One of the things I like being at Association is the work environment here. Staff is friendly, team leaders are understanding and outfits is not too “Formal”. On my first day my supervisor told me that I don’t need to wear a suit everyday. Isn’t it cool? I still kept on having a suit as it was for the first time I had a suit J However, for me suit is no fun especially in the hot DC weather. So this suggestion was a great “Thank God!” moment.

I was very surprised to see many Indian staff on board. I knew about few of them but I did not expect so many. The great surprise came when I heard two of my colleagues speaking Hindi. But then I came to know Association's International department does have many international people and so listening to a language other than English is not a very uncommon thing.

Soon I got my responsibilities and it’s interesting to learn about the CMS, LGEAN and Smart Growth projects. I think this is a very valuable addition to my real life learning experience. Answering the local government queries about these issues actually makes me understand what exactly the “need” out there is. Until now my work in DC is coming up well and I am very much looking forward to the rest of the summer.