What a week! On Wednesday a few of us went to a free concert at the Brandenburg Gate which was so cool. The whole time I was just thinking about how we were at such a historical landmark and how it was a once in a lifetime opportunity. On Thursday we got together with Britta at a beer garden and she got to ask us all questions about our internship and how we were enjoying it. We also met up with the non-pitt students which was nice, as it initiated us hanging out with them this past weekend. On Friday, we went and watched the Scotland vs Germany soccer game once again at the Brandenburg gate and had a blast. There were more than enough beer showers as they scored 5 goals. The rest of the weekend was spent walking around Berlin and hanging out with friends.
This week at my internship was definitely a harder one. The language barrier has been something that I’ve really been struggling with. My direct supervisor speaks English, but other than her no one else in the department that I’m working in speaks any English. She usually works from home on Mondays and Fridays, and so I really only can talk to someone three days out of the week. My coworkers who I’m doing similar work as don’t speak any English, and so it’s been hard to not only not be able to ask them questions or understand what they’re talking about, but also not be able to form relationships with them. Yes I’m learning a lot and I feel like I’m getting valuable experience, but it’s hard to not be able to have conversations not related to work when people are talking to each other around me. One of my coworkers who works in the office next to me was in the same boat as me. He’s been working at Sirius for about a year and when he started he didn’t speak any German, and he still struggles to understand it. On Tuesday, I was feeling discouraged and just needed to vent, so I asked him if he wanted to get lunch. I explained to him how I felt, and he told me he felt the same way when he first started, and still does, and that it was normal. I think that reaching out to others when you need help is important, and it was helpful to have someone who was in my shoes offer me advice. Now, I know that I have a friend in the office who I can reach out to.
In general, something I’ve found that’s hard to adapt to is the grocery stores and mostly every store being closed on Sunday. I feel like at home, Sunday’s were my day to run errands and do things that I didn’t want to spend time doing on a Saturday or after classes. However, I do feel like a lot of people that I’ve seen don’t bulk shop, so they go to the grocery store multiple times a week if they run out of something. I’ve honestly enjoyed doing that since there’s literally three different grocery stores within a 5 minute walk.
Other than those things, I feel like the city is similar to other big cities in the U.S. There’s tons of different types of people and neighborhoods, and everyone can find somewhere they fit into or something they like to do. The public transportation here is so accessible, and so getting anywhere is super easy. I think there’s stereotypes on how German people act, but I’ve found that there are nice Germans and not so nice Germans, just like there are nice Americans and not so nice Americans.
Overall, I feel like there are some things that are harder to adapt to than others, but going into this program, I fully prepared myself for the differences that I would be experiencing compared to the U.S. We are living in a foreign country, where English is not their native language, so I didn’t expect everyone to know English. Some days are harder than others, but I knew coming into this that it would be a learning experience, and that it wouldn’t always be easy. Adaptability is such an important skill, whether it be in the workplace, traveling, or just in general. I’m grateful to be able to practice that skill in Berlin, and in my internship, as I know that the uncomfortable and difficult moments will make me a more well rounded and capable person in the long run.