If there is one country I'd like to head back to, that would be India. Yohann was assigned for a month in Bangalore in 2008. I came to visit him there for a weekend, taking a day off work for a 3 day 2 nights stay using earned air miles. I had no expectations going there at that time. I have always been a fan of Indian Cuisine so that was one of my goals there- Eat as much Indian food as I possibly can. (which I happily and greedily did by the way.)

I remember arriving at Bengaluru International Airport on my own at 4AM on a Friday morning, happy to see my husband waiting for me at the arrivals after being away from him for a month. It was dark, but I can already see silhouettes of trees and structures rapidly moving as the cab driver dashed like a maniac on the other side of the road. I was too sleepy to care and I missed my husband very much, I was thankful that we arrived at the hotel apartment much earlier.

Here are some thoughts for this coming weekend. This wonderful view can be seen from the day bed lounge area of Peace and Love Resort in San Vicente, Philippines. 

Love & light,

Arni

Can you imagine yourself having a lovely vacation here one summer?
Bon week-end!
Love and light,
Arni

Who says adventure is limited to far off islands and invigorating cities? The office jungle has enough adrenaline rush to push us to the edge if we let it. Adjusting to a new group of colleagues, new rules, new procedures are all equally adventurous as discovering a new country.

Wishing this is how all offices look like. {Source}

As soon as the thick new handbook lands flat on my desk on my first day, reading it brings me back to learning a new language in class.  Feeling like an idiot for not knowing as much stuff as I expected myself  to know after a ten year pause from a career in design, I had to read my post The Art of Letting Go to be more kind to myself. I need to let go of worry that would soon drive me to my death bed due to high blood pressure if I don't relax.

Lost in translation while in meetings with all the acronyms people throw at each other as they all spoke in codes, I had to scratch my head, wondering, what PDS, HYG, HMN, and all the jumbled letters of the alphabet meant.

Like a small cub, joining the animal kingdom, trying to blend in and getting to know everyone, I daresay, I'm blessed to have great colleagues and bosses that are approachable enough to be my mentors. However, there's no such thing as a perfect place so we are bound to meet someone who will test our tolerance and patience, especially  those who think they're in the higher food chain ready to devour anyone who gets in their way.

I've learned so much in my first week and the more days go by, I'm having longer sleep. I can see spending longer hours  in the office is inevitable as piled up responsibilities and weeks ensue. We all try to avoid working late, but we have to accept that this is a big part of Interior Design and Architectural lifestyle, especially here in the Middle East. We have a popular saying here when someone asks, "when's the deadline?" The answer is always "Yesterday."  A client gave me this answer once and I was crazy enough to jokingly reply, "Too bad for you, I don't have a time machine. "