Internship in Barcelona, Spain – Neila Tarchouna Bewerbungshomepage

Blog: Internship abroad in Barcelona

In 2003, I did an internship abroad in cooperation with the Spanish Chamber of Commerce (Cámara de Comercio), the XARXA network, the Berufskolleg Südstadt in Cologne, etc. at the company CEAM (Centro de Estudios y Asesoramiento Metalúrgico) in Spain.

The non-profit association, founded in 1951, had its headquarters in Barcelona near the Columbus Monument at the end of the Rambla and Barcelona’s harbour. The main mission of the association is to promote the development and competitiveness of metal manufacturing companies in the Catalan region.

During my eight-week internship, I was responsible for specialised areas such as internationalisation and training.

My Workplace

(2)I also prepared course materials for trainings, workshops and other seminars for apprentices of the metallurgical industry in the in-house meeting and training rooms. Also, I was involved in the preparation of psychotechnical tests used in selection and application procedures, which are based on multiple-choice questions. This gives metallurgical companies the opportunity to measure the cognitive performance and informative ability of potential trainees.

(1)This is me at my workplace in the „Formación“ (Education/Training) department. My main job was to assist my colleagues in issuing diplomas and certificates to pupils and students who took their exams at CEAM’s training centre.

(3) All current newsletters, magazines and company data were also maintained by me in MS Access.
In addition, I translated training contract documents and subcontracts from Spanish into German.

My Internship Supervisors

In this picture you can see me in the workroom together with my traineeship supervisors from the company Ceam, who are responsible for the area of „training“. This is where course materials are prepared for different areas of the metal manufacturing industry such as: Process and Methodology, Quality Engineering, Engineering for Logistics, Human Resources, Metallic Materials, International Trade and Marketing, Occupational Health and Safety etc.

Farewell party of a CEAM employee

We celebrated the farewell party for a long-time employee of CEAM in the conference room. We had a bottle of champagne and a cheesecake with tangerines which I had prepared.

Office closing time

In the office during closing hours with another intern from Germany

A meetup after work

Cozy evening with interns and students in a bar in Barcelona’s old town.

Breakfast meeting

Every morning before work, I visited my favourite bakery, Gremi de Flequers, near the CEAM company. They have delicious pastries and coffee for breakfast. The usual was a bocadillo (sandwich) and a cortado (espresso with a shot of milk), and on the last working day of the week I always enjoyed the super delicious hot chocolate with churros.

A trip to Park Güell

Standing here in front of Park Güell, designed by the Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí between 1900 and 1914 in the Gràcia district/La Salud.

A short visit from XARXA

Ms. Glòria Deulofeu Monrabà from the European vocational training network XARXA visited us during our work at the CEAM company. The organization XARXA is known for supervising and arranging internships in Spain, a. o.

Barcelona's Old Harbour

(1) (1) As the job is close to the old port of Barcelona, I used to spend most of my lunch break there.

(4) In the photo below, I am standing on the wooden bridge of the harbour and enjoying the magnificent view over all the small sailing boats and yachts.

(2) In the picture above you can see the end of the shopping street las Ramblas and the Christopher Columbus monument. This monument is 60 m long and was erected for the World’s Fair in 1888.

(3) At the top of the iron column is a bronze statue depicting Christopher Columbus holding out his arm, and pointing to the sea with his index finger. He is also standing on a globe. The statue was built as a tribute to Christopher, who was warmly welcomed by King Ferdinand II after his return from the New World in 1493.

(2) In the film plot, George Clooney plays Miles, a successful divorce lawyer who specialises in defending rich and unfaithful men.

When real estate mogul Rex Rexroth asks for his services in divorcing his wife Marilyn, Miles is determined to ensure that Rex’s wife does not receive a single cent of alimony from him.

Cines Maremagnum

(1) The Maremagnum at the old port of Barcelona is a shopping centre and cinema that is also open on Sundays and public holidays.

There I watched the US film “ Intolerable Cruelty“ starring Catherine Zeta Jones and George Clooney, dubbed into Spanish. The film was released in October 2003

(3) But then the divorce lawyer suddenly falls in love with the wife of the real estate mogul, who takes up with a rich oil magnate out of revenge against her husband.

Pantomime in Las Ramblas

(1) Along the Las Ramblas promenade, you meet many street artists, musicians, jugglers and mimes on almost every corner.

(3) There are also numerous shops, cafés, restaurants and bars. In short, the pedestrian zone is busy day and night and always full of tourists

(2) In the photo above, a mime has dressed up as Che Guevara and you might almost think he is the former Argentinean freedom fighter and communist revolutionary leader. But sometimes you also see less pretty things.
The photo below shows a mime disguised as a man sitting on the toilet reading a newspaper. A curious and embarrassing scene at the same time. But this is how the mime consistently attracts attention. The shopping street is about 1 km long and stretches from Plaza Catalunya to the harbour, where the statue of Columbus is located.

(2) There were many supermarkets in the street, for example SuperSol, which has since been bought up by Carrefour. I did my monthly bulk shopping there and had it delivered by a courier directly to my rented flat on the upper floors.

My place to stay in Nou de la Rambla

(1) I had rented a small but nicely furnished flat in an apartment building on Nou de la Rambla street, less than a kilometre from my workplace.

(3) There were also many small shops, restaurants and other boutiques. Thus, the street was very lively. I lived there with my landlady, an English teacher, as far as I remember.

A very friendly woman who also introduced me to the city of Barcelona and showed me the Güell city park designed by Antoni Gaudí as a guide.

Outside the Corte Inglés

(1) The Corte Inglés department stores are located in the Plaza de Cataluña. Founded in Madrid in 1940, these department stores have their headquarters there. The name derives from a tailor’s shop for children’s clothes.

(3) There I bought a CD (album called: María – released in 2003) by the flamenco singer Niña Pastori and by the Sevillian flamenco and pop singer Manu Tenorio, whom I know from the TV music competition called Operación Triunfo. The CD is called “ Blanco Añil“ (English: White Indigo) and was released in 2003 as well.

(2) Today it is one of the largest department stores‘ chains in Europe, comparable to Kaufhof or Karstadt in Germany, which also offer a wide range of household goods, clothes, shoes, accessories, furniture, jewellery, cosmetics, music, films, food and much more.

(2) The houses are in the style of Catalan Modernism and were built in 1877 for the textile entrepreneur Josep Battló. The exterior façade of the building was decorated with many ceramic elements, which is typical of the modernist style.

Casa Battló

(1) I am standing here on Passeig de Gràcia No. 43 in Barcelona’s Eixample district. Behind me is a residential and commercial building designed by the architect Antoni Gaudí.

(3) Casa Battló is a listed building since 1962 and also a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2005.