Cheap Chinese Food???

Well, the weather in London this past weekend has been very strange. Saturday it was absolutely gorgeous out so I decided to make my first trip to ChinaTown to buy some groceries for home. It was just like being at T&T back home and I got carried away and almost tried to buy up the whole store. However, since I don't have a car and had to carry the stuff 30 min on the Tube, I just bought what's featured in the pic. But Damn chinese food here is expensive... this little bit of food (some vegies, instant noodles, vita soy, rice, tofu and sauce) cost $60!!! i could get this for $20 back home...guess that's what living in London is all about. Hopefully will get to meet up with Matteo tomorrow. This posts for u big guy! haa haa 

First Week at Google is Over, Feeling right at home!

Well, it's 6pm and my first week at Google is finally over. I really like the office environment because there are no walls or cubicles, just big open area. I sit with the 4 other Product Marketing Managers and all the guys are great, but it gets confusing. Why do i say i feel at home already? Well, out of the six of us at our station, 3 of us are from INSEAD, so that's 1. Secondly, the guy on my right is named Jason, and the guy on my left is named Charles, so I'm sitting in between Jason and Chuck...haa haa.

Well, TGIF just ended and they welcomed the new employees from this week to this office, 9 to be exact. According to our annual report, Google hired 1100 people last year, problem is, our business is growing faster than that...maybe we should stream line and shorten this 3 month hiring process! Cool thing is that I will start interviewing people within the next month and hopefully will be at INSEAD for recruiting season!

People seemed quite happy about our great quarter but I learned quite quickly that it is Taboo to talk about the stock price... so moving on!

Lastly, I'll be in Noogler training next week (Noogler = New+Googlers) for 2 days and then will be thrown into the deep end on my first projects. I can tell already we are severly understaffed and there is a tonne of work ahead, looking forward to it! Can't wait to get my first project under my belt cause after that, I will be sent to Mt.View, California for a week and will be able to finally see May, YAY! Miss ya tonnes!!

Hmm...does anyone even read this blog? Cheers to the weekend!

Earnings Day for Google... HURRAY!

Quote from the Associated Press: "APR. 20 6:48 P.M. ET Google Inc.'s first-quarter profit rose 60 percent, soaring past analyst estimates as the company's Internet-leading search engine solidified its position as the Web's most popular advertising vehicle.

The report sent Google shares rising more than 7 percent in late trading." click here for more of the story

Great news, stock is back up to $450 in after hours trading. I'm sure everyone at work will be happy tomorrow. Ok, i'm excited because there were some worries if Google disappointed investors this quarter, that the stock would really tank.

Anyways, it is Friday tomorrow and I just found out that it is a Google tradition that at 4:30 on Friday afternoons, we have TGIF. Everyone is supposed to go to the cafeteria and mingle with other employees to share their week, get to know one another, and eat lots of yummy food and drink. It's something Larry and Sergei (Google's Founders) did from the very start in San Fran. Which leads me to the food topic I started last time! (man, i'm all about food eh?)

When I started at Google, I heard the rumours of how great the food was, because I know in Mountain View HQ they have some of the best chefs there cooking great creations for employees to keep them happy and working hard. They have something called the Google 15, which is like the freshman 15, where each employee pretty much gains 15 lbs from the free meals and snacks. Yet, I also know that London is not a place renowned for great cuisine, so what's the verdict?

Drum roll please...

Actually, the cafeteria food here is better than average, some really good, but some soso, which by the way, i'm already happy about! We are a much smaller office of only a few hundred after all and how can u complain about free. Plus they have tonnes of fresh fruits and freshly squeezed juices, any candy bar u could imagine, and lots of great salads, breakfast cereals, sandwiches, paninis, etc. Because of all this eating, I went to check out Gyms today, and found a pretty good LA Fitness center with a pool just 5 min from work. Membership is only 22/month so I think i may go for it.

Finally, as for work, I was playing with all of Google's new top secret stuff that are in the works today, and man, there is some cool stuff so you guys out there better start playing with the products we roll out and become Googlers! haha Anyways, I will have my first major project next week and will fill u in then, in the mean time, it's time for bed! G'night!

