Hello Folks

A friend and I are planning to go to America for around 6 months and sample its culture etc. We have not decided as of yet where in America to go to but we would like to work while in the USA and possibly travel to a few different locations.

I would love to meet one or two members of the forum however I don't know if this will be at all possible.

We are currently brainstorming on this issue and the moment and I was hoping for some ideas from members here as to where the best places to go would be, and how easy (or not) it would be to find work etc.

Thanks in advance.

:agent:

Hello Folks

A friend and I are planning to go to America for around 6 months and sample its culture etc. We have not decided as of yet where in America to go to but we would like to work while in the USA and possibly travel to a few different locations.

I would love to meet one or two members of the forum however I don't know if this will be at all possible.

We are currently brainstorming on this issue and the moment and I was hoping for some ideas from members here as to where the best places to go would be, and how easy (or not) it would be to find work etc.

Thanks in advance.

:agent:

Don't want to discourage you on finding a job but unemployment is fairly high right now, Rob. Up over 5 percent. Also, I'm not really familiar with government regulations but possibly you may need what over here is called a "green card", which is essentially a permit for a non-citizen to work.

As for places to see, there are no shortage of those. If at all possible, try to see the Grand Canyon in Arizona, Rob. That's one of the most awe-inspiring sights on Earth, I think. Also, try to visit the Riverwalk in San Antonio, TX. (and while there, you can see the Alamo). San Francisco is a beautiful city and before Hurricane Katrina, so was New Orleans, though I don't know what it looks like now. Miami is a nice city to visit, as is Washington, DC. And I personally like Chicago instead of New York when visiting a large city.

A word of caution, though. Please be careful about where you wander, especially in the cities. Because if you get into the wrong neighborhoods, it can be dangerous. Try to stay around crowds of other, decent-looking people and you should have no problems. If you find yourself down on the Mexican border, think twice about crossing into Juarez or Tijuana as the drug gangs are constantly warring with each other. Don't get caught in the crossfire.

Oh, one other thing, Rob. Except for the larger cities, most areas of America have hardly any mass transit, such as trains and/or buses. If you have, or can get, an international driver's license, it might be a good idea to rent a car and drive.

Have a good visit, Rob.

Don't want to discourage you on finding a job but unemployment is fairly high right now, Rob. Up over 5 percent. Also, I'm not really familiar with government regulations but possibly you may need what over here is called a "green card", which is essentially a permit for a non-citizen to work.

As for places to see, there are no shortage of those. If at all possible, try to see the Grand Canyon in Arizona, Rob. That's one of the most awe-inspiring sights on Earth, I think. Also, try to visit the Riverwalk in San Antonio, TX. (and while there, you can see the Alamo). San Francisco is a beautiful city and before Hurricane Katrina, so was New Orleans, though I don't know what it looks like now. Miami is a nice city to visit, as is Washington, DC. And I personally like Chicago instead of New York when visiting a large city.

A word of caution, though. Please be careful about where you wander, especially in the cities. Because if you get into the wrong neighborhoods, it can be dangerous. Try to stay around crowds of other, decent-looking people and you should have no problems. If you find yourself down on the Mexican border, think twice about crossing into Juarez or Tijuana as the drug gangs are constantly warring with each other. Don't get caught in the crossfire.

Oh, one other thing, Rob. Except for the larger cities, most areas of America have hardly any mass transit, such as trains and/or buses. If you have, or can get, an international driver's license, it might be a good idea to rent a car and drive.

Have a good visit, Rob.

Thanks Jim, some great feedback, I've heard about the 'green card' necessity for working, I will need to look into this as I don't think I could afford to live for 6 months in the US if I had no income at all coming in. As you mentioned it may be difficult to find a job due to the credit crunch but hopefully I can find something.

:agent:

Robbie,

Glad you will visit the U.S. There is so much to see, and Stumpy/Jim gave some great suggestions. New Orleans is a great place and I think you would enjoy it. The tourist area is fine, it was not effected by the flood. Most of the damage was in the 9th Ward away from the French Quarter. I would also recommend Bill's place in Arizona and Monument Valley.


This really depends on you and your friend's taste. If you are looking for a party scene then the west coast is your place or Miami. If you like to sight see, then Civil War areas in the South is also great. Washington D.C. is a museum paradise. If landmarks is of some interest then virtually the whole country is a great choice. If interested in American sports, then Chicago is a great place to see.

There is so much to see that I want to get and see them myself. Tell us what you like.

Cheers :cool: Mike

Yeah if it's country you want to see then I would recommend, Yellowstone (http://www.yellowstone.net/), Yosemite (http://www.yosemitepark.com/), and the Grand Canyon (http://www.thecanyon.com/) (ok not coast but west). These are all west coast but have a lot of other things to see close by.

