Beautiful Amsterdam

There are many beautiful places in Europe but one of my favorites is Amsterdam. I decided to attend an impromptu trip for a fellow classmate's birthday and I was once again awed by the beauty of this city. We arrived on Saturday morning and met up with the rest of the crew and got a chance to walk around the canals and parks a bit. Followed by a delicious dinner and a night of birthday celebrations, Amsterdam was definitely worth the 6-hour drive from France. Can't wait to go back!

Love these people.

Apple Orchard and Cider Tour in Normandy

On our trip to Normandy we also wanted to experience a little of the French apple harvest during fall. We visited the Domaine Dupont orchard and were given an informative tour by the owner himself. Dupont produces Calvados apple liquor and cider. The property is beautiful and the recipes and processes are based on generations of knowledge. Everything made here still has that classic, non-industrial touch.

Apples, apples everywhere.

Cider-maker post MBA??

Tasting Calvados and cider. It's like spiked apple juice but better.

I was also excited to find apple-cider vinegar. How much more fresh from the farm can you get?

Nice-Cannes Marathon Relay

I loved Nice when I went on my trip earlier this year so I was really excited to go back and participate in the Nice-Cannes Marathon. I joined a four-person relay team with my fellow classmates, Kush, Krystian, and Jonathan. While the exchange points were a little confusing, I loved running the marathon as a team. It was a great way to participate in the race without needing to train a lot for it. Kush had just completed a marathon so he was in great shape to run the longest leg. I ran roughly 8 km (~5 miles) at a great pace of 8:03 min/mile. 

The race course was beautiful, almost all along the Mediterranean Sea from Nice to Cannes. We were able to take the train along the coast to meet up at the relay exchange points and then to the finish in Cannes. 

In true INSEAD fashion, we had a few beers the night before the race. I'm pretty sure they helped us run fast.

The rest of my team before the race. We dressed like Frenchmen...

Some of the other students and I post-race refueling at an Italian restaurant. Overall a great trip and I can't wait to run another marathon relay!

Juicing for Health at INSEAD

My life at INSEAD has been pretty stressful, between class, group work, exams, dinners, parties, and traveling, I don't have much time to workout and eat healthy. With the stress of school and the less-than-healthy French food, I haven't felt my best.

I'm a big proponent of drinking daily juices and smoothies to optimize nutritional intake so I was excited when one of my classmates' partners, Samantha, announced that she would be selling juices on campus. I don't have time to constantly grocery shop for fresh ingredients and make my own drinks in the morning. I also don't have my vitamix (very sad). So, I prepaid Sam for a whole month to make me juices every day and I haven't felt sick since!

With the oncoming winter in France, my immune system will be challenged. Our cafeteria doesn't have great salad options so the green juice is a prefect way for me to get my daily dose of fruits and vegetables. Sam also adds spirulina and protein powder and makes a variety of juices everyday. I usually get the green but sometimes mix it up. Sam is also offered full juice cleanses once a week.

To get more information about ordering juices at INSEAD, contact Samantha here!

Love it when I get extra greens :)

A Day in History - Normandy

I love the fact that INSEAD is such an international school but I must say that some of the best friends I've made here are actually American. I think that our global mindset coupled with American upbringing make us get along quite well and have a lot in common. In addition, many of us, like me, are immigrants and have dual nationalities. 

The Americans and others organized a trip to see the historical sites of where Normandy was invaded on D-Day. It was interesting to see a piece of history that we learn about in school as the "turning point" in the war. Of course, other countries might see it differently, but in classic American fashion, it's when we came to save the day.

Omaha Beach monuments where the allies landed coming from England.

Diagram of other beaches that were invaded.

The American memorial cemetery close to Omaha Beach.

A moving and sad place to be, but it was very interesting to visit the museum and see the timeline of events and read about the troops stories and triumphs.