Okay so let’s start at the very beginning… How did I land the job?

I was sitting at a bus stop in New Zealand on a solo adventure, a man asked me when the next bus was coming and I failed miserably at acting like I was a local… consequently, he asked me why I’d want to go travelling by myself. He even cracked a joke and said “Oh did you break up with your boyfriend or something?”, and I awkwardly laughed and said “nope, I just finished my design degree so why not?”. From there, it spiralled into a half an hour conversation (now on the bus) about how his daughter was living it up and working as a graphic designer at the Museum of Icecream in New York City.

Not going to lie, at the time, I did not think he was being legit. I had NO idea this place existed. So what did I do as soon as I got back to my Air Bnb? I googled it. Low and behold, this place existed… and they had a graphic design position up for grabs. So what did I do? I applied.

And here we are today! I boarded a plane to the other side of the world, called in the professionals to transport my personal effects - and now I’m writing this blog on the other side of the world, designing at the Museum of Icecream.

 What am I doing there?

I’m currently into my fourth week at MOIC and I’m absolutely loving it. The team, the energy, and the innovation in this business is incredible. I’ve been working on a real mix of things from social graphics, print designs and other bits and bobs. Now don’t get me wrong, behind all the glitz and glam come a lot of challenges but it’s through these challenges that I learn, I grow, and become a better designer- so while it’s uncomfortable, it has great purpose.

Biggest Surprises?

Not really a surprise, but definitely a shock to the system…. IT’S ABSOLUTELY FREEZING. And don’t be fooled by the prettiness of snow fall, it’s hard to walk in and if you’re under prepared and go out for a nice walk without checking the weather app, your runners get drenched (has happened to me once (or twice)).

A lot of people walk dogs in the city which I find really surprising because backyards aren’t a thing in NYC, so they must all be inside pups.

And lastly, that people are addicted to working here. There’s that #hustlehard and #thosethatsleepareweak mentality, people don’t really ever switch off from work.

Oh and one more, you’ll always have something interesting happen on the subway. I’ve seen pole dancers, people yelling on their phone, random person performing the bongo drums, or someone to trying to make a political statement… there’s always some kind of entertainment.

Current favourite Spots:

 1.     Brooklyn Bridge is pretty alright

2.     Best thrift shops I’ve found are in Williamsburg and Bedford

3.     Bowery is a cool urban suburb with boutique shops and cute cafes

4.     Sweet Green has some mighty fine salads

This article was written by Lilli Collingwood, a creative thinker and doer who spends the majority of her time doing digital doodles or taking pics somewhere (that has groovy patterns on it).