If it's people you want to see, San Francisco, Ca. (http://www.onlyinsanfrancisco.com/) is nice, I hate Los Angels, Ca. , stay away from Houston, Texas. Austin, Tx (http://www.austintexas.org/) is also very nice and close to San Antonio.
All the other cities I know are either small or it's been so long since I have been to them I couldn't tell you what they are like.

As far as work, there are always jobs... it just depends on what you are willing to do... Fast food (McDonald's, Jack in the box and the like) places are always looking for people....

Robbie - visitors always tell us that San Antonio is a great place to visit, especially 'cause us locals are so friendly. Colleges always vie for coming to our Alamo Bowl in December because they are always treated royally.
Now I've thrown in my two cents worth!:teeth_smile:
Cheers - Jay:beer:

I'd suggest coming to Corpus Christi, but there really aint anything worth seeing here w/ the exception of taking a tour of the Columbus Ships, and a drive down Ocean Drive. Other than that, we have nothing much to offer no thanks to ex-mayor loyd neal-who is now the County Judge and is responsible for our area losing some 9,000 much needed jobs.

Sounds as if the Big Easy (http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/travel/5847079.html) is resurrecting itself, Rob. If you manage to make it over, I strongly recommend you visit there - it's one of the most fun cities in America. Sit in Jackson Square on a Sunday afternoon, watch the people pass and enjoy some great free Dixieland jazz. San Antonio, New Orleans and San Francisco are my three favorite American cities, by far.

Robbie,

I'm not sure what happened - I know I typed a fairly lengthy reply hours after you started this thread, but obviously got distracted and never hit the "Submit Reply" button :headbonk: !

First of all, if you make it to San Francisco, that is close enough to us that we would make the effort to get together with you and meet face to face. San Francisco is a beautiful city, and the surrounding area has much to offer. Within just a few hours of SF are - Yosemite National Park (incredibly beautiful!), Lake Tahoe, a drive along the coast either north or south along Highway 1 (very scenic), just to name a few.

Check in with DukePilgrim in a couple of weeks. He should be back from his trip to New York City, and will be able to tell you plenty. Of course on the east coast of the US, you can also see Washington, DC and points south, or go north into New England. Depending on what time of year you visit, there are seasonal attractions. In the fall, the autumn colors are so astounding in some places that there are tours to take advantage of the beauty of it all. If you ski, there's Colorado, or places in New England, or in the west, areas around Lake Tahoe (beautiful summer or winter!).

If you are renting a car, you have plenty of opportunities to go wherever you desire. Maybe a stop in Winterset?? As someone mentioned, Arizona and a trip to the Grand Canyon and Monument Valley would give you memories of a lifetime.

Looking forward to meeting face to face,

Mrs. C :angel1:

Come on down to East Tennessee, ESPECIALLY if you can get here during the fall. The colors in the Smoky Mountains are stunning and on Saturday afternoon/evening you can see a college football game in a stadium that is bigger than most NFL stadiums and actually holds more people than live in Knoxville, Neyland Stadium. Just up in Clinton is the Museum of Appalachia where you can see how the hill people lived years ago, and WDVX (the local Americana station) usually sponsors Bluegrass music somewhere. Plenty to see and do here, and our cost of living is a lot lower than other places.


Almost forgot: the only State with more Civil War battlefields is Virginia.

I have talked to a few people from overseas, on vacation here, that had no clue how far apart things are here, so that's another thing to take into consideration.

I'll use San Francisco as my starting point as it's only about about 70 miles from me.

San Francisco, Ca. to San Antonio, TX. : 1, 733.78 miles

San Francisco, Ca. to Grand Canyon National Park, AZ.: 791.70 miles

San Francisco, Ca. to Yosemite National Park, Ca. : 191.46 miles

San Francisco, Ca. to Yellowstone National Park, WY. : 946.86 miles

San Francisco, Ca. to Los Angeles, Ca. : 382.92 miles

I hope this helps you with your planing...

I have talked to a few people from overseas, on vacation here, that had no clue how far apart things are here,

You got that right........my wife's cousin and her son came to visit us 2 or 3 years ago from Germany and we took them around a bit to see a few things, like Big D and the Cowboy Hall of Fame in OKC.

They couldn't believe how far we had to drive to see those two places and they're both only about a hundred miles from where I live in North Texas. I told them they hadn't seen any distances yet; that if we had driven out to California or to the East Coast, it would be 12 or 13 hundred miles and take at least two days of almost non-stop driving.