It happened one day…
I recently attended the graduation ceremony of my engineering college (a year too late perhaps, happened in full swing nonetheless). It was good to reconnect with old colleagues. The topics of our conversations ranged from reminiscence of the “good old days” to general curiosity about what the other person had made of their life.
Amidst all the catching up and laughter, I happened to bump into my project mate, a friend who I had spent most of my last semester with, designing (watching him design?) a fancy vehicle locking system. Ashwin squealed out “Sruti, you got everything that you had asked for!” Honestly, I was very confused. Until that day, there hadn’t passed a single day in my life when I hadn’t whined about how I never get what I want. He continued, “It was exactly a year ago that you told me you wanted to do your MBA and that sometime in life you would like to go to France, walk the streets of Paris, admire paintings in that museum- what was it? - Louvre? And oh yes! Eat their food, sip their wine. .6 months into a B-School and you have it all! Some luck woman!” It’s funny how it took a-year-late convocation to make me realize that the world wasn’t conspiring against me after all. While Ashwin, being the enthusiast that he is, chattered on, I took a minute to thank the universe (Rhonda Byrne claims gratitude is key in her latest- “Magic”).
I can’t even begin to explain how/why IIFT has been right for me at so many levels, and the exchange program most definitely tops the list of reasons. When I learnt that I had been nominated to study at IESEG School of Management in Lille, it wasn’t just the fact that I was going to spend a trimester abroad, in “foreign land” that gave me the shivers; people go abroad all the time with their families these days. No, it was about the journey that awaited me, the adventure that I knew that I was going to embark upon with four other friends, some old, some new.
It was the fashion capital indeed…
I remember when we landed at the Charles De Gaulle Airport of Paris, in time for new year celebrations. Just when the fact that we had reached started sinking in, few of us were shown out of the airport by a huge scary cop. Soon after, a cab ride to the hotel that cost us an equivalent of Rs 6000, did not help much either. My French, that I took so much pride in previously, failed me miserably at each and every step. It was definitely not a kickass start, so to speak. But as the night unfurled, things started looking up, more than looking up.
A walk on Champs Élysées (http://bit.ly/12hzOQj), the most commercial street of Paris, was definitely an eye-opener for a fashion lover like me. Hidden under layers of clothing and a thick black jacket and looking at French girls strutting about in their skirts and high-heeled boots, I felt like the quintessential monkey-capped bong. They were impervious to the 3 degree chill- I was going to follow suit very soon, I just didn’t know it that time. Marked by two significant monuments at its either ends, Champs Élysées was a vision to behold, the whole of it- beautiful people walking on a beautifully decorated street, obnoxiously priced and yet very charming pubs and restaurants, a jazzy ice skating ring, crêpe counters, a real-but-fake snowman, cuddly couples, stalls serving Vin Chaud (http://bit.ly/1bo3z8O) and Louis Vuitton.
As we reached the end of the street, in front of Place de la Concorde (http://bit.ly/11CcUrM), and looked to the right, there it was glimmering in full might, the Eiffel Tower. It was just as gorgeous as the world claims it to be. I was half expecting “Michel Adams presents FTV” to pop up mid air. Delighted with our discovery, we paced towards the Eiffel.
Walking along the Seine late at night was fun. Amidst the gaping-at-the-cars and the getting acclimatized to the grandeur of the buildings, the jokes and comments never stopped coming in. And that’s the best part about traveling with friends. No matter what the situation is, you’re bound to have a good laugh! That is really what makes the journey so memorable and worth it.
As we walked, we came across a hell lot of couples, smitten by each other, completely in love. Honestly, I don’t blame them. There was something about Paris; it was almost designed for love. I don’t know whether it was the weather, the open roads, the empty spaces, the imposing structures, the river, the perfectly arched bridges or the cliché associated with it but something about the city definitely screamed, “Love!” The silly-romantic-non-MBA girl in me kind of resolved to come back here with someone special someday (no offense to my lovely friends!).
After a never-ending walk, we finally reached our destination. The Eiffel didn’t look that perfect anymore. It was just a lot of metal and lights (it does look exceptional during the day, but that was something that I learnt at a much later stage of my visit). It was a wonder of the world nonetheless, so the photo clicking session began. Meanwhile, some Indians and Bangladeshis tried selling us Eiffel Tower key chains, offering us the best of deals. They even tried to please us with their Hindi. But I couldn’t care less. I was all about France and the French that time. The language, the clothes, the mannerisms, the crêpes- all of it. Crêpes! Now I could write a novel about the Nutella strawberry ones made in front of the Eiffel. They were most definitely the BEST that I’d had all across Europe! A soft but crispy crêpe smeared generously with the godly Nutella and add pieces of the sweetest, juiciest, reddest strawberries on earth and tadaaa! You have for yourself, what I’d like to call, “An experience divine”.
The following days we celebrated New Year’s, visited the Louvre, Sacré Cœur (http://bit.ly/12hB5a0) and Notre Dame (http://bit.ly/152Rpxr) and relived our childhood in Disneyland. Paris was my second favorite city in Europe (narrowly defeated by Rome). I can go on and on about each of these experiences, whether it is the evening mass at the Notre Dame or the Tower of Terror in Disneyland. But the fact is that I’d just end up boring you with a lot of details that might seem inconsequential to you, the way I bore some of my friends who missed exchange.
