#eliatogether

Here at Grayscale Translations, we consistently find ways to pursue our passions, take on new challenges and push ourselves beyond our limits. Our Director and Senior Translator Fiona Gray looks back at her experiences at the Elia Together conference in Berlin in February and is reminded of her running achievements at the Surrey Half Marathon exactly a year ago.

My plans to attend Elia Together 2017 stem all the way back to when I first founded Grayscale Translations Limited in September last year. I had heard such glowing reviews about the 2016 event in Barcelona and it was an added bonus that Berlin – only my favourite city in the world – would provide the backdrop for the second edition of the conference. However, I was also fully aware that attending an event of this scale for the first time in my career would require me to step well out of my comfort zone.

As February steadily approached, that mixed feeling of excitement and nerves took me back to this time last year when I was counting down the days to running my first-ever half marathon, the Surrey Half in Woking. The strategy I deployed in the run-up to both events was fundamentally the same, revolving around the mantra “Preparation is key”. After all, as they say, “Failing to plan is planning to fail”. In between hill sprints, interval training and carb-loading, I studied the route and planned my timings before the big race. Fast forward a year and I was poring over the programme for Elia Together, carefully deciding which of the fascinating talks I wanted to attend and scheduling in meetings with fellow freelancers and language company representatives.

It was finally time to head to the starting line at the Mercure Hotel MOA in Berlin for Elia Together, where I was immediately put at ease by the sight of the coffee table and some familiar translator faces. My experience had been much the same during the build-up on the morning of the half marathon, when I was greeted with smiles and encouragement from the members of my local running club.

Back in Berlin, the starting pistol was fired as the organising committee and sponsors kicked off proceedings with the welcome session. We were off to a positive start and the inspirational messages starting flowing right away, with calls for more collaborative workflows within the industry. The theme of this year’s Together event was “Communicating for Success”, which Balázs Kis captured perfectly in his keynote speech on communication and the “noise” that can so easily stop us from getting our message across.

I stormed ahead for the first few miles, attending a number of truly inspirational talks with a focus on collaborative approaches. In much the same way that I was motivated by other runners along the route to keep going during the half marathon, at Elia Together I felt inspired by the speakers revealing their partnerships, business models and ways of working. Galina Green and Paula Hedley stressed that “cooperation is always more powerful than competition” – a sentiment I could not agree with more as far as both the translation industry and running community are concerned.

As we were approaching the halfway point, my feet were beginning to hurt and I don’t know which was worse – walking in the heels purchased as part of my new conference wardrobe for many hours or pounding the pavement for several miles! Rounding off the first day, the Together Fair provided a fantastic opportunity to meet face-to-face with language service companies and discuss potential future working relationships. This led us in nicely to the Networking Dinner and Disco, which was an incredibly fun evening held at Wasserwerk Berlin, a breathtakingly unique and impressive venue. The chance to get to know people better over a glass of wine and some dancing should not be underestimated and after a busy day everyone had more than earned it.

Following on from the euphoria and enjoyment of those couple of miles just beyond halfway, it was time to get back to work on the second day of the conference. Cue another handful of engaging talks, with my personal favourite being an insight into the business side of things delivered with humour by Richard Brooks. His advice to monetise your passion is certainly something I will be taking on board along with Rosie Robbins’ warning to not be “vanilla” during her informative session offering tricks and tips on content strategy.

Before I knew it, I was breaking into that all-important sprint over the finish line, as the event organisers gathered on stage for the recap and closing ceremony to much applause. Elia Together was exceptionally well organised and it is so important to remember that such events wouldn’t be possible without the hard work of the committee. Us attendees all deserve a pat on the back too, mind you – we played a huge part in creating the positive atmosphere and social media buzz, continuing the discussion and exchange, and demonstrating the collaborative spirit at the very heart of Elia Together.

As I walked (OK, hobbled) away from Elia Together and the Surrey Half Marathon, I felt an undeniably satisfying sense of achievement. I couldn’t quite process all that I had learnt about the world of translation, or running, and about myself right away, but I knew that I had been right not to have missed either event. Time to put my feet up and start planning for next challenge ahead…

With Elia Together 2017 in Berlin just around the corner, our Director and Senior Translator Fiona Gray has put together an outline of her perfect day in the German capital. We hope this will provide you with some inspiration for the next time you head to this exciting, vibrant, mesmerising city of contrasts.

