Baby, when the lights go out...

So, when we moved to Lausanne apart from the many adjustments we had to make, power outage was one of them. And its quite possible you might face them too. Many of us were rather surprised by the fuse burning out so frequently in the beginning and had no idea what to do because explaining the emergency to your immigrant concierge/ watchman/ landlord who speaks minimal French can be quite a task.

So if you don't have a Georgie or an Alison in your group and are unable to get hold of Marcella (which never usually happens but still) in such a situation, here is what you can do. 

First, make sure its only your apartment and not the entire building. Unlike some people (clears throat, smiles sheepishly) before you panic yourself into changing fuse after fuse and end up confusing the faulty ones with the ones that work only to realize that your entire building is suffering from a power outage and its not just your apartment, open the door and take a look outside. If the entire floor is nicely lit up and no one's pounding the elevator, here's what you can do in a building like Avenue d'Ouchy 58... 

If the fuse box in your apartment looks like this (keep looking for the fuse/switch box, you'll find it; check behind doors, just above the entrance; perhaps even outside the apartment) :

all you need is something like this:

Unscrew that round eye-shaped thing in the middle of the fuse box and you'll see a fuse in the center. Just need to replace that and life will be beautiful again.

This is easily available in Migros or Coop. It would be wise to stock up on them before hand. Remember to read the label on the fuse; replace with the same power voltage. 

Also, keep some spare bulbs in stock always. We've had ours go 'poof!' a couple of times. 

Another tip: Try not to give your electrical circuit a heart attack. If you're using the hoover (vacuum cleaner) try not to use something as power hungry- such as the washing machine- simultaneously.

When we came back from our summer vacation, the stove wasn't working. I thought the fuse burned out again, but everything else was working just fine. Turns out, the stove (even the refrigerator) has its own fuse box. So all we really needed was to switch the dead one with a healthy one in this case too. 

Sometimes, you may need to change the main fuse (main fuse box of your floor or building) corresponding to your appliance/ apartment. But hopefully, the landlord/ concierge should be able to indicate that.

In other news, most of us are getting increasingly horrified with how the bank accounts are drying up with no jobs in the horizon (the assessments are on-going). Apparently this is normal. Also, our lovely Amelie gave birth to an adorable little Lou. I think the temperature touched 3 degrees today. So cold after so long; I am definitely going to miss the warm sunny days. 

Until then, Au revoir... 

Grocery shopping in Lausanne

It's been a while since I last dropped by. Lausanne is cold again- somewhat reminiscent of the start of the year which seems both so far away now and yet not far at all.

 We've almost come to the end of our MBA journey. So much has happened in these few months it is impossible to compile it in a blog. Many partners are on their way to motherhood, some for the first time.

We are now in the toughest phase of the MBA: The emotionally daunting 'job search'. I knew it was doing to be rather stressful but I was naive to declare the first and more studious bit of the year "tough".  

Anyway, I thought I might share some handy tips before we make our imminent exodus from this time warp we are in, to reality. I drafted a document a while back on grocery shopping in Lausanne and availability of Halaal food. I'm copy-pasting it here; hopefully the future partners will benefit from this.

I am not joking; with the right attitude, grocery shopping can be a true sport! ;)

- Names you should familiarize yourself with: Migros, Coop, Denner

These are the more popular supermarket chains and have outlets all over Lausanne.

- There is also ALDI known for its cheaper variety of products but the store is at a distance; so rent out a car or hitch a ride with someone who has a car or you'll have to swap two metros with lots of shopping bags which can be rather cumbersome.

- Denner is also quite friendly on the budget but often lacks in quality. You may purchase a pack of cheap onions and have half of them rotting already. So be careful.

- Watch out for “ACTION” marked on various items; these indicate discounted products.

- Often on Saturday afternoons, meat is sold at half price at local grocery stores.

TIMINGS:

- When you arrive in Dec/Jan up until Mar/Apr all stores close at around 5-6 in the evening.

- During the summer, shops are opened for longer; The Migros on Ouchy staying opened till 9:45 pm.

- A “quick-store” like the Coop Pronto might be open until 10 but those are very few- and to my knowledge- only one on Avenue D’Ouchy. Also, they compensate for their "accessibility" by charging higher rates on just about every product.

