Last Sunday the world stopped for a moment to watch the beautiful game. As an American abroad, getting into soccer/football this summer has actually been pretty cool! Every match - not just the USA matches - has been required viewing, either at the local pubs in Haifa or back at our house in Ramat Eshkol.
Since we were no longer in Haifa for the weekend of the final, the team decided to take cabs into Tel Aviv to watch the match. What better place to see the 2010 World Cup Final than in the country's most party-centric city! After a great dinner - the team migrated to the Paradise Bar - the local Dutch expat bar to watch the game. The mood at the bar (and in the streets surrounding it) was electric. Everywhere you looked, people were gathered around TVs or were standing on whatever they could (cars, benches, etc.) to see the various big screen projectors that had been set up. Some folks in our group found a hole in the wall bar next door to watch the match, while another group (me included) went down the block to a schwarma place to see the game. In the end - the Dutch lost in OT - which was a big disappointment for everyone (me especially) since we'd all been pulling for the boys in orange. That being said, the Spanish played a heck of a game and that final goal was very clutch. Congrats to them.
For the past few years, I've been a regular reader of Andrew Sullivan's blog at The Atlantic. Andrew's political and social analysis is top notch, and though I don't always agree with everything he writes, I am always impressed by his thought provoking articles and the discussions his blog fosters.
Back in May 2006, Sullivan began a daily feature on his site that he called The View From Your Window. Originally started as a week-long experiment of reader submitted photos, the project quickly became a favorite of regular readers and has continued on ever since. Per his blog, here is the goal of this daily feature:
The point of the project is not to document snow fall in New Orleans, the aftermath of a hurricane in the South Pacific, or a beautiful sunset in the Arizona desert. The best window views are those depicting what you see everyday when you look outside. So show us - and every other reader - your world. Don't pretty it up; just show it as it is - a glimpse through the looking glass of a blog, at the world its readers live in.
This is really all it is - an opportunity for people to get brief looks into the daily lives of others throughout the world. Ultimately, this feature has been so successful, that last year it was turned into a book.
Anyway, what is the relevance for Smith in Israel? Our team has a pretty amazing view from our place in Haifa, so earlier this past week I submitted a photograph taken from the top window of our team's house to Andrew's blog. I really didn't think it had much of a chance to make the cut. Yet, lo-and-behold, out of the many hundreds of photos received daily, he selected mine for his Thursday post!
"The view from my window"
Photo by Daniel Branscome
Though my photo goes uncredited on his site (as are all other photos submitted to this feature) I think its still pretty cool that the Smith team's view of the world - at least for 9 weeks this summer - got to be shared in this way.
This weekend found the team on the road to Northern Israel. Waking up bright and early on Sunday morning, we had a quick breakfast and then departed for a day long guided excursion to see the sights and attractions of Haifa, Acre, and Rosh HaNikra.
After a quick drive up the coast from our base in Ramat Eshkol, first up was a quick tour through Haifa's German Colony and then up the side of Mount Carmel to the most impressive (and beautiful) view in Haifa - the Bahá'í World Centre and the Shrine of the Báb. As you can see from the picture below, the Bahá'í Gardens are gorgeous.
"View of Haifa from the top terrace of the Bahá'í Gardens"
Photo by Daniel Branscome
Leaving Haifa, we headed further up the coast to the ancient city of Acre. One of the oldest sites of human habitation, Acre has been a site of many conflicts over the past millenia - and has changed hands repeatedly. As such, Acre is home to many interesting sites, chief among them, a buried Crusader Fortress, an Ottoman Citadel, and the Khan al-Umdan.
"inside the main hall of the Knights Hospitaller at Acre"
Photo by Kristin Thompson
By this time, the group was getting hungry - and boy oh boy - the tour guide did not disappoint. This brings us to what I'd say is currently the odds on favorite for highlight of the trip to date - lunch in Acre. After trudging through back allies, we found ourselves in front of a packed little hummus joint in the middle of Acre's Arab souq.
