Tudo Bem!!!

I have two days already in Sao Paulo. Got here on Sunday night and Monday I was already working.

First impressions - The city is huge and chaotic in a way, but I like it. My flat is located near avenida Paulista and it has a great view of part of the city.

The company is huge, I didn't imagine the size of its operations. They have 3 plants in the site, all working under the Just in Time (JIT) system, with more than 3,500 employees and the design of the installations is gorgeous. Its sorrounded by a "foresta" which is also owned by the company. Sustainability is a very important topic for them.

I won the lottery with this job. I'm going to be working in the Corporate Brand Governance dept. Natura is the #1 brand in Brasil in the industry sector. It's fun, but almost every brazilian loves (and I mean it...) this brand.

Appart from all this, I'm really enjoying my stay. People have been so kind and eventhough I don't speak portuguese, I'm starting to understand the conversations and I hope to be talking in portuguese soon!

Heading south

I´m starting to feel a little anxious about this trip I'm just about to make in 2 days and that is going to take me to one of the countries I've always dreamed of visiting...Brasil. You may think that I am well prepared to live this experience, as I have lived abroad before and I can imagine how the process of living in another country is going to be... but for some reason I´m really anxious and I don't know why.

Anyways, I am really happy that this is going to happen. The company where I´m going to work is a perfect example of how business can be aligned with sustainable development and this is one of the strongest facts that made me say yes to the opportunity. Another positive point is that I´m going to be working in my favorite area: Marketing, as part of the Brand team. And I'm sure this experience is going to be quite different from the one in which I was working before. Here's a link to the site of the company in Brasil where I'll be working from this Monday on: Natura.

Well, I have to prepare my bags and get ready to travel...
I just realized, that I haven't worked in my country for over 4 years. And it's fun to see how you miss it when you are abroad, but as soon as you get here and stay home for a couple of weeks, you just wish to take a plane and discover new places, new faces and experiences.

I'll keep you posted on what goes on on this new chapter...
BTW: everybody here is jealous cause I'm going to be in Brasil during the Soccer World Cup. I know I have reduced chances to celebrate Costa Rica's victories, but now I have stroooong possibilities of celebrating with brasilians!!!

Time to say good bye

The thing I hate about meeting people and building new friendships is, actually, knowing that one day you have to say "good-bye" to them. This first year of my master studies is been great and I´ve met incredible persons and built friendships that will be in my memory forever. As the year has come to an end, it´s time to separate from some of them. In a sense, I am happy that I got the chance to share all those moments and that I have a bunch of more friends to visit somewhere in the world.

Its sad that they are leaving... but its been wonderful to meet them!

“Everyone has his own specific vocation or mission in life; everyone must carry out a concrete assignment that demands fulfillment. Therein he cannot be replaced, nor can his life be repeated, thus, everyone's task is unique as his specific opportunity.”
Viktor Frankl.

Next stop... BRASIL!!!

Last week I got great news. My summer internship is going to be in a company in Brasil, Sao Paulo, more specifically.
The company name is Natura (www.natura.net) and I´ll be working as part of the branding team.

It´s a really cool opportunity and I´m really looking forward to be there and meet all my brasilian friends, as well as to live this new experience!