Week 1 was a full with lots of adventures. From meeting new people, to traveling all around Granada, to hiking 9 miles one morning before siesta. Week 1 was awesome. Getting on the plane last Sunday, I was a little nervous because I honestly had no idea what to expect. I didn't know what my internship would entail, when I would be working, or even how often I would be able to see the others on this trip with me because they work at different internships. This first week has been great. We toured everyones internship sites, became familiar with the bus system, visited a bunch of sites such as the Cathedral, the Alhambra, and learned our way around the city. I am very grateful we had this week to tour and learn the city and that we don't start internships until tomorrow because now I am confident in navigating my way around Granada, and after touring my internship site I now know what it is I will be doing for the next 4 weeks.
For my internship, I will be shadowing Irene at Caritas. I learned this week that Caritas is a non-profit organization run through the church that does a variety of things to provide for those who need it. Irene runs the business side of things at the Caritas location I am going to, so I will be able to see first hand how a business is run here in Spain. I am beyond excited to learn the similarities and differences between running a business in Spain, and then back home in the United States. I am also excited to learn some more Spanish because as of right now I only know un poco Spanish, but within the next 4 weeks, I should learn a lot more because Irene doesn't speak English, and I don't speak much Spanish, but somehow we will make it work!
By interning at Caritas and shadowing Irene I believe it will be a notable experience that is both beneficial and fun. Since I am an international business and marketing double major, this experience will let me know if I actually enjoy international business, and will give me an idea of how some other countries do business that might be different than how we do it in the U.S.
Finally, I would just like to conclude with some cultural experiences I have learned this past week.
1. The days are much more relaxed and go with the flow here. They start the day later (around 9 or 10), they break for siesta (around 2-4), and then they go back to work after a nice filling lunch with family and friends.
2. Tapas are the best things ever- Tapas are free food that you can get at any point in the day and all you have to do is order a drink. Monica (my Host) said that most people don't usually meet and go to lunch like in the U.S., instead they meet and go for tapas and so they go to one restaurant and have a drink and some tapas, and then go to another restaurant and do the same thing.
3. The different times when meals are eaten here was a huge cultural difference that I had to get used to. Here they eat breakfast (somewhere between 8-10), and then have lunch around 2 and they don't eat dinner until somewhere between 9-11. The first few days I was starving because I wasn't used to this schedule but now I am a lot more used to it, it was just a cultural difference I had to adjust to.
Week 1 was great and I cannot wait to see what the next 4 weeks has to offer!
Oh, I also attached some pictures from the week down below.... the bird is Kevin...and he is our friend...
