Rome: Travel guide, prices and free housing · 2026

DDDaria Dikovadikovadasha2002 · Jan 10, 2023Read

“There is a kind of magicness about going far away and then coming back all changed.” Kate Douglas Wiggin Even though I have not participated in the Work and Travel program yet, youth exchange programs are an extremely important part of my life. That is why I want to share with you the story of my experience with such kinds of programs. My story is a sequence of failures, victories and valuable lessons that youth exchange programs give me that make me love them so much. This is a story about my vision of youth exchange programs and how they shape my personality, so I gladly welcome you to read it. Since childhood, I have been obsessed with the idea of exploring the diversity of our world. However, there is a question of what does this exploration really mean? Is it enough to arrive in the country’s capital and see the main tourist sights? For me, the answer is definitely no. I believe that a true understanding of the visited country is impossible without cultural exchange, which can be gained with the help of interaction with locals. That is why for me youth exchange programs are the best way to explore new cultures. The format of youth exchanges gives me emotions different from any other type of journey. Moreover, youth exchanges often include educational parts or provide an opportunity to improve professional skills, making them not only enjoyable but extremely useful experiences. Thus, being raised in a small city without the financial opportunity to travel a lot, I always struggled to see the world, and I chose youth trips as my tool for achieving it. As a result, today, I have visited 11 countries and created connections with more than a hundred people in diverse world corners. My first interest in international exchanges occurred in 2017 when I decided to apply to the FLEX program. I tried twice, but I only got the status of alternative finalist and finished one step away from my dreamy exchange school year. Analyzing the situation from today’s perspective, I realize that I was denied because my applications for both attempts were almost identical. Thus, the first lesson that exchange programs taught me is to keep progressing all the time. After five years, in 2022, I returned to the idea of participating in the US exchange program, which is why I chose the Work and Travel opportunity. For me, Work and Travel is an amazing opportunity to earn not only money but things that are much more valuable. With W&T, I am eager to dive into unknown American culture and learn how people live on the other side of the world. Driven by such motivation, I signed the job offer and prepared for my summer in the US, but my plans were ruined by the war. I am from Melitopol, which is now an occupied city and being there at that period of time did not allow me to make confident decisions, and that is how my plans to see the US was ruined for the second time. In such a way, the second lesson that exchange programs taught me is never to give up. Thus, aside from chasing my American dream, I actively investigated other parts of the world with the help of youth exchange programs. After my failure on FLEX, I started to search for further opportunities and applied for several exchange programs at international universities. Again, I did not manage to pass the last selection stages and got refusals. Still, I did not give up on searching for an active social life and decided to start with the program inside my country. Thus I took a gap year and entered the Ukrainian Leadership Academy, which is a program of informal education gathering young leaders which allows us to share experiences and implement social projects. With the Academy, I went on my first cultural exchange to Israel. During this trip, we lived in Machines, which can be described as social leadership preparatory programs for high school graduates. We stayed with Israeli students who shared their national values with us as well as we introduced them to the beauty of our Ukrainian culture

