My new job got me to Rueil-Malmaison, France for a few weeks. A western suburb, just 12kms, from central Paris, well-connected by local trains, yet technically considered outside of Paris!

The most striking thing as I got to the hotel in a taxi from Charles De Gualle (Paris airport) was the writings on the walls along the road. The writings were comparable to those unwanted and unsolicited ones back in India. But I guess, in Paris its art!?! :)

Getting back to “Charles De Gualle”! How does the pronunciation go? It goes like “Sharl du gol”. Getting a pronunciation right is fun here. With some practice, I seem to got the basic greetings right. (Certified by my 2 French colleagues :)). The true test of my pronunciation skills will be on this weekend, when I plan to visit some of the popular spots in Paris.

Dined in Indian restaurant last night & Japanese tonight. Japanese wasn’t impressive. A good Japanese friend in Frankfurt tells me that many Chinese run the Japanese restaurants.

The owner of Indian restaurant made an interesting point- the recession is taking a toll on business, pointing to the rows of empty tables. Contrast that to Bangalore and restaurants, resorts & traffic – everything seems to be going full.

Met 4 young Indian chaps at the Indian restaurant. 3 of them study petroleum at IFP and 1 works in Total, possibly also IFP alum. Its interesting to meet new people venturing into different avenues.

The experience of sorts happened day 1 at the office cafeteria. As I was lost in the size and variety for lunch in the cafeteria, the cashier in the counter freaks me out with just 2 words – “tamil tereyama” (means do you know Tamil?). #$%^&*(*&^%$%^&*( :O I was baffled! The environment was further deceiving. I recovered from my shock and discovered it was the Pondicherry connection! :)

Awaiting weekend… Planning a long walk starting from Arc De Trimpho, through Champs Elysees, Louvre, Cathedrale Notre Dame ending at the des Arts pedestrian bridge over River Seine. Here is the plan on Google Maps.