Third Week in Asia!

Sunday (5.13) rolls around, and it’s the same breakfast-gym-pool routine in the morning, but then in the afternoon the rest of our party joins us in Phuket! We make quite a ruckus at the pool bar before we hang out in the pool for a few hours. The early afternoons are brutally hot, so we hunker down in our hotel rooms again for a few hours while we wait for the temperatures to drop a bit. At night, it’s time to have a group dinner – we head to a popular restaurant in Phuket called Sea Hag! The dinner is delicious, and it’s so much fun hanging out with the whole gang.

Beautiful drink decorations!

Red curry with prawns at Sea Hag!

Part of the group at dinner!

Monday (5.14) is my last full day in Phuket before I head back to Bangkok for a little while, so I try and make the most of it. We spend the morning on the beach before I realize I need to buy some souvenirs from Thailand! There’s a big souvenir store located around the corner from our hotel. I choose to do my souvenir shopping here to get everything done at once. These big stores generally have fixed prices, which is good if you don’t want to bargain for a fair price at a street stall! I find gifts for my mom and a few of my close friends, and I buy a fun elephant buddy for me!

My new elephant buddy!

In the evening, we have dinner at the beach and watch the sunset. It’s a great way to spend my last night in Phuket! Once the sun’s down and everyone’s rested up, we finally decide to check out the infamous bar street in Phuket – Bangla Road – and head to Tiger Bar. Tiger Bar actually houses many, many mini-bars, all with different names and different staff. It’s a little confusing at first, especially when the staff at the different bars try to grab you and have you sit down at their bar! Otherwise, it’s like you might expect of Thailand, with scantily clad “go-go” dancers everywhere. It’s a little overwhelming for me – I also have an early flight – so I head back to the hotel after a few hours.

Beautiful sunset in Phuket

I fly back to Bangkok early on Tuesday (5.15) morning. My hotel room at the Grand Milllennium Sukhumvit isn’t ready until noon, so I decide to go and visit the Grand Palace while I wait for the room to be cleaned. I make the mistake of walking the entire way back and forth from the National Stadium train station. A 5-mile hike in 90-plus degree weather is not something I anticipated! I manage to make it back to my hotel, but I start feeling feverish and chilly at the same time, so I consult the on-site doctor, who tells me I have… heatstroke. Yikes. I go back to my room, drink enough water for a week, draw a bath and then finally crawl into bed for several hours. When I wake up, I’m starving, so I cave into ordering room service. I go back to bed for the rest of the night.

Interesting detail at the Grand Palace!

Grand Palace

On Wednesday (5.16) morning I am feeling much better. I have to make an emergency phone call to my parents to let them know I’m doing okay, and that I’m heading to Hong Kong soon. It’s expensive to make an international call from the hotel, but this is my first time calling them since I left Korea! Later on, I have some paperwork I need to send for my corporate residency. Luckily they have a fax machine at the hotel, so I take care of that pretty quickly! Then it’s time to organize my stuff – funny how things ended up all over the floor yesterday. I spend some time relaxing after that; I’m still feeling a little woozy. In the afternoon, it’s finally time to head to Hong Kong! I arrive around 6pm. Two of my classmates were on the same flight, so we grab a cab to our hotel. We have dinner at a ramen place around the corner from our hotel, and happen to see two other classmates walking by outside!

Thursday (5.17) is a free day in Hong Kong! The IFS trip doesn’t formally start until tomorrow, and so people continue to arrive throughout the day. The folks who are already here decide to get dim sum at Tin Ho Wan, the only Michelin-starred dim sum restaurant in the world. One of my classmates has a culinary background, so he’s been researching good places to eat in Hong Kong. There are a few dim sum places in Boston’s Chinatown, but they all pale in comparison to the real thing! The BBQ pork buns at Tin Ho Wan are fantastic, by the way.

Tin Ho Wan Restaurant!

The rest of the afternoon is spent exploring the city. This is my first time in Hong Kong; I’m really excited about seeing the sights. Our hotel – Cityview Hotel – is located right next to Nathan Road, which is a huge shopping area in Hong Kong. There are stores and restaurants all over the place, and it’s fun to walk around and people-watch. We have dinner at a small sushi place. At night, we check out a street market. I buy myself a small magnet as a souvenir and try some street snacks!

Trinkets at the street market!