TNTomiris Nurgaliyevatomirisnurgalieva22 · Jan 10, 2023Read

I sit and look out the window at the falling snow And think about how I can make a breakthrough, One like those two unknown eccentrics, Who broke away from the Soviet Union to New York. And in their pockets, eight bucks for the two of them And a bunch of rainbow hopes and dreams, Enough for great success. I sit and look out the window at the falling snow And think about how somewhere far away, Ten thousand kilometers away, Where the Atlantic is, and bays, and inlets, And territories with a four-century history; There are palm trees there, and skyscrapers, And even beaches amidst the concrete and glass. There are Chinatowns and Little Italy, Or you can just call it a neighborhood. There is the Statue of Liberty with a torch in her hand And a waterfall that gives the city energy, And the White House, and the Grand Canyon, and the state of Nevada. I will see all this, not in a dream! Hello, everyone reading my story! My name is Tomiris and in exactly 20 days (as of this writing) I will be 18. I am a first-year student of the West Kazakhstan Innovative Technological University in Uralsk, Kazakhstan. In the future I will become a specialized translator. Since childhood I liked studying languages, their features, noting the beauty of each, but I was especially interested in English. I began to learn it from the age of seven years and participated in many competitions, both in the city, and in the national. In grade 11 I dreamed of going to America, and began to prepare hard for the international exam IELTS in March 2022. I got 5.5 points when the threshold was 6.0. But I am not discouraged, I took the experience with gratitude because I improved my English to the upper-intermediate level while preparing for the exam. I think that today it is one of my most important achievements: an official confirmation of my knowledge by the British Council. Further I hasten to inform that by the time I am years old, I already have quite a good experience in the HoReCa sphere. In tenth and eleventh grades during summer vacation I worked as a waitress at a food court and, even in that position, I successfully used my knowledge of English while communicating with English-speaking guests at the establishment. Why did I decide to participate? Last May my brother Darkhan flew to America, Massachusetts under the Work&Travel program through your company and I was inspired by the idea. I started reading stories of guys from all over the world about their trip, what interesting people they met there, how they realized their dream, some even stayed to work there. This is my first reason for wanting to go there: to get to know their culture, customs and traditions, and to talk about ours. This program will allow me not only to earn money, but also to explore the country, make friends from all over the world and traditions, and to talk about ours, to explore the country, make friends from all over the world and gain professional experience. Secondly, but no less important reason, to study English in more depth, communicating in it with native speakers, and considering that there are so many accents in the U.S. language as there are people living there, this experience is absolutely invaluable. Thirdly, all of this learning can be combined with work, as I will have to constantly be in that environment with only English spoken around you. Moreover, I will get and develop my new skills in order to develop competencies in different areas, I have a goal to earn decent money or capital that will help me to pay for my studies and make my parents happy. I want to give them everything they gave me. They have always believed in me, supported all my endeavors and been there for me. I want them to be proud of me. And most importantly, being in the United States, I will be promoting my country's recognition, culture, traditions, and customs. After all, my country is the 9th largest country in the world! Also, if I have a chance, I will participate in official, cultural, s

