Mumbai, just a quick week-end...

We went to Mumbai last month with Fabrice, just to spend the week-end. Our most interesting experience there was probably the train: First time we took the train in India, actually! (The logotype might look familiar to some londoners...) We could appreciate the... safety standards over there. Really impressive to see those doors totally open all along the journey, people jumping in and from the train, when it's still going, and sometimes, on the way, you see guys on the rails: Workers. If a train arrives, well, they might just jump on the side and go back until the next one! And in the end, well, it's like anything, you get used to it... Also, a picture of a cricket team in a parc. Cricket is very popular in India: A leftover among others from the british colonies. Something I really liked, is the color of the taxis: They have the exact same colors/look as the "rikshaws" (the indian "touc-touc"). It's like in a cartoon, daddy car and baby car, same uniform :)

Open day on the campus...

I let you imagine: Hundreds of hysterical schoolgirls, dancing on some kind of indian dance music (and singing... hem, shouting at the same time)... Well, at least, the campus was very much alive for a few days!

Beautiful Kerala

For our Diwali holidays (our first holidays as "indian citizens"! One full week) we traveled a bit threw the Kerala, a south-west indian state. We first spent two days in Kochi. from there, we moved to Alappuzha and spent a day and night on a houseboat, floating on the backwaters. Then we moved to Periyar/Tekkady, in the montains (1200 to 2000 m) full of tea plantations and spice cultures that create amazing, beautiful landscapes.

Advanced 1 students, just a start...

Life is not easy every day here, far from home... But I'm enjoying teaching, that far!
Here are the advanced 1 students, for whom I'm the main teacher.
One is missing on the pic, but the other ones are there, it's a total of 15 dudes !
With their authorization, I put this group pic and a few random examples of
the first exercise they did with me: 3 weeks to model and render an italian coffee machine
borrowed to a friend. Mag on the modeling, Fab on the rendering. Team work!
Well, there is still a long way to go, but it's the 1st year of 3D and it's just a start...

Resolutions !

Here is my new resolution and idea of a future project:
My life in India inspires me many things... There are the good parts, and also the difficult ones...
I am taking many notes from my experience here, and I think it's worth waiting to put them
all together and create a proper book/comic book/graphic novel... We'll see... I'm sure it's worth it :)

The Hyatt hotel...

When we get tired because starting to teach is so amazing but exhausting, tired of indian food, tired of the campus... The secret to get better is the Hyatt hotel. It's a 5 stars hotel in Pune and on sunday they have an amazing unlimited buffet (actually many... Italian, french, seafood, thai, meaaaaaaat, barbecues, desserts...) and unlimited good wine for about 2500 rupees = 35 euros. It's actually quite expensive for India, but it's the "cream of the crop" ;)
Last sunday we met the "game team" there (supinfogame teachers)