A Taste of America
November 22, 2010
On my 3rd consecutive year living away from the U.S.A., I actually am begin to miss that place – the land of abundance (excess). Last week while frolicking through London with Juliette, I discovered this: Juliette being the Parisian that she is, did not share my excitement in stumbling upon Chipotle in London. This fast-foody Mexican joint produces some hearty…
Read MoreOld Friend in London
November 15, 2010
This weekend, I had my first visitor in London! Juliette, my French friend who spent the first 6 months of my service in Batié with me, was visiting from Paris. We hadn’t seen each other since she left Cameroon a year and a half ago. As always, it’s amazing to reunite with a good friend after such long time and…
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An Autumn Day in London
November 7, 2010
After the printer at the LSE residence failed to print off the articles I need to write a 2,500-word essay on the failure of international financial regulation, despite my best efforts to revive the printer (45 min of fight), I gave up and decided to enjoy my day in London. It was a nice day in the city (no rain!),…
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Happy Halloween!
October 31, 2010
Halloween falls on a Sunday this year, which fits nicely into a wild Halloween weekend. I’m not usually one that’s crazy into fancy dress (this is what British people call costume parties), but around Halloween time, I usually can get talk into putting on some silly outfit and have a good time. I didn’t celebrate Halloween during my time in…
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Why, of course!
October 26, 2010
Half an hour to kill. Do I read a 130-pg document on electoral voting in the UK or write something fun in my blog? Not a tough choice there. On a Saturday morning, I was walking toward the London Bridge tube station along River Thames when I heard someone said, “oh my gawd, there is a camel!”. Tower Bridge is…
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La vie à londres
October 22, 2010
Lagging behind on the blog. Grad school is slowly taking over my life, but I’m fighting it. Unlike my pre-Peace Corps self as an undergrad, I am determined to strike a healthy balance between work and life – getting more sleep and enjoying life for what it is.Heading into week 4 of the Michaelmas term (blog post coming soon detailing…
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50 Years of Service
October 14, 2010
50 years ago today, a speech made by President John F. Kennedy at the University of Michigan inspired the idea of the Peace Corps. Many before me have served and many after will. Maybe because I’ve just returned, but this short two years of experience is now a part of me, and it defines me. I’m never as at eased…
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Baby Steps
October 10, 2010
The first week of real classes came and went. The workload is quite intense already; it took me hours to simply put together the reading list for the term! At the same time, I’m being a complete dork and loving all of my lectures. I went to a few company presentations for consulting firms this past week and noticed a…
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Tower Bridge is Folding Up
October 7, 2010
As a child, one of the first tunes I learned to play on the piano was “London Bridge’s Falling Down”, but we sang it in Chinese, of course. Then later, in English class, we learned to sing London Bridge is Falling Down, in English. Today, after a long day at school, I walked home from the bus stop at Tower…
Read MorePiecing the Puzzle
October 5, 2010
Within the international development stream of the MPA program at the LSE, we are only allowed to have one option unit during the first year. After a quick browsing through the approved option list, I immediately decided upon a course named “Regulations of Financial Markets”. While fellow students were struggling to decide on a course, I was at ease with…
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