I was a member of AIESEC Rotterdam for a year. I was still very enthusiastic about the organization and I wanted to stay actively involved. When I heard about the possibility to conduct an AIESEC internship to meet the requirements for an RSM minor, I immediately grabbed this opportunity.
 
As a third-year student, it was the right moment for me to swap my study for an internship and to try to obtain more knowledge in a practical way. On top of this, combining the internship with the AIESEC experience seemed the perfect outcome, as AIESEC is about meeting many international people and living and working in a friendly and enjoyable environment abroad.
     
When I got selected as an exchange participant, I quickly started to search for internships in the database. I sent many emails to interesting internships all over the world. Unfortunately, many gave me a negative reply or did not reply at all. However, I received help from my AIESEC coach – he sent me several emails with possible internships – and this motivated me to keep sending emails. The Local Preparation Seminar was enough to prepare myself for an internship.
    
As soon as I knew I would go to Athens I booked a flight and informed AIESEC Athens about my arrival. I had a contact person in Athens who answered all my questions by email. He told me I would be picked up from the airport. Yet, when I arrived in Athens airport I received a message to take the bus to the city centre. After 15 minutes waiting in the city centre, three AIESEC people picked me up by car and brought me to my house. They were very nice and enthusiastic!
    
This situation at the airport appeared to be my first acquaintance with cultural differences. After some time living in Athens it became clear to me that in general Greek people are always late and that this is no problem at all. I noticed this in social and in work situations. When I was supposed to meet Greek friends, they usually came almost an hour late. And at work it did not matter if employees arrived after nine o’ clock in the morning. Moreover, my colleagues started the day with an hour of chatting and for them an appointment for tomorrow could also mean next week. I dealt with these differences by being flexible and patient.
    
Another cultural difference between Greece and the Netherlands is in the way of living. Greek people enjoy their evenings and stay out until late. I enjoyed this part of Greek lifestyle very much. In the beginning I had to get used to somewhat less sleep! But I quickly noticed that because of this lifestyle, the people are not as stressed as they are for example in the Randstad in the Netherlands.
    
During my internship at the Emporiki Bank of Greece I investigated the areas of e-commerce in Emporiki which were less developed than the Dutch market. Currently e-commerce is booming in Greece, while in the rest of Europe e-commerce is already in the next phase.      
I compared Emporiki Bank with four Dutch banks, respectively ING Bank, Fortis, ABN AMRO, and Rabobank. I found many e-commerce services that Emporiki could implement or could improve on. This could reduce the problem of Emporiki’s arrears and would also strengthen its position compared to its Greek competitors.
    
Being an intern at Emporiki Bank was a very good experience. I experienced what it is like to work at a bank and I find this culture and working along-side highly-motivated people appealing.
In addition to the internship I made many trips throughout the country. I was allowed to take in total seven days off. Thus I went to many places for a long weekend. I have been to Thessaloniki, Meteora, Delphi, Nafplio, Epidauros and the island Aegina. I enjoyed these trips a lot and it made my stay in Greece very pleasant.
    
In summary, working as an intern at the Emporiki Bank of Greece has been a great experience. After three years of studying I appreciated and enjoyed the practical life. I believe this experience will add a lot my life and studies in the coming years. I have more enthusiasm and motivation to pass my courses at the highest level, since I am now able to relate the academic works to the real business life.
    
Furthermore, I took much pleasure in the international life. I learned a lot about the Greek culture and I met people from all over the world.
    
Best regards,
Nicoline Lanting