The sweet smell of gunpowder

No no, I am not talking about the fireworks for the Bastille day celebrations this coming Sunday and Monday, I am talking about the American power-strip I plugged into the power supply here this afternoon.

!POP!

went the power strip, and the smell filled the room. What was worse, as I later realized, that I had taken down not only the electricity of my room, but of half my floor with me. [btw, the "surge protector" was rated at 120V, and the voltage here is 220V -- do the math]

As I went downstairs to meet the people at the reception, I met another floor mate who was there because his room was dark now. I asked him how to say "It is my mistake" [«il est ma faute»] :).

And that's how I met Ahmed from Tunisia, a PhD student at INRIA. We looked for the circuit breaker, but could not find the one for the floor [we did find the ones for each room, and those for the gym and the kitchens and the restrooms, but to no use]. During this adventure, I also met Danielli, an Italian intern at INRIA.

Finally, an electrician was called, who promptly opened a panel we had not seen, and flicked a switch, and all was well.

Then, I took a bus and a train to Paris to meet Yogesh, one of the most active volunteers of the ITBHU Alumni website, who was visiting Europe with his family.

I came back at midnight and was greeted by Ahmed and Rania [Intern at INRIA], who were playing chess. We had a good conversation while I spectated, and they were impressed by the geolocation facility of my iPod Touch, as well as my James Bondesque wristwatch :).

Then it was time to call bhai on skype [he has a toll-free number, and it is free from anywhere on skype :)], and to post this post.

And now, it is time to sleep.
Bonne Nuit!
-A