Mornings
Who am I kidding? I hate mornings. Especially if they start at 6 am every day. Well, I am a hopeless snoozer... My mornings should start at 6am, but they actually start around 6.30, when I realise I am running late, jump out of bed, grab some clothes from the wardrobe (hoping they match) and run to the door like I was running for my life.
7.00 am - 8.00 Getting to work takes way longer than it would in a country without commuters coming from 3 different countries. Traffic jams and accidents are normal, so are bad drivers. It's the survival of the fittest. Just imagine some hundreds of sleepy drivers on the same road, zigzagging their way to work. A painful process if it werent for the nice chats with the driver and the croissant + coffee he occasionally buys me for breakfast (it might just be his way of making me shut up).
Colleagues
No joke. I really like them. Every single one of them. I was used to people treating interns like idiots/modern-age slaves. I actually still feel nervous, anxious and scared every morning as I step into my office expecting about 50 unread emails and a couple of nasty comments about things I have done wrong or should have done differently. Every morning it takes a minute before I realise that things are different here. I have my own office where I can work at my own pace without anyone telling me what to do and when to do it. No phone ringing every 20 seconds, no urgent emails to answer, no secrets to be kept ("Remember to CC X and Y, but not Z, because, although they are the coordinators of the project, they shouldn't know about it at this stage."), no boss suffering from severe anxiety and speaking like they had just finished a 10k run or expecting you to carry out a task which would take anyone two to three hours in 30 minutes. No suspiscious looks or sarcastic comments if you decide to take 15 extra seconds for a pee (yes, that happened to me quite a few times!), no conspiracy theories being made up behind your back if you decide to have lunch with someone who is not from your department. As long as you do your job and do it well, you are free to be yourself. No need to ask for permission to email someone or worry about hierarchy. Here interns, too, are human beings and are consistently treated as such. And then there is my supervisor. When I first met her, I found she looked very much like my previous boss. Since I have learnt that unresolved issues come up in your life again and again until you solve them once and for all (yes, karma is a bitch!), I was ready for another tough experience. Instead, she turns out to be serious, quiet and discrete, but also very efficient, kind and understanding. Someone who genuinely worries about how I am getting on and is always happy to help. Someone who points out my mistakes without making me feel incompetent and lets me know when I did a good job (which, actually, happens very often here :)
Friends
Well, acquaintances, for the time being. Since I live so far away I can't really go out after work or go crazy every night. To be honest, I don't care about that any more. Now I'd rather spend a Friday night going to the gym and doing my laundry instead of going out. Yes, things change quickly and even party animals become adults at some point. Don't worry, I am still my chatty and hyper self, but I think there comes a time when you need to get your priorities right. My priority at the moment is to hang out with people who make me feel well and forget about the rest. So far I have managed to meet some really nice people. People who are very similar to me, and yet they make me see the world from a totally different perspective.
To be continued...
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