- Apart from some exceptions, stores are closed on Sundays (Dimanche)

ASIAN FOOD

There is a nice, cosy Asian shop located on Avenue des Jordil for almost all kinds of Chinese/ Thai/ Japanese and Indian ingredients.

Another Asian store is Tan Tan, opposite to the Gare station.

Indian themed Asian stores are also located at Rue du Simplon and Avenue du France.

Timings of Asian stores vary; some opening after 11am. They put up notices on the main door and you may have to jot them down somewhere.

HALAAL FOOD

Halaal meat stores can be found in Lausanne Flon, Lausanne Gare & Rue du Simplon.

The nearest one is located just beside the Gare station opposite to Tan Tan  i.e. where Rue du Simplon meets Avenue William Fraisse.

Halaal stores usually open around 10am.

More variety of halaal meat is available at Grand Atlas just across Lausanne Gare on Avenue Louis-Ruchonnet 3. 

You can find halaal frozen burgers and pizza’s at Asian stores on Avenue de France close to Maharaja restaurant.

Note: The variety of foodstuff (and more) is also dependent on the size of the outlet. You might want to visit Coop City and Migros Triple M in case you’re looking for more specific items.

All Asian stores sell almost all kinds of Asian products (Chinese/ Indian/ Japanese/ Thai). Sea food is definitely cheaper here.

Also, Annecy (France) is only an hour's drive by car; the big Carrefour store there is absolute bliss!

Guest Post: From Belgium to Lausanne by Amélie van der Aa

Hi, I’m Amélie, mother of a lovely 21 month old daughter named Nell and mother to be of another girl in a few weeks. I’m Belgian, supporting my Belgian husband Jonathan, whom I’ve met 15 years ago (no no, I’m not that old) in Belgium. I specify this, because this makes us one of the most unique IMD couples, as most partners are from country X, have married a guy or girl from country Y, whom they’ve met in country Z.

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Believe it or not, but this blog post has been on my to-do list since February. Am I lazy, or have I been suffering from a writers block? None of the above. The truth is, this year might have been the busiest of my life. 



Let me take you back to a bit more than a year ago. The day that Jonathan came home all excited, not only because he got into IMD, but because he had spoken to an ex-IMD candidate who had told him the “exciting” truth about day-to-day (and night-to-night) life at IMD during the first 6 months. All I could hear was “military camp”, “nap room”, “night work”, “no spare time at all”, let alone “time for your kids and family”. I told Jonathan that in this case I was wondering why we would join him to Lausanne. Silence…  a shocked husband was looking at me realizing that there could have been a better way to prepare me for the IMD reality.

But in the end, we actually took the decision to cut the year in half. I would spend the first 6 months in Belgium, keep my job, leave Nell at daycare, and be surrounded by my network of friends and family who were all willing to help a single mom survive on her own. Every 2-3 weeks we flew to Lausanne to spend some time (or shall I say “hours”) with Jonathan. And apart from that, Skype became our best friend and well, we just both wrestled through these 6 months, keeping our eyes firmly on the finish line in June.

I ain’t gonna lie. It was tough. We really missed each other, we have both cursed Skype, I have literally cried carrying Nell in and out of the plane, being nauseous from my second pregnancy. I have been quite frustrated when spending weekends in Lausanne, cleaning the apartment, ironing hubby’s shirts and not seeing him as much as I’d hoped. But in the end, all this made us stronger as a couple and made the start of the second part (June-Dec) so much sweeter…

Now I am enjoying all this free time with Nell, this “normal” family time with Jonathan, our interesting discussions in the tiny kitchen and most of all, meeting all these amazing other ladies (and men), who are all so strong and trying to keep up the positive spirit throughout this strange year.

Let me conclude by giving some tips for future partners who decide to join their student later during the year:

1. I strongly advise to take one month off at the start of the year. That way you can settle in and arrange the apartment together with your partner, and most importantly, get to know the other partners. Believe me, you will feel less alone when you are in Lausanne on the weekends.

2. Try to attend at least one partner activity each time you’re visiting Lausanne. It will make it easier to integrate when you move to Lausanne in Summer.

