This was a whole new experience in many ways, but I think the biggest things were, that I have never been out of Finland during summer so the weather was extreme, and that I have never worked as a receptionist or in English the whole time. I was surprised that my English is much better than I was expecting and during these months I got more and more comfortable speaking English all the time, and after maybe a month and a half it became natural.
About the campus
I’m studying as bachelor of hospitality management, first year and second starting right away coming back to Finland. I was an intern in reception in a hotel/language school, but July and August it was mainly just the language school.
The students were mainly minors coming to Malta for learning English for a few weeks or even a month. Some students might spend a whole year there, but usually then they are adults.
Working in the reception was new to me so basically everything I had to learn from the start and at first it seemed like a lot of information and too many things but I learned quickly. At the end working there came natural, of course I still had some new things and help with some things but overall I did really well.
What I really do love about this place, is that there are so different people from all around the globe and I loved getting to know about their countries, languages and interests. People are always asking how are you, giving hugs and kisses when even passing by and open to getting to know everyone.
My freetime
My free time I usually spent by hanging out with friends on the campus, explored new places, cities and beaches. There was one beach close by that I really liked which was actually the closest one to me. I often went there after or before work to swim and relax. The water was crystal clear and cooled me down nicely after walking there for 20 minutes in +40 Celsius heat. I think after July it was when even the sea water was +30 Celsius.
Also during my stay there was a lot of different festivals and events happening and I attended a few of them, such as Katy Perry concert, international food festival and even a local election festival. I really liked the food festival especially because it was so different from the ones that we annually have in Finland too. I loved the culture in Malta mostly because of it’s diversity.
The working culture
I think that the working cultures are very different from each other in Malta and Finland. At least to my experience. I feel like in Malta, the people are very loud and maybe even a bit rude to also the customers but also to the coworkers. But also they can be very chill and funny, playing around a lot and trying to get you to laugh with them. My experience though, was that most people handled every problem or smallest mistake with yelling first rather than explaining the situation first. So at least for me, I think that a thick skin was really needed here. As to in Finland the places that I have mostly worked in are a lot different and especially the customer service. In Malta they rarely gave any information about anything to the customers for example the basic things such as meals and Wifi, and in Finland in hotels I feel like these are one of the first things we say to the guests. Everyone did warn me though that they are not great at communicating here. But in Finland the communication is one of the very most important things. What is funny to me too, is that in Finland I think that working in reception is more punctual, structured and independent than here in Malta. Also of course the campus accommodation itself is very different than any Finnish accommodation, but I think that goes without saying comparing their environment differences. Overall this was a very enriching experience and I would love to do another internship in another country.
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