through fairly ok. Then I tried to work somewhat effectively until lunch. For lunch I went home, ate a sandwich and went to power-nap. Came back to the office at five, feeling a little better and worked until 7pm. Then I spent another 1hr 45 min. on the phone with the Philippines talking baout engagement initiatives and trying to focus. Thank god they did most of the talking and I just had to write, listen and ask a question here and there. Left the office at 8:55pm to go home and finally get some rest. A random day to say the least. Today I feel a little better - not perfect but better. And unfortunately today is also going to be a looong day - Teleconference with Spain at 9:30 to start the day and then Organizational Leadership-class from 6-9:30pm. It is going to be loooong!

/J

Valentines and shit.

I mean 'shit' as in stuff; not as in crappy. Because it was a good weekend.
I did not know that Valentines was a big thing in Mexico, but it appears so. All the usual merchandise-crap is out and people are ordering flowers, chocolates and so on. I resent this weekend (maybe because I haven´t had a date for it in ages) but it started good enough on friday. My boss Karen was very sweet and gave me a little Valentines gift. She loooves me, I´m spieeecial! :)

Friday night me and Magda went to meet our norwegian friend Idunn, her boyfriend, roomie and mutual friend/colleague of ours Lisette for a glass of wine. A glass nearly always turns out to become more and so this time as well...but I stopped at three which was responsible of me. Saturday morning I was woken at 9:32 by our made who came in to get my laundry. Very nice but a tad early on a saturday.. In any case it did mean that I got up and had a great morning; made breakfast, watched svt-play, listened to Lantz i P4 and did some reading. I like those kind of mornings, even though I like a sleep-ins even more. The rest of the day was spent with Jorge studying and then at the movies. I was 'Hurt Locker' - about bomb technicians in Iraq. Very good movie; one an a half enthusiastic thumbs up!

Sunday I was also up early (go figure) and had another nice morning. After delicious breakfast tacos I did some more studying and then went for a run with the other sunday-joggers along Calzada del Valle. For you who wonders how it looks, see below. Like that it goes on for 2.5 K and then back. It is quite perfect; my house is about another 1 K from there, so the perfect distance.

The afternoon I spent with my wife (read:Magda). we went for a nice lunch in the sun, then light shopping at Palacio De Hierro with a frappuchino ending. Wonderful! And today it was back to reality; Monday at the office are never great, but atleast this one was fast. I have som much to do I barely notice the time. Plus I did a little overtime so I feel good about myself. Just to celebrate a little more I went for a run. Now I am eating some of the skittles I bought in McAllen and are planning to, slowly but surely, move towards the bed. For sleeping ofcourse.

Kram J

McAllen TX

So I finally got the chance to do some boarder-hopping this weekend. My friend Carlos was going to McAllen Texas with two friends and invited me to come. Mexican go because it is cheaper to buy thing there; clothes, electronics, appliances etcetera. So at 7am saturday morning I was ready for the road-trip. McAllen is about two and a half hours away from Monterrey so it is not that far. Everything went fine with crossing the border, and Texas offered great weather - sunny and about 25 degrees. We visited Barnes & Noble, a big outlet-mall, Macy´s and another big mall. What did I buy? Two books, one polo-shirt, two sleeping boxers and a pair of really cool shorts. All in all - nothing I really needed. I did however find the perfect tent at Ralph Lauren´s 'Big and Tall' which I considered buying there for a sec or two. 4XL, what do you think about that???

In between shopping, we managed to get late lunch at the Olive Garden. Finally, after hearing about it for so long! I asked the waiter: -is this really italian food or is it american italian food?? He looked at me and said: -it is mexican italian food. Whatever croos-over it might have been it was good and I asked for a doggy-bag for the first time in my life. It felt goood! They also had a really funny sign at the door, as you can see below.

We arrived back in MTY at 0:30am, and I found Magda and Allan in our kitchen having beer and tequila. So for me, it was just a quick stop in the shower, then out with them to a friends party and then Topaz. I dropped in bed at 5 or so, dead tired. So today I slept in, went for coffee at Starbucks and then just finished a movie. Saw 'Into the wild' - really good! Now I plan to go to bed to be rested for yet another work week. I'm getting indoctrinated good; on the path to becoming a corporate slave. Love it!

