Last blog entry for the MBA 2009 year

- Marcella Rispo

IMD MBA Partner Coordinator

The partner coordinator, for those not in the know, is the resource person assigned by IMD to partners/spouses in order to guide them through the first few daunting and grey months when they arrive in Lausanne. From providing information on childcare to passing on titbits from the previous years, from offering advice on where to shop most conveniently to how to find a doctor who speaks English – I am here as a link, a ‘man on the ground’, a reference point. I am also an ex-partner myself – I too have taken this famous journey and can very much relate to those partners who choose to relocate to Lausanne.

Every year I welcome a new group, a new combination of nationalities, a new blend of characters, a new batch of varied, different yet always very interesting people. With the MBAs you sort of know what you are getting as they are interviewed, screened and grilled, whereas with the partners it’s mostly a lottery. Moreover, even if some do get in touch via email or visit Lausanne for a preview, until January comes and I actually meet their eager and expectant faces, I have no clue as to what the individual or the group will actually be like.

So we all get to know each other – I them, they me and each, the other. Yet it was soon evident that the partners 2009 were full of initiative, ideas, projects, and enthusiasm for the great unknown lurking before them. From early on they got busy organising partner evenings, playgroups, outings, cooking swaps, this blog, and surprisingly helped each other when in need, AND managed to keep it up throughout the year! That is truly impressive. I have seen 4 years of partners go through my hands and this year is definitely an A++ group!

Let’s not forget how difficult the first few months really were – settling-in in a new, (for some too cold) country, no family to count on, with often limited budgets, cramped in small at times uncomfortable flats, in a country that is not their own, nor is theirs to make, as after 11 months they will most likely be off to some new foreign destination. Some had left behind high powered jobs, lots of family support, huge networks of friends and colleagues, big houses, big budgets (!) for a year of (mostly) huge expense!

Yet despite that, they managed to raise kids, give birth to quite a few of them (!!), come out of bad spells, work and/or study, care for children while setting up their own business/finish their degrees, get involved in local projects, travel, learn French, get to know different cultures, deal with the stuff of routine, and..and..and..

Finally after 6 of the worst months at IMD, the students emerged from their dungeons to rejoin their partners for a well deserved break, as the blog entry below testifies and even though it seemed that December would never arrive it only arrived too quickly – suddenly it was the last partner evening, the last playgroup, the last birthday party, the last baby shower, the last time I would address them. And of course Graduation – the Ceremony in the morning, the Ball at night. Yet it was lovely – it was lovely to see them all together, formal in the morning, beautiful and elegant in the evening.

By the time this entry will be published, however, most will have left Lausanne – no more bumping into a familiar face in the local Migros, no more casual crossings on the way to the lake or into town, no more sharing the school runs with other parents.

It has been a pleasure to accompany this year’s mélange through their journeys – I am sad to see them go, but at the same time I am glad for them. Now they can start doing some real living in a new, hopefully, less temporary, destination.

I wish you all the best for your new beginnings, new adventures and new challenges and hope you treasure your souvenirs of this memorable year.

I will miss you

Marcella

Recipe of the Month- Chanwanmushi (Japanese Steamed Egg Custard)

- Aya Saito-Shieshakly

Chanwanmushi (Japanese Steamed Egg Custard)

(Serves 4 people)

Ingredients

2 eggs

400ml of dashi stock

2 teaspoons of mirin

1 teaspoon of soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon of salt

4 shrimps

1 chicken thigh (40g)

4 shitake mushrooms

4 cross-section slices of carrot

1 teaspoon of chopped chives

Marinade

Sake

Salt

Soy sauce

* Amount is up to the individual (can be between 2-3 tablespoons per condiment)

Cooking Method

(A) Preparation of shrimp, chickan, shitake and carrot

1. Shell and devein shrimps.

2. Debone the chicken and cut into smaller pieces.

3. Chop the stem off the Shitake mushrooms and cut out a cross on the top of shitake mushrooms.

4. Marinate the shrimp with salt and sake. At the same time, marinate the chicken with some sake and soy sauce. Let it stay for about a few minutes.

