My first Birthday since I have blog...

Yes, I am getting old... but It doesn't mean I'm not happy.
This is my first Birthday abroad, far from my family and friends, and someones could think that it's sad or not the way it should be.
But actually I'm feeling really good, a guy beloved even being abroad, receiving greetings from many places, in many languages and by different means of communication.

And this feeling couldn't be possible if you weren't there guys, all the ones who make me happy, make me laugh, make me think, and also make me get angry, but in the end, I can resume it:
you make me feel alive! so I can enjoy this life, full of different situations and emotions, made for living it in every minute of our lifes.

So, I want to thank you all again, the fact that you remembered me in this day keeping me more alive than anytime before.

THANK YOU!


Picture corner:

Here I add a picture of Kopiec kościuszki where I've been yesterday, watching how the sun went down during the day of my 24th birthday.
This is a very nice place to stay calm, think and enjoy the views...

If you want to see more:
http://picasaweb.google.es/f.martin.85/KopiecKosciuszki1stApril09#

And also I took a look around Rynek Glowny with my tripod, and I took a couple of nice pics from there:


Kocham Kraków!

P.S. If you want to see more pictures of Kopiec and Ryne...
http://picasaweb.google.es/f.martin.85/KopiecKosciuszki1stApril09#
http://picasaweb.google.es/f.martin.85/RynekGlowny1stApril09#

Job interview done!

As I mentined yesterday, the ESA interview for the YGT place in ESTEC was today.
At 10.00 I was in ESTEC main entrance requesting my acreditation.

Actually ESTEC is not so complicated building and I got used to it in a few minutes after asking the reception girl.

The inteview was planned at 11:30 and the nice woman Caroline Brucker explained me everything before it.
The minutes in between the meeting with Caroline and the interview were the most stressing ones.

After these minutes almot without end the door of the interview room was opening in front of me, without knowing the people who were about to interview me...
Once started the interview in front of 3 people (1 from the Education department, 1 from Human resources and the project coordinator of the GENSO project)
The heart started to calm down and I could express myself in a way I'm used to. They were nice people and I felt confident in the interview.

After half a hour of interview and many questions from three sides, where of course there were some of them that I couldn't answer in the proper way I would like to, I shaked hands again and I left the room. I feel confident but not 100%...

Now it's time to wait until the answer in 4 or 5 weeks time, when I'll have the YES or the NO from them.

Summarizing I would say that ESTEC day was a nice inspiring day, showing me a very nice working place and the variety of nationalities working together for a main aim.
Leticia was there, working on her project and she and her friends in ESTEC kindly took care of me during lunch time in the restaurant.

Salmon was the main dish, which I didn't try in Poland for a long time. It was great! :)

After that, the launching of GOCE (Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer) took place and I was there in the Space EXPO to see it...

De One day in ESTEC, European Space Agency Technology headquarters

After that nothing kept me in that nice place and it was time to leave, to take a taxi and to go to Leiden station coming back to Brussels, where I am spending one more night before taking the plane to Poland.
I wouldn't mind to work there for a year, in a technology, educational and lovely european environment.


I'll inform you about the results. On wednesday, I'll be back in Poland.

Greets!

P.S. I want to thank you everyone who supported me before the interview and I send your best regards to them ;)

My first job interview

It was a long time since I wrote down on this blog last time, and I want to apologize to all the ones who were following it.

Today I want to talk about a very important day in my life. Tomorrow, Tuesday 17th of March 2009 I'll have my first job interview in Noordwijk, the Netherlands.

The interviewer will be the ESA (European Space Agency) and the job is the Young Graduate Trainee opportunity they offer every year for people like me.

The job is focused on the GENSO project (Global Educational Network for Satellite Operations).
www.genso.org

I've been several days reading, updating myself, trying to guess what they'll ask about it and what would be the better answer for each question.
In one hour I'll be leaving to The Netherlands and I'll finally face the interview as it deserves.

Greetings to everyone from AEGEE Comitée Directeur house in Brussels.

Fernando

Sábado en la Laboral

Este post va dedicado a una parte muy importante de mi actual vida, mi familia.
Ayer, sábado 10 de Diciembre de 2008 nos fuimos a la Laboral en Gijón, donde hay una pequeña pista de hielo en un marco inigualable.




Llegamos sobre las 4 de la tarde y la pista estaba literalmente tranquila y transitable. Mi hermana y yo nos aventuramos a la pista, con algo de miedo a la caída dado que era la primera vez que el hielo nos acogía para patinar...



