Travel stories

Malta

Malta is a quiet place with a climate similar to Spain. The island isn’t very large, but we had to take the bus to get around. In Malta, they celebrate each region’s festival for a full week, decorating the streets heavily with large religious figures and lights. There were processions, music bands, and lots of fireworks, even during the day. On weekends, we took the opportunity to visit Malta, Gozo, and Comino.

Welcome to Żebbuġ

The excursion we enjoyed the most was to St. Peter’s Pool, a cove with natural pools surrounded by high rocks we could jump from. It’s located on the east side of Malta, and after a long bus ride, we walked about 20 minutes—but it was worth it. It got a bit late, and to avoid missing the bus, we tried hitchhiking while walking. Luckily, a car stopped a few minutes later and we met a Spanish couple who had just arrived in Malta that same week. During the ride, we told them about what we had visited and the best places in Malta.

Internship

I spent the first week of the internship in an office in Msida, but my mentor decided to move me to another office in Birkirkara, as that’s where he spent most of his time and I could interact directly with the rest of the team. In the new office, there were three full-time employees and three interns, who were in charge of graphic design and content creation for websites we built for clients.

Project

My main task was building websites, but I also recovered encrypted files, fixed the email server, and set up software for live conference streaming. I also helped troubleshoot problems with computers.

Company

Working hours were from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., with a 30-minute lunch break at noon. We had a kitchen in the office in case we brought food from home, and there were a couple of bars nearby to buy lunch. My relationship with my mentor was great—we were always in contact in case questions came up. What I liked about the company was the freedom we had to make decisions about how we worked. The only downside was that I had to bring my own laptop to work.

Personal reflection

These two months flew by, and I hope to enjoy another Erasmus stay soon.