Weekend Trip to Nanjing

I believe my favorite cultural activity that Absolute organized for us was the trip to Nanjing. Since we stayed in Nanjing for the weekend we were able to take advantage of the city. After a quick train ride from Shanghai to Nanjing we hit the ground running and made our way to Sun Yat Sen Mausoleum. As soon as we arrived I noticed that the skies were blue and the trees were lush with varying hues of green. It was meant to rain, but instead we were left with this reward after climbing 397 steps.

An Enlightening and Intriguing Experience

I didn’t quite know what to expect when I arrived in Shanghai — I hadn’t been anywhere like it before. China itself seemed like such a big entity to me at the time that to conceive what I would expect seemed like an impossible task. So after the first few days of living in Shanghai I was able to build a relationship with it and understand it a bit more with each passing day. I have found that there are many cultural similarities between Shanghai and my country and even state.

No Such Day as Normal Day

Honestly, it’s hard to describe a normal day at work here at my adverting internship because it doesn’t seem to exist! Last week we had an art exhibition called Now&Them: “Chinese Whispers” where the profits go to our charity, and this week we had a photo-shoot for a Chinese baby company.

Exciting First Days

Do you know how it feels to go to a country where no one in your family has gone? Well I do. China is the last place I thought I would be spending the summer before my final year in college, let alone intern there. Well, it’s only been 2 weeks and I can say it was one of the best decisions I have made.

Summer I Will Never Forget

My experience in Shanghai during my freshmen summer is one unbelievable, ridiculous, sometimes frustrating, but overall rewarding opportunity that I am so grateful to have had. It was a summer that challenged me and taught me things that I will not forget.

Priceless Opportunities

The activities that were offered through the program by Absolute Internship were abundant but varied in form. From after-work happy hours to company field trips, from day trips to different...

Anything But Boring

Coming from a sleepy, suburban town in the middle of Texas where roughly 70,000 residents go to sleep by 10 PM each night, I was pretty amazed when I was thrown into...

Small Fish, Big Pond

Startled from my sleep, I groggily paw at my phone, trying to shut off the alarm I set every morning for 7:30 am. Having to leave for work by 8:00 am every...

First Thoughts of Shanghai

Shanghai welcomed me with a blast of hot air, a wave of tired travelers, and a fight that broke out due to a K-Pop group. After a grueling 14-hour flight, my friend and I arrived at Pudong International Airport where we were greeted by our program coordinators and a few of the other interns in the program. We were taken to our apartment where we would be living for the next six weeks; Initially, I was worried about the size and utilities of our living space, but I was pleasantly surprised by a large, apartment-style hotel with modern televisions, a functional kitchen, and my own separate bedroom.

Always Have an Open Mind

Traveling to China was a fantastic experience with countless opportunities to learn and develop as a person. My biggest piece of advice to a future intern is to not have any expectations coming into your trip and internship. Come with an open mind to learn as much as possible and let the experience change you and develop you, as it will. If you come with a certain mindset of how the time is going to be or how you think it should be, you will be disappointed in the end.