Work and travel - stupid, useless, humiliating?
It takes a second to make a decision, a little more implementation, it took me about 48 hours. However, understanding what has been done is a far more difficult task. Such was the trip on the program of Work and Travel to the states.
Making a decision to participate in the program was, in fact, a matter of seconds, talked with a friend who is studying in Dubai, and we decided "Why not?" I had no grand plans for the summer. And I immediately called the firm "X" and drove the passport and photos.
To participate in the program does not need any supernatural knowledge of English, visits to medical examinations and did not even have to go to the draft board for a certificate of deferment. It was only necessary to take a certificate from the university confirming that I was a student and sign a paper to participate in the program, which was signed by the dean's office without any problems. I also needed to write my resume, but it is compiled on the basis of ready-made “fish”, so this is not a problem either.
After the above, the firm "X" is looking for work in the United States. Considering that I submitted the application for participation as one of the last - I did not have to wait very long. And after a week or two, there was an interview with the employer on Skype.
About interviews:
They need to pass by yourself. I called, began the so-called interview. It is necessary to take into account the fact that my English was at a level below the average, and in the last year, I decided not to study them at all. Somehow, about that, about this. In general, I failed the first interview absolutely. And it was more likely, not because of the knowledge of the language, but because of my short terms for participation in the program - 2 months. The second interview was successful, the girl first of all said “Look on me, I'm cute” and spoke in “understandable” American language. Yes, it is “understandable” and “incomprehensible.” The job was found in the city of Richmond, Virginia.
Embassy.
It was spent half a day. The consul asked the standard questions: “Why are you going?”, “Where?”, “How to get to this place from the airport?”, And “Do I like in my uni, what I study there”. Apparently the answers satisfied him and a few days later the passport with the stamped visa was in the company X.
And so the main advantage is that the firm “X” did everything for me, which sent me there. Yes, it is their work, but the work can be done in different ways, in this case, everything was done in good faith.
About reviews of work and travel and the purpose of my trip.
And now a small digression. A huge number of reviews about this program on the Internet. And about the fact that they threw away with housing, and with work, and with what they just did not throw. Yes, it happens, you have to be ready for this. I do not know what the people who write about this are counting on. But, personally, I would never have thought that they were waiting for me somewhere with outstretched hands “Come soon, Oleg, here is your housing, work is well paid,” although it was written in my contract that I would have housing. But still a little googling and asking those who were already there, I received the necessary links to the most useful resources for finding housing and work. They can easily be found through Google - craigslist.org homemate and a few more.
From the goal depends on the result.
Earn money?! - in my mind does not fit. How can such a goal be pursued if you are traveling to a foreign country, to a low-paying job, and also to your summer vacation? I pursued another goal - music. America is the birthplace of jazz, and of course, great jazz musicians. I play the trombone, and this does not prevent me from studying at the energy institute and reading Habr. In general, my goal was to improve my skills in playing music in the homeland. Learn more about this culture, get to know the musicians, and, of course, play with them. The second goal was to learn the language, which is why I went alone. For the whole trip I spoke only a few times in Russian. The third, rather a philosophical idea, rather than a goal, a trip - “This is a very good practice” - to do what one does not want. I recommend, by the way.
About the first day
“The coast was not yet visible, and the New York skyscrapers were already rising straight out of the water, like calm columns of smoke. This is a striking contrast - after the emptiness of the ocean, suddenly, immediately the largest city in the world. The steel faces of the two-storied Impire State Building gleamed vaguely in the sunny smoke. Behind the stern of the Normandy, gulls circled. Four small mighty tugs began to turn the immense body of the ship, pulling up and pushing it towards the harbor. A small green statue of Liberty was indicated on the left side of the board. Then for some reason she was on the right. We turned, and the city turned around us, showing us one side or the other. Finally, he fell into his place, an impossibly large, thundering, still incomprehensible.
The passengers descended through the closed gangways to the customs hall, did all the formalities and went out into the street of the city, and did not see the ship on which they arrived. ” Ilf and Petrov“ One-story America ”
I flew to New York and an event happened there that determined more than once, as I was convinced later, the progress of my entire trip was the purchase of a telephone. It sounds funny, but still, if it were not for this phone, as well as unlimited Internet throughout the country, the navigator, unlimited messages and calls, my events would have developed differently.
Having walked around New York, the description of the walk is similar to the walk of Ilf and Petrov, I was convinced that it is impossible to go calmly, in fact. I practically had no luggage - a backpack and a case with a trombone, so that, one might say, I walked lightly. Underground. Metro, like the subway, there is a scheme, got on, went to Manhattan, and there, at the grayhound station.
