In the autumn of 2021, the phrase Work and Travel began to sound more and more often in my social circle. Moreover, I started hearing this phrase from people who were completely unfamiliar with each other. And everyone said the same things, like: 'Oh, how cool,' 'You definitely need to go,' and a mixed one - 'How cool it would be if we went.' Naturally, my environment began to influence me; of course, I was never against it and was even for traveling, but when people are literally trumpeting about it from left and right, you realize that the thought has taken deep root in your head and now you have to live with it.

I remember the first time I heard about the possibility of a trip to America. In the summer of 2021, my friend Tanya and I volunteered for the closed festival 'Tavrida.ART', which takes place in Crimea. We submitted our applications on the last day of registration and were not at all sure that we would be accepted. But everything worked out in our favor: we were bought round-trip tickets, picked up from the airport on a company bus, settled in cabins, and fed well. A pleasant bonus was that the venue was located in close proximity to the Black Sea. Flying out of frozen St. Petersburg, I was warmed by the thought that we were flying to the hot sun, warm water, and extending our vacation for another half a month.

As soon as we landed and got our luggage, Tanya and I saw familiar faces. These were two girls from our faculty, but from a neighboring group. And as often happens at university, we knew them by sight, often crossed paths, but were not acquainted. That's where we met, got to know each other, and realized that we were going to the same place. And from the very first minutes, we became inseparable. Every day we went to the sea, sometimes more than once, danced and sang at concerts and not only, walked all night long and watched the sunrise, and on the last evening we were allowed to leave the territory to go to the nearest city, Sudak. We caught a ride with a wonderful grandfather as the driver (we were lucky that he had a minibus where we all fit) and drove along beautiful mountain roads to the city. We walked along the main streets, bought Crimean sweets and souvenirs to take home, and before returning, I even managed to get lost, because Russian mobile service does not work in Crimea. And everywhere we were together. So, to meet guys from my own university, I just had to go to the other end of Russia.

And it was with these girls that the conversation about WAT first came up. We were walking somewhere and the topic of such an opportunity came up. The conversation was not about plans for the coming year, but rather about the opportunities for students that exist, but to take advantage of them, you need to put in effort, because of which such opportunities are usually abandoned.

Returning home, without noticing it myself, I began to discuss this topic with everyone: with parents, relatives, and friends. Many knew about such a program, but I did not see any desire in anyone to do anything to bring the program to life. And only my best friend, when I brought up the conversation about WAT with him, said that he had been dealing with this issue since August and wants to go next summer. Emotionally, I remember this conversation very well. Firstly, the conversation about America had already become a daily conversation for me, like 'how are you?, well, are we going to America?'. But this conversation had never reached the point of action. My friend's name is Vlad Kirichenko.

So Vlad watched all sorts of videos and recommendations for the trip, participated in calls with the program managers. I just sat there and didn't understand where and how one could find such a large sum, not just for me, but for my whole family.

November 2021 arrived - it was time to sign up for the program and, consequently, talk to my parents about how 'remember, I told you about the opportunity, now I want to take advantage of this opportunity.' And this 'remember' became the longest, heaviest, and most importantly, saddest conversation in my life. They wouldn't let me go. Or rather, Dad let me go, understanding the grandeur of the trip. Mom also understood, but couldn't let me go. And we came to the conclusion - I will go next year.

So I promised myself that next year I would definitely, no matter what, despite everything, and 100 percent go to America, and in the meantime, I would put this thought on the back burner, save money, and enjoy life in Russia.

I only managed to do one thing from this - enjoy life in Russia. Money - I successfully spent it on trips around Russia (I flew to the Caucasus and visited 6 big cities). It also didn't work out to put the thought away for a long period, because I always wanted to think and imagine: how incredible it would be to leave home for 4 months, to leave not for some nearby city or country, but to the other end of the world. How unusual and new it would be in principle to live without parental supervision. To live in a completely unfamiliar new place, where there is not a hint of a turn, alley, or house familiar to the eye. To live among people who do not know a single word in your language, to explain yourself to them and laugh that we do not understand each other.

I have always loved speaking English, for example, talking to my family all day only by English. For me, this is always perceived as a game, the brain immediately starts working in a different way, processing unfamiliar sets of sounds into meaning, and if you don't know or don't remember the meaning, you make it up or explain yourself with gestures like a primitive man. And here, to talk like that for 4 months in a row - yes, I will probably forget my native language and even start thinking in English.

I really want to confirm or refute a bunch of stereotypes about America. These are their police, noisy and active cities, always friendly and responsive people, and just visit a bunch of places that you know from movies, games, and books.

Also, basketball is very developed in the USA. If I'm not mistaken, America is the home of basketball. In movies, I often saw how American teenagers gather on a field with two hoops and throw balls for hours on end. And I imagine: summer, a small breeze from the ocean, but definitely warm, just such a purely American neighborhood with small houses, maybe a little like a ghetto, and a basketball court with guys. I approach the guys, we start playing, we slowly start talking, and that's how I find myself real American buddies, teach them funny Russian words, give them souvenirs from Russia. And not necessarily with Americans, with the same guys from WAT, exchanging stories and experiences with whom, you also get ideas about other cultures from all over the world. In general, having acquaintances scattered all over the globe is an item that I want to fulfill in my life.

These are the pictures that started flashing in my head from the moment I got acquainted with the essence of the Work and Travel program. Vlad, who flew to the USA in the summer, also acted as an instigator of thoughts, told where he had been, what he had seen, what he had tried, and everything was interesting because everything was new and unusual.

Now it is December 2022, I am combining work with study, I have paid the first installment myself. The journey has begun...

P.S. I didn't figure out how to add the topic about exchange programs in the future to my story, but I want to talk about it.

I have two points of view on this. First: I hope that in the near future, exchange programs as such will not exist. And this is not because I hate these companies, they look strange, and who needs them anyway. NO! They won't exist because all borders will be open. I would like, of course, for them to be open by a peace agreement, and not by the conquest of the whole world by one country. So that to go to the same America, you will need to buy a ticket, and that's it. It will be as simple as flying from St. Petersburg to Moscow now, just a little more expensive due to the distance.

The second point of view comes from the thought that if gold were accessible to everyone, it would devalue like an ordinary stone from the asphalt. What if it were so easy to fly to the USA, half the population of Russia would have visited the states before reaching adulthood, without remembering or feeling anything, and the other half would have flown away to live there forever. And the sweet feeling, that incredible sensation of achieving the impossible, which arises when you are sitting on a plane, watching the second movie in a row, and realize that you have already flown half the way to this country, would definitely disappear.