Νότια Αφρική: Ταξιδιωτικός οδηγός, βίζες και δωρεάν διαμονή · 2026

NNataljanataljauk · 26 Δεκ 2025Διάβασμα

🌍 Ready to make a REAL impact? Volunteer in South Africa and support kids, protect wildlife, help communities, and explore a country full of culture and adventure. ✨ Programs from 2–12 weeks — just enough time to change the world and yourself. This isn’t just a trip—it’s your chance to create real change from day one! Volunteering in South Africa | Agency IEC

Rravik18 Ιουν 2009Διάβασμα

Kristina, Dzerzhinsk, Nizhny Novgorod region "I have never lived anywhere else like I have here, having fun and enjoying life! And I won't let anyone spoil my pleasure!" Kristina DEFINITELY, THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA IS ONE OF THE MOST AMAZING PLACES IN THE WORLD!!! For me, this is an undeniable truth! South Africa is beautiful! Magnificent!!! But before I found out about this, I had to cover a huge distance, which apparently gives the right to call South Africa the "Edge of the World" (judging by its distance from our country and my city). By airline — the one I flew with — it took a long, long time to get there! On the night of October 18th to 19th, 2008, I boarded a plane in Moscow, flight "Moscow—Doha". From Doha, I transferred to a flight to Johannesburg. And from there to Cape Town. Only on the evening of October 20th did my feet touch the promised land, the most extraordinary place on earth, the oldest, most beautiful, and first city of the country! I was tired of flying. Although the flight was amazing, and the plane was lovely (lots of free space, you can stretch your legs). Clean. The stewardesses were kind, constantly trying to give us something to drink or eat ???. And they did it about five times during the whole flight — I don't eat like that at home!!! So, for those who are hungry — you've come to the right place! I recommend choosing long flights — they will feed you! At the airport, we were met by representatives of the host organization (SASTS). They helped with the luggage. They drove us in comfort to the so-called SASTS-house, which became my final destination in Cape Town. This is... let's say, such an unusual place. For everyone (judging by the different reviews of the guys I was moved in with), it can produce an absolutely polar first impression. And what about mine? Generally positive! But not without "surprises". We had a good time on the first day. We had fun late into the night at the "ZULA" club, dancing. Hip-hop and rock were playing there. And nearby, from the restaurant side, the sounds of national South African songs could be heard, as we were told by the local guys we asked: "What is playing there?" We returned to the hostel only at four in the morning. Tired. I fell into the sweetest sleep, intending to get a good night's sleep. But that's where the first "surprise" lay in wait for me. After what seemed like a very short amount of time after I fell asleep, a noise reached my ears. First, the crash of a falling object. Then — even louder — a hissing stream of water!!! I jumped up, frightened. The girl on the neighboring bunk jumped up right after me. And it turned out to be simple: in the room where I was settled, there is a working shower cabin. And one of the roommates (and there were four of us placed there on two bunk beds) decided to take a shower. For some reason, she felt the need to take it right in the room, even though there are three more showers on the floor! Wash yourself — you don't want to! Moreover, looking at the clock, we found that she decided to do this not earlier, not later, but at eight in the morning!!! We were in shock! We couldn't fall asleep again, we had to get up. On Monday (the program is calculated so that it starts from the first day of the week), we were gathered at the SASTS office. They briefly told us about the country, the program under which each of us arrived and will be staying here for some time. And about what awaits us in this first week and later, when everyone scatters to different corners. By the way, from European countries, according to my observation, guys arrive more often as volunteers. Subsequently, they live in local families, work mainly as nannies, educators, or teachers. They don't have to worry about anything, they are fed and watered, but their work is unpaid. But they are 100% relaxed and enjoy life. And their programs, unlike ours, are designed for only three to four months. In my group, besides me, there were only two people on the

