Whatevs
I had another useless job interview this morning. I already knew it would be useless, but I went anyway: it was a "group interview" with 5 other candidates for an internship in an event agency in Milan (the one that organises the Milan Film Festival in September). I say it was useless because they had already said the internship would be totally unpaid and, even if I'm sure it will be very interesting, I don't want to work for free any more. Actually, I would have to pay to work, because I'd either have to buy an underground pass (about 60€ a month from where I live) or spend much more for petrol. They even said "You'll learn a lot here, you'll have a lot to do. We'll squeeze you dry." The "lucky one" would have to start as soon as possible, preferibly next Tuesday, and work at the organisation of the Film Festival for the next 3 months, often more than the official 8 hours, sometimes on weekends too and with no holidays. Er. No, thanks.
I talked a bit with the other people before the interview and I think only one would accept, because she's just out of university and needs experience, the others were looking for a paying job like me. I mean, you need someone just for 3-4 months to help out with the festival? OK, you can offer an internship, but pay a small reimbursement at least! This is worse than slavery, people had to feed their slaves and give them a place to stay, while now you're simply asked to work for free and be happy about it, because it will look good on your CV. Well, I already have stuff that looks good on my CV, thank you very much. I hope they won't find anyone, but they'll probably find someone just out of university who doesn't really need money and will be happy to be exploited.
Like I said, I already knew it was unpaid, but I went anyway, just to see what they had to say. I applied for a couple of offers when I came back and found one that isn't really what I'm looking for, but could be very interesting. It's for next year, though, so I'll wait a bit before I apply, just in case anything else comes up; the selections only start in October anyway.
Also, driving around in Milan drives me crazy. I hate Italian drivers, especially when they park right in the middle of the street. And the city is getting uglier and uglier, I hadn't seen so much squalor in a long time. And since I lived in Neukölln for 8 months, that's saying something. Actually, Neukölln is much nicer than some parts of Milan that are supposed to be good neighbourhood. I had days in Berlin when I just had to go out to feel happy. Completely, utterly happy. I don't know why, maybe I was simply biased because I love the city so much. Needless to say, I haven't felt that emotion once since I came back. When I told the other candidates I had just come back from Berlin they all asked me "Why did you come back?!" And I have to say, I've asked myself the same question every day for the past month.
Anyway, good news of the day: I stopped at Lidl on my way home and found Milchbrötchen! Yes! We tried some made by a very famous and expensive Italian brand and they were awful, these were only a little more expensive than the ones I used to buy in Berlin and taste great.
Moral of the story: Berlin > Milan.
I talked a bit with the other people before the interview and I think only one would accept, because she's just out of university and needs experience, the others were looking for a paying job like me. I mean, you need someone just for 3-4 months to help out with the festival? OK, you can offer an internship, but pay a small reimbursement at least! This is worse than slavery, people had to feed their slaves and give them a place to stay, while now you're simply asked to work for free and be happy about it, because it will look good on your CV. Well, I already have stuff that looks good on my CV, thank you very much. I hope they won't find anyone, but they'll probably find someone just out of university who doesn't really need money and will be happy to be exploited.
Like I said, I already knew it was unpaid, but I went anyway, just to see what they had to say. I applied for a couple of offers when I came back and found one that isn't really what I'm looking for, but could be very interesting. It's for next year, though, so I'll wait a bit before I apply, just in case anything else comes up; the selections only start in October anyway.
Also, driving around in Milan drives me crazy. I hate Italian drivers, especially when they park right in the middle of the street. And the city is getting uglier and uglier, I hadn't seen so much squalor in a long time. And since I lived in Neukölln for 8 months, that's saying something. Actually, Neukölln is much nicer than some parts of Milan that are supposed to be good neighbourhood. I had days in Berlin when I just had to go out to feel happy. Completely, utterly happy. I don't know why, maybe I was simply biased because I love the city so much. Needless to say, I haven't felt that emotion once since I came back. When I told the other candidates I had just come back from Berlin they all asked me "Why did you come back?!" And I have to say, I've asked myself the same question every day for the past month.
Anyway, good news of the day: I stopped at Lidl on my way home and found Milchbrötchen! Yes! We tried some made by a very famous and expensive Italian brand and they were awful, these were only a little more expensive than the ones I used to buy in Berlin and taste great.
Moral of the story: Berlin > Milan.