5. Cut out the shape of a sakura flower for each carrot cross-section. Boil the slices.

(B) Preparation of dashi stock

* Dashi stock can be bought as instant stock cubes or if you prefer to make it the traditional way, follow the steps below:

1. Cut up one sheet of konbu (hard and dried, dark green seaweed, about 1/3oz) to help release the flavour.

2. Place in a cold water in a pot and bring to boil.

3. When the water is boiling, remove the konbu and add a shot of cold water to reduce boiling. Now add 2 cups of bonito flakes (dried fish shavings).

4. Remove from fire and let it stand briefly.

5. Strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer.

(C) Making the chawanmushi

1. Beat the 2 eggs with a pair of chopsticks with a cutting movement (so as to reduce bubbles).

2. Warm the dashi stock to body temperature (36-37 degrees) in the microwave. Then, add the mirin, 1 teaspoon of soy sauce and the salt and stir.

3. Add the beaten eggs through a strainer into the dashi stock now.

4. Burst any bubbles that appear on the surface of the mixture.

5. Place one shrimp, some chicken pieces and one shitake in each cup.

6. Now, pour the mixture into the cups. Cover the cup with its lid. (If you do not have a lid for the cup, cover the cups with some alumimium foil.)

7. Place the cups in the steamer on high heat for about 2 minutes.

8. After 2 minutes, turn down to a low fire.

9. Keep steaming for 15min or once you see a clear liquid appear on the surface of the egg custard, whichever is earlier.

10. To check if the custard is ready, put a skewer through the custard. If it comes out clean, it is ready.

11 Place a carrot slice on top and garnish with some chopped chives.

Serve hot as appetiser.

From São Paulo to Lausanne - a lifetime experience

- Patricia de Alcantara Avellar Portnoi

A year ago when my husband, Bruno, was accepted to IMD, I was terrified about moving to Switzerland. I didn’t want to quit my job and have no idea what my options in Lausanne were. Anyway, I came in January to help him settle down and explore the place a little bit.

Surprisingly, I liked it very much. I realised that I was tired of traffic jams, rush hours, noise, and crazy deadlines at work. Lausanne is so quiet, that I could sleep so well, better than ever before. I really like the IMD atmosphere, meeting all the partners and participating in the activities organised by IMD. I went back to Brazil for a while, and decided to come back to Lausanne as soon as possible.

I returned in late March and in the beginning of April, I became pregnant. I couldn’t believe that I became pregnant so fast. I was planning to have a baby, but thought it would take some time to happen. Going to the doctor and seeing the baby’s little heart beating through the ultrasound was one of the most exciting moments in my life. The pregnancy brought a lot of happiness but also nausea, uncontrollable desire to sleep and a lot of changes in my eating habits. And now, also a really big belly!!!

I would like to work in Lausanne, but I had no idea how to get a job. When Marcella sent an e-mail with a job opportunity, I applied and started to work in late May. It was really good to be busy while my husband was spending days and nights at IMD. I had the chance to meet different people and travel to Prague to work.

Travelling was also a great experience while living in Switzerland. Living in the centre of Europe offered me the possibility to know amazing places and lots of different countries.

And last but not least, I enjoyed meeting partners from all over the world, discovering different cultures and developing deep friendships.

Now, with only 40 days to graduation day, I look back and see that I had an unforgettable year and a lifetime experience. I hope everyone had as much fun as I had.

Warmly

Patricia

Summer holiday – Part II

Here comes Part II of our summer entry with some great pictures documenting our holidays...

Khatera: We spent our holiday in Gstaad and nearby destinations such as Interlaken. Attached a picture: It's a picture of Vahid and me at the Giessbach Waterfalls, where Sherlock Holmes is said to have died.

Mariella: This is Greece, one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen!

Smita: Since I was yet to get my permit, we decided to do rounds in Switzerland itself since there were many places to go. So we went to Geneva and Neuchatel, taking out an entire day at each place. And I would vouch, it was FUN!!!!!!!!!

"Lysefjord- on our way to the Pulpit Rock, Norway"

Mahima: We covered parts of Baltic and Scandinavia

Laura: here is Alexander enjoying his bath outside with his Daddy. We are at Johan's ancestral summer cottage, in the Finnish archipelago.

