Introduction. The story will be told from the perspective of 2 people. Let's meet: Emil and Vladimir. Our dream of going to America finally came true. Before this, it didn't work out due to COVID. This year was also under threat because the embassy in Moscow closed due to politics.

Chapter 1. The Beginning

One sunny June day, we were informed that there was an opportunity to get a visa in Mexico. Without thinking for a second, each of us agreed. And so, on July 3rd, our group of about 30 people met at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport. I (Emil) flew to Moscow alone. We started getting to know each other and chatting at the airport. We successfully arrived in Mexico, in the resort city of Cancun. We were organized a transfer to a hotel that was a 5-minute walk from the Caribbean Sea. We ended up having a mini-vacation as well. After hanging out in Cancun for a couple of days, we flew to Mexico City. A very beautiful and large city. We stayed 10 minutes away from the US Embassy. We walked around the city, explored the sights, and brushed up on our Spanish. In parallel, we prepared for the interview. On July 7th, the first batch of people went to get their visas, and I (Emil) was in it. I stood in line for the consul, maximally focused, with a cool head. I approached the window, smiled, and said hello, and the dialogue began. He asked me 3 questions, and I answered them all in detail. I heard the coveted phrase: "Your visa is approved. Have a nice summer!". I was happy at that moment, realizing that years of waiting and the risks with Mexico were not in vain, onward to the dream! Out of our group of 30 people, every single one received a visa. In the evening, we went to celebrate our success.

Chapter 2. America

It so happened that I (Emil) flew to America alone, having found a good ticket. Vladimir and 2 other girls arrived the same day, just in the evening. My flight was Mexico City-Cancun-Denver. I landed at Denver airport, surrounded by Americans, everyone speaking English. I arrived alone to conquer America (ha-ha). I asked the locals how best to get to the city, took a train, and went. I got off at Union Station, near downtown. I flew with one backpack without suitcases, so I was traveling light. And so I was walking through the city center, looking around, and just smiling. But I wasn't walking for no reason; I was looking for accommodation options because our employer, Elitch Gardens, did not provide us with housing. We were very unlucky with the date because the MLB All-Star Game was taking place during those days, and all motels and hostels were booked. I walked through the entire center, called all possible options, but couldn't find anything. Evening came, and Vladimir and the girls arrived (from this moment on, the narrative will be from 2 people). Together we thought about what to do. We seriously considered staying overnight in a church with local homeless people, but the girls didn't want to. We went to a park, thinking maybe someone would offer us something, but they were closed, there weren't even guards. In the end, we found a motel, but all the rooms were taken. We agreed that they would give us a room, perhaps it was a staff room, and gave her cash. The next day we went to get settled at Elitch Gardens. We asked them about housing, but their options were all sold out. We left the park feeling sad. My supervisor, Ricardo, caught up with us. He found a motel for the first time, paid for it for us, and we agreed to pay him back after payday. Happy, we moved into the motel. At the entrance, we met a local named Caesar, chatted with him, and went for a walk, already without him. That day, four other guys from Russia were supposed to arrive. We met them at the station and went to sleep, 8 people in a 4-person room. Tight but cozy. The next day these guys moved out, and we went to hang out by the pool, where we met our good black friend Alonso. In the following days at this motel, we talked to him every day. Our work started the following week, so we were resting. Our official work began. I (Emil) was in Park Services, walking around the park with a broom. The work was easy, no stress. I worked mainly with Colombians (fun guys) and one other guy from Russia. Vova was in Rides, seating people on the attraction and launching them into the sky. After work, we walked and hung out. Through a Russian acquaintance, we found an option for a second job - moving. In short, it's the same as a loader. The atmosphere at this job was interesting - an immigrant environment. I worked with a Ukrainian, a Turk, and an Afghan. It was hard work, but they paid very well. The boss from work offered us to live at her place for a very small amount. We didn't think long and agreed. And so we gradually began to rise. We already had 2 jobs, cheap housing. We saved up money and bought a Subaru SVX '94 - a red sports coupe from the 90s. 240+ hp, a real beast. How did we find this car? On our third day in America, we were walking to see a house, and on the way, we met this car on the street with a 'for sale' sign. It had been waiting for us for 2 weeks since that moment. We bought the car, serviced it, and our joy knew no bounds. A Kazakh girl from work gave us another job option; we got jobs as waiters in a restaurant. At first, it was a bit tough, but we got used to it, + we were fed for free. We found a fourth job - Uber Eats. We delivered food by car. At one point, we had 4 jobs. On the weekend, we went to the state of Oklahoma through Kansas, to my uncle. We stayed there for 1 day, he gave us a tour of the city, and we talked. We returned to Colorado by a different route, through Texas and New Mexico. On the road, we stopped and took cool photos. Everything seemed to be going perfectly, but...