3. Keep telling yourself that being in Lausanne with your husband would be equally or even more frustrating than being in your home country, surrounded by friends and family.

4. And this is my tip for any partner: don’t be too hard on your partner and don’t complain too much. This surely isn’t an easy year for us, but so far it has been one of the most interesting, culturally diverse and enriching of my life!

Guest Post: Trip to Iceland by Andrea Canidio

Hi! I am Andrea, Sophie Lacombe's boyfriend who is currently a student at IMD. I live between Bruxelles and Budapest and commute to Lausanne regularly
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Sophie said: "I don't have time to take care of our vacations, so you do it. I just want to be outdoor. I have been locked in the IMD dungeon for 6 months. I want to hike, to be active, to be outside.' So I went online and bought two tickets to Iceland.

Iceland is an island sitting between Europe and the American continent, touching the Arctic circle with its Northern shore. From a geological point of view, it is one of the youngest places in the world. It is located with the American plates meet the Eurasian plate and for this reason, it is full of active volcanoes, natural hot springs, geysers, mountains, glaciers. It is roughly twice the size of Switzerland, but has only 300,000 inhabitants, about 70% of which live in the capital. This means that is has some of the most amazing landscapes and scenery in the world (with the exception of some spots) which you can admire in full solitude. I've always wanted to go there and this was my chance. Sophie didn't specify that she wanted to be in a warm place!

 

The vacation was great. We hiked through the valleys fuming from the presence of hundreds of hot pools; we climed a glacier, and a volcano; we saw icebergs, seals, puffins. We rented a 4x4 pick-up truck and drove for days on uneven roads, crossing several rivers, in a surreal landscape with no trees (the winds and temperature prevent them from growing), no buildings and no people. All we could see were patches of pure colours; the black of the lava stone, the bright green of the moss, the white of the glaciers, the red and yellow of the sulfur.





The vacation was also a reminder of how powerful and extreme nature can be. The temperatures would usually be between 5 and 15 degrees, the winds were extremely strong, the weather would abruptly change every 10 minutes. The whole country is accustomed to extreme climate and extreme events. For instance, several of the glaciers sit on top of active volcanoes and sometimes some of these volcanoes heat up- without erupting- and melt some of the ice. The water eventually bursts out and violently flood the surrounding valleys. This happened when we were there: a bridge was washed away and the only paved road connecting the capital with the other coastal cities had to be closed down. However, within two weeks a temporary bridge was in place and traffic was restored to normal. Apparently, this events are so frequent that Icelandic people are very efficient in reconstruction of roads and bridges.

Finally, here is a link to all the pictures of the vacation.

A little Swiss holiday and one crazy trip to the Kingdom...



Chateau de Chillon

ok... so what's basically happened is that- we're busy. I think its safe for me to say that for everyone. Plus with me, my laptop was having a bit of a nervous breakdown- and you know, you need to blog in the comfort of your home and the strong reliable arms of your laptop. Additionally, I didnt want to make the partner blog look like a Tahira blog- so some space and hopefully other partner contributions (*hint, hint*) should help achieve that goal. 



But with the exams over and a nice long weekend thanks to Easter, I've also been really busy sorting out our "vacation" schedule, which included one crazy trip to Riyadh and back for a mere 24 hours. Why? Long, boring story. Nevermind that. 

One of the trips we made was to Montreux. And thank you Mr. Splendid Sun- You made it worth our while by shining mad all day. We drove down, about 45 minutes from Lausanne. The walk by the lake, spread of flowery colors, a little paddling perhaps, marinating in the sun, and if you're into history, a little expedition at the Chateau de Chillion will definitely make your day. 



Also, we the partner planned and successfully executed our very first surprise birthday party. This one was for Sevara. It was so much fun with so many partners showing up rather surprisingly (because I thought we were mostly out of town, planning vacations, taking day trips) and we left poor Sharon cleaning up after us, who played an amazing host and masterminded the event.

