Embassy of the United States

When the end of the studies is near, the only concern, the only wonder, the only question of a student is: what am I going to do later on, what is my occupation going to be?  Each one of us has a dream, which he or she would want to make true!  My dream was and still is to coexist with people of the international environment, to work in environments where boundaries and customs connect and not divide people.  My dream is to learn the exciting secrets of all the worlds around me!

To make a dream come true, to achieve a target that you put to yourself, you have to begin from somewhere, you have to learn, you have to help, if you have of course tried to show first that you are really worth it, because we are all worth it, we just need to give to our selves the opportunity to show that we deserve it.  What helped me to taste with the best of ways the beginning of the achievement of my dreams was the American Consulate General of Thessaloniki, of which I am very grateful for giving me this great opportunity!

Few weeks before my studies came to an end, the director of my school, Ms. Stanino, called me to her office to inform me of the announcement that the American Consulate General of Thessaloniki had put out searching for interns.  She already knew my interest to work in a similar environment and, with the best of ways, she persuaded me and encouraged me that I could easily integrate into efficiently working there and of course she made clear the fact that me working there would be the perfect way to get trained and specialized for what I loved and still love the most!

Without any further hesitations, I accepted to try this challenge and continuously to give to my self the opportunity to try, at least for a little to taste the future that expects me, or at least the future that I would like to expect me.

The procedures for me to start working in the Consulate General was to send a curriculum vitae, which by the way, would be my first, and as it was later on proved, my lucky one!  After the study of the many CVs received, two of the members of the Public Affairs Department, Ms. Ioanna Koutsounanou and Xeny Kosmidou, chose two from all the CVs, one of which was mine.

The phone call for the interview came and I was very excited when this happened.  There had not been any better and exciting, but at the same time anxious moment in my life until that day.  I had to get ready for that moment, no mistakes were allowed, and everything had to be perfect.  Nevertheless, I could not think of anything for the simple reason that I did not know what was expecting me.  That interview would be a totally new and interesting experience to me and the only thing I could do was to be honest and my self.  So this is what I did and in the end this made me very happy because I did not hide anything and I just showed that my interest and will to work there was everything for me at that time of my life.

I had to wait a little bit for my first day of work, but the day did come.  The first day I was shaking like a fish out of water from anxiety during that morning.  Nothing can be compared to that experience.  From the first moment that I entered the hall of the Consulate General everyone was with a smile on their lips, everyone was very kind to me and willing to help me for everything.

Few minutes later, I had to wait a little since I had arrived half an hour earlier because of anxiety, I met Ms. Koutsounanou, who showed me my office and introduced me to the rest of the staff of the Consulate General.  It was very kind of her to do so because by doing that she helped me calm down and feel comfortable to the environment where I was supposed to work for the rest three months of the summer.

Immediately after meeting all the staff of the Consulate General, I was assigned my duties.  The first and most important duty for me was assist in the press office with media summaries, press releases and contacts with the press.  My duties however, did not stop there.  There were many other things, which might have been small but very important at the same time and vice versa.  Every day was even more important than the one that passed by, especially when September was coming closer.  During that period the competences of the Consulate increased every day.  Except of the inside work that I was assigned everyday like translations, searching the web, filing and other small preparations, I had the opportunity to participate in outside organizations of the Consulate and consequently help in the organization.  This, for me, was the most important part of my existence there.  I felt very useful and creative, something that I believe is the most important motive that everyday pushes you out of bed at six o' clock in the morning and go to work with a smile on your face.

Besides the work of course, there existed a certain relationship between the employees of the Consulate.  This was also a very interesting part of my practice in the American Consulate General.  First of all, I met there people who had as a common goal the better cooperation between them for the best results, who were special and each one of them was a very important part of the working and the harmonic chain of the Consulate.

The acquaintances that I made during those three months that I was there taught to me, each one of them, something different and special.  The ages of the employees of the Consulate varied and this made the days even more interesting.  The truth is that I learned a lot of things from my short experience on this working environment, things which have to do with the specific environment and its demands but also things that are related to life itself and its own everyday demands.

Last but not least, I made some very good friends during the internship.  These friends were also interns like me.  Even though, some of them had different duties, it did not stop us from meeting each other.  There existed no competition between us, only cooperation and most importantly honest friendship.  I still keep in touch with these people and I will do my best not to lose contact with them.  Each one of them had something different to give to the Consulate as interns and me as colleagues and friends.

I could not add anything more than this except of the fact that my experience to the American Consulate General in Thessaloniki was a life experience that each student should definitely not lose the chance to try.

Thank you very much for this great opportunity; I will never forget your readiness to help me and everyone that asked for your help.

Be well,

Monika Metila Kosti