I was very lucky to have been picked by the partner on my main engagement for an internship to the US only 10 months into my job. This will forever remain as one of the best memories I'll have during my time working with my previous employer. This happened when the AUD was almost at parity with the USD, and I was given a per diem...so it almost felt like all my expenditure was paid for! I went crazy buying stuff that we couldn't get in Australia....but if I were to be sent over to the US now I would've bought so much more!
I was flown into LA, had to take a connecting flight to Dallas Fort Worth and then transit to Miami, Florida where all the interns were gathered. I scheduled my flight a day earlier so I could check out the shopping malls hehe. Me and my roomie (there were 2 of us sent over from Australia) were put through a couple of days of training with the rest of the US interns and were given a night off to have fun in Universal Studios in Florida. They closed part of the park for us and we had 4 rides all to ourselves!
Our hotel room in Florida- during our week of induction.
After training and induction week was over, my roomie and I had to part ways. She was sent over to work in Washington and I was to be based in Los Angeles. I was put up in a beautiful apartment suite on Wilshire Boulevard (east of Westwood Village), aptly nicknamed 'Millionaire's Row'. I loved my apartment, it felt so cosy and I immediately felt at home. It was a stone's throw to Beverly Hills, UCLA, shopping, food and entertainment. Perfect location.
The walk-in wardrobe. It's much bigger than it appears in the picture above as there's heaps of space on either side.
The guest bedroom.
The living room.
The dining area.
The kitchen- where I prepared a few meals for myself.
The huge, sparkling white bathroom which I loved. Two sinks! Huge benchtop! <3
The master bedroom.
This is where I spent most of my time working.
Now... onto the infamous US food. Servings are massive. Roomie and I checked out Red Lobster while we were in Miami- we had no idea where to go for dinner and popped into this place. This was the shrimp platter I had. I could barely finish it...when I was done it looked as if I barely touched this dish. I'm not used to tipping at the end of the meal either!
Mmmm...cheesecake factory. I had the most delicious peanut butter caramel fudge (I think?) cheesecake EVER.
The very famous In-N-Out burger- only available in the West Coast. This is where they serve your burgers wrapped in lettuce if you wanted to remove carbs and didn't want to have the hamburger buns. Look at this greasy goodness. It tasted delicious!
My and my team had Pinkberry everyday! This was absolutely yummy (borrowed this pic from the Internet....I'd forgotten to photograph my daily Pinkberry habits). Slightly tart frozen yogurt with mochi (mmm) and whatever toppings you desired.
Now, onto the shopping...unfortunately when I was sent over I was still quite junior...so I wasn't earning enough to fund my big wishlist!
Rodeo Drive for all your branded luxury items.
Sadly, I could only afford to window shop :(
Santa Monica Boulevard...
Santa Monica coastline and theme park...it was foggy the day I visited.
I managed to get a few things :D
Oh, and I almost forgot. When my team and I were having lunch in Westwood during my last day there, guess who walked into the place where we were eating? Non other than Benjamin McKenzie (most popular for playing Ryan in the O.C)! My buddy went up to him to request a picture for me to complete my LA experience, and he was kind enough to oblige! Yay. The day before, my buddy bumped into an actor from Grey's Anatomy (I think?). Stars just seem to be everywhere in LA. I also attempted to locate Kitson but got lost as I'm really, really bad with reading maps.
This sums up one of my most memorable (and favourite) working experience...look out for my next post! :)
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