OCEANS AWAY

All of this happened

Filed under Work

The past two days have been a bit of a whirlwind, and they actually passed without any major disruptions – smooth sailing all the way – so I kind of need to pinch myself to believe they actually happened. But there were many little details I want to get down before I forget them. So, let’s go ahead and start with the first day.

I was more nervous about getting to the office than about my actual first day there. As you know, I’m not doing too well with the subway. Heh. I lose my sense of direction, speeding along under ground and popping up on a busy intersection I’ve never seen before. Also, I wanted to buy the ticket I thought I needed from the bus driver and he chuckled and pointed to the ticket machine thingy further back in the bus. So I felt a complete fool long before I got to the office – which probably helped settle me down a bit. Basically, I was just so glad to have made it to the office that all nervousness disappeared. — I felt pretty cool and fancy, in my new boots and my black blazer, walking past the doorman, checking myself out in the elevator mirrors, being whisked up to the ninth floor.

I love the office. It’s spacious and has windows all around; because the building is so high, you can see all of Cologne from above which is amazing. From my current desk (I’ll move around quite a bit), I have a full view of the famous Cologne Cathedral and the Rhine river behind it. It even smells good and the temperature is just right. I don’t know- I think I expected offices to always be horribly stuffy and dark and stressful places. Neon lights and cubicles and frustrated people. It’s NOTHING like that. I completely expect there to be bad days but I’m so glad my first impression was this positive.

I spend the morning with the bosses assistant. She helped me set up my email account, explained a ton of administrative stuff to me, gave me a tour around the office (and, a bit unexpectedly, the parking garage) and I introduced myself to everyone, in passing. It was so casual and easy-going. Everyone made just enough of a big deal about my first day there that I didn’t feel like interns get treated like crap but not too much of a hoopla for me to get uncomfortable. Heh. They just acted like, We were expecting you. WELCOME. — I was glad to find that they do things on a first name basis and don’t use the terrible, formal German “Sie” to address each other which I believe is still common in many German companies.

Just before lunch, the assistant handed me over to the press and PR department where I’ll be working. The other two ladies working there are super nice. I’m pretty sure they’re both under 30 or in their early thirties – as is most everyone else at the office – and they’re just cool to be around. I had already met them briefly during my interview a couple months ago, and they were still as helpful and encouraging and funny on Thursday. They told me that there’s usually a group of people going out to lunch together; not every day, and the group changes depending on who’s in the mood. Of course I came along and I felt like I little kid at Disneyland: walking through Cologne’s inner city, the streets crowded with people in their work clothes out for lunch, eating a yummy pasta salad at one of the countless little cafés with my co-workers.

I also met my boss who had just come back from vacation that past night and was also super relaxed and nice. I already knew him from my interview, of course. He’d had his birthday while he was gone so the entire office sang for him and gave him a small gift, and he shared a couple anecdotes. In the afternoon, I found out that I actually have to work an hour longer each day than I had thought – until 5.30. But oh well. I loved the first glimpse I then got into what the press department is doing; I loved listening to their phone calls in Dutch; I was relieved to see how much their work really is about all things Dutch and tourism and the German media landscape.

The second day, not surprisingly, wasn’t quite as eventful. It was all: back to day-to-day business. I found myself with nothing to do several times during the day which- I’m going to try and make them give me more stuff to do next week because if I’m there until 5.30 each day, I might as well be working. I wrote a couple of press releases (these are basically informing the German media about noteworthy tourism-related events in the Netherlands) and translated a few emails from the Dutch colleagues in the Netherlands into German. It was pretty cool to witness the close contact to the largest German media outlets and journalists. — We also went out for lunch again because it was so sunny and warm, to a great hip little beer garden in a large inner city park. It was sublime, really – with that TGIF feel in the air, eating a delicious Greek salad, getting to know another tiny corner of Cologne. Although I did notice that I can’t quite get over my shyness just yet and never truly joined the conversation… Back at the office, later in the afternoon, the boss had brought cake for everyone (another office birthday tradition, apparently) and soon after the radio that’s always kept on 1LIVE and a comfortable, low volume started playing weekend songs.

I can’t really imagine being at the office all day every day for five days in a row, although the first two days very pretty fun. Having never worked full-time, it will take some getting used to how little time you suddenly have for yourself. Most of you, of course, already know this. But I’m still excited for next week where I’ll be sitting in a different department for a bit!

If you made it through this monster of a post: thanks for reading. Heh.
I’m so glad things started off so well!