Along with my first London event, I also found myself heading to Basel, Switzerland for my first post-lockdown international business trip!
Those of you who have already travelled abroad post-lockdown will be familiar with the bag of mixed emotions about ensuring your vaccination passports and paperwork are all present and accounted for, and whether your documents will all be accepted as per usual at customs.
But I didn’t have to worry for long as it was like returning to an old friend, I interpreted for a Swiss multinational pharmaceutical company I’ve had the pleasure of working with for over a decade!
Holding a four-day medical conference in Basel, it was great to be back in a booth to interpret English to Italian and vice versa across the four days. The event allowed me to gather my thoughts and reflect on the impact Covid had as an Interpreter.
The realisation of the little things that make an event brought it home, how much I had missed it. This included ‘normal events’ like dinner with my colleagues, exchanging views on the day’s events and talks, and heading downstairs to see them at breakfast every morning. And rather than using WhatsApp when interpreting with my booth partner, we could communicate with simply a look when our turn to interpret came around – a seemingly tiny detail we truly value now we’ve experienced life without it.
Throughout the event, there was a true sense of camaraderie in the air. Everyone was in the same boat – delighted to see their colleagues and peers in person once again.
Although there’s still a long way to go, this event has been a portent of many more good things to come in the near future.
Let’s all continue keeping one another safe, so we can carry out all of those plans that have been on hold for so long.
I already can’t wait for my next trip to the airport – who knows where I’ll be heading next?