Yes, by the way, about vehicles, the cheapest and most convenient are buses. I went to them in Richmond, to Virginia Beach, to Washington.
Richmond, Va.
Arriving in Richmond early-early in the morning, around 5 in the morning, I was met by a nice woman (from the employer) who didn’t want to understand my English and when she called someone, she called me "Faking student". With housing kidanuli in general. She settled into a hotel, and, as I found out later, the most expensive one was in the area.
It was here that the telephone began to save me. I wrote, called, for all the numbers that gave search in craigslist, but basically the answer was "We rent only for half a year." It was the longest day of my life. I walked almost the entire city, as I found out later, and called on the ads “House for Rent”. By evening, there was a sign in the notebook with address-date-numbers, when inspected and when to call. The nearest date was after 4 days, which meant that about a quarter of the money would go to housing for these 4 days. The situation was not very good.
But then the phone rang, and I heard: "Good Walker." Although it was the only phrase in Russian that this person knew, but the next day I already had a place to live, and the owner of the house turned out to be a musician and there was a studio at home.
Things are the second day.
I recommend everyone who goes somewhere for a long time - to open an account in a local bank, this allows the employer to send peycheki immediately to him, without your participation in this matter. And the second, related to products, is to make a loyalty card in a local big store. This will make buying products much cheaper. Factor of. Products in America are expensive ... items are cheap). And also very good to buy a bike. This transport is much more developed here than in Moscow, there are parking lots everywhere where you can leave an iron horse. Local buses cost $ 1.5, and if you ride two, then pay 1.75, BUT buying a travel card on the first bus, it is valid only for 1.5 hours on buses of other numbers.
Meeting with the employer, the start of work.
Nothing remarkable, everything was strictly under the contract. True, they wanted to send to a similar institution, but to another address, but I immediately began to shake the contract, and to say, why was it to be made at all, since there was no housing or work at the address. The first day in the restaurant business is not an easy one, considering that I never thought that I would end up in this business, and at home I only cooked dumplings. But, I immediately recalled, "This is a very good practice."
Fulfillment of dream-goal trip.
On the second day I walked past a restaurant with the inscription “Jazz show every friday night”, and today was just Friday, taking the trombone I went there. What was described in the Miles Davis autobiography book was there. Mostly black musicians, syncopes. In general, I sat with a trombone and thought how I would play here with these masters. On the first evening I did not play. But met with all the musicians. Next week, I just got a microphone thrown in, having previously said, “It’s for you today,” nothing left, and I started to play. When I finished, the comments came down, what de how, how better, how worse, what to play at home, what to do. In general, learning black music began. Several times I was one white musician on the stage.
As I learned later that there are such open mic shows - home band musicians are on stage, you go out, tell them that you want to play and you play. So I got to know the music of Funk - James Brown, Fred Wesely, Dj Williams Project and other artists.
This is American music. And that was the purpose of the trip.
I'm still an engineer.
A few days later I met a man who worked in the US energy all his life. The rhetorical question "Why is 110 and not 220, and why do you like 60 hertz more," remained rhetorical. They have clean transformers, not rusty, fenced with a double fence. The parks are lights with solar panels. Near the museum (!!!) there is a gas station for electric vehicles. Working, I even thrust two dollars into it. But for someone to use it for its intended purpose, I did not see. In the same museum, there is a separate part devoted to physics - there are tables on which bayan laboratory stands are presented - a coil, a magnet, a voltmeter; coils with different numbers of coils and so on, quite funny, like in school.
How things worked at other vrevelevets
The others I worked with are mostly students from Turkey. How do they speak English ... I wondered how they managed to learn how to speak. But it turned out that their training at the institute was entirely in English. I would also like to give Russian language universities a tribute to this language. For example, in my MEI, English is only in the first year.
But besides the language, I cannot envy them of anything. They all lived together and communicated mainly in their own language. Individuals said that they did not feel on another continent. The first month they lived in a single room four of them. This is hardcore. About the fact that I found housing in one day, they said - “you fucking lucky”.
None of us has ever complained that the work is difficult, although it was difficult (for me, for sure), I liked it. What was written in the contract, it was so.
I also met two Russian girls on Virginia Beach. That was the fire. I did not think that the expression “burn time” could be so personified. Of course, it was the most fun night of the whole trip, but you know, to stop an unfamiliar car with a black guy and get into it ... eh, what can I say fun?
