Four Years

September 18^th I left Arequipa, Peru for my adventure in Europe, I got elected MCVP in AIESEC Macedonia for the term 2007-2008.

September 19^th I arrived to a beautiful country called Macedonia for an original idea of spending 8 months and then returning home, 4 years later I’m writing from Germany somehow celebrating, my 4^th year in the old continent, my 4^th year away from my family.

Looking backwards they were 4 amazing years that brought me many learning experiences in every aspect of my professional, personal and spiritual life.

I learned to say I LOVE YOU to a very special person who shared 3 years of her life with me but, sadly and painfully, life showed me to say GOOD BYE to her (the hardest thing I did in my life). But again, looking backwards, those were good years, she was the best thing that happened to my life until now, and to her I’ll be eternally grateful.

I discovered that you can never be granted of having everything ensured such like job, money, relationship, health, friends, etc. A good friend passed away in 2010, but leaving me the most inspirational message that I could have ever imagined. Figuratively speaking he gave me a slap in my face for a wake-up call, since then I can really notice I’m different for good.

I learned to deal with my fears and solve every complicated situation face to face. This one was very hard to deal with because I rather avoid things than face them. 2011 was the year where I faced many challenges in the professional and, specially, personal side.

I’m connecting the dots and almost everything makes sense, every decision I made or every situation the destiny drop me let me to something really good; there is only one thing that I still can’t understand and trying to find out the sense of it, I believe this means there is still a string waiting to be connected to that dot, we will see, life is life and my lead performance in the play is still waiting for me.

4 years in Europe, don’t know how many more, I just know there is still time.

Just for closing this post, THANK YOU to all of you who shared your life with me in this past 4 years; It was an almost __________ experience :) (if you know me a bit, you might be able to complete the blank space :P )

With love and respect,

Yoelinho
Bonn, Germany

Merry Christmas my friends

I heard once, and once only by a very good friend, whom I respect the most but today is not among us... friends are the best and the worst that can happen to you... because they have the particular capacity to amaze you, hurt you, make you laugh and cry, at the point that they will make you cross the line between love and hate many, but many times.

Those individuals you call friends, are by definition and already took responsibility of what who you once were, the one you are now and who you'll soon become.

As I declared before, once, and no need to repeat it, although repeating makes it distinctive, there is nothing else I need for Christmas but my friends close to me... as for now, my friends, each of you, no exceptions taken, no criteria evaluated, you are on my mind and in my heart and certainly in my life, because, with simple maths, I'm the one who I am, because each of you and for that... THANK YOU!

Feliz Navidad Amigos Mios!

Best regards,

Yoel, Yo, Chuchu, Yoelo, Yoelce, Djole, Cholito, Yoyo, Zubi, Yoi, ñaños, Tuto
(or however you called me)
Budapest, Hungary
25th December 2010

1. Following my heart: 19th of September

— I love you son, go on and follow your dreams… we will be always with you — where the words of my father in the airport.

— Bro, good trip… now your room will be mine — my small sister told me with a evil smile in the face meanwhile a tear dropped slowly on the left cheek of my older sister who was standing behind her.

Then everyone jumped to make a group hug even when we were joking about other people doing those kinds of scenes in the airport, but this time, somehow we knew that this will be a long good bye and time will pass before to see the family together again. It was almost time, the last call for the boarding passenger was announce and after a last strong hug to everyone I went walking to the passport control prepared for my next journey, full of emotions, but before to stop seeing my family I turned back, and a huge flying kiss was the last thing I did before to cross the police control; a strange feeling went through myself and my teary eyes where covered by the sunglasses before to take the plane, but I was prepared because I knew I will come back.

With 24 years, I had the opportunity to lead the national branch of a global organization in Peru, traveled to several countries for International Conference in America, Europe and Africa, being facilitator at national and international level, lead a high quality team members, and more than 200 students from the best universities in my country; in sum I’ve been able to experience to be like a CEO in a really young age.

When once I was doing volunteer work in an asylum because of university obligations, so many things came into my mind, and somehow so many questions where answered; It was nothing about science, about philosophy, about job opportunity, it was something much more simple, it was about the life it self; I have to be sincere when I’m saying I didn’t think about it until years after when I traveled to Poland for an International Conference and had the chance to travel to one of the places that I was curious to see but at the same time afraid to be there, the concentrations camps of Auschwitz, it was then when something changed in my life.

