Summer in the Silicon Valley

It's been a while since I wrote the last time..Wow, it's really been a while!
In the meantime I travelled to London, Oxford, Rome, Florence, Venice, Padua, Paris.. but that was back in January, when my boyfriend came to visit me in Europe. It was so much fun, but since then I've been so immersed in school (I finished my third year of college in May) and work: on May 16 I came back to the Silicon Valley for an intense summer of work!
Now I'm almost at the end (flying back to Edinburgh on Sunday!!!), and it's time to give a summary of what has been an amazing summer.
First of all, this summer has been great in terms of work: the Silicon Valley is incredibly inspiring and full of opportunities (if you look for them, of course). Given that, I had the awesome opportunity to work for the Palo Alto International Film Festival (PAIFF), which is going to take place exactly at the end of this week. You should check it out, there will be great screenings, talks, workshops and parties (e.g. Looper, the premier of Disney's Paperman, free outdoor screening of ET..!). Being part of the PAIFF's team taught me so much not just about marketing and advertising, but in general about

...Back to Italy!

Alright folks, time has come to go back to the Bel Paese to celebrate Christmas with my family...after last year's loss, it's going to be amazing with all my relatives again :')
See you in Italy people, flight takes off in a few hours! ;)

C.

Dublin: Cold, Beer and The Friendliest People In The World

Sooo...what to say! Dublin is awesome!
I just got back home from Edinburgh Airport (8.30am) after a night spent in downtown Dublin/Dublin Airport and I'm sooo damn tired, so I'll try to be brief ;)

Alex and I got to Dublin on Friday night, we took a bus to BlackRock and my friend Mery came to collect us. It was soooooooooooo damn cold, I didn't expect to find such a freezing weather! We went straight to the student accommodation of UCD (where Mery lives), had a hot camomile and fell asleep. Alex in particular was a zombie (poor thing, she hadn't slept in 40 hours to be done with her essays!).

The day after we woke up around 10 and headed to downtown. We saw the Trinity College, the Spire, went shopping near by and enjoyed the Christmas atmosphere. We took some pictures of the Liffey, and then we headed to the Temple Bar area:)
There I met my friend Lauren, met in San Jose during my exchange, who took me and Alex to see another part of the city (Grafton Street and around there), as well as to experience pure Irish pub at the Dandelion Bar & Club :)

Afterwards we met at the Spire with my other friend from San Jose Sarah, my dear friend Mery, her sister and her sister's boyfriend.

 We ate something in a wee pub next to the Temple Bar (the Shack Restaurant), and then we spent the rest of the night in a near by club/pub (Buskers Bar). Nice place, live music, friendly aged Irish people (Alex actually broke some hearts), and crazy dances in front of the stage. Awesome, awesome.

After such a great night, we headed back home to get ready for the following day, and I have to admit: My knees hurt so bad at that point!

The morning after, Alex and I went with Mery and her sister to visit Bray, a wee town not too far from Dublin. We too the train from Blackrock, which took about 30 minutes to get there.

When we arrived, the wind was very cold, but the scenery was delightful. Sea, green hills and some sort of Irish cliff...aww. Definitely a place to visit:) We ate something in downtown Bray, and then Alex and I headed back to the city for our last day in the Irish capital.

Once we got back to downtown, Alex and I went to a nice pub near the Trinity college. She had an Irish coffee I guess...? Oh well, she was satisfied anyways: coffee and Bayles :)

Before heading to the Temple Bar, we visited the Christ Church Cathedral, which was pretty impressive. Especially because the night made it even more special.

 Finally, to get back our blood circulation back we headed to the Temple Bar, a must for every respectable tourist. I must say that despite the bar is one of the most popular for tourists, I felt like I was surrounded by great Irish fellows! There was live music, and Alex and I spent about..8 hours inside there!??hahah! Our favorite group was the Lad Lane, which was composed by three talented musicians. I was like hypnotized. Typical Irish music in a typical Irish surrounding, how WONDERFUL!

Around 12am we decided to head back to the airport (as our check in was at 5am-.-), so we went back to O'Connel Street to catch the shuttle bus. Then, once at the airport, we spent about 4 hours on those comfortable cold chairs.......Seriously, never again.

..and now I'm back to the Burgh, super tired but super happy. What a great adventure, really can't wait to o back to Ireland! Next stop...Galway maybe??:)

C.

