This past week has been a great, but insanely long, adventure. It started with a weekend trip to Galway, where me and fellow Pitt students got to explore the beautiful city and its sights. This was my first weekend trip since coming abroad, and it was absolutely perfect. We took a train down to the city and then spent the day shopping around, before getting a good dinner. Most of the shops and vendors were local and handmade trinkets. I really enjoy going to flea markets and such, so finding handmade souvenirs was plus to the trip. The next day a few of us traveled to the Cliffs of Moher via a bus tour. When applying to go abroad in Ireland, this was one of the main places that I wanted to see. The natural landscape is like nothing I have ever encountered before, and I absolutely loved it. Seeing the Cliffs and experiencing the crazy wind and weather made me feel so connected to the Earth. If I didn’t have a paid return bus, I think that I could have spent hours just looking at the ocean as it splashed onto the rising cliffs. In general, going to Galway felt like a breath of fresh air. Compared to Dublin it was very quaint and manageable.
On the flip side, I spent this past weekend in London, England. Now there is a city that is opposite from Dublin in every way. While it has many beautiful, historical sites, their public transportation is unreliable, and their streets are covered in trash. Don’t get me wrong, I had a great time walking by Big Ben on the fourth of July, but besides main tourist spots and historical buildings, it was just not my favorite city. Outside of London is much higher ranked on my list. Specifically, the Harry Potter Set Tour. The experience was exciting, nostalgic, and of course magical. I loved the way that it just felt like a museum. This was the best part of my London trip, with a Westend musical at second. Compared to Galway I enjoyed having set places to see and things to do, but it was a much less relaxed trip. A big part of this was the fact that I have gotten used to Dublin’s reliable public transportation, and London’s trains and buses all had delays. Going away the past two weekends has really reminded me how lucky I am to be having this experience in Dublin, a city which I love so much. Not to jinx myself, but I have never felt unsafe or unclean in Dublin. Each local that I have met throughout Ireland, not just Dublin, had been incredibly welcoming and helpful. While the Londoners were not mean, the cities atmosphere itself was not as welcoming. After the past two weekends, I am not sure any city is as kind as Dublin.
My actual week in Ireland was pretty calm. My one coworker had her last week, and it was jarring to say goodbye to her. She is also in a two month college program, and her leaving has reminded me how little time I really have before leaving. In wake of her departure, my placement just had three more American college students start. They have similar majors to me, so I have enjoyed our discussions about classes and career goals. In general, my placement has had a constant inflow and outflow of interns. This has given me the opportunity to meet so many people, which I have enjoyed. One struggle has been constantly having to retrain new employees, but this has definitely improved my confidence and skills regarding my position.
This perfectly leads into my experience with leadership thus far. Before this internship experience, I have been a confident leader, but only in specific situations. Normally I need a long time to become comfortable in a position before I feel that it is my place to give other people directions. Personally I have never considered this a flaw, even though some other people might disagree. I think this is due to the fact that I have never had a strong desire to be the boss of other people. Sure when I believe that I am right I like for people to listen, but I have never wanted to be something like the founder of a business. This attitude has worked well for me before coming abroad, but since this internship began it has been challenged. By boss strongly believes in throwing people into the deep end as a way of learning. This is why I have led new interns since my second week in the position. While it is very stressful, I do think that I have become a stronger leader, as I no longer need as much background experience before leading others. Not only have I changed my view on when I should be a leader, but I have become a stronger leader overall. I feel more confident giving feedback on projects, showing others the ropes, and even reassuring them in spaces where they lack confidence. This experience has definitely impacted me as a leader, and I believe that this change is one that will stick with me beyond my summer in Dublin.