ANAziz Nadjimutdinovanadjimutdinov · Jun 20, 2017Read

Day three. On the third day, I headed to the Mandalay Bay hotel, which houses the Shark Reef aquarium and was also hosting the Sea Monsters Revealed exhibition of various underwater creatures. As I mentioned before, all hotels are unique in their own way, specifically in their styles, but beyond that, they try to stand out with things like exhibitions, performances, bonuses, etc., because they need to attract as many people as possible, and maybe even get them into the casino. Admission to the aquarium cost $20 + $5 for the exhibition ticket. The aquarium featured various animals of the underwater world: an octopus, crocodiles, fish, rays, and the main highlight was a huge hall designed like a sunken ship, surrounded by sharks of different species. The exhibition consists of several halls with exhibits in the form of remains of ancient underwater monsters. To be honest, it's actually quite creepy. Just imagining all these... little fish... in real life... I love large aquariums and oceanariums, so I recommend that you all visit this one too if you are in Vegas. I'm sure you won't regret it. By the way, I didn't mention that even before the trip here, I realized I got a bit lucky; specifically, I saw a post on Facebook that Kelsey and Matt—the very people whose wedding I attended last year—were also going to Vegas on the same day as me. Let me remind you that after the wedding, they left for Australia on a one-year trainee program. In the spring of 2016, they started having some problems; specifically, if I'm not mistaken, Kelsey lost her passport and they couldn't get it replaced for a long time. Eventually, they had to return to their homeland. And they went straight from Australia to Vegas, where we were supposed to meet up. "It's a small world," as Marta, the HR of our company who I mentioned hosted their wedding, accurately noted in the comments on one of my posts about Vegas. After discussing plans for the coming days, we decided that we could go to Cirque du Soleil together. Yes, imagine that! I've dreamed of going there since I was a child, and they were just planning to go to one of the shows, or rather, they had already bought tickets. If I'm not mistaken, there are 10 or 12 different shows presented by the Circus here, each in a different hotel. That is, there is already a ready-made venue with all the installations specifically for that show. And they are all different: Michael Jackson themed, Beatles, Mystere, etc. You can check tickets for any show here: Vegas Shows. My ticket for section B (which is quite close to the stage) cost about 140 dollars, but for some reason, there was a $41.50 discount for our Mystere show, so it cost $100.18. On the day before the show (or rather, on my second day in Vegas), we met with Kelsey and Matt to pick up the tickets for one of the shows they were attending together, and then to pick up our tickets. Unfortunately, we couldn't sit together, but because of that, I ended up sitting even closer :) On the day after the aquarium, I headed straight to them. They showed me a very interesting place that, I must admit, I didn't know about before. Well, generally, I think many have heard of Ghirardelli chocolate, and there are shops there packed with all kinds of chocolates of this brand, as well as shakes, ice cream, etc.: Ghirardelli Las Vegas. An amazing place, considering it's quite hot in Vegas. Just right for this weather. By the way, there are other interesting hotels nearby. For example, here is the Venetian: From there, we headed to the Treasure Island hotel, where the Mystere performance was taking place. This, by the way, is one of the most popular Cirque shows, and it was directed by Franco Dragone, who might be known in the CIS now for having recently directed Philip Kirkorov's show "Ya". (I also saw this show, by the way. And it is also gorgeous. You can see that Dragone is a genius.) If we talk directly about the show: Enchantment, magic, emotions! It's just impossible to

DMDastan Maratovdastan_uk · Nov 27, 2015Read

We started our journey on September 8th by car, driven by our mutual friend Andre, whom we met in Estes Park. A road trip has huge advantages, not only in terms of saving money but also spiritually; it brings us all closer and makes our friendship even stronger. The drive along PERFECT roads to Las Vegas took over 12 hours, crossing the states of Utah and Arizona. 3 AM, the lights of Vegas are shimmering ahead, and it was very stuffy even at night. We stayed at the Flamingo hotel; to our surprise, a luxurious suite was very cheap, only 40 dollars a night. The hotel business is simply thriving and flourishing day by day. Las Vegas surprised me more than any other city with its concept. Walking through the City of Sin, you can easily find yourself in London, New York, Paris, Disneyland, Egypt, Greece, and Rome. It is simply an incredible city design that attracts millions of tourists from all over the world. Casinos are a separate topic. Casinos are everywhere; I won't hide it, despite being underage at the time, I tried my luck by playing slots a few times. Result: I lost everything and discovered a new character trait called "gambling addiction." Losing money could have continued until security kicked me out after checking my passport. This situation didn't upset me at all, as that night we were waiting for a concert show by Miss Britney Spears herself. The Princess of Pop has been holding her residency in Vegas for two years now, and her performances are named the most profitable and best shows of the year. The show was top-notch, a storm of emotions overwhelmed me, as I had never seen performances of such scale in my life, and the fact that I saw a real star so close that I could see her in detail was already a huge, fat plus. In the 2 days spent there, I realized that I am in love with this city completely and utterly. Las Vegas is total freedom, night walks, luxurious hotels, a center of entertainment, the good life, beautiful people, a volcano of positivity, and the epicenter of all my surprises and spiritual pleasure.