Nathan Road

The “study” portion of the IFS trip starts on Friday (5.18). It’s a little weird getting back into the school groove. The entire class meets at 7:30am to officially start the day. I’m not jetlagged anymore, so this is an early start time for me! After introductions, we have some time to eat breakfast. Our schedule is pretty packed, with two business visits – Manulife (an insurance company) and Jardines (a strategic planning group). In between the sites, we have lunch at a nice restaurant called The Press Room. Once the visits are over, the rest of the evening is free. A few of us venture out to Lan Kwai Fong on Hong Kong Island to indulge in cocktails. Lan Kwai Fong is the main nightlife street in HK, and there are a LOT of fun places to go there!

Saturday (5.19) is a city tour day. The whole group is taken on a guided tour of the major sites in Hong Kong. First we visit Victoria Peak to get a fantastic view of the city. Then we’re off to Repulse Bay to take a look at a local beach and a small temple. Finally, we take a boat tour of the Aberdeen fishing village before we make a final stop at Stanley Market for a bit of souvenir shopping!

View from Victoria Peak

Aberdeen Fishing Village

More dim sum - this time at Stanley Market!

After the first part of our day is over, we have some free time before a fantastic cruise around the harbor. The staff on the junk is all dressed up in Chinese pirate garb to add an element of fun to the cruise. Once the cruise is over, the whole group gets a chance to watch the light show on the big skyscrapers in Hong Kong. It’s fun watching the lights change to music. Then finally it’s time for dinner at a Chinese-style restaurant with Peking duck! We have an early flight to Shanghai the next morning, so I check in for the night shortly after dinner. 

A gorgeous sunset in Hong Kong!

Second Week in Asia!

My schedule is pretty full on Sunday (5.6). I meet my two eldest cousins in Seoul for lunch! They are my favorite cousins, and I always make a point to see them whenever I’m in Korea. Both of them have crazy work hours, so unfortunately this is the only time I will see them during my entire trip.

My cousins' adorable puppy joined us!

After lunch at a restaurant called ‘Mad for Garlic’, we walk around a bit before stopping for some coffee! Drinking coffee is a typical way to end a meal in Korea. Iced coffee drinks in hand, we head over to Garosu-gil (가로수길) to look at all the cute boutiques. It’s a lot like Newbury Street in Boston. Lots of small boutiques, some big chain stores, chic restaurants, and the obligatory coffee places!

Later in the afternoon, I meet a friend from Charlotte who is teaching English in Korea this year! It’s so nice to see her and catch up. We go to Myeongdong (명동) – a HUGE shopping district in Korea that’s stuffed to the gills with stores representing every mega retailer known to man, from Forever 21 and Gap to H&M and Zara. It’s crowded with young shoppers, restaurants, and coffee places (seeing any trends yet?). I find Myeongdong a little exhausting, but it’s worth a visit if you’ve never seen it, especially late at night. We chat over Indian food and then try to browse the shops without getting run over by the crowds before going our separate ways.

Figurines at the Indian restaurant

I haven’t visited any cultural or historical sites thus far during this trip. Since I’ve been to Korea several times before, I’ve already seen most of the museums and historical monuments. But I figure it’s high time for a history lesson on Monday (5.7)! I take a tour of the Gyeongbok Palace (경복궁) for the first time. Gyeongbok Palace was the royal seat of power starting in the 1300s up until the Japanese occupation in the early 1900s. I walk around the sprawling palace complex – I also see the Blue House for the first time! The Blue House is Korea’s version of the White House; like its name implies, it’s blue!

Changing of the guard ceremony in Gyeongbok Palace

The Blue House is heavily guarded, naturally!

I head out the main gate - called ‘Gwanghwamun’ (광화문), and famous for the painting of a pair of phoenix on the ceiling - and see a gigantic statue of King Sejong. He is considered one of the greatest Korean kings. King Sejong invented the official written form of the Korean language, known as Hangeul, in the 1400s. Prior to that, Koreans used Chinese characters to write. King Sejong felt it was important to establish a unique written language to separate Korea from the Middle Kingdom. While he is certainly not the first Korean king (by quite a few centuries), he is arguably the most famous! A big golden statue of him now sits in the square in front of the main entrance to the palace.

Gwanghwamun

King Sejong!

