France: Travel guide, visas and free housing · 2026

ASAdemi Seiilkhanovaademi.erbazina · Jan 7, 2023Read

The future is in the hands of the youth! This is why it is so important for young people to receive an education, gain experience, and serve their country. There are many programs for youth to study abroad and gain experience in the country, including Bolashak, WAT USA, and academic mobility programs, which I consider the best. Such programs have many benefits for young people: they broaden their knowledge, enhance their experience, allow them to study the culture and language of other nations, learn to apply modern technologies in life, implement them in our country, and also make friends from other countries and become advanced citizens. My name is Ademi, I was born in the city of Aktobe, and I am currently a 3rd-year student at Zhubanov University, a prestigious educational institution in the western region. I have many hobbies for all-around development; I love reading books, watching movies, especially Marvel, watching football, and learning languages is a special pleasure for me. Since childhood, I have dreamed of studying abroad and traveling a lot. But now I am studying in Kazakhstan, so I try to make the most of the opportunities provided for a high-quality and interesting student life. Currently, I am studying in the Republic of Poland for one academic semester on a grant from the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan. This was my first trip abroad, and I am very grateful to Allah, my parents, and the university staff for being here at this time. It was a big step for a 19-year-old dreamy girl. Here, I am not only improving my English but also learning Polish, have found many friends, broadened my horizons, and seen the culture and lifestyle of other nations. I was also a volunteer at the university; in Poland, there are many competitions and sports events for different age categories, from small preschoolers to elderly people over 70. And this also gave me ideas about the development of sports in Kazakhstan. And since we are in the EU zone, traveling to other EU countries did not cause us any problems, and I traveled with friends to countries such as France, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Germany, and the Czech Republic. During this trip, I had many new ideas, sincere emotions, and, most importantly, the thought: 'I am not going to stop at what I have achieved.' Also, for the first time in my life, I traveled on a liner, sailing across the Baltic Sea to Sweden. In Sweden, I became interested in Scandinavian culture, and this trip brought many ideas that could be implemented after seeing clean, smooth roads. One of them is the production of asphalt from waste; it is known that the country has many problems with roads, and I think that to find a solution, it is necessary to take such latest technologies and innovations from developed states as a model. And the emotions I received from the trip, especially from being at the sea for the first time, gave me special sensations; the first impression on the Baltic Sea, I fell in love with the beauty of the sea on the beach in Barcelona, Spain, and a burning love for the water world appeared. I was also in Barcelona at the Camp Nou stadium, one of my childhood dreams. I will say that over the last 3 months abroad, there have been many useful and interesting moments for me. In a month, I will return to Kazakhstan; many events have happened in my life in Poland, there were many interesting moments in our trip to Europe, and I will always remember this period of my life. And now, if I talk about why I want to participate in the WAT USA program. This program is very useful for students; I believe it is better to have more such programs so that students can not only study but also spend 3 months of vacation having fun and being productive. I have known about the WAT USA program since the 10th grade when my teacher's daughter first visited the USA, and my teacher talked about it interestingly, showed photos of her daughter, and gave me motivation that we would al

SYSandugash Yelyubayevainfoguuu · Aug 14, 2015Read

The picture shown above was taken in Cambridge town near well-known Cambridge university press. As the UK is very popular with such historical places as Cambridge University. I understood only one thing, this is that London is actually tremendous city which needs more than a week in order to visit all three parts of London, precisely city, west, and east parts. The best days of my life I spent with keenly nice and helpful people in the academy. I enjoyed my studying whilst I was in the UK. It was extremely catching to share your experience and knowledge with the students from different countries and nationalities. In my group I was lucky to make friends from Wales, Canada, Arabic emirates, Iran, Turkmenistan, Turkey, Italy, Spain, France , Lithuania, Thailand, chili, and Mexico.

