Field trip in Brooklyn

Wednesday, March 7

The main objectives of my field work today were to understand doctors' perception of the new medicine that I'm going to launch in Malaysia, and understand how they fit this new medicine in their practice. I was really excited at the prospect of working with her. Professional reasons aside, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to experience first hand working in the Big Apple as a New Yorker does, as well as the opportunity to see the surrounding boroughs. Laurie, the representative who would be taking me under her wings today, picked me up from the hotel at about 10am. We visited several endocrinologists and cardiologists and I was amazed at the similarities of a sales call in the US compared to the ones back home. The only major difference was technology; their detailing, call planning and call reporting system were much more advanced than ours.

As it snowed throughout the day, the whole city was covered in a blanket of snow, which to me was such a lovely sight. The scenery was simply amazing and looked exactly like those Christmas movies you see on the television. Laurie was such a sweetie. Knowing that this was my first trip to the US, she gamely acted as my tour guide throughout the day, pointing out places of interest and made numerous photo stops so I could capture all the sights for posterity.

At night, I went to watch The Phantom of the Opera. The theatre was a mere 10 minutes walks, or four blocks away from the hotel. The Phantom of the Opera is the longest-running show in Broadway history. The New York production has been watched by over 10 million audience in more than 19-year of its run.

I was scheduled to fly home tomorrow night but given that I've arrived at the Big Apple, I decided to extend my stay and take the Saturday flight instead. Yes, it would burn a big hole in my pocket paying for the extra hotel nights, but it's not everyday that you find yourself in the Big Apple, do you?