I stop at Bonespe Bread for some lemonade and a quick rest after walking all up and down the palace complex. Then it’s another trek to a movie theater to watch ‘The Avengers’! I know it’s a little silly to watch a Hollywood blockbuster movie while I’m in a foreign country, but I don’t think I’ll have time to watch the movie once I get back to Boston. I have to organize my move to Connecticut, start work at Hamilton Sundstrand, and take a one-credit class!

On Tuesday (5.8), I’m off to the Ilsan area to have lunch with my two great-aunts. We eat at a sushi place, and then it’s time for the obligatory post-meal coffee. My great-aunts decide to do some shopping after that, and I excuse myself to go wander around the La Festa area. I need to pick up some souvenirs for a friend back in the States! Once I find something, I settle down in a gelato place to work on my personal short story project… and to indulge in some strawberry gelato! It’s Parents’ Day in Korea; there aren’t separate days for moms and dads! I pick up a small gift for my great-aunt for Parents’ Day, and to say thank you for letting me stay at her place for eight days!

Time to say goodbye to the Land of the Morning Glory on Wednesday (5.9)… see you next time, Korea! Hello, Land of a Thousand Smiles! My flight leaves at 9:30 in the morning, and I have a layover in Guangzhou, China. It is HOT in Guangzhou! I can only imagine how hot (and humid) it will be when I’m in Hong Kong on the 16^th. Yikes. I land in Bangkok around 6pm, exchange some money, and navigate the train system to get to Adelphi Suites – my hotel for the night. It is hot and humid in Thailand, and I’m sweating like crazy after the 100-meter walk to my hotel.

A little something from Boston at Incheon airport!

 I can’t even begin to describe how pleasant the hotel staff is at Adelphi Suites! They notice I’m sweating (profusely) and bring me a cold towel to wipe my face, along with a cup of delicious sweet tea. I finally get to drop all of my stuff in the room. The hotel has put me on a women-only floor, which is much appreciated. I change and get dinner at the hotel restaurant, because I’m a little wary of eating from street stalls. I also have a cocktail. Compliments of the hotel bar! Then I head out again to explore a little bit. I don’t walk too far from the hotel, just to be on the safe side. My hotel is located off of Sukhumvit Road, which is one of the busiest streets I have EVER seen. At 10pm, the whole area is full of people, cars, shops, stands… it’s a little overwhelming. I return to my hotel room, and settle down for the night. It feels so luxurious to have air-conditioning and a soft bed after a week of sleeping on the floor in my great-aunt’s very stuffy house.

My enormous hotel room!

I’m up early again to fly to Phuket on Thursday (5.10)!  Whew. This “jet-setting” lifestyle is exhausting! I take the train to the airport in Bangkok. I arrive in Phuket a little bit before noon. There’s a crush of cabbies waiting outside the gate, but I choose to take the cheaper minibus for 150 baht, about 5 dollars. The only downside is that I have to sit around and wait until the entire bus is full! The minibus drops me off at my hotel. Once my suitcase is in the room, I opt to take a dip in the pool. The sun is fiercely hot, though, so I only swim for 30 minutes before retreating back into my hotel room for a nap. I woke up at 5am this morning, and I’m pooped.  

Gigantic statues in Bangkok's international airport!

Waiting for the minibus to take me to my hotel!

Friday (5.11), I wake up early again. The hotel offers a free breakfast buffet starting at 6:30, so I have some fruit and go back to my room to read. Once I’m done reading for the day, I go to the gym, and then it’s time for the pool again! Two of my friends arrived late last night, and another classmate arrives in the early afternoon! After ten days of wandering around by myself, it’s definitely fun to hang out with my friends… and in Thailand! We spend some more time lazing around the pool before heading out to explore the island. In the evening, it’s time to try some authentic Thai curry at a local restaurant called Summer Wind!   

Yum!

Saturday (5.12) is another leisurely day with an early breakfast and some more time by the pool! I have roasted myself several shades darker in the past few days. Most of my team for the IFS research paper is in Phuket (with our fifth member arriving tomorrow!), so we discuss the project briefly. We need to email a copy of our handout to the professor before noon! Once that’s all set, it’s time for lunch. I found glowing reviews on TripAdvisor about a restaurant called No. 6 Restaurant, and it’s conveniently located right around the corner from our hotel! Oh, wow. If you ever have the opportunity to visit Phuket, I HIGHLY recommend No. 6 Restaurant! The food is so good, and you know it’s good if even the locals flock to eat there. It’s also very affordable for us broke grad-school students. Two of us ate like kings for a grand total of 310 baht – ten US dollars.