Rravik15 Ιουν 2009Διάβασμα

CAPE OF GOOD HOPE Even if a person knows nothing about South Africa other than that it exists, they have surely heard of the most famous cape in the world! Especially since it bears such a beautiful and resonant name, which includes two wonderful words: "GOOD" and "HOPE". Once, this cape was called the "Cape of Storms", as ships were constantly crashing against it. Later it was renamed to its current name, but they say ships kept crashing for a long time after that. And maybe it still happens even now... Katya and I were there last Saturday. The SASTS were supposed to take us there, we politely reminded them about it, and without any argument, they added us to a newly arrived group of volunteers and participants of the "Work in South Africa" program. Students come from all over the world, not just us and Europeans, but also from Canada, Australia, the USA, and so on. They come from everywhere! At 8:30 AM in Sea Point, a bus picked us up, about twenty people gathered, and off we went. I want to note that I had been working like a dog that week and sleeping three hours a night—it just turned out that way. So that morning, I returned from work at 5:30 and got up at 8:00. Katya called and asked if I was definitely going? — What, did I come here just to work? — I replied and started getting ready. We sat down and drove off. Katya was chirping about something and asking questions, and I remember asking her not to overwhelm me because my brain refused to work. But as soon as we hit the mountain road, I immediately felt life and the traveler in me waking up. And the day went amazingly! On the way, we stopped and took a boat to see the fur seals. In one place, there were almost five thousand of them! Then we stopped again. In a beautiful little area called "Simon’s Town". To grab a bite. I bought a bottle of soda, some buns, and chips, and sitting on a bench at the pier, I watched the passing boats. Further on, not far from Simon's Town, we stopped to see the penguins. I imagined them like in nature documentaries or in movies. A meter tall. It turned out those penguins live in Antarctica and are called Emperor penguins. In South Africa, the penguins are the size of a cat. Sometimes a large cat, but no bigger. They line up in a flock and stand like statues. And they don't care about anything, tourists scurrying around or whatever else is happening. Everything is parallel, indifferent, violet! Their down is everywhere and they "smell", let me tell you, not like house pets... But it's so cool to see a penguin alive and in almost natural conditions! Then we drove again. I want to note: so far, no matter which direction I've traveled in Cape Town, the views, in my opinion, are simply stunning! They say if you go further away, it's more steppe and hilly. But here, everything around is just a miracle! On the way, we encountered a train. It was running right along the water's edge. A mesmerizing sight! And then there was IT. Cape of Good Hope! It's so great: you're driving along the top of a cliff, and in front, to the right and left below, is the ocean. The Atlantic. We walked along the cape. It is an absolutely fantastic place of incredible beauty! In one place, there is a beach you can go down to. And it's like in a movie! Or in a dream. But we didn't have time, the bus was waiting for us. All the time we spent on the cape, the feeling never left me that the bus had brought us straight to paradise. We plan to visit again! HOT SPRING My aunt went to a hot spring last year. Somewhere in Europe. France, I think. And she praised it so much! And I was like: "So what! What's the big deal?!" So yesterday, Nick and I went to Caledon ourselves—it's a place in the mountains where they built a whole wellness complex with small stone baths for a few people; and larger pools with water from a hot spring. I went, tried it all out, and came to the conclusion: it is a "big deal"! A very big deal! It's sooooo great! After swimming and splashing around, we w

Rravik15 Ιουν 2009Διάβασμα

Setting off from my hometown to South Africa, almost to the other end of the world, I wasn't thinking about writing anything new at all. I had at least three reasons for this: firstly, for almost a whole year before that, I had been in a creative crisis, and thoughts even visited me: "Maybe I won't write anymore?!" Secondly, the experience of past travels told me it was useless to expect creativity from myself abroad. I remember with what hope I went to England in the summer of 2003, thinking I would write there. But if I wrote anything there, it was insignificant and little. In the summer of 2004, I went to the United States, but even there, in three months, I wrote no more than five pages. In the autumn of 2006, during a bus tour of Europe, I also proved myself only as a "creative corpse." Although I could have written everywhere, it seems. Why did it suddenly start working out in South Africa? I don't know... Everything happened by itself. I just started. And it went on. I couldn't stop. I reveled in the process, giving myself to it. And there was a feeling that I was writing not only with my head or heart, but with my whole... SELF! My whole ME was participating in the process. By the way, for the first couple of weeks, I didn't think of this work as a "possible future book." I wrote because I liked it. And that was the most wonderful thing about my hobby. And if I wasn't writing a book, then what was it, you might ask?! For starters, I was throwing ordinary text notes into the "My Blog" section on "(…).ru". I wanted to describe the places where I ended up, the sensations arising from visiting them. I wrote about meetings with interesting people and events. About my experiences. I liked it very much, impossibly so, when I managed to write easily and amusingly. When the text turned out not just readable, but such that you don't stumble over it, you swallow it "in one breath." For the sake of such a result, I enthusiastically spent my free time, giving this process as much strength as I had. It is surprising that despite the fatigue, the next morning I woke up fresh and satisfied: time had not been wasted. And is it possible, while doing what you love, to waste time?! I think not. And you? It was pleasant to look through the comments of people reading my posts, to receive praise for the lightness of the style and the fascination of the presentation. However, I didn't tell anyone that I was laboring over the text, checking it several times and correcting it. And although I always remained, and still remain, somewhat critical of it, overall I am satisfied. That was my small and big joy — to entice and interest people with my "Travel Notes." My first book that was published was called "Travel Notes of Yevgeny Borisov." So, when I sent the text of the first pages of the book you are holding in your hands in electronic form to my cousin, a philologist and also a writer, he responded unexpectedly emotionally. He said he liked it very much, that I must continue writing! And that upon returning home, we would finish all this and release the second part of the "Travel Notes." He also said he would tear my head off if I didn't do it. I, of course, knew and know that Pavel praises first and then scolds (when "working on mistakes"), BUT... And it's not to say that such a thought hadn't visited me myself by that moment! I doubted for another week, gathered my thoughts, wrote. I will quote a part of that letter from my brother that concerns the publication of the book: "This is your chance, don't miss it! After all, we write something, we do something, not at all for those who are nearby, and those who believe in us, but more for those who WILL BELIEVE and one day will say: Look, Sandalkin's book showed me how it would be better, helped me figure it out easily and simply where I got confused. In my opinion, this is the HIGHEST reward for a writer! This will be a light and slightly carefree guide for those who will go on your or a similar

KSKristina Sabelnikovasabelnickova.kristina · 14 Σεπ 2015Διάβασμα

The program ended several months ago, and I've only just gotten around to processing all the materials, but as they say, better late than never. Here is the link to the YouTube video: https://youtu.be/Sllo-8dDavk If you are planning to go to Cape Town for the Work in South Africa program, this video will be twice as interesting for you! Enjoy guys ;) And good luck to you all in your trips!