I was crossing the Atlantic Ocean again, but this time with one way ticket; recalling the last words of my father, those words were in my mind during the long 15 hours of traveling, during those hours I was asking myself why I’m doing what I’m doing, the answer was really simple, I was following my heart, that weird feeling when you are in front of something or someone, and you just know, is illogical, is just there, and you just know, but is right.

It was Wednesday 19^th of September, finally I was there, the land who called me with a magical reason, with almost no purpose, but the feeling was there, the feeling to be in the right place in the right moment. A place who became home, a place where I fall in love, a place where I born again, a beautiful place called Republic of Macedonia.

My first Month in Macedonia :) (1st part)

My first perspective…

Almost two months ago I made an important decision… I decide to apply for an international leadership position after my term as MCP, the country where I applied was The Republic of Macedonia.

Currently, on my first month living in Skopje, I want to share my first impression of the country, the MC, and me itself as AIESECer working as MC abroad.
Lest start with the cultural shock… is one the things I’m dealing all the time, ok, let’s see behind… I’m coming from a Latin culture, Spanish speaking; a guy who loves salsa, merengue, cumbia, and almost all rhythms in South and Central America, and now in Central Europe with people who loves electronic music… is funny! I fact last weekend I went a to open public concert of drums and bass… once I heard something about that, but now I experienced… hahaha, I really wanted to have my camera and capture everything I saw and send it to my friend in Peru, hehe, they surely would enjoy that.



The other thing is the Language, hehehe, Spanish Speaking guy, who also speaks a little bit of English, trying to communicate in a country where most people just speaks Macedonian and other little bit of English as well, hahhaha, the first week was nice, curious and sometimes poetic, hehehe, both cultures trying to communicate with words, physical expressions and draws…

The food… well, I have no complaints related to this very important and sometimes crucial point in my life, hehe, as any trainee, ceeder, or visitor in other country, the aiesecer wants to share the best restaurants, bars, fast foods and other food stores and corners around the city, which is just perfect, in matters of this point, I’m starting to love Macedonia… the food is similar than the Latin food in several aspects.

The night life, also, I had the chance to been in different welcome, goodbye and birthday parties and also concerts; meanwhile I used to go parties, drink with friends and dance almost all the time, the difference is the music, electronic instead of salsa, vodka instead of pisco, … but now, this is what I really love the most… the girls, :):):):):):) sometimes I thing I’m in the paradise, hahahaha, they are just beautiful… I’m in love again, but ok, I have to admit, the latin girls have something special that I really miss, but I’ll spend one year here, so I need to use to my new way of life :)

... to be continued...

Harder than… buy tickets in Egypt!!!!

We went by metro to bus and train main station in el Cairo, the first shock was that when people wants to get out/in from the train people don’t wait for you, they just trying to do both things at the same time, that’s why we miss our first stop, hopefully we could take a train back without problems.

In the Train Station, only ask for information is very difficult, as I mencionate before, few people speaks English, well… we trying to get a ticket to Aswan (there are 13 hours by train) and spend the night in the train, we try to get the train for 00:30… we wanted to go in second class (50 LE) so is ok, almost 10 USD, however the guy who sales the ticket just didn’t want to sell any ticket just becouse other guy say something about him, so we were waiting almos 2 hours!!! Is weird, noone complains, not even when the ticket’s guy was smoking, resting, drinking coffee, and chilling out with others!!!... We were piss off and we decided to take first class ticket or any ticket…. but no free space there. L

It was almost midnight and we meet a guy who was trying to sells us a Tour to Luxor for 5 days, it sound cool, it was almost all covered (even cheaper than the IPM Study Tour)… the problem was that we haven’t enough money at the moment, we were specting have a bagpacker trip, but in a tour is different, you need to be prepared and travel more confortable… at the end we decide to not take de tour (just a hunch), and went back to Piero’s apartment… but the metro was closed…. About the prize… not even close of the real prize!!! But that history is for other post…

Going back home! Is totally an ISSUE. After, today I learn a lot of tips! As few people speaks or have a basic level of English in Egypt, is always necessary to have any main information translated in Arabic, for example… THE ADRESS!!!! And the NUMBERS!!!! The cab driver didn’t speak English at all, so I write the spected cost in my hand… the driver took my pencil and write the prize…. When I saw how much was the travel…. I saw two weird icons, it was in ARABIC!!! But the driver was a smart guy, he took two billets and shows us, and we just say yes! Let’s get out from here!!!! (midnight, downtown, no English speaking country…)

The second thing was the Adress, the guy just lost! How difficul could be find a place calle El Maadi! …. We figure out, that place was four times bigger than San Juan de Lurigancho! Hahahahaha…. The funny thing is when the driver asked for direction to one guy in the street, the guy just only hop in and went with us, and thanks to him we finally get back home… so also write the address in native language…. Now we are in home, but we will travel the next day… hahahaha this adventure is amazing!!!!!! (Hope my parents were not reading this…. :P)

A HARD decision!!! ... Traveling in Egypt!!!

