in english

Transit through the United States

I hadn't been in the United States for over 6 years, so I hadn't experienced the tightening of regulations since the tragic events of September 11th, 2001.  I had heard certain horror stories (for example J. Karjalainen, Finland's Bob Dylan, had been detained without reason in Missouri) so I was certainly sceptic about going through there.

Even though I did have to travel for more than 24 hours, I faced no difficulties.  The American Airlines staff on board and on the ground was generally very corteous (however, their fleet is really old) and the border and customs officers were very professional, so there was no problem at all.  It takes much, much longer than transiting in Europe (that's how afraid they are) but it did go smoothly.

 

in english

QotD: Education, Occupation

What was your major or field of study in college? Did you wind up working in that field or using that degree? If not, what field have you wound up in? 
Submitted by sneuf. 

I studied Computer Engineering in Finland, and did work in that field for a while.  However, almost 5 years after graduation from college I took the option of studying a masters in International Business, so now I've ended up in e-marketing, and of course have no idea what will come next in my career progression. 

That's the whole point, isn't it?  A degree (especially at the bachelor level) doesn't guarantee employment, as it only shows that the holder has proven his/her ability to learn.

in english

Ethics, propaganda and marketing

Following a story doing the rounds in Slashdot, I found this article that details the American propaganda machine in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Wheareas I definitely understand the rationale for the Americans to give their version of events, it makes me rather uneasy that they do so posing as a neutral party, thereby undermining their own credibility.

If you're a brand, that's something you should never do as audiences hate discovering they are being cheated, even if your brand is called USA.

in english

No government in Belgium yet

When I left Belgium in July, they were undergoing coalition talks to create a government after the election results.  Well, 6 months later the situation is still the same, with certain sectors of society calling for the partition of the country.  I met some Belgian Flemish friends I have some time ago and they mentioned that, as Flemish as they are, they don't want Belgium to be divided.  I don't think it will, just yet, but they do need a solution.

in english

Return culture shock

I was chatting with an Irish friend who has been living in Japan for over 15 years, and is now moving to the UK.  I asked him about whether he was experiencing any return culture shock after adapting so well to Japanese culture, and of course he had certain horror stories about the inefficiency of bureaucrats and bank employees.

One usually thinks about the culture shock one will experience when moving to a new environment, but what happens to us when we return to the old ones is something we tend to dismiss.

Now, how will I see Mexico when I go back next week after two years?

in english

Mexico and Mexicans in the news

  • An article that quite surprised me in Wired about the Bali summit mentions that Mexico is actually doing quite a bit to tackle climate change and is leading the efforts to cap emmissions, having started at home.
  • The Missioners of Guadalupe won the Ohtli award, given to those who raise the profile of the country abroad, for their charity activities in Kenya.  I met one of them in Brussels half a year ago, and he told me the challenges they had working there.