Buenos Aires reloaded (Oops not really)

After 6 months of weekly conf calls with Latam, I thought I would finally have the chance to cross the Atlantic again to visit some customers.... The trip included Argentina, Chile (which I missed last time), and Brazil.

Unfortunately, my boss decided in the last minute that I had more urgent things to do here, and that I should stay in Brussels for the time being. So, my 3K EUR ticket just sunk in the Atlantic, as I had to postpone the trip. Maybe in November, after I come back from the Honey Moon in New York?

(At least I hope that I can get miles from my cancelled trips. That would be a consolation prize).

Xavier Alcalá

Even though I like travelling, the most vivid and interesting memories I keep from my trips are not about places but about people. Living in a city where 35% of the residents are foreigners (unofficial figures are even higher), my girlfriend tells me that I would save a lot of money by travelling within Brussels instead of going abroad. Maybe she has a point. Last Saturday we were talking with an Indian engineer and on Sunday we had a party with a few other foreigners too. It is always refreshing making these contacts.

A few days ago I also had the chance to meet one of the many interesting people that pass by here: Xavier Alcala, a Spanish Telco Engineer and a renowned and prolific Galician writer. He heard about me and said he would like to meet me, so somebody –thank you Richard- arranged for us a Saturday morning breakfast at “Le Pain Quotidien”. We thought we had two things in common, but there was also a third one –affinity for Argentina- that we discovered during our conversation. First thing is we are both Engineers in Telecommunications. Well, he believes I am not, although I hold an official diploma. He asked me a few questions and I failed the exam, so he concluded that I should be a different kind of Engineer. I didn’t take it badly, because I’ve always seen myself as an Information Technology Engineer. Telecommunications alone don’t go very far in this converging world. It seems he is a purist and I am an eclectic, so I can only agree with his remarks. I’m even proud of them.

The other point was his interest in the Galician evangelicals and the repression during Franco dictatorship. He is busy with the final book of a trilogy about this topic, and he keeps collecting material, and interviewing people across the world. He has been to Argentina with a cameraman to record the stories of some exiles, and he is about to go the UK to interview some other witnesses of those days, all very old people. I was happy to give him some details of my family –which he wrote down carefully-, and that maybe he will use at some point. He wants to put together all the material in a documentary once he finishes with the book.

It made me think that it is such a pity not having recorded myself the stories of my grandmother Adelina. I used to question her for hours, trying to keep alive her memories before she died, but I never thought of using simple tape recorder. Shame on me. The stories of the simple woman she was, but heroine of faith and free conscious in a hostile world are today almost lost. Thankfully I do believe they are all written in the history Book of the one she venerated, a much more complete work than the ones Xavier is busy with.

They call it security...

(Warsaw, 10/Sep/06)

I’ve been travelling quite a bit this week, first Berlin, then London, and finally Warsaw. I am currently in Warsaw airport, on my way back to Brussels, and quite annoyed after all the security checks I had to go through. Almost two hours queuing. I don’t think I ever queued for so long in an airport. All because they check hand luggage thoroughly piece by piece looking for something that may be used as weapon or explosive. No toothpaste, no drinks, computers turned on and off in front of the officers, all that stuff after the alleged attacks in London a few weeks ago… In my opinion taking security to these levels is simply ridiculous. It is always possible to bring explosive or weapons in. For example, many laptops take can take two batteries. One can be a real one to switch the computer on in front of the police, and the second one a bomb. Unspottable. And even one battery can be manipulated. Typically they contain several units inside the same battery. The difference cannot be seen in X-rays. Explosives can be placed in plenty of places. It is a matter of imagination. Other dangers that are completely disregarded: crystal bottles. I bought a crystal bottle of juice at a café in the boarding area, and there are plenty of bottles of whiskey, champagne and other spirits for sale here. Each one of these can turn into a weapon just as plane cutlery was used to hijack the planes in 11-S. It’s only a matter of having one group of terrorists trying to use a new technique to create terror, and then the police will add the new idea to the already extensive list of potential dangers. Meanwhile, nobody checks what you carry when you travel by metro, by train, by bus, … And there have been examples of blasts in all of those means of transport.

I experienced another of those inconsistent security polices during the London trip. I took the Eurostar train under the Channel and they only made a quick scan of my luggage. I didn’t need to turn on my computer in front of the officers - which as I just learned is a requirement of strict application according to the Polish Police. Once in London, I moved around freely and I crossed the town in the tube without being questioned. Nevertheless on my way back my cab was stopped at a police checkpoint in the street. We had two dogs sniffing the car, and a chemical analysis of several surfaces around the driver’s seat. Never saw something like that. Anyway, no explosives found, so I could proceed with my trip back to Waterloo Station. Final surprise of the day, I was allowed to go back to Belgium without showing my ID card to anybody. Haven’t they heard about Shengen space of which the UK is not part of? Besides, I could bring in the train and through the X-ray scanner a bottle of water despite the sign saying otherwise outside the checkpoint. How to explain this laxity after the careful scrutiny in the cab? Random checks increase the statistical chances of finding terrorists, I agree, but I still cannot see how different corps can apply such different standards and especially where all this security paranoia is going to lead us to. Does the current terrorist threat in the Canary Wharf area justify policemen walking around with chemical labs? And two hours waiting at the “heavily threaten” Warsaw international airport?