Chapter 3. From Scratch Again.

The day after we returned, Vova went to work in delivery. He was delivering his last order. An intersection. He was driving, and from the left, another Subaru flew into the driver's door at high speed, with a drunk Mexican at the wheel. Fortunately, Vova was fine, the Mexican tried to run away, but the police handcuffed him. The car was put on a tow truck and taken to the house. The Mexican's friends tracked down where we lived, and I won't describe the details, they tried to kill us. The next day we went to a Russian car service to our acquaintances, they advised a lawyer. At the service next door, we met an American mechanic named Hans (we called him Paul Walker). He invited us to his place to play Xbox (he had known us for at most a couple of hours, and immediately invited us to his home). He was a racing fan; he had 3 cars and motorcycles in his yard, and 2 more Acuras in the garage (one of them an RSX, which he took to the track). He drove us home, we saw a Honda Civic causing chaos in traffic, and Hans started racing with them too. We pulled up next to them, exchanged a few words, and they invited us to a car meet like in Fast & Furious. We arrived at the parking lot, surrounded by tuned cars. Our Subaru wouldn't have been lost among them. We walked around, looked at the cars, everyone was talking and having a good time. But then the police dispersed everyone. I thought such things could only happen in a movie. We told Hans about our situation with the car and the Mexicans, and he took us in. He also said he would help straighten the strut on our car. And he gave us a scooter! We rode it and worked in delivery. We looked for parts (a radiator and a new door). After 2 weeks, we found them and changed the door and radiator. The car was running again, and we immediately got metal license plates (usually they give paper ones first). We paid him a symbolic $200 for housing and gave him a commemorative gift. On the weekend, we went to the mountains with our Colombian friend Juan and his girlfriend. We drove up Mount Evans, 14,000 feet (4 km). We finished our contract and set off on a trip.

Chapter 4. The Trip

The first destination was Las Vegas. We arrived in the evening, parked the car in a parking lot, and went for a walk. We visited 4 casinos (Bellagio, Luxor, Excalibur...), won a little money, walked along the Las Vegas Strip, and took pictures at the 'Welcome to Fabulous Las Vegas' sign. We slept in the car the first night, then checked into a hotel. The next day we went to the Hoover Dam (the border of Nevada and Arizona). In the evening, we went to the casino again. After spending the night, we went to Area 51, stopped by the UFO cafe 'Little Aleinn'. We talked to the cafe owner, and he told us how to get to the gate of the zone. We drove up to the gate, which people tried to storm in 2019. After that, we set off for San Francisco. We checked into Chinatown, next to the Transamerica Pyramid. We went to Pier 39, ate fish. We went to the Golden Gate Bridge, saw Alcatraz, drove along the famous winding Lombard St, and visited the hippie district of Haight-Ashbury. It was interesting to talk to them and learn about their worldview. From San Francisco, we drove along Big Sur (the road along the coast) to Los Angeles. We arrived there and slept in the car in downtown. In the morning, we went to the Walk of Fame, climbed up to the Griffith Observatory with a view of the entire LA. We saw the Hollywood sign. We went swimming at Santa Monica beach and went to the Pier. For us, as GTA fans, everything was three times more interesting and cooler. And of course, after that, we went to Compton (the ghetto of Los Angeles). We turned on the track 'It Was a Good Day' by Ice Cube and drove through the evening ghetto. It was my second-to-last day in America. The next morning, we went to West Coast Customs (the tuning studio from the show 'Pimp My Ride') to find out where and how we could sell the car. We drove around used auto salons, but no one needed our car after the accident. With great regret, we had to take it to the junkyard. But it's not a fact that it will be crushed; perhaps it will be for parts or auction. We were very sad to say goodbye to it. We said goodbye to Vova, and I went to Los Angeles airport and flew home. Vova stayed for another 2 weeks, visited Boston and New York, and flew out from there.

Conclusion. I want to say that this was the best summer of my life. Mexico and the USA were the 1st and 2nd countries I visited. We lived a new little life, with its ups and downs. It was an invaluable experience. I improved my English very well, I can communicate freely in it. My listening comprehension has improved, I can watch movies in the original language. I earned money and paid off the program. We drove through 9 states in our car. I will definitely go again in the future. The risks with Mexico were justified. See you soon.