ALAnastassya LebedevaNastyaLebedeva · Oct 28, 2012Read

Letter from August 28. Sender: Anastasia Lebedeva, Dallas, Texas Recipient: Yulya Keda, Kazakhstan How to save yourself from killer mosquitoes. Hi, Yulka! You won't believe what happened to us! Today we were supposed to be wandering the streets of New Orleans, but guess what, we are still in Dallas. And why? Let me start from the beginning. Nora turned out to be a very friendly, energetic, and interesting person. She lives in a quiet neighborhood near the lake. She has two dogs – a boy named Derby and a girl named Mabel, whom we were initially afraid of. Nora is an avid traveler. She has been to Mexico, Italy, China, and France. She is planning to visit Argentina and other countries. In her free time, she visits a Buddhist temple, yoga classes, rock climbing, and goes kayaking. She also plays the guitar and loves watching travel shows. She listens to blues and country. That's a mini-dossier for you. In just a few days, she showed us all of Dallas! We visited real American diners, listened to the chants of Buddhist monks, went to the movies, and didn't miss the museums! We learned a few words in Thai. For example, the greeting 'sawatdee'. And we tasted Thai food. We went to the lake and took photos. We saw George Bush's house. At least that's what the locals say, but no one has ever seen him there. At first, we were afraid to go to the lake because of mosquitoes – carriers of a deadly virus. We put on hoodies, sneakers, and jeans. Everyone asks us: where are you from? And we say: from Florida – the Sunshine State. And now for the most important thing: Linkin Park was AWESOME. Yes, we were at their concert! Chester is singing and screaming just a few meters away! There were both new and old songs, which we couldn't have imagined at all. Everyone is singing along, and we are the loudest! Craaaaaaaaaaaawling iiiiiiiiiiiin my skiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin! These wooooooooooooooooounds, they wiiiiiiiil not heeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaal!!!!!!!! The photos turned out pretty good, and the videos too. We couldn't have imagined before that we would get to a Linkin Park concert! Amazing! So many positive emotions! Live sound! We rocked out! Rock on! Filled with bright hopes and charged with positive emotions, Nora and I went to the Greyhound station. We had tickets for 3 AM. After saying a warm goodbye to our new Texan friend, we had a snack and got ready to check our luggage. Suddenly, it turned out that our bus to New Orleans was canceled! Shock. The reason was the approaching Hurricane Isaac. We had to stay at Nora's for one more night. We hope to leave on the next bus. We will write when we get to New Orleans! Good luck! Adios! #travel #LinkinPark #Dallas #NewOrleans #adventure

ККириллEztaZzZy · Oct 19, 2011Read

When I submitted all the documents for the program, I thought I could finally breathe a sigh of relief and focus on everyday things: university, family, vacation, etc. But I was wrong. It turned out to be the complete opposite. One wonderful Friday evening, while reading the forum, I found out that I would need to submit my passport to the office in February. That would be fine if I were in Russia during that period. But from December to early March, I will be working in France. By that time, I had already asked this question to the representative who called to invite me to the office for program registration, and I was told that everything was fine and there would be no difficulties. After that, upon arriving at the office, I asked this question a couple more times and received almost the same answer as the first time. Relieved, I submitted all the documents. But something prompted me to ask this question again via email to my coordinator. After 2 tense days of waiting, I finally received an answer. It stated that this would be a problem. After panicking a little via email, I finally received a letter saying that I could either submit the documents in France or, upon the coordinator's request, postpone the submission until my triumphant return from the French Alps. Now I am in an equally puzzled position. What should I do? Submit the documents in France or wait until I arrive in Russia? It's just a dilemma! Can anyone give me some advice? I would be very grateful! For now, I can forget about this nightmare for a while and escape from reality to warmth and sun to relax before the intense winter work. For my birthday, I was given enough money to arrange a short rest on the sea side. In the next post, read about how buying a tour turned out for me and my girlfriend, how much money to take with you, and what an escape from reality is.

