Firstly I should probably say
why it is that I’m back in my favourite country, apart from for funsies, of
course. As many of you will know, I’ll be starting an MA in Translation at the
University of Bath in September. I’ve come to realise that this probably means
I have to stop acting like a nitwit by swanning around in the holidays not
doing anything and actually get something productive done. So I’m here in Milan
doing a month-long internship with a company that will remain nameless, in a
bid to get my brain reengaged with the Italian language, bump up the CV, and
mostly importantly enjoy the Italian lifestyle once again.
Around 36 hours
before I was due to fly to Milan and then transfer to a small town called
Novara (about 45 minutes west of the city), I got an email saying that I would
no longer be working there, but in another office, which is slap bang in the
middle of Milan. At first it was a little daunting and the last minute change
of plans freaked me out somewhat, but I’m really glad I’ve ended up here and I'm super grateful to everyone who helped me sort myself out at such late notice.
Despite what people said to me prior to my arrival, Milan is great from what
I’ve seen so far. The centre is nowhere near as big as people make it out to
be, and the part that I’m based in is not industrial at all. It's actually very picturesque and one of the main features is a three storey Eataly which has a michelin star restaurant in it. Yes please.
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| Landing over Lombardy |
But before I go any further
with talking about work- what account of my travels abroad would be complete
without both completely embarrassing myself and managing to have a near death
experience all before reaching my accommodation? Certainly not this one. I was
feeling exceedingly chirpy as I stepped into the arrivals hall at Malpensa
Airport. So chirpy in fact, that as I was walking along one of those flat escalators
that one finds only in airports, I managed to misjudge the end of it because I was
too busy looking fondly at the mountains in the distance and reminiscing about Trento. The result? Falling.
Flat on my face. In front of an entire class of Italian schoolchildren who
proceeded to laugh at me like there was no tomorrow. I think I need to learn to
make lower key entrances.
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| Stazione centrale |
Anyway, having gotten over
the initial shame of THAT delightful experience, I then hopped into a taxi and
managed to get the words “Posso andare alla stazione centrale di Milano per
favore” out of my mouth, which prompted the taxi driver to have a full blown
conversation with me for the next half hour. Don’t get me wrong, my new mate
Marco the tassista was a great guy, mainly because he kept telling me how
‘intelligente’ and ‘bravissima’ I was to be travelling to Italy on my own and
working here for a month at the ‘uncorrupted age of 21’ (whatever that means). But his driving left quite a lot to be desired. To the extent that I
was very tempted to message my family to tell them that I loved them just in
case I didn’t survive the journey into the city centre. At one point
he made a point of having an argument with a speeding priest in the next lane.
I should point out that we were going waaaay over the speed limit and both cars
had their windows down just so they could scream at each other. Marco was
yelling all manner of expletives at this priest, telling him how
irresponsible his driving was for going that fast in a van full of children. It
was down to me to warn him of the traffic jam we were fast approaching and thank god
I did. Otherwise I might not have been here to tell the tale. Anyway, it only
made me appreciate getting into Milan that much more.
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| What breakfast will probably look like for the next month... |
The next morning I started work! Italian working life has both
been a bit of a shock to the system and a welcome change. In Italy
they take two hours off for lunch every day so that people can go home and eat. As a result we finish at 6 but to be honest I wouldn’t want to finish any earlier because
it’s so hot outside and I actively avoid the sun these days. Not in a vampire kind of way but because I burn so quickly it's borderline abnormal. The other day I managed to go an impressive shade of pink just sat in a sunny office for 10 minutes. It’s actually
really great having the day broken up in the way it is because it means I get a
lot of time to chat in Italian in the middle of the day about all manner of
things (even the Star Wars realization hit a few days ago).