// Jonny Bravoo

Long weekend = party weekend

So what can I say, another weekend with more partying than anything else. I do deserve it; I put in my time at the office and with school. Friday was not even supposed to be a festive night - I was just going to watch a movie with Jorge. However a mutual friend was out partying and there we go..

Saturday was also an interesting experience. A friend at EGADE had her birthday celebration and Me and Mags joined in. We went first to an Irish pub for drinks (yes it looked exactly like a 'Irish' pub anywhere) and after that to a very mexican club called Tucanas. With very mexican I mean (besides the fact that the two of us was the only extranjeros there) the music which is very fun. It is all spanish songs, reggaeton and salsa-spirit and boy do people dance. It is so unfair the way latin people have the rhythm in the blood; some of us actually have to work in order to make steps resembling salsa. The good news is that extranjeros (foreigners) very often get 'A' for effort.

Sunday offered drinks at a place called Akbal - red structured tapistry, velvet drapes, chandeliers and awesome DJs. Small place that fill up fast. It was really good, since it was a long weekend many people were out even though it was sunday. I seriously considered club-hopping but at three I decided it was better to pack up and go home. It is after all a workday tuesday..

Well, the saying is that you only have as fun as you make it and let´s just say I am doing just that. Now I have four days of work, school and normality to look forward to (maybe even time for a run!). Then I most surely will be at it again.. :)

Sleep tight! JZ

Week(end) nr. 2

So another week has passed in Monterrey and I have t admit that I am equally surprised and worried that time goes so fast. I like it because it means I am not bored, under stimulated or in any other way left to boredom. But I have noticed that time is scarce in a new kind of way. This week included some overtime (first time in my life) and when you come home around eight in the evening there is not much time left for other things. But I will et used to that too I guess.

CEMEX is great, really, and i am being very well received. I have had lunch with colleagues, Paco and Karla twice this week and they are super nice and about my age. Tuesday my superior Ana felt that we deserved some tacos after working late, so she took me to a great taco place in my neighbourhood. Really nice and relaxed and fun to be more personal and less job-related.

As always, Djiego our ´landlord' room-mate keeps introducing us to new fun people. This week we have had dinner with two more of his designer friends and they are all so nice and relaxed. It is so much fun to meet new people; not only for the sake of meeting, but also because they are people I would normally not meet. Very cool.

And the weekend goes by too fast. Yesterday I was at a friend Carlos´birthday party. Again, many new people and then party until late (or early). Today we had Allan, Ole and two friends of Magda was here for dinner. We made pasta with blue cheese sauce, roasted champignons and sunflower seeds with salad. As always when we (read I) cook, it is a success. Now, at five past midnight, I am too tired to go out and will actually go to bed. Wow, a weekend with only one night at the disco. Weird.

Chiao /J

Oh, by the way; all week temps have been between 25 and 30. Just thought you people in icebox-Sweden would like to know :)

Summer Sunday

Well, if you consider what we consider to be summer temps in Sweden, than the headline above might actually be true. Somewhere around 22 degrees and sun today, finally pay-off for living in a close-to-the-equator-country! I managed to get in bed late last night as well so the day started slow. But we managed to shape things up and go out into the glorious weather. Magda was on the hunt for a mirror for her room, so me, her and Diego went to the flea-market held next to the (dried out)river. Basically one football-field covered with tent and full of things (crap, debris, shit, spare parts, whatever you want to call it). It was fun but a little scary; me and magda were the only non-mexicans there and we felt like two cats who accidently jumped the fence into a dog-pound. It was however fun and we managed to find a nice mirror for darling Mags. After that we went to a restaurant named Pacifico for late lunch/early dinner. Awesome place with view towards San Pedro and the mountains, great service and tasty fish. A mi me gusta! We took our time and enjoyed the evening; almost three hours later we went home. Just finished watching Brüno with Diego (funny but what a shitty movie) and now its time for bed, there is work to be done tomorrow!

/ J

First week back

So now I´ve been back in Monterrey for nearly a week. And what a week! My internship has proven to become something really interesting and educational - no making coffee or back-office stuff; we are talking project involvement and responsibilities de luxe. I am so glad to be challenged like this and I am even starting to enjoy getting up in the mornings. Almost :).

So the new living situation is, to say the least, very pleasant. Diego and Pedro could not be nicer and more fun to be around. I´ts only been one week but the four of us (Magda, me, D&P) have already become very relaxed with each other. It is fun. Even beter are the perks of living here; as I might already have mentioned we have mandarins and grapes growing in the back yard. But the best thing is the maid who comes four times a week and does...well nearly everything. I leave my room in the morning and come home to a room cleaned, bed made, clothes put away, shirts ironed, and laundry done and nicely folded. Now that is comfort!

