A Thousand Words

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. Have you ever really thought about that statement? I mean truly. And have you ever put it to a test? So perhaps the photos I share in this blog will not invoke seven or eight thousand words but at least you will get the 500 or so that I use to describe the context of each.

I returned from my spring break trip to Cape Town, South Africa last week and I am still slowly processing what a tremendously humbling, historical, and down right awesome experience it was. Cape Town is not a traditional spring break escape - especially not for Americans from the US - so allow me to create some clarity around my destination choice. Fortunate are the few, especially as adults, who can find new friendships with individuals who challenge them to be better people. I found that here at the Johnson School and when she told me she was going to study abroad in South Africa for our final semester I made no hesitation to agree to visit her during my spring break. Now, the trick was to find someone to travel with. The weeks and months passed and still no one was ready to commit to going. Just three weeks before the scheduled trip I still had not found anyone to travel with. I was ready to suck it up and prepare myself to make the trip half way across the globe alone when I received one of the most memorable text messages of my mobile communications life from a friend who had never before showed interest in going saying she wanted to come along!

We felt blessed to have found an unreal deal including flight and hotel for our 5 day stay. What's more is that we even had a long layover in London both ways to allow us to stretch our legs a bit part way through the trip.

Stunned and probably still in disbelief by what we were about to embark upon arrived at the Cape Town International Airport greeted by gorgeous weather and a sun we had not seen for awhile - we were still in what felt like winter in Ithaca. That night we saw one of the most glorious sunsets (the first photo above) and plotted out our ideas for the week's activities with our other friend who had flown down from Johannesburg to join us.

The first day we went wine tasting at a few of the wine farms. We had all already become fans of South African wine so visiting these farms was a real treat. Perhaps the best part of the day was the very affordable (thanks to the rand/dollar exchange rate) 5 course meal we had at one of the farms - Grand Provence. There we ordered not one but two of their best wines, invited the chef out for a glass - which he agreed to! - and dined in outdoors next to the fireplace - the best table in (or out) of the house. Our chef, as it turns out has worked in the US before, having most recently returned from a stint at Daniel in NYC. The second photo is the view from this last wine farm.

The next day was intended to be our trip around the cape with multiple stops along the way. Of course, some things are just out your control at times. Like your rental car make weird noises when you brake or are in reverse, for instance. It just didn't seem safe to continue the day with our car this way so we invested the two hours it took to return to the airport and replace the car for our own safety and my sanity. We visited a museum, the botanical gardens, and a couple historical sites. By the time we made it to Cape Point, they were closing their gates. There was no way I could leave South Africa without going to the very tip of the continent so I vowed to get up before dawn the next day and drive down here again for the experience if thats what it took. Fortunately, my friends took me seriously and we all got up at 5am the next morning. The fourth and fifth photos are the moon rising just above Chapman's Peak and then a photo of the road along the cliff - one of the most gorgeous drives I've ever taken!

The drive down the east coast of the cape was wonderful at sunrise but don't just take my word for it. Check out the third photo for proof! Finally reaching Cape Point, I could stand the build up no more and wanted to see the point at which two oceans unite! Of course, there was a hike before I could see that. Fortunately, we got there before anyone else - including some of the staff! This made the experience so much more intimate and memorable.

Standing there at the southern tip of the continent brought uncontrollable tears to my eyes. I let myself truly consider for the first time what I was doing. Some of my family members have never even been on a plane before let alone whole other continent that you have to fly 20 hours to get to...and not just any continent...the one where it all began. I felt unbelievable blessed and humbled in that moment. I wished everyone could have the opportunity to bear witness to such beauty. The way the new sun's soft golden rays glistened against the endless rippling ocean, the curvacious conture of the land that lined the east and west sides of the cape, and the demanding wind that could not make up its mind about which direction it wanted to blow so it blew every which way at once with such a force that I felt could almost carry us away.

On the very last day, we finally made it to the beach. Though we were in such a time crunch that we didn't even suit up for the occasion. Intead we marveled at the gorgeous scene for as long as we could before heading to the airport.

With all the beauty of Cape Town, it is easy to miss some of its hidden truths. For instance, the townships that border the city and can be seen of the side of the highway like the 7th photo in my collection. While some of Cape Town's residents live in seaside mansions that mirror those of Malibu, others live in shanty towns without running water, electricity, or toilets.

I can definitely see myself returning to South Africa someday...but next time I hope to have more than just five days to explore and learn. Until then, I don't have many international destinations to look forward to any more. The last one of this year will be a family trip to Cancun. If you've been a reader since the beginning, you'll remember this is the trip that makes up for last year's untimely visit from Hurricane Dean. Until then, though I am back in Ithaca still a student finishing out my MBA and bringing to a close two of the most challenging and exciting years of my life.

Cheers!

P.S. Be sure to check out the video of the penguins from South Africa below!

Queen Pin...or something like that

I am not a bowler, I just play one on Thursday nights.

But I'm not alone. In fact, there is a whole league of us wannabe bowlers...though some of my classmates are actually really good! And because we play with handicaps, everyone is on somewhat equal playing lanes, keeping the fun in the game all night long. The JGSM Bowling League is quickly becoming of the best social programs I've participated in at the Johnson School - who would have thunk it?! It must be in my blood my mom says. She and my aunt used to play in a more traditional and probably way more competitive league "back in the day". Well, I guess that could explain how I finally made the top 10 list of sharp shooting females last week!