Walking to No. 6 Restaurant!

It’s a little too hot to do anything around noon, so I work on a few things in my hotel room before going to the gym for a little while. When it’s finally a smidge cooler – as in 87 degrees instead of 90 – we venture back outside to explore the beach and then have dinner at a local place. It’s another wonderful night in Phuket! 

First Week of Summer... in Asia!

The first full week of “summer” break! I sleep in on Sunday (4.29) morning – naturally – before getting up to take care of some last-minute travel plans. I’m so excited to be spending an entire month overseas before I start my residency! In the early afternoon, I attend a friend’s senior harp recital. She is graduating from Boston College in just a few weeks! It’s my first time at a harp recital, so I’m not entirely sure what to expect. It is absolutely lovely!

After the recital, I rush around for some last-minute errands – mainly to get a converter for my electronic devices. I decide to splurge on a universal converter, just in case that backpacking trip through Europe happens. I head home after I manage to finish everything, but now it’s time to seriously pack! Living out of my suitcase for an entire month will definitely be interesting. I also download a few new books onto my Nook to have with me on the flight. I LOVE having an e-reader! It makes it so easy to have several books with me at once. And I’m so excited about traveling; I can barely sleep a wink on Sunday night.

I’m up before dawn on Monday (4.30). My first flight leaves Boston at 8:35am, so I wake up at 4:45, get dressed and drag myself onto the train. I’m a little nervous because this is the first time I used airfare.com to book a flight. Fortunately, I have no problems when I check in at the Virgin Airlines desk! The security guards heckle me (in a good-natured way) for wearing a Philadelphia Flyers sweatshirt before letting me through. The only negative part of my flight is that Virgin Airlines does not give out snacks for free! I break down about three hours into the six-hour flight because I am STARVING and the cheese plate my neighbor orders looks too good to pass up.

I land in San Francisco for a short layover. Oh, and our grades are published! Given how sick I was throughout the semester, I’m not surprised that my overall GPA is now a little bit lower. Only a smidge, though, and I still have plenty of time to bring it back up! I call my mom to tell her the good news, and she is equally pleased that I was able to make it through the stressful semester. Most of Monday is spent flying, and then I lose a day because of the 12-hour time difference.

I land in Seoul on Tuesday (5.1) around 7pm and hop on a bus to Ilsan to meet my great-aunt. Ilsan is technically a suburb of Seoul. The densely populated capital started to have “spillover” into the neighboring areas; now many folks live just outside of Seoul and commute in and out of the city. I say it’s “technically” a suburb, because it’s not at all like an American suburb! It is chock full of apartment buildings and shopping centers. I’m staying with my great-aunt while I’m in Korea. She lives close enough to Seoul for me to go back and forth freely. My great-aunt gives me some blankets and a thick mat to sleep on during my stay.

Wednesday (5.2) is spent drafting my section of the Chinese wine industry paper. I know the IFS trip sounds like all fun, but we actually do have to do some work! I find a teahouse in the Insadong area and hole myself up for a few hours. Once I have a cleaned-up draft to put in my team’s Dropbox, I decide it’s time to explore! I’ve been to Korea before several times – the last time I was here teaching English for an entire year! There’s always something new to see, though. I wander around Insadong for a bit. It’s a great little neighborhood chock full of traditional teahouses, and a good place to pick up traditional souvenirs – masks, hanboks, embroidery, tea sets and name seals! I stumble across a public park and take pictures for most of the day before heading home.  

My view from the second floor window.

Cute little coffee shop!

"Street sign" in Insadong!

On Thursday (5.3), I go to the Hongik University area. Hongik University is known throughout the country as the best art school. So it’s no surprise that everything in and around the university is all funky and cool. This is the only area I’ve seen tattoo parlors in Korea. Tattoos are still something of a taboo in Korean society; it is considered to be disrespectful to your parents, who “gave” you your body, and tattoos are also linked to gangs. A lot of the popular younger Korean celebrities have been getting them, though, so it’s not quite as stigmatized.

Being a university area, there are a ridiculous number of small little coffee places and restaurants to choose from – I stumble across a hidden gem called Coffee Lab and grab an iced caramel latte to go. It’s been unseasonably warm for the beginning of May in Korea, with daily highs of 80+ degrees (Fahrenheit). Oh well! That doesn’t stop me from walking for almost three hours. Then, a bright pink monstrosity stops me in my tracks. The Hello Kitty Café looms before me in all of its Pepto-Bismol glory, and I just can’t resist! I stop in, order myself a Hello Kitty-shaped waffle, and then spend several hours reading Game of Thrones on my Nook while lounging in a Hello Kitty-shaped chair in a nicely air-conditioned café!  

