Silent Strength

I discovered this weekend via a friend of mine a great movie: Splice. It's a French/Canadian movie directed by Vincenzo Natali and it is starring Adrien Brody (the Pianist) and Sarah Polley (Dawn of the Dead).

Plot: This great science-fiction movie is based on the story of two scientists: Clive and Elsa. For many years, the couple have tried to find a universal cure to human diseases such as cancers by splicing together the DNA of different animals. After successfully creating 2 hybrids, they try to start the phase 2 of their project: adding human genes in the experiments.

Opinion: I really liked Splice, this strange movie definitely reinvent the genre. Those 1:30 hours are entertaining: you observe two mad scientists playing with the limits of genetics by giving birth to a creature that has human genes. If you haven't seen it yet, you should!

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Paris is a place where you can easily find romance, good food and have epic moments. For those who are traveling to Paris, I started to put together a list of advices that can be used and abused.

It's a well-known fact among the travelers, Paris is a romantic city which happens to be a little bit rainy (have an umbrella) and where it's easy to lost yourself (have a map or a phone with a navigational system).

My favorite epic moment is a sunrise from Petit Pont, when the town is waking up and Notre Dame is ringing its bells. The scenery is even more epic during the winter when the tourist are almost inexistent. During the beginning and end of summer (end of may / end of september), the blank of the Seine are a great spot to do a picnic. You will meet a lot of locals, see a lot of students and you can once in a while have some music. Be aware that parts under bridges can be very smelly.

Close to Ile de la Cite, there are many bridges that are for walkers only. Pont des Arts is the most famous: it has a lot of lockers attached to it, it represents the love between two individuals. If you are going with someone you love, don't forget, it's a great spot!

As Paris is a very old city, you will have a lot of historical places to see. The Eiffel Tower is very touristy, you can wait in line for hours if you didn't arrive at the right time. The view from the top is gorgeous and you can have a clear sky during the fall. Champs Elysees is full of international shoppers, you have the famous brands and stores such as Channel and Louis Vuitton. Some religious places are worthwhile seeing if you have time: Notre-Dame, Basilique du Sacre-Coeur, and Cimetiere du Pere Lachaise.

The French cuisine is also something you must try while you are in Paris. Avoid the touristy areas (e.g. Rue Moufetard) and try to find an artisanal Boulangeries. Patries and breads are very different from what you can find in America (Olive bread, croissants, pains aux chocolate are delicious). If you want some French delicate macarons, go to LaDuree or Pierre Herme (the chocolate one is my favorite). I would also recommend you to try cheeses (all kinds) and charcuteries (eg. saucisson sec, jambon) as they are not easily findable in America. Even tho this is more exotic, I love going to Mosquée de Paris for amazing couscous and Aux 3 Elephants for great Thai food.

To close this already long list of things to do, I recommend you to walk a lot, that's the best way to discover new places. Place de la Bastille is a great spot for drinks and food, Eiffel Tower is great for picnic, Moulin Rouge is very fun for parties. If you like posh bars, you can go to the top of Centre Pompidou for an outdoor drink, the view is amazing. Galeries La Fayette has an amazing dome, highly decorated for christmas. And if you're just looking for a public park to chill: Jardins du Luxembourg are pretty cool.

Some great events you might want to attend: La fête de la musique (music festival) and La nuit blanche (White Night).

Get more advices for Paris directly on my Google+.

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Installing Apache, Mysql and Php directly on a Mac isn't a good idea: when you want to do a fresh reinstall, you need to format your personal computer. So let's use VirtualBox (free virtualization software) to run a Ubuntu Server.

The process is actually very straightforward so I am going to be very brief about it. At the end you will have a server with Apache / Mysql / Php and ssh access.

• Download VirtualBox and the Ubuntu Server ISO file.
• Install and open VirtualBox (you don't need to mount the Ubuntu iso).
• Create a new virtual machine (Memory 512Mo / Hard drive: 8Gb).
• Run it, it will ask you the Ubuntu ISO file.
• Follow the install procedure.
• When you have the screen to install services, select the ones you will need luckily need: SSH, Apache etc.
• Once the installation is finished, stop completely the virtual machine.
• Open a Mac terminal and enter (replace machine-name by the name of your machine in VirtualBox):
  • VBoxManage modifyvm "machine-name" --natpf1 "guestssh,tcp,,2222,,22" # SSH
  • VBoxManage modifyvm "machine-name" --natpf1 "apache,tcp,,8888,,80" # Apache
• Launch your virtual machine.
• Open Safari: http://localhost:8888/, if you see "It works!", it means apache is working properly.
• Open a terminal: ssh username@localhost -p 2222.

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After 3 years of using a macbook 13", I bought a brand new MacBook Air for home. My first acquisition was an iPod back in early 2000, I now have a lot of history with the company (3 computers, 3 iPods, 1 iPad).

It's more expensive than what the competition has to offer, but it gives you the quality you expect and a good sense of detail that no company in the world can face when it comes to personal computers.

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Here we go. After a year of craziness, I am now turning 23. I don't really have lot of time to say all the cool things which happened to me last year.

In january 2010, I moved to San Francisco (California) to work for Yahoo!. They managed to get me an H1B and relocated me. Few months after, end of March, I moved to Google to work on their great product: YouTube.

Thanks to Google, I was able to stay in Paris for a month (yes!), to visit Los Angeles and also to discover New York City and Miss Liberty. Those experiences were the best I've had for a long time. Also thanks to Google, I met amazing folks.

This year has been entertaining, challenging and rich of experiences. I learned to snowboard (that was truly epic), walked for hours in San Francisco, get to sit in some coffee shops to read a bit. And, yes, also did my coming out, started to watch movies on sundays. How random.

Thanks everybody! You rock!

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