Hello! We have recently completed our first full week in Paris and I can confidently say it was full of fun memories and exciting outings mixed with cool work and project development. The first week felt like it went by very rapidly, and I can already tell the second week will feel something similar, but nonetheless, I am looking forward to all the new memories to be made! I had previously already visited Paris so I feel like my previous version of Paris matches quite well with the version of Paris I have been encountering this last week. However, I feel like due to the immersive nature of the program I have been able to see Paris through a different lens, and thus I have enjoyed getting to know the city from a more local point of view.
Some of the things that stood out the most to me were the Sacre Coeur Basilica, communicating with the locals, and the food! Even though I had previously visited the Basilica I enjoyed getting to see it with new friends and being a bit more present when there. Last time I went I was a lot more in the tourist mentality, whereas this time because of the assignment we were doing we took the time to actually observe the scene and take everything in which I enjoyed a lot. Likewise, I have been able to have a decent number of interactions with the locals here and hence I have been able to practice my French which I have found very fun. In addition, as a food fanatic myself I can confidently say I have been having a blast getting to try all of the different cuisines that Paris has to offer. From Parisian food, to Uzbek food to Mexican food, I feel like I have tried different cuisines that I would not normally gravitate towards, and I have liked every single one!
Then, in regards to the prototyping process I have enjoyed getting to learn more about the behind the scenes of figuring out what the problem we are trying to solve is. Likewise, I was not expecting to design a better cup holder when initially coming into the program, yet I have been enjoying designing an improved version of existing adaptable cup holders and think we have cool ideas so I am looking forward to developing the project further with my team. Similarly, due to the nature of our project and our client we have been looking further into how our design can adapt to different criteria and thinking of needs that I hadn’t gotten the chance to research as much, so I enjoy having the chance to design a new product which can help a big group of people while learning more about spinal cord injuries and how they affect people.
Furthermore, something that I am looking forward to is to learn how to work in a team in a more collaborative and effective way. I feel like a lot of the time I will be quick to assume a more leadership position, yet as a consequence of everything that we have been learning in this course and simply getting more collaborative with time, I am excited to step back and look at everything as a team and hopefully improve my team working skills!