Too cute!

Hello, Hello Kitty Cafe!

Friday (5.4) is “see the family” day. I make the trek south of Seoul down to Osan. It’s quite a trip from Seoul, but the train system in Korea makes it possible to get almost anywhere. I have lunch with two of my uncles, and then dinner with another uncle and one of my aunts and their kids (my cousins). It’s nice to see a small part of my extended family. It takes me almost three hours to get back to my great-aunt’s house, and I’m exhausted when I walk in the door at 1 in the morning.

Not surprisingly, I wake up a little late on Saturday (5.5).  My great-aunt takes me out for a late breakfast for one of my favorite Korean meals – 설렁탕 (seol-leong-tang), which is a traditional soup made from bone marrow! It’s delicious, and once I’m stuffed, it’s time for my daily adventure. My great-aunt drops me off at a nearby bus stop… and I start off the day by getting completely and utterly lost.  I’m not paying attention when I get off the bus, and I end up walking God-knows-where for about an hour before I give up and hail a cab.

Eventually I wind up in the La Festa shopping area in Ilsan. I find shelter in a CoffeeBean & Tea Leaf café. Have I mentioned that Koreans are completely obsessed with coffee? Another iced caramel latte for me (except it’s more expensive and not nearly as good as Coffee Lab’s…), and I’m back to work on our paper about the wine industry. I majored in Chinese Studies during my undergrad days, so I find this project pretty interesting. I edit my team’s rough draft, make a cover page and write a short abstract for our paper before I start working on my backlog of posts for this blog. I’m a little behind. Once all the writing is done, I take a stroll around and look at the shops!  

I stop by a music store and buy two CDs featuring my favorite Korean group – BigBang! They’re probably one of my favorite groups to come out of Korea in a while. The five members occasionally break off into pairs or do solo projects, and I actually buy ALL of their music on iTunes. I really like the artwork and design on their CD packaging, though, which is why I end up paying 25 dollars for a semi-outdated technology!

After picking up a pair of new sunglasses (my aviators are inexplicably scratched), I catch a bus and get off at the right stop… except this time I can’t seem to find a cab to take me the rest of the way to my great-aunt’s house! I walk the three miles instead. My great-aunt thinks I’m crazy for walking that far in the sun without a hat or sunscreen. Oh well!

Last Week of the Spring Semester!

Sunday (4.22) – more Finance! I have to admit, I don’t do much on Sunday morning. I’m not much of a morning person, and I never have been. Instead, I sleep in and watch cartoons (ha). I tune into the first few minutes of the Flyers game before I have to head out for our third and final study session for Finance! We do a review of all the topics we’ve already discussed and go through some sample problems. I am so much more comfortable with the material after an entire weekend of studying! It definitely helps that I took a little time each day to study, and didn’t cram it all into one night.

A few of us head off to get food and take a short break from all the financial terms and concepts – and to catch part of the Bruins game. My team has already secured their spot in the next round, so I only watch with passing interest. The Bruins manage to eke out a win, so they’re still in the playoffs. After the study break, I finish up adding some key equations to my (professor-sanctioned) cheat sheet as well as some more info about Black-Scholes option pricing model. Then I spend some time researching and trying to book the rest of my flights for my upcoming month in Asia!

Our IFS trip to China doesn’t start until May 17^th, but I’m traveling before and after the trip. This means coordinating a ton of flights from (are you ready for this?) Boston to Seoul to Bangkok to Phuket to Hong Kong, and then from Beijing to Tokyo and then back to Boston. Yeah, just a little crazy! After booking two flights, I have to call my bank and inform them I am trying to book more flights so they remove the security block on my card. By the end of the evening, I have most of my flights booked! Then I turn in for the night to get some sleep before my final!

Monday (4.23), I magically wake up before 7AM on my own. This rarely ever happens to me. I must have been incredibly nervous about the Finance final. I add some minor things to my cheat sheet that I hadn’t thought about the night before. I grab a bagel and green tea from a local coffee place and head to campus a little early. I find most of my classmates already in the grad lounge! We throw around some questions we think might show up on the exam. Then it’s time for the final! I walk out feeling confident, and head to the gym to get rid of some of my nervous energy. After my workout, I grab a salad from Au Bon Pain and head back to the grad lounge. A few of my classmates and I do a quick run-through of the key topics in Supply Chain to prep for the final tomorrow.

