HE WHO DOES NOT TAKE RISKS DOES NOT DRINK CHAMPAGNE IN MANHATTAN!

"Oh, my youth! I lived such a luxurious life!" - I hope that with these words I will recall my best years. After all, this beautiful time is given only once in a lifetime. And every person wants to spend their youth brightly and unforgettably.

They say it's not harmful to dream, and that is indeed true. We all truly love to dream. In our imagination, we paint beautiful pictures of our desires. For some, a dream carries them far into the mountains or oceans, others fly in a hot air balloon and enjoy the views of their native land. Others simply want to have a good family, children, or grandchildren. But for young people, a dream is not just a fantasy. Often our dreams become reality.

I also love to dream and often think about what makes me happy and what makes me smile. Reflecting on this, I noticed that I feel joy when I think about America. Honestly! And in fact, it's not for nothing.

In 2017, through the Work and Travel program from the International Exchange Center, my sister flew to work in the tourist town of Lake Placid in New York State. And ever since she returned, she never tires of talking about her impressions and adventures in America. She said that this country gave her true friends for life, a sense of complete freedom, unforgettable memories, and the best summer ever.

The Work and Travel program is unique in that it provides many opportunities for students. Young people can travel, work, live, and communicate with different people, get acquainted with a foreign culture, feel a completely different atmosphere, and undoubtedly improve their language skills. Without a doubt, one of the main advantages of participating in the Work and Travel program is that you will earn enough money to cover the program and living expenses, and even more – for trips, shopping, and saving money for tuition.

How will participating in the program help me in my future career? An interesting question! At the moment, I am studying to be a "social worker" at the L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University. Social workers work with vulnerable segments of the population, the sick, and the elderly. Such work requires a lot of patience, endurance, empathy, and compassion. In addition to these qualities, a social worker must be a strong expert in caring for people and understand legal issues related to the status of their wards. This is a complex type of work, and in order to do it every day, you must love it very much.

I know firsthand that this field is very well developed in the States. In the USA, there is a wealth of information and practical methods in the social work profession. And the experience of being in the States will help me study this topic more deeply. Also, in the future, work experience will positively reflect on my resume. This is one of the main reasons why I want to visit America: not only to see a new world, new people, and get acquainted with a foreign culture with my own eyes, but also to learn more about my profession and improve myself.

Based on all this information, I can highlight 8 advantages of the Work and Travel program for myself and others.

1. America is a chance to do something different. We live on a planet full of interesting, beautiful, diverse places and cultures that are worth exploring, experiencing, and understanding. And America is a country that cannot be missed. This place is unlike any other place in the world. I believe there is no better place to work and travel in the summer than in the United States of America. Most of the work we find through the program may differ from the work we usually do. And this is a great chance to learn different skills. America is a land of opportunity.

2. You will discover many new places and things. America is a huge country, and there cannot be a more diverse country from north to south and from east to west. You can find any landscape – massive cities, mountains, beaches, canyons, deserts, forests – and so on. It is an endless wonderland waiting to be explored.

3. You will meet people from all over the world. By participating in programs like Work and Travel, you will surely have a chance to make friends from different countries. It is always so interesting to listen to the stories of other people who ended up in the same place at the same time, but with a completely different background. Thus, it gives you the opportunity to learn about new countries you might not have even heard of and learn about their culture. You might even make friends for life all over the world.

Just imagine, years will pass, but many of those you worked with that summer will be in your Instagram or Facebook feed. Every time you see a post about their current life, it will remind you of those good memories of working together, beach parties and after-work barbecues, adventures, and much more.

4. The fourth advantage is that it will almost certainly lead to stepping outside your comfort zone. Some participants may be new to travel when they head to America, and this is a great way to start discovering the world on your own. Navigating visas, airports, finding housing and food alone and in a new place can be the beginning of your independent life.

Traveling alone can often be a test of your comfort zone, so add to that trying to find a job in a place where there are different rules, a different system, and, of course, a different language. This is a great challenge for yourself!

5. The opportunity to learn the language. Not everyone knows English perfectly; many young people go there with an intermediate level of language proficiency. But being in an English-speaking country for a few months can help you reach a very good level. By the end of the summer, many program participants communicate freely with people and overcome the language barrier. Regardless of what job you have, you will speak English everywhere and with everyone! And such long-term language immersion always yields wonderful results.

6. Broadening your horizons. Different people think differently. And a person thinks a thousand times differently in another country. Personally, I am very interested in learning what different people live for and what they think, to talk to them about general topics with completely different perspectives.

7. Culture. A new culture is always interesting! Everyone who arrived with suitcases full of things necessary for a three-month stay in a foreign country will also bring a small part of their culture with them. I remember how interesting it was to listen to my sister's stories about foreign countries, cities, even music, and what made them come there and what their history is in general.

8. "Travel is the only thing you buy that makes you richer." The land of freedom and equality – America – attracts millions of tourists every year. Of course, everyone has heard of the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls, the Statue of Liberty and the Walk of Fame, Broadway and the Empire State Building. We grew up on American movies – we know about fire escapes and yellow taxis in New York, casinos and the fountain in front of the Bellagio hotel in Las Vegas. It is unlikely that there is anyone who has not heard of San Francisco and Silicon Valley.

Seeing the places where the movies and series "Home Alone", "Friends", "Gossip Girl" were filmed is a childhood dream. I would like to experience all this and see it with my own eyes. To become a movie character for a second and feel what it's like to live in this huge, contrasting, and incredible country.

And of course, it is impossible not to visit amusement parks such as Universal Studios Hollywood, Disneyland, and Six Flags.

One can tirelessly talk about the pros and opportunities that the program provides. In anticipation of seeing future Kazakhstani programs for foreigners similar to this one. I wish for other people from different countries to visit, work, study, and travel around our country, as we do with the help of the Work and Travel program.

One thing I know for sure, the impressions that will remain after the trip cannot be lost or forgotten. Returning home, we will bring with us a piece of the place we visited. And it will remain in our hearts and memories forever.

Finding out that there is a contest and the grand prize is a free trip to America, I could not pass by and decided to try my luck.

After all, "he who does not take risks does not drink champagne in Manhattan"!

Below are a few photos of my sister from that very unforgettable summer of 2017. She always looks through them with a smile on her face! Some memories remain unforgettable, remain bright and soulful.

And I am ready to create my own stories!