I don't want to become that friend of yours who is off traveling and sends you a super boring lengthy e-mail every week that is way to detailed. I figure if you want to find out what Im up to you will come here and check it out.

This is the copy of the last e-mail I sent out:

"I have now been in Sweden for a few weeks and Im getting settled, so it seemed like the right time to send out a little group update e-mail!

Those of you who skipped Burning Man this year…well you missed out…again. It was great having so many friends there and it was a crazy way to leave this continent on a high. I will admit that the dust storms this year were so bad that for 3 days they grounded the plane that Tammy and I had booked to take a sightseeing ride in….but eventually we did get up to 10000 feet and took some great photos and it was a real highlight to see the whole city from such a perspective. Tammy and I were also stilters in a fire performance the under ‘the man’ on the final night. It is a real honour as only 25 groups from around the world are selected to perform and the audience is most of the 50,000 attendees!

Then came the exhausting race that started in a car early Sunday morning in Nevada, included 3 planes, 2 trains, and ended Thursday night in a taxi in Sweden…it was almost too much. The real tiring part was that my bags were lost somewhere in between London and Copenhagen and I had to spend the first 4 days of class in the same t-shirt and jeans. Likely I had my computer and valuables because I followed my Dads anal packing rule that you should always have enough stuff in your carry-on bag to survive if your main bags never get there! Ya for virgo sons of Virgo Dads!

So Im now living on campus in a furnished bachelor apartment that has everything, even my own washing machine. Yes items actually are either Ikea or they sure look like it, but I think I will try to move downtown in a few months with some of the other students. Many have found little cottages or unique European apartments/houses overlooking the ocean, the town square or something interesting. This apartment is good for studying and convenient but it sure is claustrophobic and Im not really getting the full experience in here, other than euro-trance blasting the halls on pub night. Which reminds me; if you think booze is pricey in Canada…well how about a $8+ beer being the norm if you go out? It takes the concept of pre-drinking to a whole new level.

Studying back in my undergrad was all right, but a lot of the time I didn’t care about what I was reading. This program is very different, the topics are interesting and relevant and the teaching style is really hands on. There is lots of group work and presentations drilling the concepts into you, while teaching you leadership skills and group dynamics. Even the conversations in the lounge are super engaging with such a unique global perspective. I have however stared to talk like a 5^th grader with a robot tone and slow pace so the many ESL students can understand me. Trying to get group consensus on a detailed strategic development plan when the team includes representation from Brazil, China, Morocco, England, New Zealand and Canada is challenging to say the least. Add in the language barriers, where some of them are translating half of the document into another language…wow what a time consuming process…but also what a great learning experience.

I also wanted to thank you for the Bday wishes and messages I haven’t replied to…sorry. Compared to the great pre-bday party on Tower Beach the day here was pretty chill. But my research group here got me a little cake with a candle, which was nice. I do really miss the quick dry rhetorical and highly sarcastic witty conversations I can have with many of you and of course I miss Tammy’s smile, but overall things are pretty great here and the people are super interesting and fun. Some of you asked about travel plans/visiting. I do have floor space but the town I’m in is small and although incredibly scenic and photogenic it is pretty sleepy. If you wanted to come here for a few days and head to a bigger city on a weekend with me that might work but keep in mind I have a serious work load that is my main priority. Either way let me know if you are considering it and we can chat.

I’m trying to post interesting pictures on flickr and Fcaeb*ok and I might get a bit of a blog going if anyone is interested in reading it.

Take care

Cheers

Neil

Skype: “tallneil”

Photos from Burning Man, the University, Karlskrona the town and my weekend trip to Malmo a larger city:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tallneil/sets/