Posted March 16th, 2018 By Yummy Jobs

Natalie's Summer Adventure

Hi there! My name is Natalie Dickens and I got the chance to spend my summer break from the University of Chester working on the incredible island of Santa Catalina, located off the coast of L.A in California! On this program, I got to spend my summer working as a hotel front desk and operations clerk across two amazing properties owned by the Santa Catalina Island Company; Hotel Atwater and the Pavillion Hotel.

Working in such a location has many benefits, one being the fact you're surrounded by beaches and miles of the pacific ocean - which means water sports and beach days are regular activities! Whist at work, I could look to the left of me and see the green pier and one of the many beaches. Some nights I could even see the movies they used to show on the beach. The amount of culture on the small island is fascinating, and it was great to learn the history behind the island as well.

On your days off, you could partake in any of the tours and excursions like the Zip line (my personal favourite) which is 5 miles in length! There are also hummer tours which take you into the nature reserves on the island where you can see island buffalo. I took advantage of being surrounded by water and indulged in all of the water activities available, such as diving, paddle boarding, parasailing and dolphin spotting.

The friendships I made whilst on the island were incredible. I got the chance to meet and work with people from the UK and Ireland, Mexico, Turkey and France, as well as Americans. The island locals are so welcoming that I now consider Catalina as my home. 

My favourite memory of my summer living and working in the U.S has to be when me and one of the fellow "Yummies" travelled over to the mainland (from Catalina to Los Angeles) in a helicopter and got matching tattoos dedicated to our summer experience. Overall, I had the best summer of my life and I cant wait to find myself back on Catalina Island!

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