How Long is Now

Week 7 was quite a rainy week in Berlin. On my trip thus far, we’ve had spectacular weather and lots of sunshine. It was kind of nice to have a change, but humidity and I do not get along. I was happy to welcome back the sunshine and summer heat this weekend. My supervisor has been on vacation this week, so I’ve tried to take control of my own tasks this week. On Monday, I met with the logistics manager in the office to begin strategizing some of my tasks using two of our platforms—Magento and Amazon Seller Central. Solely with these two programs there is a lot I can get involved with regarding the supply chains of both B&F Shop and Gourmesso. Using these two platforms I can manage pricing, inventory, shipments—just to name a few. I really like learning about this type of information in a real working environment and the skills will come handy in future classes and careers.

Lunchtime is always a good break to catch up with my colleagues and discuss current events and our cultural differences. I work in a very international office, so our background and perspectives are quite different regarding current political trends. One day at lunch, some of the other French interns and I began to discuss the current government policies in the US. It was interesting to hear their opinions coming from a French perspective. There is no doubt that we are shaped by the environment we grow up in and culture shock can also become a reality when new ways of life are introduced to us.

On Wednesday, one of my colleagues suggested we try an authentic German restaurant for lunch. I’ve tried German food maybe twice before this occasion, but I was excited to experience it again. We went to a restaurant called Das Pfeffer that was located not too far from my office, and we all ordered the Schnitzel. This is a very authentic German food. It is basically pork that is breaded and fried. It was served with a potato and radish salad. It was interesting to me that they would serve this in a restaurant, because it is more of a BBQ food in the US. Just another cultural difference I’ve noticed.

The week flew by and before I knew it, the weekend had already arrived. Some of the other Pitt students and I went to a few markets on Saturday. There were people selling art, jewelry, food. The atmosphere was really cool. We walked along the Spree and took everything in. There were kids making bubbles by the Berlin Cathedral, and they had some major skills. We got some dinner shortly after to escape the heat and went to see a movie afterwards. We saw the movie Adrift, which is titled Die Farbe Des Horizonts in German. It’s pretty cool that they offer screenings of the original versions as well as dubbed versions. Although sad, the movie told a pretty impactful true story. It really actualized some important meanings in life, and even this mural I saw not too long before gave me something to think about.On Sunday, it was a big day in Europe—the final match of the World Cup! Before the game, I went to a flea market in Mauerpark and there were tons of people listening to music, eating food, and exploring the local finds of Berlin. Later on, we went to a restaurant to watch France play against Croatia, and the match was very intense with high levels of excitement. Such a fun time to be in Europe, even though Germany didn’t make it to the finals. France came out on top as this year’s World Cup champs—the first time in 20 years.

I’m really looking forward to this upcoming week. I’m leaving for Krákow, Poland with some of the other Pitt students on Thursday night. I’ll finally be living my life long dream of visiting my homeland. 🙂 Super excited to try authentic Polish pierogies. Stay tuned for the excitement to come. Tschüss!