Anyway, the people at work have been very nice. There are only about 15 of full-time bankers (people working in the investment banking department), so it is really very small. The interesting thing is that there is no office on the floor (the rooms are used for meetings only), and so the VPs/MDs are sitting at their own desks and you get to see them all the time. There are about 3 of us in this department, and all of us have been very very busy with work (work just never ends), but well, I actually don't mind the work that I am doing. It can be mundane sometimes, but I actually do get to learn quite a bit, which is good.
Hong Kong was all right..I didn't really get to see much of the city. It was just mostly orientation (getting to know the other interns from other divisions) and training, and networking events at bars in the evenings (I guess I have to get used to networking really fast!). I did get to shop quite a bit on my day off though (Saturday), and I went to Macau for a short while. Didn't eat much dim sum there, but I had roast goose for dinner once, which was really delicious. Hong Kong reminds me of a big Chinatown, but I don't think I would be able to live there. There are just too many people living in such a small city (and it actually took 5-10 minutes waiting for the traffic light to cross a street!)
I guess this internship has been pretty eye-opening because it really gives me a very good exposure to what the banking life is about (the work involved, the things you do, long hours, networking, etc) and it will definitely help me to decide whether I would want this as my career (quite a few of the other interns have been asking me about that too). You know, it does sound like a pretty glamarous industry - as a friend pointed out recently - with all the networking events at the bar, having to dress up professionally for work (though I am not so keen on that), etc - but it's all give and take, isn't it? We have to work long hours and it is really difficult sometimes to find a balance. But I'm learning and taking it all in stride. I guess the most important thing is to just have a positive attitude (well, if I complain, I am just going to make yourself more miserable anyway), soak up the whole experience, learn as much as I can, talk to the people around me and just enjoy my time there.
Anyway, aside from work, I finally got to watch Ocean's Thirteen last night! The movie really lived up to my expectations and I had a good time watching it. Plus the movie was set in Vegas and I could recognise almost all the buildings/landmarks in the movie (like the Bellagio) haha.
And Wimbledon is into its second week! Too bad I don't have much time to watch it (and there has also been a lot of rain delays). But I love love love Sharapova's Swan Lake-inspired dress. It's so pretty and graceful. I hope she can win the tournament, but I am not so sure about it because I think the women's singles is pretty much wide open. There are quite a few people who can win it, like Mauresmo, Henin and Serena Williams. Whereas for the men's singles, I really don't see anyone besides Federer winning it. Haha. Ahh..I miss playing tennis!!