Angela: Hiking in the Swiss Alps

Elena: This is the photo from our family. In the photo we are on our way from Switzerland to Italy through the Alps.

Swati: Lost in the Irish greens with Prashant

Beate: Last picture of my "vacation-trip" - me and my friends in the Boston "T"

Holiday destinations: Germany - Lausanne - La Palmye, France - Germany - Boston - NYC – Boston

Angie: Me and Nikos at the waterfalls in Interlaken (Switzerland). The nature amazed us.

At the Sagrada Familia, Spain

Kelly: This summer holiday was a whirlwind trip from Singapore (1 week with my husband, Henry, who is on IMD's Asia Trek Programme, while I visit family and friends at home) to Spain (personal holiday, 2 weeks with Henry), then to UK (my own holiday, 2 weeks to visit my sister)

Patricia: My baby and I at Acropolis, Athens – Greece

Anita: I had loads of fun in the UK, Israel, South Africa and Germany. The picture shows Oren and me at Boulders Beach, near Cape Town, where you can find a penguin colony.

Summer holiday – Part I

The partners had fantastic 3 weeks of holidays in July and travelled to various destinations. Aude, however, didn't have any time to relax and spent her summer time at a place most of us have only seen from the outside.

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- Aude Tavernier

After 6 months of sitting down on my chair as a student at EPFL from 8:30 to 16:30 and being a good mother for Alicia from 16:30 to 20:30, I expected holidays.

As my daily schedule was not full enough we launched a second pregnancy .

When the vacation time arrived, 2 choices were offered to me: an internship at CHUV in Supply Chain Department or 6 months of waking up at 9 : 30 am, cooking and taking care of my dear family.

I decided without hesitation to validate my executive master through this internship and ensure me to find a job in 2010.

After 2 days at my sister in law's wedding, Benoit and Alicia stayed in France to have the rest they deserved, enjoyed the sun and saw all friends we missed during the first 6 months and I came back to Lausanne to wake up every morning at 5 : 30 am with the " crappy" alarm which reminded me every morning that it will be interesting and I will earn the income we missed also during the first 6 months (and the first and last opportunity to earn more than my husband for 5 months : - )).

Work at CHUV is really interesting but also a terrific experience. My job within Supply Chain Department is to analyse the flow of materials and commodities, customers, quantities ... and know all issues and suggest improvements and recommendations. Commodities is quite wide, from wastes (from food to needles..) to sterilized tools, deceased person, all pharmaceutical products and so on.

The 1st week will remain in my mind for a long time: I went to 2 morgues (which is not the best area to have fun but we are in a hospital!), to the floor for drug-addicts to carry substitutes for heroin (to be honnest, I didn't feel comfortable with those guys with tattoos and piercings on their faces) but the worst for me was when I visited the sterilization centre and the guy showed me all tools for birth (to cut, to help the baby come outside or to stitch up the mother) ... my stomach was close to my lips !!!

After 2 weeks, Benoit and Alicia came back home. I was happy to have a rest but also understood how good it is to have a family, I missed nappies and cries. Nevertheless, I think it is really good for parents and children to be separate some times to appreciate the time we spend together.

I now know all the organization well and go to work later in the morning (between 7:30 and 8:00) to have breakfast with my family. As Benoit has every weekend free, we increase our social life, we go every weekend to new places in Switzerland and every weekend is for me like a really good vacation, which in fact I often spend with some of you partners.

Nevertheless, in November I will start long long holidays of 4 months minimum! Even if it will be difficult to wake up every night , change nappies every hour and stand cries of 2 babies the whole day, I won't have stress of the "crappy" alarm every morning, goals to reach at work and have a rest of 10 minutes per day (when I'm in the bathroom !!! )

I hope your holidays were good and you enjoyed the time spent with your family as I enjoy mine.

