My First Experience in Europe as an Intern

Hi! 

I created this site for several reasons, but the most important one for me is to keep record of my personal history. I am trying to share some of my experiences for my own records.  

In this blog, I will talk about my three months in Barcelona, Spain. Summer of 2024 was one of the best summers, and time intervals of my life. I was an intern at Inbestme, a roboadvisor company in Spain. I was directed and supervised by the CTO of Inbestme, one of the very respected and reputable graduates of my department (Dokuz Eylül University, Computer Engineering department), Dr. Ferad Zyulkyarov.  

This experience was unique for both views; one is technical and the other is cultural. I will talk about them below under two separate titles. 

Technical 

Although I was involved in the Software Development team, I worked very isolated from them (except a few cases, and in such cases I was supervised by senior engineers.), I worked with my supervisor. This doesn’t mean that my work has no difference than university assignments, no, my work is in production now, but the effort were mostly from me and my supervisor. 

I worked on a project that can be called admin portal. It is used by admins to manage the overall Inbestme portal from account verification to running financial operation.  The tech stack consists of .NET 6, Vue.js, MongoDB and Microsoft SQL.  

I developed end-to-end solutions using above tech stack. I mostly made use of API (Application Programming Interface) endpoints provided by a third party, called Interactive Brokers.  

A full cycle of my work could be as follows: 

• Starting to define a problem with my supervisor. 

• Ending the problem definition, usually with a document. (This document was very detailed in first, then go very abstract as I used to the system) 

• Designing a solution, usually more than one solution.  

• Comparing these solutions in many aspects; Adaptability, clean code, performance, etc. 

• Starting to develop the solution I decided as final. 

• Progress meeting with my supervisor, where I presented what I did, decisions, and reasons that lead to this decision, etc. including code. 

• Receiving my feedback and continue working according to that feedback. 

• Progress meetings and continue working in this way (Feedback-Re-working cycle) until the solution is ready. 

• When the solution is ready, final check by supervisor using pull request. 

• If everything is good, then complete.  

• If minor errors exist, then solving and completing them. 

First it was hard to understand the overall architecture, components, how and why things happening. Then as I spend time on it thinking and experimenting, I started to understand.  

In the first weeks, I realized how I miss some important concepts, but there is nothing wrong with this. I believe it is even better to live this very early in a career.

This was the first time for me to get such detailed feedbacks about my work. There were always some concepts I heard for the very first time in our meetings with my supervisor. I took notes in our meetings and worked on them.  

In a short time, I learned a lot, so that at the end, the problem definition documents started consisting of only titles about the task. 

Look at below calendar, how intensive my internship is! I am very happy to experience such an internship, I am aware of how lucky I am! 

Cultural 

Imagine the first time you get out of your country at the age of 22 and you go to Barcelona for an internship! What an end/conclusion to my undergraduate years! 

With limited time and financial resources, I tried to explore as much as possible. Other than the beautiful cities of Spain, I visited Portugal and France (A very close city of France to Spain). I think everybody has different type of exploring a city and culture. I like visiting historical places, read about them (either during the visit or before), and exploring local foods/drinks! 

When I first arrived in Barcelona, I had already made a reservation for a hostel for 10 days. During these days, I tried to get used to the beautiful city of Barcelona, visited some places, tried local foods, made some friends and attended events designed by hostel, but the most important thing to do was to look for a room where I would spend 3 months. 

I found a room where I stayed with two friends, Juan and Oscar. We had a very international and multi-cultural house. 

In days I stayed in my hostel, I met with people from different countries. I had one of the most interesting conversations in my life with the professor who came to Barcelona from Brazil for a conference and a university student from America.  

Port de Barcelona! A very nice and close location to my house. 

My home was in old city of Barcelona, called Ciutat Vella. It is the oldest neighbourhood.

Below you will see Cathedral of Barcelona. It is built between 13-15 centuries. It was very close to my home, 2-3 mins of walking.  

Below is a very famous square, named  Plaça de Sant Jaume,  close to my home. Close may not even be enough, it is nearly located in front of my door. It is known as home for protests. 

One of my photos in the gothic quarter’s old cities. 

A Saturday morning… 

Let’s continue with Antoni Gaudí, very famous Catalan architect. Most of his work are in Barcelona. One of the most important work of Gaudí is Park Guell. 

A look to Barcelona from Park Guell. 