MBMariia Bardakhanovamashapie · Dec 19, 2014Read

Have you ever thought about going to Alaska? I hadn't. Not until my friend and I started applying for the Work and Travel USA 2014 program. "Why not?" we thought. We had been to Pittsburgh before, but this time we decided to explore the wild expanses of Denali National Park. Easier said than done. Visas obtained, suitcases packed. Ulan-Ude - Moscow - Rome - New York - Anchorage. More than half the world in three days. Many say we went in the wrong direction from the start, claiming we should have moved east instead of west. But what can you do. Anchorage greeted us with midnight coolness, and Delta (the airline) rewarded me with a broken suitcase. I had to carry it in my hands, which was quite difficult, considering my suitcase looked more like a colorful coffin. Taxi, hotel. Kapkugiak Inn. A nice girl at the reception. 10 minutes to midnight, we were as tired as if we had walked half the world. Veronika went to look for a McDonald's to buy us something to eat. I stayed at the hotel to sort out the booking. They couldn't find our money at the hotel. At all! They said no money had been received in the account, and that was that. I cursed everything in the world four times. A groan of despair: "What are we going to do??". The girl was clearly thinking. After a few minutes, a decision was made - to check us in for the night. The manager was supposed to come in the morning and solve our problem. Okay, dragging heavy suitcases to the second floor. Shower and sleep. In the morning, I peel open my heavy, stuck-together eyelids. 8:30 AM. Time to grab all my booking confirmations, map, passport, and go downstairs to find the manager. A tall guy in glasses greets me in a friendly way. He asks what's wrong. I explain the situation, he checks again and says: "We haven't received your money." Stress takes its toll, and I start sniffling, wiping my face with my sleeve. I see a second of confusion on the manager's face. Literally a second later, a hand reaches over the counter and friendly pats me on the head. "We're all human, you know. We won't kick you out on the street, we'll figure out what to do. Go get some rest." I go upstairs. Veronika has a fever. That's all we needed. I run to the store for juice, water, and pizza for breakfast. We eat, we go to sleep. Acclimatization will last a long time. Two out of four days flew by just like that - food, shower, bed. On the evening of the second day, I find a note slipped under the door - "Your payment has gone through, nothing to worry about!" and a cute puppy drawn with a few strokes. Well, thank God. Later I chatted with the same manager, asked about the origins of the hotel's name. It turned out that it came from a legend about a ten-legged polar bear, Kapkugiak. I didn't quite understand what exactly happened in this legend, but in general, at first he was very evil and cruel, but then he was able to become kind. I found it charming. And now for the more informative part! SOME TIPS! Be sure (ABSOLUTELY SURE) to book everything in advance, then everything will be cheaper, easier, and more reliable. When we went to Pittsburgh in 2013, we were green beginners and simply didn't book a hotel upon arrival. As a result, we arrived in Pitt at 2 AM and wandered around the center until 6 AM, tired, with sore feet and aching backs. If problems arise, try to solve them, don't shut down or get shy, as the manager at Kapkugiak said - we're all human, after all. Before arriving, discuss everything (EVERYTHING) with your employer. Avoiding ambiguities and misunderstandings is very, very important. Plus, you will present yourself as a responsible person. However, you don't need to be annoying, well, everyone understands that, I think.