Ping-ponging across the world

Globalisation is a phenomenon that fascinates me. I grew up in a region of emigrants, with limited contact with the external world, and where things used to move really slowly. Fortunately Galicia has made some progress these days, although it still remains the periphery of Europe.

Anyway, I remember the few foreigners I met as a child, mostly people related with church, and how I loved to hear stories about their countries. I used to think that when I would grow up I would like to travel like them, and even live abroad. I eventually did. I also remember that phoning to another country was almost an adventure. You could choose between using an operator and making automatic calls, although for the latter you would need to dial 07 and wait for a second tone, not always available. In either case calls were rear and expensive.

I made my first call abroad when I was 15, as I had to arrange the details of a school in England where my parents sent me to practice English. The trip to the UK was not only my first trip as grown up, but also my baptism to globalisation. In just a few weeks I met persons from all continents, and I started to feel more and more comfortable with the idea of becoming a world citizen.

A lot has happened since those days, but all these old memories came now to my mind as I’ve been reflecting of what I have done all this week, ping-ponging across the world. The story is the following: a very large British firm decides to source a certain product in order to sell it together with their services. A British broker receives the call and starts looking for possible products. He contacts my company’s office in Hong Kong, and asks for a product we have in our catalogue. The HK colleagues contact me, since I am the one responsible for that product and I have the contacts of the supplier, a company in Taiwan. You may think the chain is already long enough, but actually it is still longer, because the Taiwanese manufacture the product in mainland China, which is quite common these days. So the game starts. I negotiate a price with Taiwan, which I send to HK, which is sent somewhere in Britain, and from there to London. Then a question comes, from London to the broker’s office, then to HK, then to Belgium, then to Taiwan, and eventually to Shanghai. The answer of course, all the way back. And then a second question, this time only to Taiwan … I don’t know if we will close this deal, but I am sure that if we were in the old days of dialling 07 plus the international number the real (and only) winners would have been the Telecom companies. Luckily Skype and e-mail are free, so we can still hope for our share of the cake.

Broken dreams

Yesterday I did something I had wanted to do for several days, I gave Jad a call. He is a 30-year-old Lebanese living in Brussels, an architect with several diplomas and masters; he has lived in several countries, speaks not less than 7 languages, and is a very intelligent person. He is also very assertive, and his strong character clashed with that of our Dutch teacher some months ago. His name, it seems, is not very common for a Lebanese. Normally parents name their children with names that show the religion or ethnic group they belong to, but in his case, with father and mother of different religions, they opted for something neutral. People often ask him what his religion is, and he always says he belongs to no group: I am Lebanese. He is particularly proud of his mixed origin, and he belongs to a generation that seriously believes in peace and reconstruction of the country. I remember how happy he was about Syria leaving Lebanon. Now we will be able to take our own future in our own hands, we will demonstrate understanding and tolerance to the rest of region and to the rest of the world. His plans were going back to Lebanon in one or two years time and do his part in helping building the country. He had already started by creating an NGO that sponsored some small projects in rural areas, and was full of ideals. Even his Belgian girlfriend was ready to go with him and start a new life in this Promised Land.

Now Jad is under a shock. His family is all right, as they live in a Christian neighbourhood of Beirut and don’t fear the bombing, but the country is not. Several hundreds of civilians killed, billions of dollars worth infrastructure destroyed, one quarter of the total population displaced, and a big question: why? What does Israel gain with all that destruction? Why so much hate? The only winner will be Hizbulah, that will ripe the thirst for revenge in a growing number of Lebanese.

I gave Jad my interpretation, that Israel suffers a case of collective hysteria. The same as the Americans, that with post-11^th September fears need to see some revenge and military action taken, so the Israelis need to see clear action against Hizbulah and are completely blinded to see the pain they inflict in the majority of Lebanese that nothing have to do with the extremists.

I am really sad for Jad, and for the rest of the Lebanon. 4 million people dreaming during 15 years to build an impossible country, and now it can be gone in barely 15 days. Will this generation have the mental strength to rebuild a country for the second time (not to mention the financial)? It will take many Jads to recover from this madness.

San Sebastian at my feet

Well, not really. The town is indeed San Sebastian, and the feet are actually mine, but it is at nobody’s feet. Political conflict exists, as in the rest of the Basque country, but the atmosphere is pretty relaxed, especially these days of ceasefire. And it is great, because San Sebastian is definitely worth a visit (or two). Very nice buildings, delicious food and not really expensive (Pintxos!) and very cool people. What else can I say? The sea, of course, and a great location by the bay. We missed the famous Jazz Festival (one week too early), although that’s a good excuse to go back next year.

