Egypt: Travel guide, visas and free housing · 2026

ATAnastasiya Taranavataranova.nas · Jul 17, 2019Read

The most difficult challenge on our way to the USA was getting a visa. You might think, what's the big deal? But obtaining an American visa turned out to be completely different from, for example, a Lithuanian or Polish one. We had an interview ahead of us, and based on its results, we would know whether we would make it to the USA or not. The difficulty lies primarily in the American embassy's attitude toward Russian-speaking citizens. In Belarus, the refusal rate is about 23%. Common reasons for refusal: 🇺🇸 Lying. The fact is that embassy representatives, thanks to their many years of experience, see right through people. And if you start talking about how much you love your country, but your face says, "how can I get out of here as fast as possible" – naturally, it's a refusal. This also includes discrepancies between your interview answers and the answers in your application. 🇺🇸 Close relatives who are US citizens. No need to explain why. If you have relatives, it's easy to stay and work illegally, which is a violation of immigration law. 🇺🇸 A clean passport. If you haven't traveled abroad, or have only been to visa-free countries like Egypt. In this case, the visa officer's logic is clear – a complete lack of travel abroad, and suddenly, the first trip is to the USA, flying across the ocean for 2 months. 🇺🇸 Students who are too independent. Paradoxically, students who are 20-23 years old, work, and pay for the trip themselves might not appeal to visa officers. If a student is that independent at home, then upon arriving in America, they might find an interesting offer, "latch onto" that option, and stay in America. If you are still young and studying, it is better to have a parent sponsor the trip. In that case, a certificate from the parent-sponsor's workplace is provided. 🇺🇸 Final-year students and graduates. If your studies are ending soon, they no longer hold you to your home country. In that case, prepare documents confirming your enrollment or admission to a university for your embassy visit. 🇺🇸 Previous visa refusals. The American embassy has a concept of "change of life circumstances." If these circumstances haven't changed since your previous US visa refusal, you should stop applying and wait. Wait for your situation to change as a whole and consult with professionals. Also, before applying for the visa, we were told that we might be refused because we were applying together with Matvey (as a couple). They explained that the embassy might think it's much easier and more realistic for two people to "latch on" than for one. But I want to dispel this myth. When we were at the embassy, I was first in line, and Matvey was a person behind. And when they asked me who I was going with, I named Matvey without hesitation. Hearing this, he started waving his hand from behind and said hello. The consul changed her stern face to a 32-tooth smile, made me promise that we would both return, and wished us a good trip. As for Matvey's visa approval, there was no doubt :) So, the most practical and simple advice: the more sincere you are, the higher the probability that they will grant you a visa. And it's worth it, believe me :)

ASAlexandra Sinichkinasssahsha · Jan 31, 2015Read

I’ve been putting off writing this post for a long time. My emotions are so overwhelming and there’s so much information in my head that I feel this will be one of my longest posts. Fear has big eyes, but hands do the work. But when my eyes are full of fear, even I can’t force myself to do anything... Actually, I was inspired to write this by the show "Orel i Reshka". I rewatched their Chicago episode and realized how differently this city appeared to us. In general terms, it was the same, but still... no. Let’s start with the fact that when I went to Chicago for 5 days, I only had $300 on my card, so I felt just like Zhanna from the show. I found a couch, an amazing couch. Ken gave me an entire room, not just a sofa. He spent the whole day with me, showing me the city's sights and telling me all the "rules" of Chicago. What rules? To be honest, the rules were just for me. He didn’t tell other couchsurfers this. So, these were personal streets where I could walk in dresses/skirts, what times I could take the subway, which cafes I could go to and which I couldn't, and much more. Ken is a real man and a couchsurfing host from heaven; whoever visits him will be absolutely happy. What else is great about his apartment? He can host 3 "surfers" at the same time; he has 3 extra rooms. So during that time, I met people from Poland, Germany, and Brazil. An incredible experience. And all without leaving the house. So, what was I saying... First of all, I really wanted to visit Millennium Park and, strangely enough, see those very "air gates" (Cloud Gate). They are incredible in size, and because of the mirror surface, you see all the beauty of the skyscrapers standing around. Next, the famous fountain. Two large structures with faces (of Chicago residents) that periodically make the letter 'O' with their lips and artificially spray water. This action didn't impress me much, but it’s still unusual and quite interesting. And it’s especially interesting to watch the people waiting for it. Walking up a small staircase, you will see several sculptures of faces, flat faces. Against their background, the world seems to distort. Now that’s what I call a master’s concept. Maybe it’s not great art, but it’s mesmerizing. After the park, we were quite hungry, and Ken decided to take us to a very beautiful place, a cafe with such a wonderful view. I wish I remembered its name. But the view from there is stunning, especially if you get a table on the balcony. But I must say, it’s not a cheap pleasure. Of course, it depends on how much you eat. If anyone is interested in the pricing, you are welcome to send me a private message. After a hearty meal, we went to the Art Institute of Chicago. To say how this "museum" shocked me is probably an understatement. And in a bad way. Entering the institute, you go up to the second floor... my advice: go forward, then left, and go down quickly; there is nothing interesting on the second floor. So many mediocre exhibits. In my understanding, the first impression should evoke delight, but they cluttered the first halls with some paintings by untalented artists—my apologies to the creators, but... For example, "ZERO", how can you present something like that to the public? My brain was indignant at every "work". Going downstairs, you will stumble upon a room with video art. I still don't understand this clown; why, for what purpose? Although everyone who entered laughed and came out a little happier. And here is the climax: you go down in the elevator even lower, and there it is—the sweet prize for your suffering. First, two halls of very beautiful photographs. Second, an incredible hall with Egyptian pottery. Third, an Indian theme located in three halls. And fourth, three spans with incredible miniature rooms. The rooms shocked me. Really. It’s just cosmic. What golden hands and eyes you must have to create something like that. Everything is thought out to the smallest detail, how a person will move from room to ro