None of my friends have worked two jobs. And did not change the job. Perhaps due to the fact that the city is small, and maybe lazy. But my goal was to stand on one workplace.
What struck me most was that almost all the students did not know that there were other sockets and they had problems with charging laptops. But I had a Kindle Fire with my own charging with me.
Attitudes of people to each other and to visitors
Friendly people are Americans. The main phrase - Excurse, and it is applicable in all cases - they stepped on their feet, met their eyes, gave way. Excursion
Very much they do not like Spaniards, of whom there are many. Highly. Although most of the inscriptions, such as "Parking is prohibited", "Do not smoke" are written in two languages.
Here, Russian love. At work, a huge man with pathos and loudly and loudly greeted me every morning, “Roach. How did the doing? ”And if I came with a Turkish friend, then the Turks disdainfully said“ toooorki ”and again shouted“ Roach ”and quietly added“ tooriki ”showing fingers. "Tooooorkam" clearly did not like it, and he soon ceased ... to add "Tooorki." Just shouting "Roach".
When I met someone on the streets, the fact that I was Russian also played into my hands, they mostly said “Puttn”, and then “Stalin”. And the second was pronounced without an accent.
A lot of people who love their gender ... And they are not shy. I have a girlfiend, one pretty girl told me.
At work, we were treated as “kittens” by all, forgiven, all the shoals. Students come to them every year in the summer.
About obama
For two months I have not met a single person that I would say that he loves his president. But, more than that, advertising is on TV, as Obama's power is bad. Show statistics of the unemployed, and what people say about it. But right after that, there is an “advertisement response” in which Obama points out what he has done for the country.
Eventually
Setting priorities before leaving, and expecting the worst, I was ready for anything. But everything turned out to be much better than I expected, and what I came here for, I certainly received - “very good practice”. The second time I'm not going to go here on this program, because This is the path traveled. And to anyone who thinks, I will say how the Americans taught me: “Take it easy.”
ps I would like to say a big thank you to the company that sent me here, there were no problems on their part. The name of the company, if necessary - I will write in the comments.
As well as the whole of my department and the head of the department P. who helped with my early departure to the country of music jazz. And yes, when you ride “work and travel” it’s considered normal - yesterday I didn’t know where to sleep, and today I’m going to a chic red convertible) ...
Making a decision to participate in the program was, in fact, a matter of seconds, talked with a friend who is studying in Dubai, and we decided "Why not?" I had no grand plans for the summer. And I immediately called the firm "X" and drove the passport and photos.
To participate in the program does not need any supernatural knowledge of English, visits to medical examinations and did not even have to go to the draft board for a certificate of deferment. It was only necessary to take a certificate from the university confirming that I was a student and sign a paper to participate in the program, which was signed by the dean's office without any problems. I also needed to write my resume, but it is compiled on the basis of ready-made “fish”, so this is not a problem either.
After the above, the firm "X" is looking for work in the United States. Considering that I submitted the application for participation as one of the last - I did not have to wait very long. And after a week or two, there was an interview with the employer on Skype.
About interviews:
They need to pass by yourself. I called, began the so-called interview. It is necessary to take into account the fact that my English was at a level below the average, and in the last year, I decided not to study them at all. Somehow, about that, about this. In general, I failed the first interview absolutely. And it was more likely, not because of the knowledge of the language, but because of my short terms for participation in the program - 2 months. The second interview was successful, the girl first of all said “Look on me, I'm cute” and spoke in “understandable” American language. Yes, it is “understandable” and “incomprehensible.” The job was found in the city of Richmond, Virginia.
Embassy.
It was spent half a day. The consul asked the standard questions: “Why are you going?”, “Where?”, “How to get to this place from the airport?”, And “Do I like in my uni, what I study there”. Apparently the answers satisfied him and a few days later the passport with the stamped visa was in the company X.
And so the main advantage is that the firm “X” did everything for me, which sent me there. Yes, it is their work, but the work can be done in different ways, in this case, everything was done in good faith.
About reviews of work and travel and the purpose of my trip.
And now a small digression. A huge number of reviews about this program on the Internet. And about the fact that they threw away with housing, and with work, and with what they just did not throw. Yes, it happens, you have to be ready for this. I do not know what the people who write about this are counting on. But, personally, I would never have thought that they were waiting for me somewhere with outstretched hands “Come soon, Oleg, here is your housing, work is well paid,” although it was written in my contract that I would have housing. But still a little googling and asking those who were already there, I received the necessary links to the most useful resources for finding housing and work. They can easily be found through Google - craigslist.org homemate and a few more.