Locals have something to say :) 

First pub in Barcelona

Deliciious taste! Meet with patatas bravas! It might seem simple, but I guarantee you that this is AMAZING! 

Look at what they write there.

“No wifi, talk to each other.” 

Advised by my supervisor Ferad, the Science museum I visited and spent more than 3 hours. You should definetely see it if you visit Barcelona. 

Beautiful seaside of Barcelona! 

One of the famous sea foods in Barcelona, called Paella!  

I tried it with my homemate Juan. Juan also taught me that Paella is a general name for this kinds of food, and tourists use it in a wrong manner. 

Suggested by my roommate Juan, I had a perfect experience of flamenco in one of the local places. 

Now let’s continue with my first visit out of Barcelona, of course Madrid! 

Madrid 

I spent two days in Madrid! I wish I had more time to explore this amazing city. Madrid is the capital of Spain and it has a population of 3.2 million. 

I started my day with Tortilla de Patatas/Tortilla Española.  

Look at how well designed the streets of madrid.  

Below is the town square of Madrid, named Plaza Mayor. They started building in 1580. 

The statue you see at the center of the square is a bronze statue of King Philip III. 

And this is me! 

And of course with the protector of the statue :) 

Below is the famous Metropolis Building (Edificio Metrópolis). It is one of the iconic landmarks in the city. Below fiture represents victory. 

Such a night! 

Below square is called Plaza de Oriente. Background of the photo is royal place. The statue is for King Joseph I. 

Below is retiro park. One of the largest city parks in Spain. Since 2021 it is one of the UNESCO Worls Heritage Sites. 

And, of course, Churro! I had the chance to experience it in the place where it was born. 

Look at how many kilometers I walked in Madrid in one day. This is how you explore a beatiful city as a a young person in a limited time, right? Haha :) 

Girona 

Girona is one of the most beautiful and underrated cities I visited in Spain. It’s about 100 kilometers north of Barcelona and feels like a real-life medieval postcard. The city is small and easy to walk around, but every corner has something interesting,; old walls, narrow streets, and colorful houses by the Onyar River. 

When I first arrived, I noticed how calm and peaceful it was compared to Barcelona. Life there feels slower and quieter. The stone streets, arches, and small squares look like scenes from old movies, and some parts of Game of Thrones were actually filmed here! 

Perpignan 

Perpignan is a small and warm city in the south of France, very close to the Spanish border. I visited it on a one-day trip from Barcelona. Even though it’s not a big city, it has a special mix of French and Catalan culture, which makes it feel unique. The streets are colorful, the people are kind, and the atmosphere is very relaxed. 

When I arrived, the first thing that caught my eye was the old town. The narrow streets, small shops, and bright buildings gave the city a cozy feeling. I also visited the Castillet, the old red-brick gate that once protected the city. It’s now one of the main symbols of Perpignan, and from the top, you can see beautiful views of the city. 

I walked around the main squares, tried some local pastries, and listened to street musicians. It wasn’t crowded like other tourist places, which made it even more enjoyable. You can really feel the slow rhythm of southern France there; calm, sunny, and friendly. 

Below find some photos from there. 

Of course, my first stop :). 

Lisbon 

A very similar city to Istanbul, Lisbon! 

Lisbon was one of the most beautiful and lively cities I visited during my trip. It’s built on hills and full of colorful buildings, old trams, and amazing viewpoints. The mix of old and new makes the city feel both historical and modern at the same time. Everywhere you go, you can see the famous yellow trams climbing up the steep streets and hear Fado music playing from small restaurants. 

I spent two days in Lisbon, trying to explore as much as I could. I walked through the Alfama district, the oldest part of the city, with its narrow streets and tiled houses. From there, I went up to the São Jorge Castle and saw one of the best views of the city and the Tagus River. I also visited Belém. 

Below photo was taken by a friend I met on the way. He then shared this amazing photo with me. Thanks again! 

Porto 

Porto was another unforgettable city I visited in Portugal. It’s smaller and quieter than Lisbon, but it has a strong character and a very special charm. The city is built around the Douro River, and the view of its bridges and colorful houses along the riverbank is truly amazing.

I spent two days there, walking through the old streets and exploring both sides of the river, Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia. I loved crossing the Dom Luís I Bridge and looking down at the boats and reflections on the water. On the Gaia side, I visited a few wine cellars and learned about the history of port wine, which was really interesting.