ALAnastassya LebedevaNastyaLebedeva · Oct 28, 2012Read

Letter from September 8th Sender: Anastasia Lebedeva, Vienna International Airport, Austria Recipient: Yulya Keda, Kazakhstan Heyyyyy! Stop being sick! It's warm outside! We'll be there soon! We have tons of time – we're sitting at the airport in Vienna – 6 more hours to wait! Glad there's Wi-Fi! America is behind us, it remains in our hearts and will stay in our memories forever! Four days in New York – not enough to walk around the whole city, but quite enough to remember for a lifetime! So bright, amazing, alive, it gave us so many impressions! We stayed in a hostel in the center of Manhattan, the area is good, right next to the New York City Police Department. (Proof of this is an arrested horse that stood proudly and posed for us). Without wasting time, we set off to conquer New York! Anya, with the look of an all-knowing guide, showed me her favorite places, but every time we discovered something new! How I wish you were here with us! The city streets are surprising: skyscrapers combined with ancient cathedrals, yellow taxi cabs with carriages (in the Central Park area); fountains, lights, and the people – you just can't imagine how many there are, and they are all so different! We were in Central Park – it's like a green island in the center of the metropolis! We wandered around the zoo, hoping to see a leopard, which apparently hid from us( And we also saw red pandas! You would have liked them! We left donations for wildlife protection! It's so great that people here don't ignore that! Believe it or not – we saw Snoop Dogg)) We are, of course, far from his fans, but it's cool! We took photos! It remains a mystery until the end whether it was him or his twin brother, but people were walking around and whispering! Oh well, in the meantime we went to Madame Tussauds and took pictures with Johnny, the Beatles, Elvis, Einstein, and a bunch of other famous people! It's a pity that we were at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for only 2 hours – until closing! Who knew there would be so much to see there? We wandered through the Egyptian halls, saw a mummy, looked into the European painting halls, saw a Rembrandt) And we also saw (or rather, first heard) our compatriots) That reminded us that we will be home soon! Yes, I kept telling Anya, let's go to the Empire State! And she convinced me that it's better to wait until it gets dark, and then the view of the city is the most beautiful! And it's true! Standing at suuuuuch a height (and not scary at all!), you feel like Bruce Almighty)))) How good that I took a new lens! S t u n n i n g shots!!! We managed to buy tickets for a cruise around Manhattan! Stood in line for 2 (!) hours to get on the ferry! But the wait was worth it!!! Statue of Liberty! New York skyline! Brooklyn Bridge! And the guide also showed us where Sarah Jessica Parker and Sacha Baron Cohen live))) But we didn't have time to visit them! Is it possible to accidentally meet an acquaintance in such a huge city? It turns out, yes! In the hostel, we lived with a girl named Sasha from Russia, she came on a tourist visa! So, Anya and I went for a walk on the Brooklyn Bridge, and we thought – if only someone would take a photo of the two of us! And then we look – Sasha is walking! Such a coincidence! We decided to go to the airport by subway – to save money! Remember last year, Anya had to exchange her last euros with the French to pay a greedy taxi driver? )) We thought, we'll take the subway, we have plenty of time, and we did the right thing! And now we are sitting here, and it seems that very little time has passed, but we already miss it so much! The feeling of freedom, independence, when you don't know what the new day will bring! And you return home a little different. Kisses and hugs! Waiting to meet! Not much left now!