From the goal depends on the result.
Earn money?! - in my mind does not fit. How can such a goal be pursued if you are traveling to a foreign country, to a low-paying job, and also to your summer vacation? I pursued another goal - music. America is the birthplace of jazz, and of course, great jazz musicians. I play the trombone, and this does not prevent me from studying at the energy institute and reading Habr. In general, my goal was to improve my skills in playing music in the homeland. Learn more about this culture, get to know the musicians, and, of course, play with them. The second goal was to learn the language, which is why I went alone. For the whole trip I spoke only a few times in Russian. The third, rather a philosophical idea, rather than a goal, a trip - “This is a very good practice” - to do what one does not want. I recommend, by the way.
About the first day
“The coast was not yet visible, and the New York skyscrapers were already rising straight out of the water, like calm columns of smoke. This is a striking contrast - after the emptiness of the ocean, suddenly, immediately the largest city in the world. The steel faces of the two-storied Impire State Building gleamed vaguely in the sunny smoke. Behind the stern of the Normandy, gulls circled. Four small mighty tugs began to turn the immense body of the ship, pulling up and pushing it towards the harbor. A small green statue of Liberty was indicated on the left side of the board. Then for some reason she was on the right. We turned, and the city turned around us, showing us one side or the other. Finally, he fell into his place, an impossibly large, thundering, still incomprehensible.
The passengers descended through the closed gangways to the customs hall, did all the formalities and went out into the street of the city, and did not see the ship on which they arrived. ” Ilf and Petrov“ One-story America ”
I flew to New York and an event happened there that determined more than once, as I was convinced later, the progress of my entire trip was the purchase of a telephone. It sounds funny, but still, if it were not for this phone, as well as unlimited Internet throughout the country, the navigator, unlimited messages and calls, my events would have developed differently.
Having walked around New York, the description of the walk is similar to the walk of Ilf and Petrov, I was convinced that it is impossible to go calmly, in fact. I practically had no luggage - a backpack and a case with a trombone, so that, one might say, I walked lightly. Underground. Metro, like the subway, there is a scheme, got on, went to Manhattan, and there, at the grayhound station.
Yes, by the way, about vehicles, the cheapest and most convenient are buses. I went to them in Richmond, to Virginia Beach, to Washington.
Richmond, Va.
Arriving in Richmond early-early in the morning, around 5 in the morning, I was met by a nice woman (from the employer) who didn’t want to understand my English and when she called someone, she called me "Faking student". With housing kidanuli in general. She settled into a hotel, and, as I found out later, the most expensive one was in the area.
It was here that the telephone began to save me. I wrote, called, for all the numbers that gave search in craigslist, but basically the answer was "We rent only for half a year." It was the longest day of my life. I walked almost the entire city, as I found out later, and called on the ads “House for Rent”. By evening, there was a sign in the notebook with address-date-numbers, when inspected and when to call. The nearest date was after 4 days, which meant that about a quarter of the money would go to housing for these 4 days. The situation was not very good.
But then the phone rang, and I heard: "Good Walker." Although it was the only phrase in Russian that this person knew, but the next day I already had a place to live, and the owner of the house turned out to be a musician and there was a studio at home.
Things are the second day.
I recommend everyone who goes somewhere for a long time - to open an account in a local bank, this allows the employer to send peycheki immediately to him, without your participation in this matter. And the second, related to products, is to make a loyalty card in a local big store. This will make buying products much cheaper. Factor of. Products in America are expensive ... items are cheap). And also very good to buy a bike. This transport is much more developed here than in Moscow, there are parking lots everywhere where you can leave an iron horse. Local buses cost $ 1.5, and if you ride two, then pay 1.75, BUT buying a travel card on the first bus, it is valid only for 1.5 hours on buses of other numbers.
Meeting with the employer, the start of work.
Nothing remarkable, everything was strictly under the contract. True, they wanted to send to a similar institution, but to another address, but I immediately began to shake the contract, and to say, why was it to be made at all, since there was no housing or work at the address. The first day in the restaurant business is not an easy one, considering that I never thought that I would end up in this business, and at home I only cooked dumplings. But, I immediately recalled, "This is a very good practice."
Fulfillment of dream-goal trip.