Sevara & Lil' Sevinch

So a day before our flight to Riyadh (KSA), we headed for La Gruyere* over the Easter weekend. It is a small, cute little town that extends a little beyond the walled area it is more famous for. The placed paved with cobblestones, cows grazing, flowers in full bloom, and oh that cheese! I remember some of the partners mentioning that the place has probably played host to a deluge of Bollywood movies- and seriously, I'm sure they're not too far from the truth. We visited the Gruyere Castle- which was very interesting and the HR Giger museum- rather disturbing; but for those who can stomach it, it was in fact rather fasinating, complex and dark (you get a discount when you visit them together and be sure to show them your Student cards). 

La Gruyere

And since we lacked the luxury of time- Faisal woke up a full hour later than intended- we made our way to Moleson and decided we'd do the Chocolate Factory another day.As for Moleson**- seriously, save your money for Jungfrau. They keep showing an observatory when you click Moleson on "search" and you get up there all excited in that cabin herded like cattle, and you realize that its a shack and nothing more- the observatory is "under construction". The view is stunning no doubt but it's too small and there are way too many people crowded around and everything seems to be falling apart; decrepit and frail. So unless the observatory is done, my honest opinion- save that very small and extremely precious student "vacation" budget for something better.

And then there was the trip to Riyadh. One of the things you ABSOLUTELY LOVE about the Middle East (and especially Riyadh) is the preferential treatment women get in long queues and administrative work in government offices. I am Faisal's golden ticket to getting work done around there. And oh! the cheap and amazing food. And thats about all the love one can have for Riyadh. 

We were exhausted and worn out and all you want is so have a nice ,decent flight with plenty of leg space and hopefully nobody sitting next to you, which we got on our way to the Kingdom. But on our way back, when we really needed it, was when everything that could go wrong did. We arrived an hour and a half earlier than scheduled. Thank god for cheap thrills like "the first class lounge". Its pathetic but they are a life saver. 

And then we discovered that our "direct" flight back, wasn't- it was going via Jeddah. And as luck would have it, the flight was jam packed. There was an onslaught of people suffering from flatulence and halitosis and bromhidrosis- and in some sick way it was rather amusing how when things are unpleasant, they leave room for almost nothing to breathe a sigh of relief into, pun intended. 

If my olfactory senses could, they'd have sued me for this abuse. 

The seats were cramped and a child was constantly wailing in the back. After an eternity of waiting, I finally turned to his mother and gave her the "look" which prompted her into action and she finally shushed him. 

And when Faisal made his way to the air-loo towards the end, he realized how the last cabin was more or less empty and people had stretched themselves entirely onto the seats and lay there drooling peacefully in their sleep. Arrrrgh! 

But let me tell you what was CRAZY! The flight captain signaled the alarm for "turbulence"- oh well, we thought normal turbulence, lets just strap ourselves into our seats and continue doing what we do best on such long haul fights- nothing.. But what followed was completely unexpected. Dont worry, since I am typing this story out, it means I came out alive. 

The plane started with a shiver. More shiver. Some shaking now. After constant trembling for about three minutes, not only was the plane jiggling into a near samba routine- IT GALLOPED! I bounced off my seat...and my heart plunged into the abyss of panic attack escorted with a pathological smile across my face- talk about masochism- and I just looked at Faisal and told him how much I loved him and started chanting prayers...Trust me when I say this, this is how the term "scared shitless" originated.  

But I was likening the feeling to a free wheeling roller coaster ride! FTW?! 

My mind was rushing through a psychedelic maze of plane crashes and pointy Swiss Alps and horror stories and people stranded for days who ended up eating other passengers and still starved to death; I thought about my life and my family and how I hadn't written a will (not that I have much left). And slowly, still stuck in that horrifying stupor, I could feel the plane descend. The normal, routine, scheduled descent. With that the air in my lungs started to untangle, the stomach seemed to have fallen back into its place, other anatomical normalcies took place I'll spare you the details of. 

But we were all so traumatized that the passengers burst into an impromptu spell of thunderous applause the second the pilot touched down. Phew! 

Oh well, now we're back. Students are back on track (rather forcibly) with the barrage of assignments coming in, while we the partners will probably be gearing up for the MBAT. Until then, this is T signing off. 

 Au revoir!

*The trip on train costs around CHF 22 (a half fare card) and then you need to dish out a bit more for any museum excursions or cheese/chocolate factory trips

** Costs CHF 14 per head (half fare card) for the Furnicular and then the cabin up and back down. 

P.S. These are 2011 prices (:

Oh the joys of baking!