No tuvimos mucho problema desde que yo aprendí a patinar en línea cuando era mozo y mi hermana tiene 9 años y aprende más rápido que el rayo.
Aunque por eso creo que se atrevió un poco más que yo con algún vuelo inesperado...


La recepción no fue del todo buena... jeje.

Al final de la hora que se nos asignó para patinar, la pista estaba prácticamente inundada de personas y a mí no me apetecía mucho el seguir patinando con riesgo a atropellar o ser atropellado...

Despúes de estos momentos en la Laboral tomamos algo en la cafetería donde, cuando estudiaba en gijón, iba de vez en cuando a comer. Al parecer, mi hermana había gastado demasiado en la pista de hielo y necesitaba el avituallamiento pertinente.


No tardamos mucho en poner rumbo para casa, donde la sidra y unas conversaciones amenas nos esperaban de la mano de unos viejos amigos.


El día había sido algo largo y cansado para mí, por lo que decidí permanecer en casa durante la noche, para poder hoy preparar este blog y las cosas del viaje de mañana...

Gracias por este sábado familia!!


Fer

One white week in the French Alps.

Here it is,a new post in my blog. It's a long time since I don't post, but the week in the French Alps deserves my typing.
The idea started in the proposal of a friend of mine (Dorothée) who has a place for staying in Lanslevillard, a little town close to the high mountains.


Ver mapa más grande

She proposed to us to get there and stay in her place for a week (new year's eve included), skiing/snowboarding for 5 days.
The idea was pretty well accepted for all of us noticing that the money we would spend won't be a big amount.
As I was in Krakow, I didn't get in contact so often with my trip-mates (Dani, Chema and Soni), but once in Asturias, we started to prepare all the stuff for the white week.
Helmet, gloves and a small present (windstopper) for Do was where I spent the money on before the departure. I have to say that the present was chosen by Chema and Soni and the four of us pay a bit of it.

GOING.

The first way was a bit tiring, since we spent 18 hours on the road. We started at 21:30 from Oviedo and we drove the whole night and morning. Finally we arrived at 15:30 ish, just willing to rest a bit before start skiing/snowboarding the next day.
One of the main reasons because we spent 18 hours was the car speed (100km/h). Once we put magnet holders fot the skiis and snowboards, we should take cara of the speed fotr them not to fly away...
Here you can see the long route we took:

Ver mapa más grande

And here you have our best friend furing these 18 hours:

Renault clio 1.2 16V.

MOBILE DEVICE & NAVIGATOR.

The next paragraph doesn't make too much sense with the Alps topic, but I had to mentioned it...
Two days before I went to the Alpes on 26th of December, I received my new mobile devide with Windows Mobile.

The Samsung Omnia.

http://omnia.samsungmobile.com/

It is my first device with mobile phone, GPS reveiver, Wifi, touch screen...
Taking the opportunity it offered to me, I decided to install a GPS navigator for the trip, just in case we would need it.
The software chosen was: "iGo 8.3 for windows mobile"


It didn't dissappoint me at all, and I recommend you to use it in case you can.
I found it out thanks to http://www.foro-elrincondedey.com/.
The maps are available here: http://www.volny.cz/sstopar/mio_mapy_igo8.html

The true story is that we didn't need the navigator at all, and we found the right way to Lanslevillard...

THE ALPES.

What can I say of a beautiful ski parade in the border of France with Italy, plenty of snow everywhere and with good weather almost the most of the time...
I susprises me in many ways.
The first one was that I'd never been in such a bit station and I could snowboard for such a long time compared with the ones I've been in.
Here my love in the right side and Dani's future love in the left.


The second one was the people I met there.It wouldn't be in a different way. Since we knew Dorothée we didn't expect something different from her sister Charlotte (one of the three she has) and her friend Caroline.
Nice, attentive, talkative, good trivial players, good cooks, and of course très mignonnes!


You are invited to Krakow during this year I'll spend there!

The third one was the food. Here in the Alps, it was not only a ski week but with tried different French specialities easy to prepare and very tasty!
I can mention some of them: Crepes, raclette, fondue, duck with pears...


Our stomachs had a really good time when we where out of the snow ;)
I really have to thank the cooks: Dorothée, Charlotte and Caroline and Sophie. Thank you!