IBIuliia Balchinovafdsapoiuytrewq · Nov 26, 2014Read

P.S. Good day!!!! I want to say that everything I will write below, i.e., in my blog, is the absolute truth. There will be no lies here about how everything in this journey is perfect and wonderful, or conversely, terrible and uninteresting. Noooo... I just want to tell the guys, future participants, what a wonderful chance this is to test yourself, to show what you are capable of far from home, family, and your usual lifestyle, in the epicenter of freedom, unbridled fun, sunsets and sunrises, parties, work, and everything else. Let's go!!!!!! "Everything is new." I didn't choose the title for the page for nothing. In this journey, a lot of things were truly new to me. To start, a little about me. Hehe. My name is Yulia Balchinova, I am from the city of Ulan-Ude, Republic of Buryatia. Yes, yes, it's in Siberia, and yes, it's cold here) Our winters are long and cold, but the sun is always shining. I'm not joking) Our republic is even called Sunny Buryatia. I study at the East-Siberian State University of Technology and Management, and my major is Biotechnology) To be honest, I had been planning a trip to America for a long time. Well, how should I say, planning, or rather, dreaming. It all started with the movie "Titanic," where in the final episodes, after the shipwreck, Rose stands on the deck of the ship that saved her and others, and looks at the Statue of Liberty. It was then that I thought that when I grew up, I would buy a ticket and see the Statue of Liberty with my own eyes. Time passed, and now I am 20 years old and hooray, friends, I am going to America. HOORAY!!!!!!!!!! You can't imagine my emotions, the screams I let out after the phrase: "I approved your visa." And I am not going alone, but with my best friend, who, like me, was obsessed with this idea. So, the suitcase is packed (wrapped in tape), in my hands is a small bag with passports, a guidebook to America, notes in English, and a camera. I am ready. Phew....!! We pick up my friend and rush to the airport. As you yourselves understand, check-in for the Ulan-Ude - Moscow flight, hugs and instructions from parents. I am very glad that my parents let me go to an "unknown land" and supported me in every way throughout my entire stay there:))) 6 hours and we are in the capital of our Motherland - Moscow. This is where the many new events in my life begin. I am in Moscow for the first time, I rode the subway for the first time. Thank God, my cousin lives and studies here, and she gave us a tour. Now a huge number of people won't understand me, but Moscow didn't make a huge impression on me. Maybe because my thoughts were already far across the ocean, in anticipation of the most wonderful summer. Definitely... that's how it was:) 05/22/14, 6:30 a.m., Sheremetyevo Airport. Waiting for the flight to Rome. Yes, our path consisted of three flights: Ulan-Ude - Moscow, Moscow - Rome, Rome - NEW YORK!!). Although we were in Rome for only 2 hours and it was simply impossible to leave the airport, I say with pride that we were in Italy. Haha. Even if just passing through. The Italians are stunning. They are wildly emotional and charismatic. Oh yes, and also very handsome. During those 2 hours, we just ran all over the airport. The thing is, in Sheremetyevo, they didn't give us boarding passes for the Rome - New York flight. It was very difficult to explain this to the airport staff, which is why we were running around. Can you imagine a bunch of students muttering in a language unknown to them (we tried to speak English, but since we were slightly panicked, Russian prevailed). But we managed and happily boarded the "SHIP OF OUR DREAMS," namely, the plane that took us to the land of "freedom." The plane was very comfortable. You could watch movies, concerts, listen to music, and track the flight. The food was delicious. And sitting next to us were 4 Italians. You know, now I want to learn Italian too!:) My friend, who had barely closed her eyes the night before departure, s

ЛЧЛена Чернецоваlena_chernetsova · Sep 24, 2012Read

Rome greets us with the wrought-iron steps of the gangway, the wind, and the sun in our eyes. The voices around us blend into a thick Babylonian porridge. We apply caustic black mascara to our lashes in the WC under the disdainful glares of elderly Italian women, beautiful and wrinkled like overripe apples. —Excuse me, are you Russian? A young, red-haired, blue-eyed girl asks something about charging a netbook in broken Russian with a distinct Romance accent. Wow, someone is happy to see us. It’s very unusual to suddenly start defining yourself inside your head not by gender, social or age group, but by nationality. It doesn't matter what color your hair is or what music is in your headphones — you are part of a huge and complex organism with shared DNA. For some reason, being Russian feels awkward, almost like being naked. Two good-natured, graying gentlemen refer to us as "Swedes." Nope. But it’s nice. We look for Wi-Fi and don't find any. The Roman airport is as huge as a city block. A monorail car shuttles between its three buildings, which are arranged in a ring. To the right, a lonely skyscraper flashes by, topped with the huge letters PRADA. An elderly mustachioed barista works magic over my macchiato, simultaneously delivering an incredibly beautiful and hopelessly incomprehensible monologue to a woman with provocatively bright makeup and a strange surgical device on her leg that looks like a complex leg holster. Dana has declared a hunger strike, Lera doesn't like boys in denim shorts, and a real Roman pigeon is walking on the floor between gates 13 and 12. Two nuns in white habits are munching on chips. Bright images change with almost audible clicks. Nine hours pass like this, and we are about to take off again. Situational Phrasebook: Could you give me one more fork? Fork please. FOOORK! [fɔːrk] - Could I have another fork, please. plug in [plʌg ɪn] - to charge (devices). In some airports, outlets are located right in the floor under flip-up protective plates. free (WiFi) [friː ˈwaɪfaɪ] - free benefits. Something that doesn't exist in the Roman airport. No time to pizza! [nəʊ taɪm tuː ’piːtsə] - Order something else. Boarding time [’bɔːrdɪŋ taɪm] - boarding time. In American (and European) airports, tickets indicate the start time for boarding. In Russian ones, they indicate the takeoff time.