Inma, Sixto, Nerea and Unai, great friends, good to see you again, together with Almu, who made it from Madrid. What a great weekend. Unfortunately I missed once again Rafa, and Antonio couldn’t come from England. Amaya was still in the Caribbean and I think I won’t see her before she goes to Nepal. Maybe if I make it to Madrid in August …

Toots Thielemans

Toots Thielemans, who was closing this year’s edition of Brosella festival, has been my discovery of the week. He is an old man of 84, a living legend of jazz, and the best harmonica player I have ever seen (actually heard). A bruxellois himself (born at Les Marolles; as he said, “plus bruxellois tu meurres”), he has been living in the US since the 50s. He has played with everybody you can imagine, travelled all around the world and his harmonica has also been in many famous films. His music was fabulous, gorgeous, amazing, …. and the character himself, such a sweet man … He told us so many stories in his mixture of French, Dutch and English (he didn’t seem capable of sticking to only one language), and none of them was boring. He seems one of those men who have lived so much, who have made history, but that are so down to earth and natural about it that you can listen to them for hours. I like people like him, young in spirit, cheerful and refreshing, 84 and of course not retired. People like him don’t retire. They just keep playing, travelling, meeting people, and that until the day they die.

He was accompanied by three young musicians under 30, and they all delighted us with lots of good jazz stuff. Also in the program, a song composed by him and dedicated to his wife (to whom he declared his love from the stage), and the most beautiful version ever of “ne me quite pas” with his incredible crying harmonica.

more on Football as social phenomenon

And once again, I can't escape from football. Italy has just beaten Germany a few minutes ago, and I hear people celebrating all around. It seems I'm surrounded by Italians (or perhaps there's only a few of them, but very noisy).

Last Friday I was in La Bourse when Italy had just won another match. It was also quite an experience. Tifosi took over the stairs of the building where my friends of the MBA were celebrating their own success only a couple of hours before. There were several hundreds of them, blocking the traffic, shouting like crazy, and waving Italian flags. A few policemen were there to control the situation, although they were basically just looking without saying much. How would they dare to ... Just in front of their eyes dozens of cars overstuffed with people inside, in the boot, on the top, ... waiving more flags and blowing their horns no stop. Even Belgian police knows that sometimes they have to ignore the offences to the Code de la Route. You simply cannot contend against a mass after a football match.

What I regret is that this social power of football -which is known to be good for politics, did not help much to stopping the civil war in Côte d'Ivore (Ivory Coast). The leaders of the country expected that a successful national team with players from both sides would bring the hostilities to an end. Wouldn't that have been nice, an African world champion that brings reconciliation through sports?

Sofia

Yes, there is life without football, but you can certainly not escape an event such as the World Cup. After two years without watching a football match, I have come to see two matches (precisely, two second halves) of the Spanish team. What is not surprising is that Spain is already out (We usually say: “Jugamos como nunca y perdimos como siempre”). What strikes me once and over again is the worldwide dimension of the game, which is as global as it can be, and how strong Spain’s image is.

This morning I was Skyping with Sofia. She works for one of our suppliers in Taiwan, and we talk almost every day. Her message on Skype today, next to her emoticon was saying something like come on, Spain, don’t despair, I stand by you. I know she is a Spain freak, that she lived in Spain for a few months, and that she loves Spain. So maybe she is not the typical Taiwanese. But then she told me about her friends. It seems she has some girl friends that stayed awake overnight (time difference!) to see Raul play. That is really amazing. What does a Taiwanese girl have to do with a Spanish football player playing in Germany? It adds to my surprises when I saw Spanish football broadcast live on Saturdays in South Africa, and when I saw Real Madrid T-shirts for sale in the Amazon.

Anyway, Spain is out despite the halo. I have my own theory to explain why this happens every time the national team plays. I may share it some other time. For the moment, I wonder which team will now the Taiwanese support. Maybe I should ask Sofia.

GAAP revisited

It's about a year now since I finished the MBA, and soon it will be a year since I flew to South America for an exciting 2-month trip.

Earlier this week I went back to the MBA office in order to help with the selection process of MBA candidates as alumnus. Tonight I will be going to this year's MBA ball, where my fellow students from last year will celebrate their graduation. And just a few minutes ago I passed by my sister's blog after a long time without reading her posts (shame on me!). I admire her persistence as a writer ...

Anyway, all these flashbacks made me thought it was about time to start writing again. Many things have happened since September, and I will not try to cover them all, but here are few lessons that I could write in my Balance Sheet (or Income Statement?) of the last year:

• Life is more fun when you have somebody to share it with.
• I am NOT as perfect, as strong and as fantastic as I thought I was.
• I can give much more of me when I learn what my weaknesses are and act accordingly.
• The worst thing you can do with problems is to ignore them.
• It is easier to dream something than to build it, but if you only build you are a fool, and if you only dream you make a fool of yourself.
• I like independence, I don't like having a boss, and I don't want to be a boss either.
• I hate having to go to work everyday at the same time.
• There are a lot of interesting people out there, and a lot of suffering people too.
• To give grace and to receive it are among the most powerful acts on Earth.
• Europe is not the centre of the world.
• There is life without football.