Cheers and Hugs

Aude

Loving Summer, Loving Lausanne

- Kelly Chong

If anyone had asked me in May about my stay in Lausanne so far, I would have said, “Oh yes, Lausanne is a really nice place – clean, safe, quiet and beautiful surroundings, but I do miss home somewhat and Lausanne can be quiet to the point of exasperation at times…

Ask me again after summer vacation and now, I have to admit – Switzerland is starting to feel like home! After a whirlwind summer vacation – 1 week in Singapore, 2 weeks in Spain, 1 week in the UK – one starts to feel the weariness of fast-paced city life and long for the endless green vastness of the Swiss landscape, the serenity of Lac Leman and the calming sight of people walking their dogs …

But more than the idea of Switzerland being a slow, peaceful environment to take a break from a break is the feeling that Lausanne with its friendly residents, tranquil air, and our cosy apartment has now become a most successful formula to make us so comfortable, that we can now hardly imagine leaving Switzerland!

Make no mistake though; my above description does not therefore mean Switzerland is a slow place for people with a slow pace. Indeed, the Lausanne I return to is a Lausanne full of life revelling in the glory of the summer sun. There is always something happening at the lakefront, be it a music event or a festival, and this is the same for neighbouring towns. Gstaad has a series of concerts with visiting orchestras from overseas; Montreux had its world-famous Jazz Festival, and Vevey just had its beach volleyball competitions and Street Artistes’ Festival. In beaches from Lausanne to Lutry, sun-lovers stretch out languidly side by side, while water-lovers luxuriate in the sparkling, cool water. Many also fight for space on the platforms bobbing in the lake, while more others wait for their turn to dive off the boards into the cool water. Mixing with the coconut-ty scent of sun-tanning oil are the delicious smells of grilled sausages and other meats wafting up from the numerous barbecue grills dotting the beach. And pedal-boats are popular with both young and old.

Besides picnics, barbecues and a splashing good time, summer is also a time for sports-enthusiasts – hiking, rock-climbing, biking, water-skiing, canoeing, parasailing, white-water rafting … you name it, Switzerland probably has it. Indeed, this coming week sees a triathlon in action. Many of us also take the time now to make short weekend trips to explore the region – neighbouring France and Italy offer choices galore. And if you are into wine-tasting and do not want to venture too far, do not despair, for the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Lavaux Wine Terraces are just a matter of minutes away from Lausanne.

Indeed, summer is such a blissful season, that you find it within yourself to forgive Lausanne for its harsh winters. And you are again easily convinced that Switzerland is the place to be in. Now, as I look back at our first months here, and compare with the Lausanne I know now, laundry days and being in a foreign-language environment (i.e. French for me) are hardly the terrifying monsters we once thought them to be. And instead now, I try to contain my creeping panic that sometimes clutch at me, at the thought of how time is fast slipping by as we move inevitably towards the end of our Swiss sojourn here. You remind yourself to treasure every day, every hour, every minute, every second of being in the centre of Europe, in this beautiful country, especially when you have made strong friendships with classmates and other partners, who have walked this journey with you this year. More importantly, this one year has given me and my husband more time together to talk about our plans and life journey ahead. For at least, this is the one thing one can take away besides the numerous photographs of this breath-taking place – the irreplaceable experience of being in Lausanne together, of growing as a couple throughout this new experience, of making friends with classmates of other countries and cultures in Lausanne together, and of falling in love with Lausanne together. For this, I thank my husband, Henry, for bringing us to IMD, to Switzerland.

Some pictures from the summer - http://picasaweb.google.com/kellychongsw/HappyInSummer?feat=directlink

Experiences of a working partner

- Liubov Pochivalova

For my entry in the partners’ diary, I’d like to share the experience of a full-time working partner.

When my husband, Slava, shared the great news about his admission to the program with me, we were very happy. I started to make my plans on all the activities I’d like to do during this year. I wanted to be 100% involved in all social events and not miss a thing.

However, it appeared to be quite difficult. I am working full time in Geneva and it is completely exhausting to work all day and commute by public transport, so quite often in the evenings and on weekends, I don’t have energy to enjoy the events completely. And there are so many nice trips around the area organized by other girls during the day time on working days.

Nevertheless, it is still very exciting to meet so many interesting people. International exposure is unique: we, partners, represent at least 10 different nationalities. And people are eager to share their cultural traits. For example, on 22 June 2009, we were watching an Indian movie : « Monsoon Wedding>>. Swati and her husband Prashant from India were explaining to us the unique features of Indian traditions. We had fun and also learned something new and very interesting.

I believe we have more interesting parts coming up!