When we got back from spring break the second half of our semester began, and along with it our internships. I'm now working Tuesday through Friday at the Dalí Universe in County Hall Gallery. I'm in their events planning office, so it's not a normal PR internship, but it is exactly what asked for (almost). Ideally I wanted to work for a non-profit in the arts, but the gallery is very cool. The Dalí Universe houses the largest collection of Slavador Dali's sculpture. It is a very cool place to work, but there has been a lot of turnover in the staff lately, so only one person in the events office has worked there for more than 2 months.
My co-workers have been very welcoming-- they even invited me along to drinks with them at the end of the first week. The first few days, as with most internships, were pretty much a test to see what I could do, and also piling me up with all of the extra little projects that hadn't been attended too. Okay, I still have to do some menial tasks, but once they found out that I am a good writer they let me do lots of other things. I've gotten to help re-write our press kit (exciting stuff in the PR world) as well as helping re-write/edit our events brochure.
One of the coolest things about my job is the wide range of people that I get to work with. Denise, one of the events managers and the person who has been in the office the longest, is from the Netherlands. Rob, our Head of Events, is from New Zealand. Derek, the food and beverage manager, is from England, but lived in Brazil for a long time. Also in other offices there are people from Italy, Scotland, Ireland, and lots of other places. Friday in our office I heard four different languages. Sarah one of the Fine Arts staff is from Italy, but grew up in Switzerland, so she is fluent in French as well.
Work is definitely more relaxed here than at home. Although I work in a small, and at the moment, fairly busy office, it's perfectly acceptable for staffers to leave early or come in late. Our 9:30 start time is pretty much a be there before ten start time (although I'm early every day mom, so don't worry). I have to say that this experience is especially unique for me because I have never worked for free. So it's strange to put in thirty hours a week and get no compensation... I know that I'm getting credits, but I'm working in a real-world setting for nothing.
Overall my internship has been a lot of fun so far, and I'm interested to see how much I learn over the rest of the semester. Also I work in one of the liveliest areas in London. We're right next to the London Eye on the Thames, and I get to walk across Westminster Bridge everyday on my way to and from work. It's so strange that I will only be in London for another five weeks-- I've really grown to feel at home here.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Spring Break Part 2: Barcelona!
After a VERY early morning in Madrid, we finally arrived in Barcelona. I was super excited to take a shower, regroup, and then show Katie and Steph the city I had so much fun in the year before. The resting and regrouping wasn't exactly in the cards for us. We had a couple problems with the hostel-- their computer was down and they weren't being very helpful, but after a short struggle over what to do, we ended up moving to a different hostel, and the result was fantastic. This, however, ate up most of our morning and spilled into our afternoon-- the whole reason that we had taken such an early flight. Eventually we got settled into a room that we loved (we stayed right on passeig de gracia), and the three of us headed out into the city.
Our hostel, centric point, right on passeig de gracia!
The view from the sweet room we had in our hostel!
I got to play tour guide with Katie and Steph. The first thing that they wanted to do was go to the beach. I was pretty excited about this because it meant that I got to spend the afternoon hanging around Barceloneta. I was proud because I successfully navigated my way to the beach, and through the roads of the city. It wasn't as warm as Madrid, and it got a bit chilly as the sun started to set, but I had really missed being near the ocean. We were all so excited, that we ran (Katie, on the left in purple, literally started sprinting) toward the water.
There were a lot of people surfing, and even though they weren't that good, it was fun to watch them wipe-out or, ocasionally, successfully ride a wave in. After the stress of the first day, we decided that our first day should be casual, so we just stuck to the area around Barceloneta and the harbor, and looked for a good paella restaurant for that night.
After a shower and a late siesta we headed out to a great paella restaurant on the water and then over to Chupitos for some Harry Potter shots. Now Mom, I know that you don't like shots, but you would like a Harry Potter shot. They light it on FIRE, and it tastes delicious. We had a fantastic evening, and even ended up heading over to Ryan's for a beer. It wasn't the same without the boys, but it was still a lot of fun.
