Social:

This week I spent a lot of time hanging out in Milan with my friends. On Sunday night I had aperativo in Navigli with some friends from my high school. On Monday I went into the office, and after work, my coworker and I went to grab lunch at the corner sandwich shop. After work, I spent the rest of the evening doing homework and relaxing. On Tuesday, I went to class and then spent some time at my apartment with friends. At night, we walked around the neighborhood and hung out at some local restaurants. On Wednesday evening we went to explore Chinatown. After class on Thursday, I went to the Mudec museum, the Pinocoteca de Brera, and explored the fashion district. I also had my first cannoli in Italy! The next morning, my friends and I left for the bus station at 7am to go to Geneva, Switzerland. The bus ride to Geneva was spectacular— we drove through the alps and stopped in a few towns along the way. Driving through Mont Blanc was definitely a highlight. We crossed the border from Italy to France, then from France to Switzerland. I am fascinated by the terrain at the intersection of Italy, France, and Switzerland. I spent this past weekend in Geneva, exploring the old town, swimming in lake Geneva, and eating delicious food. There was a big food festival along the lake all weekend. On Friday, we arrived in Geneva at noon. We got lunch at a little cafe, and practiced our French! After lunch, we spent the rest of the day at the Bains des Paquis, which was a beach on Lake Geneva. At the beach, there were beautiful Swans and their ducklings swimming amongst the people.  Geneva was so beautiful. After swimming, we got dinner at the Jardin Anglais. We had a picnic there and enjoyed awesome food and drinks. On Saturday, we walked around Old Geneva, but then got too hot and retuned back to the Bains des Paquis. After the beach, we went on the Ferris wheel, where we saw Geneva from a birds eye view. The next morning, we woke up to watch the sunrise over Lake Geneva. Then, we went on a boat trip around the lake. I loved my trip to Geneva, and hope that I can explore more of Switzerland in the years to come.

Internship:

My internship has been going well so far and I have been enjoying the work. I also really like my coworkers. This week, we have an update call with Marcello, Pietro, and Davide. So far, they are happy with our work and we are enjoying the project. I went into the office on Monday, where I worked on a presentation for Pietro and Davide. I am currently doing market research and learning about the competitive landscape for AI in Agriculture. It has been really interesting working with two entrepreneurs from Italy. As a startup in the U.S, it is much easier to get funding than it is in Italy. I have learned to appreciate the opportunities that we have in the U.S. from an entrepreneurial stand point.

School:

In Prof. Gupta’s class on Tuesday, we had a really interesting discussion about the changing viewpoint of corporate social responsibility. We also talked about the shift in the focus of corporations from an altruistic perspective and a business perspective. On Wednesday in Prof. Swain’s class, we continued our discussion about culture, and talked about trust. It was really interesting to the differences in trust in Italy and the U.S. On Thursday in Prof. Gupta’s class, we discussed a case study on Apple. The discussion was extremely thought provoking, and made me think deeply about the cruel working conditions that many big corporations take advantage of. The discussions from Prof. Gupta’s class have made me more aware of the choices I make on a daily basis, and how they feed into the ethics of a corporation.