"Our tasty hummus lunch in Acre's Arab souq"
Photo by Kristin Thompson
If its not already obvious, the team really liked lunch - even as it only really consisted of warm pita, veggies, and hummus. The restaurant - whose name I never quite figured out how to pronounce - was instantly dubbed by the group as the "Ben's Chili Bowl" (Hummus Bowl?) of Acre. It was just that good.
Leaving Acre, we departed for the final site of the day, Rosh HaNikra. Directly on the border with Lebanon, these white chalk cliffs and coastal grottoes are known as the gateway to Israel. Taking a cable car down to the sea edge, we were able to explore the inside of the caves - and get up close and personal (my wet t-shirt is a testament to how close I was) with the waves that have been crashing and forming this site for ages.
"The team enjoying the seaside sights of Rosh HaNikra"
Photo by Kristin Thompson
This was a great way to end the day - and got us all excited about the adventures to come! Next up, this week we'll be working at the Technion in Haifa. Then on Friday we depart for a weekend in Tel Aviv.
After a free day to rest and recover, on Thursday we had our first class at the Technion. Around 4PM, we left our place in the Ramat Eshkol neighborhood to head to the campus.
Upon arrival we had a reception and had our first chance to meet our Israeli classmates (and teammates) for the summer. It seemed clear from the get-go (at least to me, and I believe to the other Smith students as well) that our Israeli teammates are just as excited as we are to get started. Our Israeli counterparts are all current students at the Technion, though many are also still employed during the week, mostly in the high-tech, aviation, and defense industries. To be sure, their diverse technical expertise will come in handy!
Class began promptly at 5PM with our professor, Uzi de Haan, spending a few minutes introducing the material, outlining the course, and setting expectations. Uzi - a professor at the Technion since 2003 and formerly CEO of Philips Electronics Israel seems like a real "no nonsense" kind of operator. He offered the class a pretty stark assessment of the challenge in front of us. Also, he didn't sugarcoat the assignment by shying away from the reality that some of the patents we'd be looking at wouldn't necessarily be "ready for prime time".
At 7PM we moved to a different classroom to hear presentations from each of the various patent inventors, scientists, and researchers regarding their technologies. Over the course of the next 2+ hours, we were given a terrific introduction to each of the patents. Some were already in a prototype stage, while others were still merely conceptual. Some had clear problems they looked to address, whereas others were still solutions looking for the right question. Regardless, what was clear was that each was very different and thus, would require teams to undertake multiple approaches.
With our teams formed and our patents assigned, the next two weeks will see us driving towards our first deliverable. Using both outside research, combined with team brainstorming, we must determine five potential markets or end users for our technology. We will then create presentations and come prepared to defend our selections.
The views expressed on this site are those of Daniel Branscome, hereafter referred to as "the owner", and do not necessarily represent those of the University of Maryland, the Robert H. Smith School of Business, or the Technion. All content provided on this blog is for informational purposes only. The owner makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this blog or found by following any link on this blog. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.
Last Sunday the world stopped for a moment to watch the beautiful game. As an American abroad, getting into soccer/football this summer has actually been pretty cool! Every match - not just the USA matches - has been required viewing, either at the local pubs in Haifa or back at our house in Ramat Eshkol.
Since we were no longer in Haifa for the weekend of the final, the team decided to take cabs into Tel Aviv to watch the match. What better place to see the 2010 World Cup Final than in the country's most party-centric city! After a great dinner - the team migrated to the Paradise Bar - the local Dutch expat bar to watch the game. The mood at the bar (and in the streets surrounding it) was electric. Everywhere you looked, people were gathered around TVs or were standing on whatever they could (cars, benches, etc.) to see the various big screen projectors that had been set up. Some folks in our group found a hole in the wall bar next door to watch the match, while another group (me included) went down the block to a schwarma place to see the game. In the end - the Dutch lost in OT - which was a big disappointment for everyone (me especially) since we'd all been pulling for the boys in orange. That being said, the Spanish played a heck of a game and that final goal was very clutch. Congrats to them.