On the second day I walked past a restaurant with the inscription “Jazz show every friday night”, and today was just Friday, taking the trombone I went there. What was described in the Miles Davis autobiography book was there. Mostly black musicians, syncopes. In general, I sat with a trombone and thought how I would play here with these masters. On the first evening I did not play. But met with all the musicians. Next week, I just got a microphone thrown in, having previously said, “It’s for you today,” nothing left, and I started to play. When I finished, the comments came down, what de how, how better, how worse, what to play at home, what to do. In general, learning black music began. Several times I was one white musician on the stage.
As I learned later that there are such open mic shows - home band musicians are on stage, you go out, tell them that you want to play and you play. So I got to know the music of Funk - James Brown, Fred Wesely, Dj Williams Project and other artists.
This is American music. And that was the purpose of the trip.
I'm still an engineer.
A few days later I met a man who worked in the US energy all his life. The rhetorical question "Why is 110 and not 220, and why do you like 60 hertz more," remained rhetorical. They have clean transformers, not rusty, fenced with a double fence. The parks are lights with solar panels. Near the museum (!!!) there is a gas station for electric vehicles. Working, I even thrust two dollars into it. But for someone to use it for its intended purpose, I did not see. In the same museum, there is a separate part devoted to physics - there are tables on which bayan laboratory stands are presented - a coil, a magnet, a voltmeter; coils with different numbers of coils and so on, quite funny, like in school.
How things worked at other vrevelevets
The others I worked with are mostly students from Turkey. How do they speak English ... I wondered how they managed to learn how to speak. But it turned out that their training at the institute was entirely in English. I would also like to give Russian language universities a tribute to this language. For example, in my MEI, English is only in the first year.
But besides the language, I cannot envy them of anything. They all lived together and communicated mainly in their own language. Individuals said that they did not feel on another continent. The first month they lived in a single room four of them. This is hardcore. About the fact that I found housing in one day, they said - “you fucking lucky”.
None of us has ever complained that the work is difficult, although it was difficult (for me, for sure), I liked it. What was written in the contract, it was so.
I also met two Russian girls on Virginia Beach. That was the fire. I did not think that the expression “burn time” could be so personified. Of course, it was the most fun night of the whole trip, but you know, to stop an unfamiliar car with a black guy and get into it ... eh, what can I say fun?
None of my friends have worked two jobs. And did not change the job. Perhaps due to the fact that the city is small, and maybe lazy. But my goal was to stand on one workplace.
What struck me most was that almost all the students did not know that there were other sockets and they had problems with charging laptops. But I had a Kindle Fire with my own charging with me.
Attitudes of people to each other and to visitors
Friendly people are Americans. The main phrase - Excurse, and it is applicable in all cases - they stepped on their feet, met their eyes, gave way. Excursion
Very much they do not like Spaniards, of whom there are many. Highly. Although most of the inscriptions, such as "Parking is prohibited", "Do not smoke" are written in two languages.
Here, Russian love. At work, a huge man with pathos and loudly and loudly greeted me every morning, “Roach. How did the doing? ”And if I came with a Turkish friend, then the Turks disdainfully said“ toooorki ”and again shouted“ Roach ”and quietly added“ tooriki ”showing fingers. "Tooooorkam" clearly did not like it, and he soon ceased ... to add "Tooorki." Just shouting "Roach".
When I met someone on the streets, the fact that I was Russian also played into my hands, they mostly said “Puttn”, and then “Stalin”. And the second was pronounced without an accent.
A lot of people who love their gender ... And they are not shy. I have a girlfiend, one pretty girl told me.
At work, we were treated as “kittens” by all, forgiven, all the shoals. Students come to them every year in the summer.
About obama
For two months I have not met a single person that I would say that he loves his president. But, more than that, advertising is on TV, as Obama's power is bad. Show statistics of the unemployed, and what people say about it. But right after that, there is an “advertisement response” in which Obama points out what he has done for the country.
Eventually
Setting priorities before leaving, and expecting the worst, I was ready for anything. But everything turned out to be much better than I expected, and what I came here for, I certainly received - “very good practice”. The second time I'm not going to go here on this program, because This is the path traveled. And to anyone who thinks, I will say how the Americans taught me: “Take it easy.”
ps I would like to say a big thank you to the company that sent me here, there were no problems on their part. The name of the company, if necessary - I will write in the comments.
As well as the whole of my department and the head of the department P. who helped with my early departure to the country of music jazz. And yes, when you ride “work and travel” it’s considered normal - yesterday I didn’t know where to sleep, and today I’m going to a chic red convertible) ...
')
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/149608/
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