Innovations

I'm slowly getting the hang of this blog thing. You can now comment, no matter if you Blog or not. Sorry, no more excuses.

Jumbo Pride

As my last act as a good Jumbo (for a little while), I planned a trip to the Red Sox-Orioles game for 75 of my fellow Tufts Alums.

The Red Sox won, a good time was had (there were 3 Sox fans:1 Orioles fan), and I ran off straight to the airport fulfilled.

Here are some highlights for the baseball-deprived:

Camden Yards by day




Stephen, a coworker, down from NY to support his team






Scoping out the crowds

First Impressions

I'm back, better prepared for the big move. Estimated departure: October 8

First impressions were good: expensive, big city, but many of the nicest people I've ever met. Most people speak English, but my goal is to get back to fluent Spanish. Currently, survey says: Comprehension, great. Speaking, poor.

Highlight of the trip: Since the hotel didn't have a room for me the first night, I had to stay in the Park Avenue Suite. There was a jacuzzi, a conference room and more space than I could ever need. Here is a glimpse:











The truth is, though, I may never actually stay in Mexico City. Here's my tentative schedule for the next few months:

October 15: Present at Conference in Monterey
October 17-20: Launch at Latin American VMAs in Cancun
November 9-17: Global Team Meeting in Delhi, India (with a 3-day stop in DC)
November 24-27: Roundtable in Montevideo, Uruguay (no Thanksgiving)
I should be back sometime in December, definitely for Christmas.

Avancemos

The word of the month is adventure: new blog, new job, new language, new country.

After months of restlessness and research, I gave my notice at Youth Venture armed with the feeling that things would work out. That's what set this in motion and plans are actually coming together, though I don't have a place to live, a visa or an official contract with Ashoka. I do, however, have are a lot of plans for future, a few friends-in-the-making in Mexico City, and a lot of excitement. Here's the plan:

I am going to Mexico City for the week to meet the team and to start planning after which I will return to wrap things up at Youth Venture (YV). Wrapping up includes GMATs and figuring out my future. A week should be enough.

Up next: Sign a contract with Ashoka and become an official member of the Innovative Learning Initiative team in Mexico. I need to be moved in and settled in Mexico City in time to help launch "Avancemos," a pilot youth social venture program which will spread from Mexico to Brazil and Argentina and throughout Latin America. The name basically means "we're making progress," a fitting title for this next step, I think.

All of this sounds exciting, but I have no idea how it will translate into the day-to-day. I guess you'll have to tune in to find out....