Travel stories

THIS IS HOW MY STORY BEGINS...

The scholarship granted in December 2011 by the Terrassa City Council for students of Intermediate Vocational Training, awarded with a notable financial endowment, allowed me to enjoy a one-month internship abroad. During this period, I collaborated with a newly established company, Mobicage NV, located in the town of Lochristi, in the East Flanders region of Belgium. This company operates in the field of mobile application design and bases its business model on a platform that enables large-scale interactive communication among its users.

ARRIVAL IN BELGIUM

The municipality of Lochristi, with a population of just over 20,000 inhabitants, is part of the Ghent district in the East Flanders region. The town has a significant residential area and good communication with surrounding municipalities, especially with the city of Ghent, the administrative capital of the region, located just a few kilometers away.

Ghent is the capital of East Flanders and also one of the most populated cities in Belgium—third in the country—with over 250,000 residents. However, it is a contemporary and modern city that preserves its historical and architectural heritage and boasts a vibrant cultural, commercial, and economic life that makes it the touristic center of the region.

INTERNSHIP PERIOD

The internship period at Mobicage NV was set for a full calendar month, beginning on August 1, 2012, and ending on the 31st of the same month. From the very first moment, a relationship of complete cooperation and mutual collaboration was established between the company members and myself.

We agreed on a flexible work schedule, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., with a 30-minute lunch break. During this time, I performed all tasks assigned by the company's staff. English became the main language of verbal communication.

Mobicage NV operates in the smartphone app development sector. One of the company’s expansion strategies was to target the Spanish-speaking market, as Spanish is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world. This made it a highly important potential market. And that was precisely the first task I was assigned during the internship: localizing the Rogerthat platform for Android, iOS, and the web application used to manage the various services.

PERSONAL REFLECTION

The opportunity I was given does not end with the completion of this practical learning period. My gratitude for having enjoyed this experience translates into new aspirations. From now on, a new phase begins: continuing to move forward and facing the future, acquiring new knowledge that will allow me to carry out more advanced tasks than those I’ve performed so far with the knowledge I’ve accumulated, and becoming part of a high-quality professional environment within the labor sector.

This must be done with positive mental strength, awareness, perseverance, persistence, and continuous work—always keeping alive the spirit of self-improvement to achieve that which is most desired.