I thought I gorgot the last one, but I also have a new game that I'll never forget. The jungle Speed!
When there's nothing else to do, it's a wonderful game to warm your brains up!

http://www.junglespeed.com/

PHOTOGRAPHY.

As you may know, I'm becoming day by day more fan of the photography, and in the Alps we join 3 DSLR cameras, Dorothée's, Stergios'and mine.
And as you may know, I fall in love with everything related with photography I see. Here it happened with a new lens.
Stergios, our greek friend from Thessaloniki, has a new lens which makes a very good effect in the indoor pictures.
As you can see in the following one:



I think it is my next adquisition when I'll have money... :)
Stergos is a great photographer, he knows that the pictures aren't made by money and expensive equipment, and he knows the recipee for cooking a good picture: Let's be creative!


Thanks for your advices mate. I'm following your steps... ;)

COMING BACK.

15 hours we spent for coming back.Why 3 hours less? We tried to increase our speed without risks and it worked well at 110km/h. We were also with more energies since we rested a lot the previous night and we drove during the day, departing at 12:30 aprox.
I arrived home at 5:00 in the morning (on January the 3rd) and after eating something light I went to bed directly.

ADVICE!

If you guys love skiing/ snowboarding, you should try one of these stations in the Alps. I know it's expensive, but I encourage you to do it just once in life.
And if you have the opportunity, as I had, to go with a very good friends and you have even the possibility to meet past mates and to meet new kind people, don't doubt it!

THANK YOU

I also want to thank Melou, Chema, Soni, Chris Krella and the German troop for the unbelievable week and the amazing moments in the cold, white and lovely Alps.


In one week, coming back to Krakow.

Greets and thanks to everyone who reads this blog.

Also have I been in Bratislava!

The journeys in Bratislava started with not knowing where we were... We stopped under a big bridge with a strange tower in the middle and it was completely dark at 19:30.
Nokia has improved a lot in these last years in issues of mobile phones including lots of features, and N95 8GB from Alex took us out of our problem and guide us (with GPS connection) to the hostel place, where after several minutes, we could get the bedroom, have a shower and get ready for knowing Bratislava nightlife.
We decided to go to Slovak pub, in ul. Obchodná (shops street) http://www.slovakpub.sk/eng/, where many students go there for having lunch, dinner or a warm chat drinking slovak beer.
The prices didn't disappoint us. You could drink a beer (0,5L) for less than 1€ (0,83€ cts),and have a typical Slovak meal for less than 5€.
Halusky, pierogi and many more dishes were in the menu and I don't regret to have tasted them as it won't disappoint you as well if you try them.

After more than one beer, we went out the lovely Slovak pub and decided to go to the city centre, to look for bars, pubs and any clue of nightlife. What a big disappointment when we didn't find any dance floor, any place where we fit in...
This night was the first step of our whole image of Bratislava...

Next day, Saturday morning, we had an appointment with Beata, member of AEGEE-Bratislava, friend of my flatmate Aga, and in a few hours of cultural guide. After a coffee and a piece of cake, we came accross her in the hostel and we started to walk and chat, watching attentive all we could.
Our interest was mainly focused on the strange tower on the middle of the Danubio, that seemed like a UFO and actually is called UFO.
We had to pay kind of 3€ for getting in, but it was really worth it because of the views and good weather that accompanied us during the whole day.
Here you see some of the marvelous views of whole old centre of Bratislava.



This evening, we met Matej, a Slovak friend of mine who was studying in Oviedo 2 years ago. He had dinner with us and with many members of AEGEE-Bratislava.


The next day we had to leave the room before 11:00 am, and during the checking out we started to talk with a group of Finnish girls who were in the same situation as us, it was the last day for them in Bratislava.
We all joined in a big group and decided to go to the castle after taking a coffee.
The castle was closed, so we couldn't get into, but once again, we had a beautiful views from the top of the hill where the castle is placed.

Slovak pub was our election to have lunch and to try the famous Halusky per less than 4€.Strauss and his "On the beautiful blue Danube" aslo accompained us after the lunch.


Unfortunately, this place was the last one where we saw our new Finnish friends, having to say goodbye, but wondering when we will meet again.
We all think that soon, Vienna is not so far from Krakow is it? :)

Hence, wed already seen more or less the majority of the important things in Bratislava, but Medieval weapon's and pharmacy museums were unknown for us.
The first one offered, appart from the many swords, helmets, knifes and rifles of the middle ages, an spectacular view of Bratislava during sunset, the perfect hour for photographers!


