Now I want to move on to the second word of the Work and Travel program. Oh, those travels! During this trip to America, we visited 6 of its states. Some might say it's not enough (especially since we didn't visit the western part of the USA), but for our first experience, it was something! But let's take things in order.

First of all, it's worth mentioning the city where we lived for 3 months. Rehoboth Beach is a small but very pleasant resort town on the east coast of America. Americans come here to spend their vacation: to lounge on the beach, swim in the ocean, and go shopping in local stores (our state stood out favorably from all the others due to the absence of sales tax). That's why life is buzzing here in the summer - bars and restaurants are open until late at night, there are always many people on the streets, and during the day, there's nowhere to drop an apple on the beach. That is why all visiting international students are in demand here as service staff. But I have already talked about work, and I haven't yet talked about the love for this city that emerged. In this hustle and bustle and constant busyness, we somehow overlooked the charm of our place of residence for a long time. If you ignore the huge flow of visiting tourists constantly replacing each other, Rehoboth Beach is one of the wonderful cozy towns in America where everyone knows each other. This is especially noticeable in winter when there are no visitors (of course, I only know about this from stories).

And of course, the proximity to the ocean is the main attraction of the city! When our summer in Rehoboth was coming to an end, my friend and I decided that we needed to watch the sunrise at least once while sitting by the waves. How sorry we were later that we didn't think of this earlier (although, to be honest, with such a work schedule and constant lack of sleep, we wouldn't have been able to do it often). What we saw will remain in our memory for a long time... We were not alone on the coast - there were many such lovers of beauty. Someone was just sitting on the beach, immersed in their thoughts, someone was playing with their children, someone was walking their dog, and someone was just strolling, or like us, photographing this miracle of nature. So my advice to you: if you have the opportunity to live near the ocean, do not miss this opportunity, and spend as much time as possible on its shore (the coast is especially beautiful at late or, conversely, early times, free from the huge influx of those wishing to sunbathe).

Another advantage of our city was the church community, where elderly local residents very actively helped international students. For them, it was something like charity, and they really did a lot to make our lives easier. They did various things: from Monday to Thursday they held free dinners where you could eat well, gave students bicycles for the whole summer (also for free), and also organized excellent day trips at very low prices. Thanks to them, our travels began: we went to Washington in this way and later to the state of Pennsylvania (where a chic program was organized for us: meeting the Amish settlement, lunch at an expensive hotel, going to a concert, and visiting a memorial railway station). All this cost us one day (we just had to ask at both jobs for the day off to coincide with the trip) and quite modest sums.

Another trip (to Niagara Falls) was organized without the help of the community, but with the active participation of international students. And besides that, my friend and I independently went to the nearby Ocean City - the local tourist epicenter of the state of Maryland. On days when only half a day was free, we naturally spent it without going anywhere: either soaking on the beach or going to the cinema/cafes/shops (we always especially missed such half-days off...). Thus, we always tried to use our time with maximum benefit so that we could both travel and recover (traveling, despite all its pleasantness, took a lot of energy).

Therefore, I advise you, if possible, to get out of your own city as much as possible, and specifically throughout the summer. Firstly, it always emotionally discharges you and helps you get distracted from everything familiar. Secondly, it does not require heavy expenses (unlike, for example, long trips at the end just before departure, when you travel for a week or two, and you need to constantly spend money on overnight stays in new places, travel, food, entertainment, etc.). Thirdly, your list of places you would like to visit is significantly reduced by the end of the summer, which means you will be able to spend more time in other places and enjoy yourself. Instead of trying to see everything at once in a gallop. And, unfortunately, it turns out that the program calculates our main pastime in America in only one place, and then for some insignificant time, students should travel "as much as possible". So why not divide all your impressions more rationally?