Because you’d never know with what passion and enthusiasm I’m writing this, because you never felt or experienced what I experienced. And hence I’m going to be limiting these blogs only to the fun and exciting parts…
Next stop, Amsterdam!
By Sruti Chatterjee
I recently attended the graduation ceremony of my engineering college (a year too late perhaps, happened in full swing nonetheless). It was good to reconnect with old colleagues. The topics of our conversations ranged from reminiscence of the “good old days” to general curiosity about what the other person had made of their life.
Amidst all the catching up and laughter, I happened to bump into my project mate, a friend who I had spent most of my last semester with, designing (watching him design?) a fancy vehicle locking system. Ashwin squealed out “Sruti, you got everything that you had asked for!” Honestly, I was very confused. Until that day, there hadn’t passed a single day in my life when I hadn’t whined about how I never get what I want. He continued, “It was exactly a year ago that you told me you wanted to do your MBA and that sometime in life you would like to go to France, walk the streets of Paris, admire paintings in that museum- what was it? - Louvre? And oh yes! Eat their food, sip their wine. .6 months into a B-School and you have it all! Some luck woman!” It’s funny how it took a-year-late convocation to make me realize that the world wasn’t conspiring against me after all. While Ashwin, being the enthusiast that he is, chattered on, I took a minute to thank the universe (Rhonda Byrne claims gratitude is key in her latest- “Magic”).
I can’t even begin to explain how/why IIFT has been right for me at so many levels, and the exchange program most definitely tops the list of reasons. When I learnt that I had been nominated to study at IESEG School of Management in Lille, it wasn’t just the fact that I was going to spend a trimester abroad, in “foreign land” that gave me the shivers; people go abroad all the time with their families these days. No, it was about the journey that awaited me, the adventure that I knew that I was going to embark upon with four other friends, some old, some new.
It was the fashion capital indeed…
A walk on Champs Élysées (http://bit.ly/12hzOQj), the most commercial street of Paris, was definitely an eye-opener for a fashion lover like me. Hidden under layers of clothing and a thick black jacket and looking at French girls strutting about in their skirts and high-heeled boots, I felt like the quintessential monkey-capped bong. They were impervious to the 3 degree chill- I was going to follow suit very soon, I just didn’t know it that time. Marked by two significant monuments at its either ends, Champs Élysées was a vision to behold, the whole of it- beautiful people walking on a beautifully decorated street, obnoxiously priced and yet very charming pubs and restaurants, a jazzy ice skating ring, crêpe counters, a real-but-fake snowman, cuddly couples, stalls serving Vin Chaud (http://bit.ly/1bo3z8O) and Louis Vuitton.
As we reached the end of the street, in front of Place de la Concorde (http://bit.ly/11CcUrM), and looked to the right, there it was glimmering in full might, the Eiffel Tower. It was just as gorgeous as the world claims it to be. I was half expecting “Michel Adams presents FTV” to pop up mid air. Delighted with our discovery, we paced towards the Eiffel.
Walking along the Seine late at night was fun. Amidst the gaping-at-the-cars and the getting acclimatized to the grandeur of the buildings, the jokes and comments never stopped coming in. And that’s the best part about traveling with friends. No matter what the situation is, you’re bound to have a good laugh! That is really what makes the journey so memorable and worth it.
As we walked, we came across a hell lot of couples, smitten by each other, completely in love. Honestly, I don’t blame them. There was something about Paris; it was almost designed for love. I don’t know whether it was the weather, the open roads, the empty spaces, the imposing structures, the river, the perfectly arched bridges or the cliché associated with it but something about the city definitely screamed, “Love!” The silly-romantic-non-MBA girl in me kind of resolved to come back here with someone special someday (no offense to my lovely friends!).
After a never-ending walk, we finally reached our destination. The Eiffel didn’t look that perfect anymore. It was just a lot of metal and lights (it does look exceptional during the day, but that was something that I learnt at a much later stage of my visit). It was a wonder of the world nonetheless, so the photo clicking session began. Meanwhile, some Indians and Bangladeshis tried selling us Eiffel Tower key chains, offering us the best of deals. They even tried to please us with their Hindi. But I couldn’t care less. I was all about France and the French that time. The language, the clothes, the mannerisms, the crêpes- all of it. Crêpes! Now I could write a novel about the Nutella strawberry ones made in front of the Eiffel. They were most definitely the BEST that I’d had all across Europe! A soft but crispy crêpe smeared generously with the godly Nutella and add pieces of the sweetest, juiciest, reddest strawberries on earth and tadaaa! You have for yourself, what I’d like to call, “An experience divine”.
The following days we celebrated New Year’s, visited the Louvre, Sacré Cœur (http://bit.ly/12hB5a0) and Notre Dame (http://bit.ly/152Rpxr) and relived our childhood in Disneyland. Paris was my second favorite city in Europe (narrowly defeated by Rome). I can go on and on about each of these experiences, whether it is the evening mass at the Notre Dame or the Tower of Terror in Disneyland. But the fact is that I’d just end up boring you with a lot of details that might seem inconsequential to you, the way I bore some of my friends who missed exchange.
Because you’d never know with what passion and enthusiasm I’m writing this, because you never felt or experienced what I experienced. And hence I’m going to be limiting these blogs only to the fun and exciting parts…
Next stop, Amsterdam!
By Sruti Chatterjee
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