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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024

CSUN Dean Climbs Swiss Mountains

He’s Malaysian and his wife is from India. So where is the couple’s favorite travel destination? Switzerland. Chandra Subramaniam, dean of the David Nazarian College of Business and Economics at California State University – Northridge, and his wife Smita have taken a shine to the land-locked Alpine nation in the center of Western Europe. For Subramaniam, the attraction lies in the friendliness of the people. For example, whenever he’s on the street and pulls out his map, people stop to ask if they can help him. Also, most Swiss have a working knowledge of three to five languages. “Everyone at the hotel knows multiple languages, so if you say ‘Hi,’ they will respond in English. Then they can turn to the next person and speak German. I find that fascinating,” Subramaniam said. “And unlike here, where people expect everyone to speak English, it becomes more international.” Of course, the Subramaniams make yearly trips to New Zealand, where his family lives, and Calgary in Alberta, Canada, where her parents live. “But these are not pleasure trips – I call them ‘pilgrimages,’” he said. Subramaniam, a former engineer with National Semiconductor in Santa Clara, noted that a career in academia provides free weeks on the calendar for extended vacations. … In most U.S. cities, everyone knows the commute pattern – people head into downtown in the morning and drive out to the suburbs after work. Except in Los Angeles, it doesn’t work that way. Take Aaron Mensch, Van Nuys native and principal at Barrington Capital Group who works in the firm’s Van Nuys office several days a week. Mensch recently moved to downtown L.A. from Brentwood, so theoretically his commute to the Valley should be against traffic, saving time and frustration. Wrong. “The biggest negative with my relocation is the commute,” he told Valley Insider. “It added at least half an hour. … From Brentwood, I was going the opposite direction of traffic, and I lived right by the 405 freeway.” Plus, the urban walkable lifestyle has its drawbacks – during a recent power outage, he had climb more than 30 flights of stairs to reach his dwelling. Barrington is a real estate finance and development company, and Mensch figures 90 to 95 percent of its projects are in the Valley. He’s currently working on a 40-unit multifamily in Van Nuys and smaller projects in Northridge and Sylmar. … Staff Reporter Michael Aushenker contributed to Valley Insider, which is compiled by Editor Joel Russell. Send submissions to [email protected].

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