After the complete sightseeing guided tour thanks to Beata and Matej, this last one invited us to come to his place and watch some episodes of a funny serial called: "The big bang theory"


That was more or less our history in Bratislava. We would like to thank Beata and AEGEE girls for guiding us and for giving us advice.
As well we want to thank Matej, for his hospitality and always good mood.
Thank you...

I was in Vienna!

Not having rest so much after the las trip to Wroclaw, Andy told us in Tuesday that we had the tickets for going to Vienna and Bratislava, and just after going to World Press Photo,

http://www.worldpressphoto.org/
Krakow

(Entrance 5PLN)

and before entering the cinema (James Bond, Quantum of Solace)

he showed me the branch of tickets.
Finally, they were 240 PLN for going to Vienna and for returning from Bratislava. Not so cheap as I expected...

During the trip to Vienna, while we occupied to seats each (Andy, Artur, Francesco, Alex and me), we were talking from 21:15 to, more or less, one hour later, before I fell asleep.The trip was kind of long one until 5:00am.
Once being in Vienna, we had no idea where to go neither how to get our hostel
http://www.meininger-hostels.com/ and this was our first mistake that ended up in spending ours first 4€ each one for taking a taxi to get the place.

Hence, our trip started to get colour having a main place, maps and staff who informed us where to go and what to do.
One of the best things that happened to us was that the guy from the reception allowed us to enter the bedroom that night, not having paid for it. Of course, after 8-hour trip we were kind of tired and we took the opportunity of sleeping 3 hour before departing to the city center.
Going to the center and discover what Vienna had for us was the next thing we did, after having breakfast and taking our cameras.
We chose the 48h-10€ ticket for the next two days.
As the weather was not so good and we had read that tram no.1 had a kind of circled way where you could see most of the important buildings of the whole city, we got on it and "sight-saw" the city.
When we thought that the tour was over, I got off the tram which such a bad luck that the tram left when I was outside.
Here I am running after the tram...


My friends kindly got off the tram in the next stop and waited for me, after that we just walked having some problems to find the closest metro station.Even with problems our destiny was clear: Donaustadt, a little "island", where the UN building is placed.

Nothing more was actually so interesting there apart from the big Danube flowing under our wet shoes.
Coming back to our steps, we took a look around the Parliament, the City hall and the University, where a book market was taking place.
I have to admit that I really liked the infrastructure in there and I wouldn't mind to study there for a period of time, as my current flatmate Anita is going to do next semester...
Even with a nice building, we couldn't find a good place for eating, we decided to leave and take some hotdogs (aprox. 3,40€ each). It was no the best option but when you are hungry...
With something in the stomach, our clothes a bit wet and our hands frozen, we looked for a coffee place, without knowing that we would have to pay 3,30€ for a chocolate and 3,40€ for a typical "Melange" coffee.

Nevertheless it gave us strength for taking the map and point out a new place for visiting, the Schönbrunn Schloss (castle) and the gardens around it. Unfortunately, the sun wasn't with us for much longer and we couldn't appreciate the castle so well, deciding to find a warm place for staying the next couple of hours.
Moreover, we realized that we had a shopping centre close to our place, so got that way after having no direction and were surrounding the beautiful city centre,
After all, we seemed a bit tired and decided to get the hostel, rest an clarify things before our next step...
No choice had we we all fell asleep, we think, due to the long trip, the few hours slept and the long and exhausting day in the capital of culture in Europe, Vienna.
So, our next, already mentioned, step was taking a shower next day and get ready for a new day of sightseeing.
This one we visited the Museum of natural history, the national library and finally the Rathaus, where a free guided tour (in German) took place.
Afterwards, and like in every moment, we were hungry. A new member of the group was with us, a German girl friend of Andy (from Australia) who is studying in Vienna at the moment. And she knew a place for eating with "student" prices.
I think 6€ for a dish of fish, a drink and an apple is not a student price but we realised that we were in one of the most expensive cities in Europe...
The eaten fish was valid for resisting the next ours until we departed to Bratislava.
In these, more or less, 3 hours, we met a new place, a kids park.


It was near the Ernst-Happel stadium, where if I remember well, Spain defeated Germany 1-0 in the football Eurocup. Yes! we are European champions finally!


Next action was taking our rack-sacks and taking the bus (at 18:30) to Bratislava, where new language, people, prices and traditions were waiting for us...