My time in Dublin has officially come to a close, and, all though I am sad that it is over, I am excited to go home. Last week was a really great final week in Dublin. I spent most non-work hours with my friends hanging out in the city and having a great time. I revisited some of my favorite places around Dublin and reminisced on all of the fun I’ve had with everyone this summer.

I left Dublin early Saturday morning. Fitting with the rest of my summer traveling experiences, it was a bit of a mess, and I ended up running with my suitcases to the gate. Luckily, we made our flight, and my friend and I are now in Barcelona having a great time.

I spent the afternoon Saturday lounging at the beach. It is so sunny here and incredibly hot, a shock having been in rainy Dublin all summer. I went to a great tapas restaurant for a late dinner, and then I had a really fun night in Barcelona up until the point where my phone got stolen, along with my credit card and driver’s license. 

Sunday, I did a bit of shopping in the morning, which is only slightly less fun without a credit card. Then, I got paella for lunch, which was absolutely amazing. I spent the afternoon eating gelato in the police station while filing a report, and then I went to a great steak dinner with some of the other people in my hostel room, who we have become friends with. We decided to have an easy and early night after the night before, and so a group of us hung out and played cards all night. 

Today, I am excited to go to the market, to do some more shopping around Barcelona, and to Casa Batllo. I love Gaudi, and this was top of my list of things I wanted to do in Barcelona ever since we decided to come here. Tomorrow, we will go to Park Guell, as well, to see the Sagrada Familia, and maybe to the beach again. 

Then, Wednesday morning, I will finally be heading back to the United States after two months in Europe. As much fun as I am having, I am so excited to be home. We have already found the Chick-fil-a in the Atlanta airport, where our layover is, and then I plan to sleep for twenty four straight hours. 

I spent my last few days at work wrapping up all of my projects from the summer and presenting the results to my team. I had a great time at HIQA and got to work with some amazing people. Everyone was very friendly and very helpful, and they threw my a going away party with cake and gifts, which was so fun and so sweet. 

I found that, in Dublin, at least in my experience at my internship, I was considered successful if I learned something. I spent a lot of time my last week talking with my boss about everything that I had done, and he really wanted to make sure that I felt like I had learned something with every project, and if I did, then it was a good use of my time. I also think this is something specific to the area of work. I was working in public health and was working on some of their research projects where the goal is obviously to discover information that is not yet known. I think this might still be true of the industry in the United States, but overall, I think that the US places a greater emphasis on having some sort of physical product. There is more desire for clear results, when, in research especially, any results, even if they are not what you expected or wanted, are very important and useful.

I think that the behaviors and actions of a “successful” employee do not differ too greatly between the US and Ireland. A successful employee is driven in their work, is creative in how they approach problems that arise, and stays organized and on top of their projects. I think that there could be an argument that Ireland emphasizes working with colleagues. At my internship, I met with many people on my team individually and in groups to discuss what I was working on, ideas people might have, and what the best direction was. I think this really helped me in being more successful when I could hear the input and ideas of others.

Overall, I had a great last week and a great summer. I am excited to go home and tell my family and friends about it, but for now, I will be enjoying being unplugged in Barcelona!