Our supervisor Ms. Novoa Huerta, as mentioned in an earlier post, was also quick to inform us on the culture at the Deloitte Risk-Advisory Innovation Center – it was comprised of a laidback, friendly atmosphere filled with close friends who had known and worked with each other for years. Despite being close friends, they were all extremely welcoming and kind, and made our experience extremely memorable. Moreover, there was no specific dress code for work; we were only required to dress business professional on days in which the CEO would travel from the Madrid corporate office to visit us. Everyone at our office was infused with the 
belief that their best work was done when they were wearing comfortable clothes and could relax and think clearly. Aside from this, I was quick to notice that Spaniards always took their time – in both their work and their social interactions. There was not a single conversation I had, both in and out of work, that seemed rushed. Spaniards truly seemed to be able to slow down from the daily stresses of work and life and enjoy things more in the present which is something I think the U.S. lacks and could learn greatly from. All throughout the day, you would see several people sitting outside and enjoying a pastry, coffee, or drink while talking to their friends or their co-workers on their breaks. It was rare to see someone in Salamanca take their food to-go and not sit down and enjoy the meal right then and there. In fact, I can think of a few times during our internship in which my group and I had brought food back to the office and ate lunch while we continued to work on our project in order to meet our specific deadlines. Our co-workers would always joke around that we wouldn’t get to enjoy our break or if we continued working during it. It was quite comforting, in a way, that our co-workers cared about us taking time off from our work to relax and clear our minds of any mental stress or cognitive strain. I should add, however, that I do not think I ever fully adapted to the way the Spaniards took breaks or their work schedule. I personally never enjoyed stopping my work in the middle of the day for over an hour to go take a siesta, especially if I felt my group and I were being extremely productive. I knew this was a cultural norm in Spains so I had to adjust regardless, but I did find it difficult to be productive after our siesta as we only would have 2 hours left of work when we returned. Additionally, Salamanca was also an extremely small city; no one drove to work, and everyone walked regardless what they were going to do. In a way, this small city reminded me of a college campus. Aside from these differences, one aspect of my internship abroad I was not prepared for was the language barrier we faced with the citizens of Salamanca. We were told that the language differences would not be a constraint because our co-workers would know English given that Deloitte is a global firm in which English is the primary language; however, I was not prepared for the difficulties I would face simply ordering a coffee in the morning or food for lunch during my siesta. It was clear within our first week that we would have refresh upon our Spanish more than we had anticipated upon arrival. My group and I each ended up downloading numerous apps and language learning tools on our phones to improve our Spanish, such as Duolingo among others. We practiced our Spanish by speaking with our coworkers and whenever we went out with Salamanca natives. I think we learned the best by truly integrating ourselves in their culture and language and by pushing ourselves to speak Spanish every chance we get. By the end of our internship, however, we had all greatly improved our Spanish-speaking skills.