You know what I've been doing lately? 
Baking! 
I love how Lausanne has turned me into a potential baker. Or at least one in my head. 

Alison- Chocolate Biscotti

In all likelyhood, I (and my poor husband, who doesn't really have a choice) am the only one who enjoys the consequences of having picked up this dangerous skill but it doesn't keep my mind from wandering off rather quickly into this phantasmagoria of a dazzling world, where I topple over the Martha Stewarts and Nigella Lawsons and open up my very own "Boulangerie" specializing in Chocolate, dedicated to my baking-mentors, my dear neighbours: Alison & Sevara.

Baking is so therapeutic. And the aftermath, even more. The after-aftermath.... nevermind! 

But D-Day is drawing closer. What D-day? Remember we (the partners) were asked to set goals for ourselves and see how we've fared three months on? Yes, well I was supposed to drop tons of weight as goal number 1. 

DRATS! 

At least I'm done with most of my reading assignments... Although my French still sucks- which was my third goal.

Chocolate-Cheesake Brownie

Italian- Chocolate Crostata

It has been raining, but the weather is gorgeous overall. I didn't think it was possible but the view of the mountains across the lake has become even more breath-taking; as if the coming Spring has taken off the Winter-veil, unleashing the majestic beauty of the Mountains in all its glory. Lausanne seems a lot more crowded with people picnicking by the lake throughout the day. Its personally entertaining how people are queued up as far as the eye can see at the Movenpick Ice cream stall just outside the hotel. What's more, we're on daylight saving mode now, so we have the gilded rays descending all over town once the sun struggles past the soft blanket of clouds, for longer. Or at least that's how I see it. 

I'd share some pictures with you, but you'll perceive it as boring old mountains. Because my camera doesn't capture what my eyes can see. You have to see it to believe it. I will have new partner heads nodding in agreement next year this time around (hopefully the impact of Global warming doesn't drastically alter somewhat worrying climate trends).

Of course this beautiful, welcoming change sets in well with my weight loss regime- gives me all the more reason to step outdoors for a nice, brisk walk by the lake. But... the beautiful sun, warm breeze, fantastic spread of colour across the shrubs and bushes, kids running about, birds chirping, geese cackling- and......... no icecream?! 

Sacrilege! 

So I'm not too sure what's happening here, because every so often on these "strolls" aimed at weight-loss, an ice-cream cone miraculously finds its way into my greedy hands... Yep! A step forward, two steps back! That's what it is in a nutshell. 

Chocolate Banana Cake

By the way, to the upcoming Partners, if you're ever at a loss of knowing what to do when sending a shipment/courier, just contact IMD Reception. DHL/Fedex are around alright but IMD reception is so helpful (and so cheap!). I saved 80 quids today. 

Thanks for the tip Ali- guess who can afford to augment the periphery of the baking-experiment budget?!  

Anyway, it's exam time at campus. And my poor ol' husband has contracted a rather lame case of "I'm-a-victim-of-horrible-inhuman-exams-Make-this-world-a-better-place-for-me" which requires me to keep on my toes even more; play the maid even better. Oh well, 'tis too shall pass! And with all the effort I am making in running around getting meals done, subduing every bout of rage, suffocating every urge that goes within a 5 mile radius of the term "NAG"... I better be compensated. 



Cookie?

And in light of this, to all our MBA soldiers who've been undergoing intense mental training- intellectual motor running at full speed, brain racing against the speed of light for the past three months- here's wishing you all the best! Armed with all that plethora of knowledge that's been drilled into you, here's hoping you regurgitate it all out in the best possible way. Don't worry- Friday is just around the corner and you'll be done and dusted by then, praying you all ace it, Amen! 

I see this as the initial shaping stage, after which comes the sharpening and polishing before IMD can present 90 new impeccable gems to the world.

Although the signs of impending "doom" are not too far off the horizon; the second integrative exercise is in two weeks time and the leadership paper due just after that.

I think I'll shut up now.  

Over and out!

P.S. if this "baking-mania" continues, someone please do me a favour and check me into a rehabilitation center for neurotic bakers. Thank you.