Berlin is a place that will always hold a special place in my heart on both a professional and personal level. Home to the translation agency that gave me my very first insight into the industry all those years ago, for me, Berlin is a city of opportunity, experience and inspiration. As this second home of mine has given me so much, I wanted to take you all on a little tour and share my perfect Berlin day with you. So, if you’ve got your walking boots on and your camera at the ready, let’s get going! Wait – here’s the map in case you get lost :-) https://drive.google.com/open?id=1sQdipi-KYC6u_2WguceE6Fr4_cA&usp=sharing

We start the morning off at Alexanderplatz – don’t worry about taking in all the wonderful sights around us right now, as we will be making our way back here this evening. After avoiding the temptation to head straight to the food court at Galeria, we set off on foot for a 30-minute walk to build up our appetite for breakfast. After all, we will be feasting on one of the finest breakfasts Berlin has to offer at the Café Anna Blume in Prenzlauer Berg. I would recommend the three-tiered special which, trust me, is a bargain at €22.50 for two people to share. There is something for everyone here, including a selection of meats, cheeses, bread and fruit.

Now that we have fuelled up for the day ahead, we will make our way on public transport to Tiergarten (we can take our pick from the S-Bahn, U-Bahn, tram and bus). We embark on a lovely walk through this impressively massive park. There is a chance we may happen to stumble across the traditional Café am Neuen See beer garden, before heading to the lock and watching a few canal boats pass through. The park backs on to the Zoologischer Garten and, if you’re lucky, we should be able to see a few of the animals in the zoo from here.

Around the corner from the zoo and across the road from the stunning Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtnis-Kirche stands the quirky Bikini Berlin concept shopping mall. A quick browse around the shops and a coffee served with a mini ice-cream cone later, we head to the rooftop area for a stunning view of the city (and in particular the monkeys back over in the zoo).

If you have ever been tempted to pay for one of those expensive bus tours in Berlin, forget it! For somewhere in the region of €2.40, simply hop on to the 100 or 200 bus and be prepared to take in all of the major sights along the route. I warn you – I will fight for the front seat on the top deck. Today, let’s catch the 200 to Potsdamer Platz. Once there, we walk past the small section of the Berlin Wall that stands near the station and head straight up the road to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. Underneath the stark, striking design made up of concrete blocks is a thought-provoking, moving museum, which is an essential stop on any tour of Berlin. In fact, this will be my seventh visit.

Back above ground, we carry on up the road towards the Reichstag government building and head through the Brandenburger Tor. A wander down Unter den Linden brings us to Friedrichstraβe and one of my very favourite spots in Berlin – a massive bookshop called Dussmann das KulturKaufhaus. You will have to excuse me at this point as I could quite easily spend the entire afternoon perusing the latest German bestsellers, flicking through the translations of English crime novels and inevitably heading to the top floor where the glorious languages department is located. I remind myself that I probably don’t need four more dictionaries and I definitely don’t have enough space in my suitcase, before tearing myself away.

This calls for a brisk walk up Französische Straβe as it’s about time we went into the Ritter Sport Colourful ChocoWorld. Here, we can design our own chocolate bar, check out all the latest seasonal flavours in the shop and even find out a bit about the history of the brand upstairs in the exhibition area.

If your legs need a rest at this point, just head up to the S-Bahn at Friedrichstraβe and meet me back at Alexanderplatz. I’m sticking with the walking myself, though, as there is just too much to see on the way! We go past the memorial at Bebelplatz – the site of the Nazi book burning (just look out for the crowd of people staring down at the ground). Then, we are on the home stretch, taking in the Berlin Cathedral and the museum quarter. Oh, and we also have to pop in to the courtyard of the Radisson Blu Hotel to see the Aquadom, which is the world’s largest freestanding aquarium.

And then we have made it back to Alexanderplatz! Well done for keeping up – I’d say you have more than earnt dinner at the Sphere revolving restaurant 207 m above the city in the famous TV Tower. I also happen to know that there are some rather special cocktails to enjoy in Bar 203 as we take in the breath-taking view and try to retrace today’s route from up high.

This whistle-stop tour tries to cover as much ground as possible and the route has been devised gradually over the course of many visits to Berlin. But, to be honest, this barely scratches the surface. There is so much history and culture in this city and what makes it so magical is that you can keep coming back here and discover a new Berlin each and every time. Come in August for the Long Night of the Museums. Come in October for the Festival of Lights. There is always something happening, something to inspire, something to surprise. I promise you will never be disappointed! As for me, I’ll be back in two weeks for the Elia Together conference – perhaps I will see you there?