On Tuesday morning, we took a private bus, drived by Adolpho, our crazy, but funny, driver. Our first stop was the Oracle Campus. We were so delighted to walk around beautiful buildings that we almost forgot one of the students on the Campus when we left !
Our second stop was on the EA (Electronic Arts) Campus. Some of us were stunned to discover the place where their favourite games have been created! Mr. Dominique Philippine, Head of Technologie Development & Operations, welcomed us and told us the history of the company. Then, we had the chance to visit the area: a beautiful park, a basketball field, childcare. Their employees are so lucky! At the end of the visit, some of us enjoyed playing some video games that were intended for employees.
Before lunch, we arrived by Facebook, welcomed by Pierre Andrews, Senior Software Engineer. It was such an amazing discovery! There is actually a real town behind the social network’s walls. Several restaurants, which propose different kinds of food, ice cream bar, sports courts, spas, creative places, etc. In a nutshell, we discovered a new mind-set of work-life balance. We were also amazed that such a big company open its doors to us so transparently. We were allowed to take pictures and to visit almost every place.
To finish our day trip, we made a stop to the Ames Research Centre of the NASA and to Apple. To compare with our previous visits, we were just able to visit the NASA museum and the Apple Store. It was interesting to see such a contrast between opened companies and restrictive ones.
Finally, we had dinner all together at Woodside Buck’s restaurant, an unexpected place where all kinds of decoration were put on the walls and ceiling. Boots, deer’s horns, hooks, huge chandeliers, etc. Those kinds of moments were able to bond a stronger group spirit.
To conclude, we went back to our hostel one half sleeping in the bus and the other half recalling the wonderful things they discovered that day!
Sevine & Virginie
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