the city of fontainebleau: old buildings, some touches of the architectural genius in napolean et al and the traditional feel that characterizes any small town in europe

olymics! we all know that it started in greece. but did you know that so successful was the concept of olympics that every kingdom in europe incorporated "it" as a source of entertainment, a source of unity. this one is the statue of a man with a discus in hand ... and the arena in the background where the french version of olympics took place. down the years, olympics was perhaps the only thing that connected the fragmented europe together. and now, irrespective of individual differences, political turmoils, left wings, right wings and civil wars ... olymics still knits one fifty two countries into one piece of paper. i find this awesome, atleast the fact that a tradition that united europe once has reached so far as to bring the world together ciao!

a village mela in france. what i really like about it is it's simplicity. reminds me of the melas i used to go to when i was a kid. people hoarding, all kinds of unhealthy, cheap, oil-dripping mouth-lickering food, merry-go-rounds and other addctive events going on. this one was so similar ... i did the shooting balloon thing, played a lottery and won a (well!) comb ;-) and enjoyed the merry-go-round like a kid. but, the only two starkling differences between the melas of my childhoood and this one was fireworks and beer. while the kids dazzled with the glow of the fireworks, the adults were bellied out with beer. beer came in pipes, taps, glasses, hoses of different forms. i liked them! not just the beer but the whole ambience!

there is an age old tradition in school that incase someone forgets to log-off from his/her computer ... junta will send out funny emails to everyone in the class. here's a sample sent out today! and (well!) i better be careful to save embarassment and revenge...

"Hello all,
This is my cubicle. I love it. I even kiss the whiteboards with my luscious lips and wipe off all the dust from the desk. This is my cubicle and I don’t want anyone to come and write stupdid graffiti on the boards. I do not come over to your house and spray paint economics equations or silly Leading People slogans like “Better Time Management”, and “Self Development”.

I will protect my cubicle with my life. I will sacrifice my left kidney for it, hell I already gave out my right kidney to pay for the tuition.

Please respect my cubicle. I am naked. I am bald. I have a bad eyesight. I see everyone beautiful. Thats why I smile when I look at the mirror. If you don't respect any of this, contact me ... cheers
-X"

a canal that i cross every day to reach school. isn't it beautiful! and if france calls this a canal, and the americas calls a stream a river, this is an ocean by "us" standards! jokes aside, can't wait for the fall colors to show up on those trees.

first and most imortantly, the castle of napolean in fontainebleu ... this one is a masterpiece and stretches for about 3 kms with huge gardens and castles and forts ... my house and the school is separated by this castle. napolean and other kings of france loved hunting in fontainbleau and this place was a customary visit for most of the nobles. and now, it is a major tourist spot and it is what puts fontainebleau in the history map of ancient europe. (pic taken with my phone camera)

well, finally i have decided that i will write something in public domain about my journey in france and around the world in next few months. three weeks in france has been interesting. things so busy out here that a week seems like a month. time moves slowly through hectic schedules, more so, time moves slowly in general in france ... the phone companies, the banks, the car insurance companies etc they crawl like a plumb snail on a nonslippery ground. that aside, france is beautiful and history is written all over the place ... and i love history ... so needless to say that i am loving every bit - the place, the people in insead, the classes, the wine, the bleau cheese and beyond. that said, i guess i will post pictures more often than i write. free time is a thing of past, and in my books: net present value of time is very high ... i.e. time, like money, is worth more today than it would be in future. and atleast writing less will also avoid controversies on content, a problem that i faced with some of the other blogs i once hosted in public. this is meant for my friends and family, and anything i mention about my school is unwarrented and should be accepted with a pinch of salt. that said, bonjour monsiers bonjour madams welcome to my new webworld.