Dublin's Calling!

Hello World!

I know, it's been a while, busy busy times at uni during the last three months!
Anyways, the time has finally come for another trip: from Edinburgh to Dublin! Tomorrow, after my last presentation in the morning, I'll finally fly to Dublin with my friend Alex!
It's gonna be a fun girls time, as my friend Mery will host us for a couple of nights ;) stay tuned, news and pictures coming up soon!

PS: winter trip with Josh coming up soon as well! We haven't seen each other in four months, as he's still in California to finish his degree! Missing him so much, Christmas time is going to be fun.....! Italy, France, England........more details coming up soon ;)


C.

Art Attack in Edinburgh!

This quite made my night. Just a way to vent your "Art Attack" ;) http://www.drawastickman.com/ Enjoy!


C.

Silicon Valley & Steve Jobs: Endless and Timeless Inspiration

We all knew this moment would have come. But no one suspected that it would have happened so soon. Steve Jobs died.

Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Wordpress, Blogspot, Mashable, and thousands of other media are reporting the same news: The Apple Genius just left this earth. I can hardly believe it, and it's probably because so much success and power wouldn't be associated with death. But this is how it is. This is how life can trick you. You create something great, you become successful, you change the world. But you can't change the flow.

I truly believe today will always be an unforgettable day. "The edge of glory" for an icon of innovation, technology, true passion, true belief, true enthusiasm.

I read many posts saying that Apple won't be the same now that he's no longer here. But I don't think so: He gave very deep and strong values to his company, as well as to all his "faithful followers". Why should this change now that he's not here anymore?

Steve Jobs' inspirational speeches and ideas will always be the core of his company, no matter what. Endless and Timeless, R.I.P. Steve Jobs.


C.

One World and So Many People!

Today I found this picture on the Internet and I totally wanted to share it with you. http://imgur.com/gallery/3skvA

...Isn't it so cool?


C.

Soft Clouds and Fresh Breeze: Hello Scotland!

I seriously can't believe I'm writing from my cosy room in Edinburgh. It's just amazing! I got here on Tuesday afternoon (after another of the thousands Easyjet's rip off -.-), and when I was landing I got emotional because of all those green fields that I fell in love with already two years ago!
..since I took my first step in the Scottish ground, then I haven't stopped for a second!

Amy organized a welcome back party for me that same night, and most of my Opiates friends were there! (Why Opiates? Because we are always at Opium, a rock pub/club in Cowgate). It was just amazing seeing all of them after more than a year, and it was like nothing had changed! I'm just sooo lucky to have found such a company, useless saying how much I love them:)

Yesterday I had to go shopping for some stuff, then got stuck in a bank for a problem with my card (mpfhh-.-), and then...I went to collect Jacqueline at the airport! Jacqueline has been my roommate during my first semester at the International House in San Jose. Can't believe she'll be here for a year-long exchange now! The World seems to be sooo small...it's like she was round the corner and she took a trip here. It'll be a great year for her, Edinburgh is definitely the place where you want to study abroad :)
..I can't wait for Josh to arrive, too. He'll be here in three months, maybe a wee more. Missing him so bad, who would have thought I'd have found myself with a Californian boyfriend!:') I'm looking forward to show him around the city, and to travel around Europe as well. It'll be awesome!

My evening was really calm and peaceful, spent with Jean and John eating , chatting and doing some work. Jean and John have been my host family during my first year in Edinburgh, and I'll stay with them for the next month (after that I'll move closer to downtown and I'll live with Amy). It's gonna be sooo hard to say bye, because they've been (and they'll still be!) the perfect family everyone would like to have!:)

Now I'm ready for another day, can't wait for Saturday to arrive: Freshers' Festival! Ka-Wing and I will be there to promote Study Abroad (obviously! ;))


C.

Bye Bye Italy: It's Time for Tartans!

Alright, sooo...after 15 days in Italy (where I split myself among parents, grandparents and friends), I am (super) ready to head back to my beloved Scotland. Can't believe I've been away from Edinburgh for more than a year..be ready from great posts about Edinburgh, I simply love that city.
Awww. It's time. Flight tomorrow at Noon from Milan Malpensa :)


C.

USA vs. Europe: Thoughts From a Humble Point of View

It'll be interesting to read, just gotta find the time to write everything down.
I'll update soon ;)

C.