Thursdays have become quite the social day for the Johnson school this year. Already, we had the new tradition of Sage Socials on Thursdays from 4:15-5:45pm, a happy hour of sorts where the entire Johnson community comes out to mix it up over drinks and appetizers. We also already do guest bartending on Thursday evenings. The student clubs have arranged with a local bar in Collegetown to host bar for two hours on Thursdays as a fundraiser. Essentially, the club that is hosting bar that evening will keep 50% of the tips from 9-11pm. So now that we have bowling on Thursdays from 7:15-9:30pm, our entire social calendar for the evening is complete! I like it that way.

So every Thursday evening, my fellow JGSM Bowlers and I put on our team bowling shirts (oh yes folks, we have official regalia for the occasion!), check for our singles - how else are we supposed to load up the juke box with some of the latest and greatest tunes - and practice our trash talking because every round is anyone's game. With some individual handicaps as high as 100, even some of Johnson's best bowlers can get a run for their money. I'll keep you posted on who makes it to this year's playoffs!

Cheers!

Reaffirmation Sessions

Thursday mornings are my reaffirmation sessions. As a member of the Johnson Admissions Group (JAG) I am scheduled to conduct interviews for prospective Johnson School students at 9:15 and 10:15 am. For the past several weeks, I have met with some enthusiastic, intelligent, engaging, and inspirational individuals who all have at least one important common tie - they want to come to the Johnson School. At some point during each interview I perk up. It is something in their confident tone or eloquent word choice that takes me back to a time when I was on the other side of that interview doing and saying everything I could to show how much I wanted to be a member of this community. In that instant my love for this place is reaffirmed.

The Johnson School means something different to every person who is fortunate to become a part of it. Why did I choose to come to the Johnson School? This is the same question I get in just about every real and informational interview with prospective students I do. I don't get tired of the question nor do I tire of answering it. I didn't want to come here. I had convinced myself I wanted something different for grad school...some place different. I was going to go to a big school in a big city. As I started researching and visiting the campuses of the potentials, I found myself right back here wondering why I ever thought I needed anything else. I give three reasons just as I did when I interviewed:

1. This one is easy. Familiarity of the campus and the school - an undying love, really. Given that all I was about to encounter as a career switcher was going to be so new, I needed something that wasn't so foreign.
2. Dynamic course offerings giving anyone the opportunity to study anything (hint: look at our university motto). Although this is a general management program, we are not just churning out investment bankers and consultants. Some of my classmates are entrepreneurs who have already begun their new ventures. Some of them are going to join one of the most vital and influential movements of our time - the education reform movement. And still others are going to be developing new business ideas that target the 4 billion people at the base of the pyramid.
3. The school wanted me. At no other institution did I get the attention and access to students, faculty, and alumni as I did here. As each new person I met shared their "why Johnson" story with me, they also were eager to help me figure out my own answer to that question.

Demonstrating a feeling is not an easy task but as I sit and listen to the interviewees' reasons for applying, I can discern the passionate from the the passive applicant. To those of you preparing for your business school interviews - especially for the Johnson School - don't overlook this ever important component of your presentation. Don't just run through a list reasons you compiled by looking online. Tell me a story of how you have connected with the school in some way. Tell me how the Johnson School is going to help you accomplish your dreams. Tell me, why Johnson?

Cheers!

4 continents down, 1 to go...this year at least!

Happy New Year! What a truly amazing couple of weeks it has been since my last posting - okay, okay more like a month. But as always, I'm chalk full of stories from my travels! Of course, I flew home to California to celebrate Christmas with my family. We have a lot of little children in the family these days and I have always felt this makes the holiday season more fun because it is almost as if I get to experience it through a child's eye again. The photo below is a picture of my grand father with 8 of his 10 great grand children.

I then got to celebrate the new year in Rome, Italy with my good friend and classmate, Meloney. We really only had one full day of sight seeing though we spent two nights in the city. We managed to see quite a bit of what Rome has to offer, but I can definitely see myself returning someday.

But I know what you're really itching to hear about...my trip to eastern Europe! I participated in one of the Johnson School's study trips that allows students to travel abroad for a couple of weeks during the school breaks. They typically take place during winter, spring, and summer breaks. The trip I attended was the inaugural trip to Bulgaria and Turkey and I was joined by roughly 20 other Johnson students and our professor. While in Sofia, Bulgaria and Istanbul, Turkey we met with some of the countries most influential business and governmental people and organizations. We also received a number of lectures from faculty at American University in Bulgaria and Koc University in Turkey. What I most content with from this trip is not only the growth and expansion of my knowledge of business, politics, economics, culture, history, and religion abroad, but also the personal growth I feel as taken place. The difference, I think comes with application of either. What I have learned from an academic standpoint will certainly allow me to further my understanding of the people and places of these two countries. The personal growth factor however, is applied through future decisions and thought considerations I will make when I might reflect on a memory or lesson from this trip for guidance.

This trip has certainly fueled my growing passion for macroeconomics and for travel abroad. Fortunately, I have at least one more trip planned this year. I will be headed to South Africa during my spring break. I am also considering going on one of the summer study trips which will allow me to visit Japan and Korea. Although this winter trip to Turkey allowed me to technically step foot on the Asian continent, I have not truly had the opportunity to explore and learn more about the some of the other countries in Asia.

Below are some photos from my trip and I tried to include a caption so you know what you're looking at though it might come out a little too small to read...sorry!


Cheers!