Reflections at the end of the year in the Kaos...

The end of November and the beginning of December, including my birthday week were quite hard, due to a combination of factors I felt "like staying in bed in the morning". This is very rare with me (fell down, not sleeping a lot ;-)), but now I'm feeling better and able to understand what was going on. They were:

1. School project: I was fully involved for those 3 weeks in our school project with the Frontrunners (Frontløberne) and this was very demanding. Actually I felt quite frustrated during the project because the differences among the 5 group members were so much that we were barely able to speak the same language, and we couldn't understand each other. I felt I was not understood throughout the 3 weeks and the results were not satisfactory. Yes the client was very happy and the changes proposed to the Frontløberne will start to be implemented after new-years. But in terms of Branding and Marketing (the assignment), I don't think we did a good job, being too superficial and not doing enough research and content.

2. Cultural shock: aham... and I thought that I was immune to that, after living abroad for so long and in such different environments, used to live and work with people from different countries and cultures! Fool... as the culture in Netherlands and Denmark is quite similar, I thought it would be easy, but I didn't realise that while in Amsterdam I was surrounded by people from all around the world (including a minority of Dutch), I'm here in the middle of a majority of Danes (and Swedes and Norwegians). This influences the group culture (either at school, at the work groups or at home) and I was ignoring it. As the Dutch, the Danes are almost the opposite of the Brazilians, and someone needs time, patience and tolerance to see the reasons and the positive side (and the benefits) of such behaviour. I'll write more about that later, but for now let's say that I survived the phase "I want all Danes to go to hell..." It's ok now (I hope, let's see the next work group... ;-))

3. Money: my savings from the Netherlands are gone! When the bank called me to "renegotiate" my current situation, by late November, it caused a lot of stress. Where will I get money from? Urgently?? I started working, first as a paper carrier, delivering papers in the mornings while in vacations and from next week I'll start cleaning a restaurant, 2 hours per day, as a way to get money to pay rent, school fees and food. This solution works but it's not the ideal, where I could dedicate myself totally to the studies and my projects (connected to my future). I would be looking for a company sponsorship, scholarship, grant, government loan, anything. I'm working on it, but the answers didn't arrive yet. If you know the solution, write me, I need "only" €30,000 for the next 2,5 years!

4. Winter: yes, it's already the second winter in a row that I spend in Europe, and I should get used to it, but even though it's not easy to avoid getting affected by the weather. Raining almost everyday, constant wind, grey sky, sun comes out maximum 2 hours per week (a bit hidden by the clouds), it gets light after 8am and dark before 4pm (I come and come back from school in the dark). The temperature is between 2C and 7C, which means that we don't even have snow!! And the people around also get a bit less happy, less smiley. Conclusion: there is no Brazilian happiness that can resist...


But this moment passed already, and that's why I'm able to describe this way, logical and clear. Solutions are coming and I'm able to see it now as an amazing learning and growing opportunity. Nothing can stop me now! :)

Looking forward for 2007!!!!!!