We had almost 5 days off after IPM, so we had to make an important decision, we have three main turistic places we need to go, but only 5 days is no enough to know all of them…. The three top destinations are…. Luxor and Aswan is called the world greatest open air museum… we have Karnak and Luxor, Nile River, Necropolis, Valley of the Kings and Valley of the Queens, this destination takes 5 days!!! …. The second one is Alexandria, were we can find the ancient civilization of greats ships! Lend of Romans, Persians or Greeks on the amazing land of….. Alexander the Great! And the Pharos is one the Seven Wonders of the World!!!... The third option is go to Sinai… we are taking about the oldest and most famous natural monuments on earth (Biblically Speaking) the St. Catherine’s Monastery, was constructed in 527. It’s built around what is thought to be Moses’ Burning Bush, which has a chapel built atop it.

It was a hard decision to make, so…. And now starts the Victor & Yoel Adventures in Arabic Lands…..

¿Qué gano siendo parte de AIESEC?

Si eres de AIESEC, seguro escuchaste de tus padres... ¿Porqué no buscas una práctica? Desde que entraste lo unico que veo es que paras en reuniones y siempre llegas a casa tarde.... y de seguro trataste de explicárselos pero sin mucho éxito... a mi punto de vista, es más facil vender una TN a un Gerente que explicarles AIESEC a nuestros padres, bueno, ese es otro issue.`

¿A donde quiero llegar? Pues que no hay mejor explicación que la práctica, si queremos explicar lo que aprendemos de AIESEC entonces es simple, cuenta lo que hiciste en los últimos meses... para muestra un botón... en estos 6 meses he liderado un equipo de 6 personas, las más capacitadas de AIESEC y todos de las mejores universidades del Perú; viajé a Holanda representando a Perú junto con los presidentes de cada país en donde AIESEC tiene sede; conocí y me reuní con la Princesa de Holanda donde dialogamos sobre el desarrollo de Latino América y el Rol de Europa; viajé a Colombia donde conocí al Presidente de la Nacion Colombia, Alvaro Uribe, quien nos dió un interesante discurso y además nos tomamos unas fotos luego de conversar un rato con el sobre el futuro de Latino America; también estuve en Polonia donde conocí los campos de concentración Nazi, y pude entender exactamente el porqué se creó la Asociación a la que pertenezco; he tenido más de 10 entrevista con diferentes Miembros de Directorios, Gerentes Generales, Sub Gerentes, Vice Presidentes con los cuales hicimos negocios y entablamos alianzas estratégicas; recibí ofertas de trabajo en diferentes países del mundo en empresas como HP, Microsoft, PwC, Deloitte, IBM, Cadburry, ABN, DHL, donde puedo escoger empezar apenas termine mi carrera en AIESEC.... por lo demás creo en resumen es lo más resaltante....

Asi transcurre la vida de un AIESECo común, relaciones internacionales, relaciones publicas, ventas, negociaciones, liderazgo, manejo de equipo, trabajo bajo stress, resolución de conflictos, en resumen es un aprendizaje continuo a corta edad, y la gran mayoria de nosotros aún no hemos llegado ni siquiera a los 25 años.

Entonces, si ponemos a dudas, esto es lo que aprendemos en AIESEC, somos estudiantes universitarios que ponemos la teoria universitaria a la practica profesional, y apredemos a ser buenos directores ejecutivos, Talento que las empresas buscan, o Talento que nosotros desarrollamos para ser los dueños de nuestra propia empresa.

Es bien dificil creer esto, yo fui uno de ellos, que miraba de afuera lo que AIESEC ofrecía, pues ahora me encuentro en el otro lado, viviendo la experiencia dia a día. Solo pido a todos, no pierdan esta oportunidad y que es una experiencia que muchos también merecen tener.

@ly
Yoelinho