This past week consisted of more of the same two categories that my time abroad seems to be morphing into: weekday work and weekend travel. During the week, I was able to make what I felt was great progress at my internship. As mentioned in a previous blog, I am coordinating a Boroughwide Career Fair in the Hammersmith & Fulham area which entails acquiring sponsorships and exhibitors for next month’s event. Tuesday and Thursday were my full work days to accomplish this task, while Wednesday I took a visit out to the site where the fair is set to be held. I found seeing the space incredibly useful towards envisioning and planning the event, and I now have a much firmer grasp on what the Careers Fair should and will turn out to be.

Classwork this week was light, however my Pitt-led course, Survey of International Issues, held a site visit out to the Financial Reporting Council, located a mere twenty minute walk from my current accommodations. I was once again taken aback by the level of interest these corporations continue to show to our visiting group. We are consistently able to meet with high-level executives/directors, who provide an overview of company operations and open the floor up for us to ask questions and to engage in dialogue. These site visits are quickly becoming my favorite part of each week as they allow me to gain a deeper understanding of the corporate workplace, engage in interesting conversation with successful businesspeople, and even receive some insight as to what I wish to pursue in my own career.

Travel-wise, I had a very exciting weekend. On Friday, my roommates and I attended the LIV Golf tour up in West Hampstead. This tournament was the inaugural one for LIV Golf, an organization which has quickly and recently flooded the golfing world with intrigue and controversy. Without getting into the politics, it was a great experience as a golf fan to be able to witness some of the greats play their game and to attend a sporting event in a foreign country.

Saturday and Sunday, the same roommates and I took a trip up to Scotland and, though its length was under 24 hours, we were able to soak in the incredible views of Edinburgh by hiking to the top of Arthur’s Seat, and develop a great understanding of Scottish culture by participating in a pub crawl later than night. The hike to the top of Arthur’s Seat has honestly been my favorite view of the last three and a half weeks. It provided a beautiful, diverse sightline showcasing the city, the valley, and the sea. For anyone interested in venturing to Scotland, this is a must-do.

My weeks are becoming quite similar, but remaining different enough that I never reach the point of boredom. Though I’m beginning to miss the states, I certainly don’t wish to leave here. It’s almost surreal that this program is over halfway complete, and I look forward to experiencing as much as possible in the time still allotted.