Today was an exciting day, it was Saturday so we had the weekend off. We decided to use our day off go on a trip to Geneva, Switzerland. We headed out nice and early so we would have the full day ahead of us. Originally the plan was to get the train but unfortunately, there was a train strike. We didn't let this ruin our plans so we got the bus instead which was just as easy.
Once we arrived at Geneva airport where the bus dropped us we got a shuttle into the city. Once we arrived in Geneva we couldn't ask for more, It was a beautiful morning sun was shining and the city of Geneva was looking stunning. We began our activities by getting a shuttle train around the old town which showed us all the important historic monuments and places. After that we headed down to the beach which was beautiful, there were amazing views of Geneva and mountains wherever you looked. We then headed back to the old town to go to a church which we were told that if you go to the top you can get a whole view of the city, so we did this and it was breathtaking. After the church, we headed off to the park and sat down and has some food and rest before setting off again to explore more the city was amazing, as well as the people, were extremely friendly. We headed home that same evening even though I would have loved to stay longer. I had an amazing time there and definitely love to go back, it's been my favourite thing that we've done on our trip so far. -Yaqub
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Today was our last day of work before the weekend. This weekend is a long weekend for us as Monday is a national holiday here in France. I arrived at work at 10am as usual and met with my co-workers. Every morning we get big deliveries at Jules. This morning was a larger delivery than usual. It was my job to unpack each item from the plastic packaging. Afterwards I tagged each item with security tags. I then placed each item on the shop floor. It is important to arrange each item in order of size (36-46 here in France or S-XL), as it is easier for the customer and us as workers to find their size quickly. This took some time so the day went very fast.
After work Yaqub and I went into the town centre. We went for a walk as it was a hot day yesterday- almost 22 degrees. We met Jenny and Aoife after work. We went to a local Irish bar. It was nice to see a glimpse of home for the first time in our week here. We headed home early as we plan to go to Geneva in the morning which I am really looking forward to. Overall the week went so quickly. I am definitely improving my French each day, and I am more confident with dealing with customers than I was at the beginning of the week. I learn new phrases and words every days and I am looking forward to what the weekend has in store for us and to experience more of the French culture. -Carrie Today I was in for 10:30am like any other day. Corinne, the store owner, told me it was going to be a busy day. The store received a huge order of 15 boxes. The tiny store room in the back of the store is full to its capacity and they have no other storage space, so I was unsure as to where these items were going to go. I proceeded with ticking off each item on the order sheet, then handing them up with the correct size hanger, safety tagging and then finally steaming each garment. This took so long as there was so much to process. I work in Penney’s at home and our stockroom is a whole shop floor compared to the little box room in Voodoo. This is the only downfall for the store as it gets messy so much quicker, proving difficult to find any required items/sizes.
As a result of the new stock coming in we had to rearrange the shop floor as well as the table, mannequins and front window display. This was hard as the small store was constantly full with people. Today a lady from New York came into the store and I was delighted to finally help a customer. I assisted her in buying a beautiful dress as well as a matching belt. I felt really good as I was able to actually understand her needs etc. Later in the evening an inspector popped into our store to ensure there was no one working illegally. Because of the language barrier it took a while to figure out what was required but once I contacted my host Kader, it was eventually all sorted. I stayed for an extra half an hour to help Corinne prepare the store for the next sale. I had to remove all the ribbons and scrape off the sticker on the windows. Tomorrow there will be a 40% sale on all of the old season clothes so it’s going to be very busy. -Aoife My day started like every other day this week, starting work at 10.30am with Aoife. Today we got the tram to work. I get off one stop before Aoife as it’s nearer to my store. Today two new French trainees started today, but as they are young they have a good level of English. It was nice for a change as all the people I work with have very little English but this has made me improve my French in return. I found today a lot easier than others days as I had the two trainees to help me translate the French to English. My first task of the day was to rearrange the in store displays, where I was told I could do what I thought would be a good display and to use my imagination. I enjoyed this and it took up the good half of the morning. Then myself and the trainees were assigned to rearrange all the rum they sell in order of the countries they originate from.
For lunch I met up with Aoife and we spent lunch in the park as it was quite a nice day. After lunch a big delivery came in so we were very busy. I had to unpack the goods, mark off what I was unpacking, place the products on shelves or in the stockroom and then fold the boxes for recycling. For the last hour in work I made a list on the computer of all the countries the rum originated from and I also had the task of serving customers. From serving the customers the past few days I feel I’m getting better with my French language skills, including using numbers and asking them if there okay for everything. In the evening we all met up and went for a walk around the city centre admiring the views and shops. -Jenny Today was my second day of at work, and I have gotten familiar with the shop and the lovely staff at Brice. In the morning I was given the task of helping out with the deliveries and also hanging new items of clothing and putting them out on display. I also learned about how the shop deals with targets and how they try to achieve them which was interesting to witness. During the day I also learned some words in French and attempted to communicate with customers. I asked them if they needed help with anything, like sizes or colours or other different options in regards to the clothing. I also showed them to the fitting room if needed.