First day at Google Inc!

Ok, so you're probably wondering why I posted a pair of colorful new runners (I mean trainers!) on my Blog. No this isn't regular Google attire. It's actually a left over custom pair of Nikes made for a promotion we had that were given to me today since I'm the only one that has size 10 feet! ha ha...

So how was the first day? Well, lets just say, I have a TONNE to learn. I felt like that expression, trying to drink from a firehose as I was in 4 meetings today and at the same time was trying to setup my bank account, tax forms, laptop etc (all this damn admin work!). However, everyone I met including my mentors all seem really great and I'm really looking forward to getting my feet wet and launching my frist products.

For those who don't know, I am an International Product Marketing Manager and I will be in charge of launching and promoting consumer products right across Europe. However, as our engineering team out here is rather smaller than at the Googleplex, I will also be in a quasi Product Manager role as well to try to gain expertise on product design etc. Who knows, maybe in a few months u will see me on the Corporate Blog (http://googleblog.blogspot.com) or interviewing with Journalists in the UK as I hear it may also be part of my responsibilities. Too early to tell anything yet, but it will definitely be many long hours, lots of challenges and new experiences. Haven't tried the famous cafeteria food yet so will post about that another time, however, with so many free drinks, snacks and meals in house, man, I hope I don't gain too much weight! I also found out today that the nice Gyms in London cost 880 pounds for 1 year! HOLY!!!

Oh well, Now I'm just waiting to hear the big news on Thursday when our Q1 corporate earnings for 2006 come out. Fingers crossed!
PS: If any of you will be in San Fran in May, I will probably be there for a week for training so lets meet up!

My new flat in London

Yay, so today is officially my first full day in my new flat in London. Ok, it's just a temporary place for 1 month that Google has given me, but it's nice to be out of the Hotel and to be able to cook my own meals... hmm... hopefully no stomach aches! haha :)

Unfortunately, I have been having the hardest time adjusting my internal clock, long skyping with MH to blame? :D Woke up at 3pm today but since then, I've been busily unpacking and am now preparing for my first day at work tomorrow. I really hope it goes well. I am both very excited and quite nervous as I have no idea how high their expectations are for me, but i'm sure I'll really enjoy the company. Wish me luck guys! Of course, I started this Blog site so that it will give me an outlet to procrastinate from my work. Man, it is sooo quiet in my apartment. I miss everyone at home a lot and i'm sorry if I didn't get to see many of you before I left. Didn't wanna do a big going away party, as its always hard to say g'bye! Remember, if any of you ever come to Europe, or just the UK, u have a free place to stay with me... just bring over some great Vancouver food with ya!

Here are my contact details:
If you are on Google talk (talk.google.com) then we can chat over the internet for free! Add me (jchuck)
Temp Address (til 16/5/06): Flat 3, 24-26 Spring Street, Paddington, London, UK W2 1JA
Mobile: +447758318204
E-mail: jchuck@gmail.com

MH: now you can see the couch I was on! Very cozy... 

My Kitchen

 

My Bedroom for 1 month

 

First Days in London

Officially arrived in London after a 9 hour flight on Air Canada to start a new chapter in my life. Surprisingly, the flight went rather smoothly with check-in, baggage and take-off, but I had a completely nutty S.African guy sitting next to me that kept screaming and freaking out. On top of that, he would eat his ice cream and salad dressing with his finger and kept getting it all over me! disgusting...

When i finally landed, i realized i forgot my SIM card in Vancouver and since it's a Bank Holiday here for Friday and Monday, I'm going to feel completely naked without a phone. However, i did manage to head out to the Comedy club with my good friend Jorge who I taught with in Wuhan China and then met up with the INSEAD crew (Fahd, Alida, Vito, Nishta, Harvonne, Thomas, Fabio, Premjit...) at some club in Oxford Circus (Movida?). Man, it's like school never ended with sooo many INSEAD people here!

Anyways, I will be staying at the Hotel Hilton in Paddington until my temporary Google flat is ready on Sunday the 16th of April. Time for bed... it's 6am and I just got off the phone with MH. Home sick? U betcha!

Me and My MH Monkey