The next day we got up ready to take on Barcelona, and since, we hadn't gotten to see much the day before we really made moves. We started out by heading up to Parque Guell. Sadly, part of the park was closed so we didn't get to go all the way up, but I finally got to have my ANTM (America's Next Top Model, for those of you who aren't in the know) moment on the runway. Also, you really can't beat the view from the park looking out over the city, that is, unless you head over to Mount Juic, which is where we headed next.
Mount Juic is a fort located on a hill near the water looking out over the water and the city, and it provides a stunning view.
We then decided to round the day out at Sagrada Familia. This was an absolutely amazing take. The building itself is just so impressive, and when you think about the history behind it, it becomes even more impressive. Every detail is carefully planned and the forethought that goes into every detail is amazing.
After a full day, Steph, Katie, and I treated ourselves to a long, leisurely dinner and then went out for a couple drinks before another extremely early flight home. Steph's flight was before Katie and mine which meant that she had to leave the hostel at 4:30 a.m. Katie and I followed a few hours behind her, and we made it home before noon. If the excitement of our vacation wasn't enough, Katie and I had tickets for that afternoon to see our first football match. We got home and had enough time to shower and change before heading out to the match. Although we were exhuasted and running on only a few hours of sleep, the match was amazing! The chants that the fans sing are intense, and the atmosphere is electric. It was a great end to our week, and after the match ended we headed home to get some much needed shut-eye before starting the second half of our semester.
Our hostel, centric point, right on passeig de gracia!
The view from the sweet room we had in our hostel!
I got to play tour guide with Katie and Steph. The first thing that they wanted to do was go to the beach. I was pretty excited about this because it meant that I got to spend the afternoon hanging around Barceloneta. I was proud because I successfully navigated my way to the beach, and through the roads of the city. It wasn't as warm as Madrid, and it got a bit chilly as the sun started to set, but I had really missed being near the ocean. We were all so excited, that we ran (Katie, on the left in purple, literally started sprinting) toward the water.There were a lot of people surfing, and even though they weren't that good, it was fun to watch them wipe-out or, ocasionally, successfully ride a wave in. After the stress of the first day, we decided that our first day should be casual, so we just stuck to the area around Barceloneta and the harbor, and looked for a good paella restaurant for that night.
After a shower and a late siesta we headed out to a great paella restaurant on the water and then over to Chupitos for some Harry Potter shots. Now Mom, I know that you don't like shots, but you would like a Harry Potter shot. They light it on FIRE, and it tastes delicious. We had a fantastic evening, and even ended up heading over to Ryan's for a beer. It wasn't the same without the boys, but it was still a lot of fun.The next day we got up ready to take on Barcelona, and since, we hadn't gotten to see much the day before we really made moves. We started out by heading up to Parque Guell. Sadly, part of the park was closed so we didn't get to go all the way up, but I finally got to have my ANTM (America's Next Top Model, for those of you who aren't in the know) moment on the runway. Also, you really can't beat the view from the park looking out over the city, that is, unless you head over to Mount Juic, which is where we headed next.
Mount Juic is a fort located on a hill near the water looking out over the water and the city, and it provides a stunning view.
We then decided to round the day out at Sagrada Familia. This was an absolutely amazing take. The building itself is just so impressive, and when you think about the history behind it, it becomes even more impressive. Every detail is carefully planned and the forethought that goes into every detail is amazing.
After a full day, Steph, Katie, and I treated ourselves to a long, leisurely dinner and then went out for a couple drinks before another extremely early flight home. Steph's flight was before Katie and mine which meant that she had to leave the hostel at 4:30 a.m. Katie and I followed a few hours behind her, and we made it home before noon. If the excitement of our vacation wasn't enough, Katie and I had tickets for that afternoon to see our first football match. We got home and had enough time to shower and change before heading out to the match. Although we were exhuasted and running on only a few hours of sleep, the match was amazing! The chants that the fans sing are intense, and the atmosphere is electric. It was a great end to our week, and after the match ended we headed home to get some much needed shut-eye before starting the second half of our semester.
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