Off to the south - three weeks in Valladolid

As part of her training, Annabell spent three weeks in Valladolid. This internship in Spain had a lot to offer her!

This October, it was finally my turn – my time abroad was approaching. So on October 5th, I said "Off to Spain!" My destination was Valladolid, a large city near Madrid. I lived there for three weeks and worked in the office of the Spanish foreign society of GRANIT.

"Welcome to Spain!" - Arrival & my first day at the office

On Sunday morning at 9:00, I was dropped off at the Hamburg airport. After I nervously made my way from check-in to security and finally arrived at my gate, all I could do was wait. A short time later, I was on the plane, leaving the typical North German autumn weather behind me.

I arrived at the Madrid airport, where my coworker Nuria was waiting for me. We took the train to Valladolid together. On the way to my accommodation, she recommended some sights that immediately went on my checklist for the next few weeks.

The next morning, I started my first workday in Spain. At 9 a.m. - the usual time to start working there - I was first greeted very warmly by the 15-person team. After a brief introduction, I was told what the plan for the coming weeks would be and which areas I would get to see. I was allowed to get a feel for almost every department of the foreign society for a few days - even riding along with a colleague in the field was planned for me. So now it could start!

Time to tackle - my activities during work

I was allowed to support Lucía for the first three days. She is in charge of marketing in Spain and had already prepared some tasks for me. So I created instructions for the Spanish field staff to make it easier for them to use our intranet and WhatsApp Business. Next, it was my job to find interesting trade shows in Spain and Portugal on the internet and to choose from a catalog the promotional materials to be distributed to customers at the next trade show.
The next area was the "Transportation Management" department. Together with Luis-Enrique, I looked at evaluations of various freight forwarders. In addition, I put together an overview that shows which freight forwarders use which routes to deliver to a certain postal code.

Raúl explained pricing next. I was shown processes and calculations with certain margins. I was then allowed to perform some calculations.
Next, I was allowed to accompany Fernando, one of the Spanish field workers. For me, those were particularly exciting days, as I was able to gain insight into how our customers in Spain work, what their priorities are, and what expectations they have of us as suppliers.
Then I supported Héctor in the back office. I handled warranty cases and returns and investigated the current status of backlogs – that is, of items whose delivery customers have been waiting for for some time for various reasons.
Most of the time, my colleagues spoke to me in Spanish. I had relatively good Spanish skills from my oral high school graduation exam, which I was finally able to refresh in Valladolid. However, if it came to special words and you didn't know what to do, you would of course also help each other out in English.

The Spanish mentality - also at the workplace

The atmosphere in the Spanish office was very familial. Every day at 2 PM, everyone would sit down in the break room, eat lunch, chat a bit, or take a "siesta". There was a friendly, casual atmosphere among collegues, which sometimes invited jokes. As a "newcomer" in the office, I didn't feel out of place or unwelcome. On the contrary, it was very warm! Some sweets were also considered every day: Whether churros, turrón or Spanish salami – some sort of treat was always on the table in the break room in the morning. So one could only feel comfortable!

Even at the end of work, there is no time for breaks

I also had a lot of programs outside of work. I used the first evenings after work to explore Valladolid. My accommodation was in the city center, so I could walk to most of the sights. I'd visit churches, go to the sculpture museum or the park, and walk along the river. Thanks to Héctor, my fitness didn't have to take a backseat either. Because his parents own a gym and he recently became a certified personal trainer, he suggested that I come along. Of course, I couldn't refuse!
Nevertheless, I was usually exhausted by the end of the day. All the new impressions and constant switching between languages - English, German, and of course Spanish - left their mark.

Exploring foreign cities

On weekends, I visited the cities of Avila and Burgos. Avila is known for its large city wall that surrounds the center of the small town. Once on the wall, I enjoyed the wide view of the surrounding area of Castilla y León, the autonomous community in which Avila is located. I also explored the Cathedral of Avila, which I didn't want to see in the first place because of the many visitors. Luckily, I did! Below you will find a picture that shows that the church is mostly built from "bloodstone" (hematite). It was very impressive. Burgos is a slightly smaller city. However, the Cathedral of Santa María, which can be admired there, is all the more impressive. It is huge and incredibly detailed. In Burgos, I was also allowed to participate in a family dinner with Nuria's family, which she took me to. Culinary, I also learned something about northern Spain, and to be honest, I probably would have never tried some of the things if I hadn't been invited to this dinner. For example, the crab that suddenly ended up on my plate was a big hit, and although it was a bit tricky to eat, it was really delicious.

Time for "Fiesta"!

Additionally, I was introduced to the nightlife in Spain! Nuria took me to a friend's birthday party. We ate pizza together and then went to a club to celebrate. There are actually worlds of difference between German celebrations and Spanish "fiesta". While in Germany people head out to celebrate around half past nine, in Spain people start thinking about going out around midnight, with only Latin songs playing in the clubs.

As can be easily seen, Nuria fully embodied her role as a tour guide for me. I would like to thank her especially for that! Without her efforts, I would have probably experienced a lot less in Valladolid.
On October 24, after about three weeks that felt like they flew by, I had to start my journey back. But one thing is certain: I'll be back in Valladolid!

But I also want to say a huge thank you to the rest of my Spanish colleagues. I was so warmly and openly welcomed from the start that there was no other option for me than to feel comfortable. That's exactly what made my stay abroad a great experience, with which I was able to learn a lot about myself and also polish up my somewhat rusty Spanish skills. Thank you!

Some of our other trainees have also been sent abroad this year. Read about Jordis stay in Romania!