This past May, I had the honor of participating in the Adam C. Sinn ’00 European Investment Management Field Trip led by Dr. Sorin Sorescu. What makes this trip so special is that it differs greatly from many other study abroad plans: we never spent more than 5 days out of our three weeks in a single location and instead of taking classes at a local university, we spent half of our time recruiting, networking, and getting to understand the full breadth of the asset management spectrum. Since our trip was fundamentally different from the traditional CIBS offering, I’ll discuss my impressions, both initial and final, of the first half of our trip in this post and the second half in the one that follows. Allons-y!
New York: We’ve all seen how New York is described in popular culture. Think about some of the greats: “Will and Grace,” “Seinfeld,” “Sherlock,” and “Suits” were all set in the Big Apple and dealt with its many intricacies in various ways. Prior to arriving, I expected nothing less than a booming, bustling urban environment with people and concrete as far as the eye could see. I also expected, admittedly, a decent amount of Jersey attitude and self-absorption, but I’m glad to see that I was wrong! The hospitality that we were shown (both in our corporate meetings and in our adventures around the city) were more than enough to change my perspective! Our strolls around Little Italy late on our final night added even more color to our respect for and understanding of the wonderful people of New York City. The charm, environment (past the skyscrapers and general gray-ness), and diverse culture that exists within the boroughs was thoroughly impressed upon me and I cannot wait until the day I’m able to return.
London: London might have been my favorite individual city from the entire trip. The atmosphere, though certainly in line with European standards and cultural norms, provided a more refined backdrop to the bustle of New York. While I certainly expected grand architecture and wonderful sights to see (as the bare minimum), I certainly didn’t expect the city’s rich history to pervasively color the city’s landscape. The city of London makes continued efforts to welcome all aspects of its history and display them publicly. It’s because of this that we saw tremendous contrast between large, life-like statues of military heroes (most notedly one man named “Earl”) and 13th-century architecture that provides hundreds of people a glimpse into how London was structured during the dark ages. Looking back, I’m confident that I could spend weeks getting lost in the city and exploring all it has to offer without getting bored. It’s a city that never runs out of innovation, character, and wonderful lives to understand.
Belgium: Our 24-hour stay in Belgium consisted of two parts: one idyllic night in the Belgian countryside in the city of Bruges and a less than idyllic day in the heart of Brussels. What makes Belgium such an interesting place to be has to be the diversity in language: French, Dutch, Flemish, and German are all widely spoken and highly recognized in different parts of the country, so I certainly expected there to be some cross-country language skill manipulation. What I ended up finding, however, is that French has spread so far around the country that a basic understanding of French would allow anyone to survive. Even in Bruges, which was well into the Dutch side of the country, was French so pervasive that we were able to catch signs in French in the middle of all the Dutch. This same sentiment continued in Brussels, where it was rare to find a single set of signs that didn’t display information in both French and Dutch. Our home station, Bruxelles-Midi (Brussel-Zuid) was a shining example of this. It’s because of this that I’m taking a very internationally-friendly perspective away from Belgium. It’s home to more EU committees and buildings than I can count and has taken steps to make the city both accessible and navigable for all who enter.