Hy guys!!

Today I'd like to finally write my own blog about my internship experience in London, UK. Since the beginning of february I am doing an internship in a company called gift-tours.com/studios92.com. I found the internship by accident when I kind of travelled through the net. I discovered internship-uk.com and was really glad that I applied for this internship.

When it was time to go on the plane and to go to London, I was really excited. When I started to work, I felt like having too much new information in my head on the very first day. I was supposed to work in the markeitng department and to do all this work you have to have a lot of knowledge. I needed all this information for the following working days and I soon recognized that you can get used to this work very easy by just doing it. I learned a lot by doing and by trying things on my own. You can really work independently on your own project and this I liked best. You got a lot of responsibility for your work.

But what was actually my task? In the marketing department I was supposed to modify and to improve websites under marketing strategies. My first project was a German website for accomodation in London. I work hard on it and it's improving.

I really like this work here! The best is that you can see the results immediately. You do something and you can see what you have done. I also think that this kind of work will help me for my studies I will have to finish next year. I am becoming a European Secretary and marketing is very important for this kind of job.

But not only for the studies and the work experience the internship is a very good thing to do. In the personal way, you can learn a lot as well. You get used to meet foreign people and to get to know them. You have to deal with everyday problems like buying your food or how to travel around in the big city of London. In my opinion you really grow when you do an internship abroad. I really appreciate that!

So, I will keep you updated! Unfortunately, my internship here will finish soon, but until this happens, I will try to keep this blog on the move...

CU, Cheers, Ina

Hy, it's me again!

Hope you all had a nice Easter holiday! I really enjoyed my Easter weekend! I think I will have to eat chocolate every day to finish all the sweets I got !

But, after my Easter holiday, I realised that I will soon finish my internship in London and I was wondering what comes next for me?! Sure, I will go back to Germany and will continue my studies. But what happens after graduation? Am I gonna find a well-paid and good job? Will I be satisfied with the work that I do and my future?

The problem is: I don't know! With the whole crisis and stuff you become really insecure. My plan was to apply for a position in a company in my hometown. I will be a European Secretary or a foreign language correspondence clerk in the future and I hope I will find a job in this field. If this is not working, I surely will make another qualification to become a translator or a interpreter. As I am studying accounting as well, I will maybe have the opportunity to go in this direction! But, I don't really have a Plan B. Honestly, I'm a little scared about the future.

You really need money to have a good life, but you need a well-paid job to earn enough money. To get a well-paid job you have to graduate well and to gain work experience. But, if you have just finished university or school, you don't have enough experience and you will have to make internships to gain experience. The most internships are unpaid. You will have to invest money to get this experience you need. Maybe at the end of the whole process you will be 30 years old without having earned a penny in your whole life. It's a kind of viscious circle you need a lot strength for to break out of it.

I hope for me everything will be fine! I know that I'm a hard-working and reliable person and maybe I will be rewarded for this with a nice and well-paid job. Please keep your fingers crossed for me !

Thx!

So, this is my very last working day in my internship in London at studios92.com/gift-tours.com. It's kind of weird feeling, because it not really feels like the last working day! I'm so used to get up at 7 in the morning, to start working at 8 and to finish at 5. It was the same today and I feel like it will be the same tomorrow..........but it won't!

It is kind of sad to leave, because there is so much I learned in this time! As I mentioned before, I was working in the marketing department and I really learned a lot about e-marketing and the whole business of Marketing. I really appreciate that, because it will help me with my studies. I got to know a lot of very nice and friendly people here and I hope to be able to stay in contact with some of them.

On the other hand I am really looking forward to have some free days before I go back to Germany. Together with Madeleine I want to go to the biggest Sealife Aquarium in the world and we want to visit Oxford. I want to buy some typical London souvenirs and probably I will do some shopping for myself as well! On Tuesday I will finally go back to Germany. The last days I really missed my family, my friends and my boyfriend and I'm really looking forward to see them again! There will be a lot of partying going on at home and I love to join my friends and to tell all them about my great experiences. Fortunately, I will have some free days after coming home, so I can do everything I have to (go to the hair dresser, etc.). On 11 May I will continue my studies in Pirna, near Dresden. 