I head home and take an hour or so to shop online for work clothes. There’s a construction crew right outside of my apartment, but I start to read the case for our Strategy final memo. I fall asleep a few pages in, though… yikes! I guess waking up early and then going to the gym wore me out. Even though I try to pick it up again after waking up, I can’t seem to focus. I decide to tackle the Strategy case tomorrow, and take the rest of the evening to look over some of the Supply Chain concepts.

I grab a coffee before heading into Dodge to take my next exam. The Supply Chain final on Tuesday (4.24) is not too difficult, but it’s been a while since I’ve had to hand-write essays. The professor hands out Blue Books – something I haven’t seen since my undergraduate days! I try to keep my essays as concise as possible. I go to the gym after the exam to run off my energy once again. Also, it’s not much longer till I’ll be on a beach in Thailand!

I meet with my team to build our Powerpoint for the Operations presentation tomorrow. My Powerpoint skills have been put to a lot of use in the last few weeks! We take about two hours to put together the entire deck. I’m not presenting this time around, so I get to head out of the meeting a little earlier. The rest of Tuesday is spent writing up the final case memo due for Strategy on Thursday. I organize my thoughts as well as I can, but I’m just a little distracted when a few of my classmates and I book our hotel in Tokyo! So exciting!  

Wednesday (4.25) morning rolls around much faster than I anticipated. We don’t start our Operations presentations until 10:50, so I spend most of the morning putting the finishing touches on my Strategy memo. Once we go into class, we start pretty much right away. A lot of the teams did their projects on food companies; one team even brings in homemade brownies to supplement their presentation of Taza Chocolate! And our final Operations class wraps! I meet with two classmates to look over some of the material for tomorrow’s Stats final.

The entire city is in a tizzy about the last Bruins game in the Bruins-Capitals series. I admit it – I have the game on while I continue studying for Stats. If I don’t watch it, I won’t understand half the conversations at school tomorrow. Unfortunately for Boston, the Bruins lose in sudden death. I shut and lock all of the windows in case there’s a riot. Apparently it’s happened in the city before!

I’m up early again on Thursday (4.26), even though my Stats final isn’t until 11:20. I spend another few hours feverishly going through review problems and trying to remember all the terms. Once I finish taking the exam, I can finally take a sigh of relief! I’m done with all of my exams for this semester! My classmates and I head over to our favorite pizza joint to celebrate.

Friday (4.27) morning, we have our last session with Professor Croke. It’s mostly about our newly formed learning teams for corporate residency. I’m on a team with my Hamilton Sundstrand roommates! We learn how to use a web-conferencing tool available through Blackboard, and then head over to Our House East to celebrate the end of the semester! Later that night, several of my friends and I end up at a Korean restaurant in Allston for dinner. Yum!

I wake up on Saturday (4.28) with not a thing to do! Well, almost. My research team for China meets at 2pm to discuss what to write about and then divvy up sections. We’re examining the growing popularity of wine in China, and the effect that the wine industry has on the country. It’s a fun project, but it’s a little difficult getting excited about writing another paper. Later on at night, I (and someone special!) have dinner at the most amazing seafood place! Atlantic FishCo. is so delicious. I love seafood, and Boston is definitely a good city for yummy fish!  

Approaching the Finish Line!

I’m backtracking just slightly to Friday the 13^th (so ominous) to give you a full (and very lengthy) recap!  

           

Friday (4.13), we present our Interdisciplinary Projects! We’ve spent all semester with our teams developing a growth strategy for a company of our choice. My team chose Gap on my recommendation. The Strategy, Finance and Statistics (hence, interdisciplinary) professors requested that we choose a company that is falling behind in its specific industry, and Gap is a perfect example of this! I’m also really fond of fashion, so it proved to be something of a motivating tool towards the end of the project when the last thing I want to do is talk for another 5 hours about how to restructure the company.

           

Anyway, we finally present our whole strategy to a panel of judges (NEU alumni) on Friday, and it is incredibly nerve-wracking. This is the first time we’ve presented in front of our entire class, not just our section. The panel is impressed with how we arranged the Powerpoint – to put it briefly, I built an entire linked “matrix” of slides into our Questions slide that allowed us to link directly to certain topics and exhibits that the judges may ask questions about. Whew. The hard work paid off, though! My team placed third out of the entire class!