КСКамиль Сайдашевkamil89 · Oct 31, 2010Read

June 29, 2010 (12:00 in Paris) Today I arrived in Paris. I haven't seen the city yet, but I did notice a couple of small 'villages'. Very charming, two-story houses with little gardens, smooth roads – a dream. The weather is cloudy – doesn't feel like France yet:) But Charles de Gaulle Airport... If you compare it to Pulkovo, or even Domodedovo – it's like Uglich vs. New York. Just huge. I couldn't find a place to sit down and write this note because in my terminal, 2E, the distance from wing to wing takes about 20 minutes on foot. I just found out the exact number of my gate and am writing now. There are different nations, languages, and behaviors everywhere. Everything is delightful and surprising. So far, I barely understand English. It started on the plane; a French steward began speaking quickly with a French accent about what to do in case of an emergency – I understood with the help of gestures:) Then a man started asking about the terminal at the airport – had to use hand signals again. Damn, the French talk so fast. Many Americans were traveling with us from St. Petersburg – I realized it from their passports. They are all so different, carefree; they really differ externally from other nations with some kind of 'aura', perhaps. Although, when I first saw them, I thought they were either Germans or Spaniards) Yeah. I guess I admire them a lot. Now I'm waiting for my flight to JFK at 16:35. Today I will be in New York. I'm very tired. I wanted to eat on the plane, but I fell asleep and the food 'left'. Oh well. As Steve Jobs said, 'Stay hungry. Stay foolish.'

ASAnna Sapushevaany9377 · Sep 1, 2015Read

Finally, the long-awaited Monday morning arrived—my first day at Edgware Academy. I chose the Covent Garden branch, though there was an alternative on Edgware Road. My schedule was Monday to Friday, 9:00 AM to 12:00 PM; I chose this to dedicate my afternoons to exploring the city. There is also an afternoon option, from 12:00 PM to 3:00 PM (I believe). No matter how hard I tried to arrive by 8:45 AM, I unfortunately ended up late, as the London Underground is quite confusing for someone from Moscow, where each station only serves one line and each platform only goes in one direction. Fortunately, my 15-minute delay on the first day was met with understanding; the lovely receptionists asked me to fill out a form and a placement test, followed by a short chat with one of the teachers, David. Based on the test and the interview, I was placed in an Intermediate group and was able to join the class for the second half of the session. Our teacher was a fantastic woman named Sarah, who managed to explain new topics with ease and clarity, engaging all students in active learning through games and discussions. Sarah has been teaching at Edgware Academy for about two years; she is a native speaker and a very skilled teacher who pays attention to every student, providing a somewhat personalized approach. Classes usually consisted of several parts—grammar, speaking, and reading comprehension—covering a wide range of topics relevant to students, such as "job hunting," "cinema," "hobbies," and more. I was surprised and pleased by the diversity of the students—there were representatives from several countries: Turkey, Italy, Kazakhstan, Switzerland, France, and I was the only one from Russia in our group. There were about 15 students in total, aged from 19 to about 45 :) The school's convenient location allowed me to walk to the city's main attractions after class. For three days in a row, I visited the British Museum—a huge collection of fascinating world masterpieces that is impossible to see in one go. On other days, it was nice to walk along Piccadilly, watching street dancers, or cycle to St. Paul's Cathedral and wander through the interesting narrow streets of this unhurried city. In general, London is very different from Moscow in its composure and measured pace of life, which is immediately noticeable. But that's all about the city by day; at night, it seems to come alive :) The countless pubs and clubs on Piccadilly, filled daily with visitors stopping by for a pint or two of beer, are also a distinctive feature of the metropolis. People come here to socialize, relax after a workday, or just unwind. My "classmates" and I decided not to fall behind the locals, and as a result, we visited more than one colorful pub during our time there :) The school also organized parties and club outings, but to my great regret, I couldn't make it to them—I had a flight to Dublin scheduled during one of them. So, after my first week at school, I flew to Ireland for the weekend, as currently, those who hold a UK visa (General class) can enter Ireland with it.

