Last night / this morning was my first experience with las discotecas and definitely won’t be my last 🙂 For those of you who don’t know what a discoteca is – they are the spanish version of clubs / discos in the US.
However, they are quite different in several aspects…In Spain it is common to leave the discotecas at 6 or 7am; actually, it is uncommon to leave earlier than that and people whom do so are looked down upon (…kind of like passing out early at a house party with your shoes still on haha). Below is a picture of a discoteca similar to the one we went to.
The dancing is also a bit different from what I am familiar with. It is a mix between salsa dancing and tecktonik dancing. If you are unfamiliar with tecktonic dancing, here is a video to get you up to speed.
Since I am going to be focusing the work writings on the similarities and differences of what I experience in Spain as compared to the US, an appropriate way to start is by examining that of which I am familiar with in the US with my perceptions and preconceived notions of the Spanish workplace currently.
These may not be true for every case; they are solely my thoughts and opinions. If you have any input feel free to post a comment, I would be very interested to read it, add it to the post, and discuss it.Â
US
Hard workers
Professional work atmosphere
Diverse chain of commands/workplace
Older workforce
Top 4
Work
Family
Wealth
Personal Life
Spain
Leisurely workers
Professional work atmosphere
Not much diversity in the chain of commands/workplace
Younger workforce
Top 4
Family
Personal Life
Wealth
Work
I have added something I call the Top 4 which are 4 key parts of people’s lives and how I believe the general public in each respective country concerns themselves with those points (note – It is slightly harder to pin-point the Top 4 for the US due to the fact it is much larger and diverse than that of Spain. That being said, I believe that the first 3 are interchangeable in the US).
I wrote this in the Frankfurt-Hahn airport but was not keen on paying 8€ for 30 minutes of internet to publish it…
The first time I actually realized what I was getting myself into was today on the flight from Charlotte, NC to Frankfurt, Germany. My epiphany occured with about 2 hours left until arrival in Frankfurt and was followed by a flood of mixed emotions.
When the plane landed, I was able to experience what exactly I had gotten myself into. Not knowing any German (besides a few key words thanks to my German flatmates last summer Sarah & Steph) I struggled to figure out where I needed to go and I had to get there.
As I am writing this, I am waiting with all of my luggage (I cannot check my bags until 3 hours prior to my flight – which is only 12 hours away) in the Frankfurt-Hahn airport until my flight to Barcelona.Â
I am a bit overwhelmed, but this is my first time traveling alone to an unfamiliar place for an extended period of time so it is understandable. That being said, hopefully I will become more comfortable once I get situated in Sabadell.
As we are all aware (…or at least should be), we live in a global economy. People from all different backgrounds and walks of life are being unified into a single society and are having to function together. The workplace is no exception; businesses are placing strong emphasis on relations abroad.Â
The work category of this blog will focus on the similarities and differences between the United States and Spain, with a strong focus on the following topics:
As of now, the only details of my trip which are set in stone are
that I am leaving Detroit on Monday morning (5/18), arriving in
Barcelona Tuesday night and starting work on Wednesday morning.
For the return trip – I will be flying out of Frankfurt, Germany
on November 19, so I have a solid 6 months to work and travel.
Everything else is still up in the air…
I am interested in what everyone’s opinion is about where you
would recommend traveling to and what to experience. I put togetherÂ
a quick poll with the main cities of some of the countries I was
considering traveling to, but if you have other suggestions, feel
free to voice your opinion and give some details if you’d like.
Only 5 and 1/2 days until I leave for Europe… I am flying into Frankfurt, Germany then into Barcelona, Spain in what shall turn out to be 2 long days of flying, layovers and time changes. As I start to wrap things up here in Michigan in preparation for a “new chapter” in my life I am beginning to feel some nerves kicking in; even though I am a little nervous, I am also very anxious and excited to embark on this adventure.
This blog is meant to be very open to anyone who comes across it; I am going to attempt to gear it towards engineering systems analysis (depending on the work I will be doing) as well as updates of travels and short stories for family & friends. If anyone has any questions/comments/suggestions, I would love to hear them and adjust the posts to a more in-depth discussion of the topics. Thanks for reading!
To wrap up this first post of my hopefully flourishing blog, I am attaching a picture from my adventures last summer in New Zealand. This picture was taken on my hike up Mt. Luxmore (elevation of 4,800 ft.); it reminds me that great things do not just come to those who wait around for it…it is realized by those who seize it.
A Spartan in Spain 