I have also managed to make time for party. Last night me, Magda and Diego had dinner with two of Diegos friends, then me and Magda went out to celebrate a friends birthday. It was fun, so fun indeed that I did not come home until 7:15 am. So thank you Omar for a good good night!

Today have been a splendid day; almost 20 degrees and clear skies. I went out for a small walk late afternoon ( a little tired after yesterday) and checked out my new neighbourhood. I found the weirdest houses, apparently a place where they sell statues. Below you see one example. The 'normal house is where I live. The yellow one is my new dream house though!

Well now I have to get ready - dinner tonight at a Argentinian restaurant and then... well who knows, the options are unlimited :)

Zaijian! J

CEMEX revisited

So the second day at CEMEX is over and done with. I really think that this internship is going to be a lot of fun, very challenging and ample opportunity to learn. I am working in CEMEX Global Organizational HR department, specifically with engagement and culture. Might sound a bit abstract (not far from the truth) but it is actually both interesting and quite specific. CEMEX just finished a global survey regarding how employees feel about the company from different parameters. What we do is together with Communications and Public Affairs departments analyze the results and then find what actions we can implement to strengthen/heighten/instigate employees level of engagement in the company. These action-plans will be both global and local - giving room for my other field of interest; cross cultural management. I have had very little OHR management prior to this internship, and being able to combine that with the cross-cultural aspect of how engagement levels vary from country to country, is very exciting. So exciting ndeed that I chose 'Human Behaviour in International Organizations' as my final elective this trimester. I see great potential for synergies between my elective, thesis and internship. All the better that my guidance professor loves these subjects.

This day at the office has however been quite slow. My supervisor is in a two day training seminar, so I am left to read and go through material by my self. Not much wrong with that except that most of it is only available through the intranet and I have no computer or internet connection. A slight bump in the road. But I got busy digging into the massive amount of data collected. It was surprisingly interesting.

Tonight I went out with Diego and our other roomie Pedro´s brother Juan for dinner. San Pedro offers not only a safer neighbourhood but also an ample selection of restaurants. We chose Japanese and had Teppanyaki with Tempura icecream for dessert. Tired and full I now plan to get my 8 hours of sleep. So boring but necessary!

J

A new year, a new dawn, a new life...almost.

So, finally back in Monterrey and finally back on the blog! So sorry for not writing during christmas but time really flie when yu are home and having fun. Basically this christmas was all about the cold weather (between minus 6-17) and the snow. Winter wonderland took on a new meaning for sure. All in all my visit back home offered some smaller bumps in the road, but nothing family and friends couldn´t take care of. So thanks to all of you for making my stay in Sthlm as good as it can get!

Now, travelling back to MTY was fun...not. New rules thanks to stupid plane bombers made security at Amsterdam a bitch. All passengers had to be screened again (my third time) before being allowed to board. That ment that our flight was 1 1/2 hours delayed. Then our pilot informed us that we were too heavy and had to make a stop-over in Bangor Maine (WTF??) in order to refuel. So now I´ve been to Maine. It sucks.

All of this almost made me miss my connection to MTY, but luckily I just made it. I was alos hoping for nice temperatures but nooo, Monterrey i experiencing the coldest temperatures in years; around 3-5 degrees. Freaking cold when you live in non-isolated concrete houses with only ac-heating. But, despite this I am not complaining, mostly because I´ve finally moved away from our department building from hell and to a nice house in the safe, prosperous and more affluent city of San Pedro. It is a city of its own, but part of Monterrey. Much nicer. I am also especially pleased that my new house has a mandarin and grapefruit tree in the back yard - just go out in the morning and get your fruit. The house is rented by this very nice guy Diego who shares it with a friend, Pedro. They have two spare rooms of which I have one and Magda has the other. It couldn´t be better! My house is also situated about fifteen minutes walk (if you want to risk your life crossing two highways) from my new offices at CEMEX HQ. Yes people, I got the internship and after my first day (today) I am really excited about this! I will probably have to work my ass off but damn it´s got real potential to be great fun! I will tell you more about it tomorrow, now my jetlag is kicking in and I need to go to bed :)

Nos Vemos! J