All in all I can say that I really enjoyed my stay here in London. My internship was actually very informative and I enjoyed working very much, although I had not much energy left at the end. These 3 months were very useful for my studies and for my personal life. I had to care for myself on my own and I managed to do that very well. You have to deal with daily problems like buying food, cleaning the flat or doing your laundry. Actually it was very helpful to have someone on your side. For me it was Madeleine, my classmate and friend. We did almost everything together and it was a very nice, funny and turbulent time! I enjoyed this time so much! You really grow with this experience in a personal way. Of course, I also gained a lot of work experience!

If you have the opportunity to do an internship abroad, please take it and do it! It's the best you can do, believe me!

German:

Das ist also mein letzter Arbeitstag meines Praktikums in London bei studios92.com/gift-tours.com. Es ist wirklich ein komisches Gefuehl, denn es fuehlt sich nicht wirklich wie der letzte Arbeitstag an. Ich bin mittlerweile so daran gewoehnt, frueh um 7 aufzustehen, um 8 mit der Arbeit anzufangen und um 5 nachmittags wieder heim zu gehen. Heute war es ja schliesslich genauso und es fuehlt sich an, als ob es morgen ganz normal so weitergeht.....wird es aber nicht!

Es ist schon ein bisschen traurig gehen zu muessen, weil ich hier so viel gelernt habe. Wie ich vorher schon irgendwann mal erwaehnt habe, habe ich hier in der Marketing-Abteilung gearbeitet und ich habe wirklich eine ganze Menge ueber Internet-Marketing und das ganze Marketinggeschaeft gelernt. Das ist auch gut so, denn ich werde das ja auch noch fuer mein Studium brauchen. Ausserdem habe ich hier so viele nette und freundliche Leute kennengelernt und hoffe, dass ich mit einigen von ihnen auch noch in Kontakt bleiben werde.

Andererseits freue ich mich auch auf die letzten freien Tage hier in London, bevor ich nach Deutschland zurueckkehre. Zusammen  mit Made will ich noch in das groesste Sealife Aquarium der Welt gehen und die Universitaetstadt Oxford besuchen. Fuer meine Familie und meinen Freund moecht ich noch ein paar typische Souvenirs kaufen und vielleicht kauf ich mir ja auch noch was! Am Dienstag fliege ich dann endlich zurueck nach Deutschland. In den letzten Tagen habe ich meine Familie, meinen Freund und meine Freunde immer mehr vermisst und ich freue mich riiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeeeesssssssssssssiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiig sie alle wiederzusehen. Da wird es dann ganz viele Partys zu Hause geben und ich freue mich jetzt schon darauf, allen meinen Freunden ueber die tolle Erfahrung hier bei meinem Praktikum zu erzaehlen. Zum Glueck habe ich noch ein paar freie Tage, nachdem ich wieder in Deutschland bin. Da kann man wieder ein paar organisatorische Sachen erledigen, wie z. B. mal wieder zum Friseur zu gehen oder die laestigen Arztbesuche zu machen, die faellig sind. Am 11. Mai geht es dann mit dem Studieren in Pirna, bei Dresden, weiter.

Allgemein kann ich sagen, dass mir mein Aufenthalt hier in London sehr gut gefallen hat. Mein Praktikum war extrem lehrreich und ich habe wirklich gerne gearbeitet, obwohl man zum Ende hin immer weniger Energie fuer die Arbeit hatte. Diese 3 Monate sind fuer mein Studium und mein persoenliches Leben sehr nuetzlich. Ich musste mich hier um alles selber kuemmern und das hat auch ganz gut geklappt. Man muss halt mit alltaeglichen Problemen umgehen lernen, wie z.B. dem Einkaufen von lebensmitteln, dem Saubermachen der Wohnung oder der Waesche. Es war aber auf jeden Fall sehr hilfreich noch jemanden dabei zu haben.......in meinem Fall meine Klassenkameradin und Freundin Madeleine. Wir haben fast alles zusammen gemacht und es war wirklich eine tolle, sehr lustige und turbulente Zeit. Es ist nicht immer alles gut gegangen, aber man hat halt aus Fehlern oder Erfahrungen gelernt. Ich habe diese Zeit wirklich furchtbar genossen! Man wird wirklich auf persoenlicher Ebene erwachsener. Natuerlich habe ich auch sehr viel Arbeitserfahrung gesammelt.

Also, wenn ihr die Moeglichkeit habt, ein Praktikum im Ausland zu machen, dann nehmt sie euch und macht ein Praktikum im Ausland!  Ihr koennt mir glauben, das is echt das Beste, was man machen kann!