Alpha invites will continue to trickle out during the coming days and weeks.  If you want to keep up to date on our progress, be sure to follow the GoSportn blog.

The Googleplex

When I first arrived in California, I was greeted by nicer weather and friendlier strangers than I was accustomed to, coming from New York.  It felt like I was on vacation.  Moving into my Mountain View apartment and meeting up with Calvin Young, my roommate, was simple enough, and by Sunday evening, I was all ready to get started at Google.

My first day was filled with orientation, exploring Google, and meeting other interns and my host, Stefan Kuhne.  It was a fun day, and by the end of it, I was absolutely psyched that I was actually at Google.

1950 Charleston Road, My Office

The rest of my first week was filled with learning the ropes and getting started on my project.  It was kind of like the first week of classes during freshman year at RPI.  You get a good amount of work done, but you end up spending a lot of time acquainting yourself with the campus, Google culture, and your fellow Googlers.  It’s a great way to be introduced to a company as phenomenal as Google, and the Intern Team did a great job of making it happen.

My project, which helps broadcasters (CNN, NBC, ESPN) use Google Earth on their TV programs, was really cool and interesting.  I learned a lot and got to work with Google Web Toolkit (GWT), AppEngine, and the Google Earth Plugin for the the fist time.  However, I learned more than just how to work with new tools and models.  I gained a lot of valuable experience in working with a team at a company like Google, where there are many different projects going on at the same time.

One of my favorite things at Google are the Tech Talks, where someone knowledgeable in a certain topic gives a presentation on the subject.  The talks are a great way to learn more and meet people with similar interests.  With so many Googlers, it was hard not to find a Tech Talk that piqued my interest, and it seemed like that at any given time, someone was giving a Tech Talk somewhere.

A stuffed pepper, veal, sausage-stuffed quail, and seared ahi tuna with a side of salad.

The food was true to its reputation of being amazing.  With so many different meals being offered at the different cafes around campus, it was difficult to find something you didn’t like.  I was lucky enough to get to try all the cafes on the Mountain View campus (it’s tougher than it sounds), and only a few were less than stellar (but still really good).  If you’re ever invited to grab a meal at Google, I say accept and enjoy it.

On the weekends, when I wasn’t working for GoSportn, I got to travel around and see a bunch of California.  I went into San Francisco plenty of times, saw the Warped Tour, went down to Monterrey, went up to Point Reyes, biked and hiked in the Santa Cruz mountains, and a had a great time.  There are a few things I didn’t get around to doing, like Yosemite and paintball with the interns, but will definitely be on my list for next summer.

Near Pebble Beach on the 17 Mile Drive

Possibly the best part of the summer was when Larry Page signed my shirt on my last day, which was really cool of him.  It was awesome things like that which made Google a great place to work at.  Google is a very open company internally, something which is ingrained in the culture at Google.  It is this openness which keeps the company innovative, and it is the reason why Google is as renowned as it is.

The people I met out there were great.  I got to know a lot of cool people at Google, and got to hang out with interns from Facebook, Twitter, and TechCrunch.  I even got around to meeting a few Y Combinator startups (go check out Graffiti Geo).  It was a lot of fun, and another thing that was great about California and the Bay Area.

I miss Google.  I miss California.  Hopefully, I’ll be back next summer, but for now I have other things to focus on.  Classes start in less than 3 weeks, and in that time, I have a ton of work to do for GoSportn.  I’m looking forward to a great school year and another successful season with the RPI Ski & Snowboard Club.

I'm on a Boat!

PS- The complete set of my picture-a-day from California album is now available.  Go check it out.

Download the Okemo layer!