ALAnastassya LebedevaNastyaLebedeva · Oct 28, 2012Read

Letter from August 28. Sender: Anastasia Lebedeva, Dallas, Texas Recipient: Yulia Keda, Kazakhstan How to survive killer mosquitoes. Hi, Yulka! You won't believe what happened to us! Today we were supposed to wander the streets of New Orleans, but guess what, we're still in Dallas. And why? I'll start from the beginning. Nora turned out to be a very friendly, energetic and interesting person. She lives in a quiet neighborhood near the lake. She has two dogs – a male, Derby, and a female, Mabel, whom we were afraid of at first. Nora is an avid traveler. She has been to Mexico, Italy, China, France. She plans to visit Argentina and other countries. In her free time she goes to a Buddhist temple, attends yoga classes, does rock climbing and kayaks. She also plays guitar and likes to watch travel shows. She listens to blues and country. That's the mini-dossier. In just a few days she showed us all of Dallas! We ate at real American diners, listened to the chants of Buddhist monks, went to the movies, and didn't skip the museums! We learned a few words in Thai. For example, the greeting 'savatika'. And we tried Thai food. We drove to the lake and took photos. We saw George Bush's house. At least that's what the locals say, but nobody has seen him there yet. At first we were afraid to go to the lake because of mosquitoes — carriers of a deadly virus. We put on hoodies, sneakers and jeans. Everyone asks us: where are you from? And we: from Florida — the Sunshine State. And now for the main thing: Linkin Park was AWESOME. Yes, we were at their concert! Chester sings and screams just a few meters away! The songs were both new and old, which we never could have expected. Everyone sings along, and we sing louder! Craaaaaaaaaaaawling iiiiiiiiiiiin my skiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiin! These wooooooooooooooooounds, they wiiiiiiiil not heeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaal!!!!!!!! The photos turned out pretty good, and the videos too. We couldn't even imagine we'd get to a Linkin Park concert before! Awesome! So many positive emotions! Live sound! We tore it up! That's rock! Filled with bright hopes and charged with positive emotions, Nora and I went to the Greyhound station. We had tickets for 3 a.m. After warmly saying goodbye to our new Texas friend, we grabbed a bite and were about to check our suitcase. Then we discovered that our bus to New Orleans was canceled! Shock. The reason was the approaching Hurricane Isaac. We had to stay at Nora's for one more night. We hope to get on the next bus. We'll write when we get to New Orleans! Good luck! Adios!

WWladekmariaalicenicols · Apr 28, 2010Read

Finally, the passport is in my hands... So happy. Now I have 2 visas in my passport: an American one and a Polish national one, which became a full Schengen visa 2 weeks ago. Happy again... The American one gives me strength (a kind of fetishism), you open it and get energized when needed, you open the Schengen one - you get charged up even more... You think to yourself: "Now all of continental Europe is mine, plus the USA, I should go somewhere." You sit there and think: "Where should I go?" Poland - Oh! My home country, but I've traveled it up and down (only haven't been to Krakow), it's kind of boring... Germany - fascists!, and I lived there for 2 years in my distant childhood. Austria - mini-fascists! Czech Republic - Germans! France - not a fan of sparkling wines and unconventional relationships + it's far. Spain - boring and uninteresting + very far. Italy - forget it, I've been there, walked along the coast, the mafia even kills off unwanted dolphins, and I deal with Italians every month (guide them to the right place, feed them, give them drinks, take them around), I'm tired of them. Netherlands - not a fan. Belgium - dirt. Slovakia - children of the mountains (no offense). Serbia - A good country, but there's not much entertainment. Baltic countries - I don't know a word of their language. Switzerland - I don't need to go to a bank or buy watches yet. Where to go???... Yeah, when there's no opportunity to go somewhere, you want to, and when there is, you don't want to... Strange... I go to classes, write various essays, do some work, continue to improve my Polish and English... I want to go to Australia... But there are crocodiles, it's scary, and I don't have much money (actually almost none :) ). And soon is "Day X" - taking early exams, etc. I decided it's time to go to Ukraine, and then to Poland (at least I'll buy some tasty food)... In general, I think I have nothing to do beyond Poland and Serbia. I have a good attitude towards citizens of the Russian Federation, but I won't set foot there again... it's scary, too much, the roads are bad. What else? Oh yes, the person I wanted to fly to the States with probably isn't going with me. Work, I need to keep working... I deeply hope that everyone who read my blog got their visas... CIAO!!!