In the evening after work, Carrie, Aoife, Jenny and myself headed into Grenoble town and did some exploring. We saw a few different sites that we hadn't seen before and ended up doing a tour of the city, which gave us a great understanding of the city and where everything is located. Tomorrow I look forward to continuing to develop my French language skills and to learn more about the retail systems that they use here. -Yaqub Today I started work at 10:30am in Voodoo. I got the ‘A’ tram into town with Jenny. Today was the start of “Voodoo Day” which is their annual sales. I had to print off the list of all the reduced clothes and tag each of them specifically, (-20% white, -30% blue and -40% red). Nearly all of the items were reduced at the end of the day. Throughout the day, the boutique received numerous emails with smaller jobs to be completed. I had to get two orders ready for collection, whilst also replying to a woman about sizing inquiries and we also got an email showing us the new store layout and window display.
I then did got the opportunity to do the window display and to put into practice some of the skills that I would have developed during my time in GTI. I had to dress four mannequins, gather accessories, as well as hang two back drops. I steamed the clothes in the back room before putting them on the mannequins and I particularly loved doing this. I also had the task of printing off A5 signs to stick on the window showing the item prices. After the busy day, I finished work at 6:30pm. The day flew as I was constantly doing different tasks, but the work is diverse with many different tasks needing to be completed and it requires you to multitask and to be adaptable. I got the tram home alone today as Jenny finished early. I was not 100% sure where I was going at first but I after a while I recognised a shoe shop so I knew I was on the right path. -Aoife Today was our first day working here in Grenoble. Yaqub and I are both working at the 'Grand Place', the main shopping centre. We both start work at 10am every morning so we decided to take the tram together. I was very nervous on the way as I was unsure what to expect from the day. Upon arrival I met my co-workers. Luckily one of them has good english which is helpful if I am unsure of something. The manager, or the 'chief' as they say here, gave me a tour of the store and explained the different sections within it. We must greet all customers as they enter the store and wait five minutes before approaching them for assistance.
My co-workers taught me different phrases by acting out scenes with different scenarios, relating to customer needs and wants when coming in to the store. It was certainly difficult to communicate with customers at the beginning as they spoke fast but, as the day progressed, it became much easier as I was absorbing the language little by little. After work Yaqub and I met with Aoife and Jenny and we went to Carrefour, a major department store in France. We spent 2 hours browsing before heading back to our apartments for dinner. Overall it was a challenging yet extremely rewarding day as I became more at ease with the language. I look forward to another day of work tomorrow, meeting new people and assisting my co-workers and customers. No day is the same here in Grenoble as there is something new to learn everyday. -Carrie We started off the day by meeting our host, Kader, in the hotel lobby. He brought us to the different stores that we will be working in for the duration of the placement. We got the 'A' tram into the town center, which is beautiful. First we went to 'Voodoo', a women's boutique, this is where I am working. I met with the store manager as well as a store assistant and I spoke to them in my best french accent with some French phrases and they seemed impressed. Here they told me what hours and days I was going to be working. Kader also brought us to 'Le Comptoir Irlandais', 'Jules' and 'Brice' where Jenny, Carrie and Yakub are working and they did the same as me. I'm looking forward to working, I start work Tuesday morning at 10.30am. Kader also showed us around some of the popular spots, as well as a local market selling fresh fruit, pastries etc.
Later on, after a bit of a rest we visited 'Grenoble Bastille Cable Cars'. After queuing for 20 minutes we finally got on a cable car which brought us up into the former fortress overlooking the town of Grenoble. It was packed with people taking pictures but it also seemed like a popular hike for the locals. We were lucky enough to have chosen a time where the local choir were performing. It was such a fantastic experience and I cant wait to see what else Grenoble has to offer. -Aoife Today we started our day in a nice relaxing manner. Unfortunately the day was very rainy and windy so we all got together in the morning to discuss what we would like to do on the weekend as we all have Saturdays and Sundays off based on the timetables that we have received. We decided to book a day trip to Geneva in Switzerland for next Saturday which we are all very excited about. Then we decided to go visit the Musee de Grenoble which is a famous art gallery in the city. It was very beautiful and educational as we got to see paintings from well know artists such as Monet and Andy Warhol. We found the tour very educational and interesting. Afterwards, we decided to explore the city a bit more so that we could get our bearings which will prove beneficial for our three weeks here. I have already found that I am picking up bits of French everyday from talking to the locals which is great.
We decided that we would have a quite night as we all wanted to be fully rested for work in the morning. I’m very excited to started work and to take in as much of the French culture as I can. -Jennifer We started the day off by getting on the bus from Galway to Dublin airport. We arrived at the airport and met the group along with our accompanying teacher, Helen, and we made our way to get checked in. After going through security, we boarded our flight to Lyon. We arrived in Lyon at around 6pm local time and boarded a bus to Grenoble. Once we arrived at Grenoble, we boarded the local tram to our hotel. It was a long journey but we were all happy to arrive at our destination for the next three weeks.
We settled in by getting our rooms sorted and we also collected our keys. The plan was to meet our host Kadir in the morning so he could show us around Grenoble, and also show us around our new work placements, so it was an early night for us all after a long day. We are excited about starting our placement tomorrow morning where we would get to see our workplaces and meet with our new hosts. I'm hoping that it is the beginning of what will hopefully be a fantastic learning opportunity and a great way to start our summer. -Yaqub |
Fashion 2017-18Carrie Burns Map of Grenoble |