KSKadyr Seitbekovsqadyrb · Dec 22, 2022Read

Why I decided to participate in the program. So, why did I decide to participate in the program? I would like to answer this question by talking about why one should travel, as the Work and Travel program consists of two components: work and travel! One of the most wonderful things a person can do is travel. Travel provides an opportunity to find adventure, satisfies the sense of beauty, and gives a person a sense of control over their environment. Understanding another person's point of view is also useful. Thanks to this, a traveler can gain access to a multitude of different worlds. Adventure is a byproduct of travel, and adventure prevents aging. The mind remains fresh and healthy as long as there is something to look forward to. Thanks to adventure, a creative spirit bubbles within us. They provide the variety and movement we need to avoid becoming stagnant. Nowadays, many of us use television or movies to pass the time when we are bored. Many of us do not participate in real adventures. Adventures can be more exciting than watching TV, which is a pathetic substitute. One of the main motives for travel is the search for beauty. Beautiful tourist spots often attract large crowds of tourists. It is impossible not to be inspired by the beauty of certain places after visiting them during a trip. People communicate while traveling. A person interacts with many people from different cultures and regions, which promotes deep mutual understanding between them. A person with extensive travel experience is more mature and more likely to be able to appreciate the opposite point of view with greater understanding and open-mindedness. After a long trip, a person feels significantly better when they arrive home. Upon returning home, a person begins to enjoy all the comforts, which prevents them from taking anything for granted. Travel makes a person more grounded and realistic because it allows them to stay in touch with reality. The best way to get to know world culture is through travel. I was very lucky that last year I had the opportunity to visit Greece and Italy. Exploring these two stunning countries, I discovered a lot for myself. I learned that there was a brothel in Pompeii, that the name "gymnasium" comes from the Greek word "gymnós," and that the Romans once used the Colosseum's reservoir for naval battles. But it wasn't the guided tour that gave me memories I will cherish for the rest of my days. 1. Expands consciousness Travel broadens horizons because you start observing how other people live, whose lifestyles differ from your own. We get so used to doing things a certain way that we think it's the only way to do things, and that everyone who does things differently is inferior. Travel changes this perception. Travel makes you vulnerable to all kinds of changes, from significant ones like changing religious rituals to minor ones like ordering food. These changes can cause frustration. For example, when you ask for water in Italy, you will almost certainly be brought bottled water and charged for it. Before accepting an order for gelato, you will have to pay. You adapt these changes to your daily activities. You realize that it is okay if someone does something differently than you. Maybe this child doesn't behave like you, doesn't speak like you. Visiting makes you realize that this is normal because there are other human beings in the world who might consider your way of doing things "strange." 2. You will get to know unusual cultures The most pleasant part of traveling is getting to know unique cultures. New food, a new melody, a new language - all of this is so different from ours. One of the features of Roman subculture that I discovered was that they air-dry their clothes. In Kazakhstan, this might seem troublesome to us because we like to do everything quickly. But Italians pay for a lifestyle. Neither right nor wrong. Another exciting factor was how superstitious Italians are. Our tour guide gave us a lesson on ho