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| Corso Como- 2 minute walk from the office! |
The first week of work has
been fantastic. Granted when I arrived and was immediately thrown in to having
to engage my brain and actually speak Italian- or rather, understand it - I
panicked somewhat and felt a bit out of my depth. Every day since then I’ve
managed to be understood and (apparently) make some helpful contributions. I’ve
sat in on various meetings including creative brainstorms for adverts and I have even been asked to choose
what the actors should wear! I've been translating from German into Italian and I've even been speaking a bit of French too. Next week I get to go to the filming/ animations
of three different TV ads so I’m really looking forward to that. Everyone at the office
is really lovely and has been very welcoming considering they weren’t
expecting me! I can’t believe I’m already a quarter of the way through my time
there, I can tell already that I’m not going to want to leave. The only minor
blip I’ve had in Milan so far was my neighbours banging on my door tonight and telling
me to stop singing in the shower. Clearly they don’t appreciate Les Mis and so I’m
henceforth taking it upon myself to teach them to do so. They’d better be
ready…
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| Photos never do this country justice |
I decided to go for a
bit of a wander tonight and finally made it to the duomo. I have to say,
central Milan is absolutely gorgeous. Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is just unbelievable. I spent a good few minutes just staring at the ceiling in
there, before treating myself to a super poncy risotto and a nice gelato for
the road. All in work clothes too, I'm starting to feel well sophisticated innit. I could spend days wandering around this city! And I probably will in
the coming weeks, whenever I have time to do so.
The Return of Culture Shock
=> Glamorous
Italians. My God I had forgotten how glamorous they all are. And frankly I
should have remembered before coming to Milan of all places- there I was for
the first three days of my stay, every morning, on the metro, sweating
horrendously in the furnace that is the Milanese underground, surrounded by
women who looked like they were off to star in the sequel of The Devil Wears
Prada. I think this weekend I will be taking advantage of everyone’s advice and
hitting the sales. Not that I’m aiming for Runway standards but a little above
the M&S Essentials range wouldn’t go amiss.
=> Italians
stare. And I mean really stare. I know I’ve got a burnt nose and I’m making
questionable fashion decisions but really, that much?!
=> As I’ve
mentioned, the driving is unbelievable. Just this evening I was in a taxi and
the driver didn’t look as he turned onto a tram track. Luckily the driver of an oncoming tram saw us or I may not have been here to tell the tale (can you see a pattern emerging?). Think it’s the metro every
time for me from now on!
=> Seeded grapes. I forget every time and they're just such a pain. I don't mean to sound like a princess but the crack of those seeds gets me every time. Ew.
=> When you're offered a coffee in Italy it means espresso. I need to remember that before I develop a serious caffeine addiction.
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| Cioccolato e Yogurt per favore |
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| Prosecco + aubergine caviar risotto with smoked mozzarella foam- who do I think I am? |
**Summary**
1) I’m back in Italy, did I
mention that?
2) I’m not in Novara guys, I’m
in Milan.
3) I’m attempting to ‘get my
shit together’ as they say and enter the professional world- I promise this isn’t
a tactical post-Brexit manoeuvre…
4) My escalator coordination
leaves quite a lot to be desired.
5) Italian taxi drivers are
very chatty and nice for the most part but I draw the line when they risk my
life to have high-speed arguments with men of God.
6) Che la forza sia con te
(May the force be with you).
7) Work is brilliant and I’m
loving every second of it.
8) If my neighbours don’t
appreciate Les Mis then I’m going to force it on them by singing as loudly as I
can. Evil.
9) I LOVE ITALY!
10) The weekends are looking
exceedingly promising- Hugos galore!
Language Blunders Reloaded
I managed to really offend
someone the other day. Well actually a meeting room full of people. When asked
my opinion on a brand new product in the middle of quite a sizeable meeting the
other day, I was trying to tell the woman who had asked my opinion that I thought
it was really cool. However, instead of saying “è una figata” which would have
been the correct response, I replied to her saying that I thought it was
“sfigato”, or ‘shit,’ as a colleague informed me later on that day. No wonder I
was getting weird looks…
So, all in all, things are
looking very good so far. I’m convinced that before I know it I’m going to find
myself sat on a plane back to the UK so I’m currently trying to organise myself
to make the most of being here.
You can bet there will be
more from me in the next few weeks. Until then I will spend every waking moment
(when I’m not working) wandering around this fabulous city and taking it all
in. And probably accidentally insulting a few people as I go. I’ll keep you all
posted!
Alla prossima!
G x
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