With my team before the results were announced!

After the morning of presentations, I met up with a friend from high school. I haven't seen him in almost ten years! There was a lot of catching up to do. He told me about his adventures working in Kosovo, while I tell him all about being in the MBA program. 

I spend Saturday (4.14) being incredibly lazy and reading some short chapters and cases for the last “real” week of classes and booking flights (more on this later!) before I’m invited out to dinner at Del Frisco’s. Oh my goodness, it is probably the best meal I’ve had in a while! It’s not every day I get to eat an entire lobster…! It is such a nice treat after a week of IDP-induced panic. Thank goodness we have the long weekend to spend recovering as well.

            

Sunday (4.15) is about as uneventful – minus the time I spend working on a poster for a friend who is running the Boston Marathon tomorrow! I’m really excited to watch her run. This is the first time I’ve actually gone to watch the marathon during my several years living in Boston. She’s running for a charity – Tedy’s Team. They raise funds for stroke prevention research. I spend most of my day watching TV and coloring in my poster. Stressful, huh?

            

On Monday (4.16), we head out to our vantage point for the marathon! We’re watching from the 23-mile mark, so my poster says “3 MILES LEFT!” in really big letters, along with my friend’s name. By the time we get there, the elite men and women are just finishing up. It’s the hottest it’s been in Boston all year, with the temperature inching above 90 degrees. I’m uncomfortably hot just watching the runners, so I can’t imagine how the marathoners felt! My friend finishes under five hours (which is a pretty big accomplishment for an amateur runner!), and afterwards, I happily skip off to Publick House with another friend to cool off.

My friend at the 23-mile mark. No biggie!

            

We have our last Supply Chain class on Tuesday (4.17). The class is mostly to review key topics. Professor Lieb also shares with us the format of the final exam next week – it’ll be two or three essay questions regarding Supply Chain management. A few of my classmates and I spend the rest of the day studying for the Operations final. We discuss all of the cases we’ve studied this semester, along with formulas and things from the textbook and another “optional” book we read. After about three hours of review, we call it a day.

            

Wednesday (4.18), we have our last Finance class in the morning. Most of the class is spent reviewing topics for (you got it) the final. I’m still a little bit confused about some of the key points for options, so I make a note to study them over the weekend. After Finance is the Operations final exam. It is definitely not what I expected, but it’s a relief to get it out of the way. I give myself the rest of the afternoon off.

The tulips at Northeastern!

The last Strategy and Statistics classes are on Thursday (4.19). We receive feedback from Professor Lamin regarding our presentations from last Friday. Overall, she’s pleased with our work, and congratulates the winning teams. Just to brag a little bit; 3 of the top 4 teams are in our section! Then we talk about disruptive innovations and the effect they have in different industries. This is followed by our last Statistics class of the semester. I’m happy to have the rest of the afternoon to write my Living Document 2 for our Career Skills course. I finish a good chunk of the 15-page paper, and then turn my attention to Finance. I set up a study session with a few of my classmates for Friday.

            

Friday morning (4.20) is our last Career Management meeting. A guest speaker presents how to have a successful corporate residency, and we’re done! Career Management has been very helpful, but I’ve never been a morning person. Shortly after the class, I attend a presentation about ALPFA. It’s a great way to network, and I sign up to be a member along with a handful of my classmates. Then it’s time to study for Finance! A group of us meet up in Hayden Hall to go over the first section of topics that will show up on the exam.

            

We decide to target company valuation, dividend policy and capital structure during our study session. It’s so helpful having the undergrad Finance TA (also one of our classmates!) on hand to answer questions! I come out of the review session feeling much better, and we decide to have additional sessions over the weekend. I spend the rest of the afternoon finishing up my Living Document. It isn’t due until next Friday, but I (somewhat uncharacteristically) choose to finish it ahead of time.

            

Saturday (4.21) is another study day. In the morning, I read over some of the chapters for Finance. And then in the afternoon, I meet up with my classmates and the Finance TA again for another review session, this time we talk about working capital management and risk management! Fascinating, I know. I type up some of the key points from our discussion – the Finance professor is allowing us to bring in a “cheat sheet” for the exam. I also print out my Living Document and put it in a nice binder. Small things…!