Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Im flying home from The Netherlands and was given a street sign as a gift (a real one) can I check this item?
Im flying home from The Netherlands and was given a street sign as a gift (a real one) can I check this item?
I was given a street sign from friends from The Netherlands while I am here studying. I would like to bring this home with me but not mail it home since it will cost a lot and Im a student who doesnt have a lot of money laying around. If I were to check this item and put it in my suitcase with my clothes and all would security both in The Netherlands and the US be ok with this? I just dont want this being taken and me loosing it. If anything I will just mail it but I want to avoid this.
Netherlands - 6 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
that would be government property. I wouln't chance bringin that thru customs dude
2 :
If I were you, I would call the airports you will be going through. Ask them! That way you have an answer from the source that would be more reliable than any answers you get here. If you don't want to do that, then I would just mail it to be safe. If it's worth the money to mail it, then you don't want to risk having it taken away. (Isn't it illegal to have street signs after all? They might not like it if you have one and they think it was stolen.)
3 :
Sure, we have no objection at all to people removing our street signs and taking them to foreign countries as souvenirs, what else are they good for anyway... And you came to our country to study what exactly? Chemistry? Maybe you should be more careful about inhaling fumes or something...
4 :
If you check the bag in, you'll be okay unless security does a random check or a check after they xray the bag. In which case, they will take it. So, the mail is a less risky way of losing it. I've had my bags searched, especially when you come back into the U.S.
5 :
There are legal ways to acquire street signs, if your friend got you the sign in a legal way, he might be able to give you the proof of that. With that you can take it in your luggage, just paste a copy of the proof on the sign if it is in checked luggage. Mostly the checks out of view are safety checks, those will not worry about an item being legal or not, but just in case. Upon entry into the USA you can be asked to open up your bags, this is after you pick them up, but before you leave the airport. There might be awkward questions, but if you are sure the sign is legal, or are willing to take the risk, why not. Sending it by mail you would run the same risks, as mail is scanned too, and often opened if something strange is seen. And you will not be there to talk your way out of it, unlike at the airport. I would put it in my check-in bag, and try not to worry about it. Just do not make the bag overweight with it, that would make you open the bag before check-in and then there will also be awkward questions........
6 :
Just put it in your luggage. They have to go over all sorts of items. This is not a dangerous item and it is possible to acquire a legal one. They will not bother you with your traffic sign.
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Wednesday, May 14, 2014
whats the best country to be in exchange student in as a 17 year old american guy?
whats the best country to be in exchange student in as a 17 year old american guy?
my choices are Argentina Australia Austria Belgium Brazil Bulgaria Denmark Egypt Finland Germany Ghana Greece Hungary India Japan Korea Netherlands Norway Poland Romania Russia Slovakia South Africa Spain Sweden Switzerland Thailand Turkey Uruguay . criteria is i want freedom, cool girls, and to be able to communicate in english without having to only speak small talk.
Studying Abroad - 4 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
I was a 17 year old guy in Switzerland and had a GREAT time. Almost everyone speaks English, plus several other languages. The country was beautiful, and the Swiss are very liberal with their young adults. I was there for the whole year, so I did have to function in German, but it wasn't required. Good luck with your choices...
2 :
you picked a lot of countries where you can't really get on just speaking english! japan and uruguay? thailand? brazil? lol... you'd definitely need to learn the language, either because english isn't all that common there, or because they don't care to use it and would rather use their own language (ie japan)!! i say don't worry so much about the language part... if you're going to study abroad for any worthwhile amount of time, you'll be able to pick up a language there and do fine. i did it! and it will look great on college apps if this is what you're doing before college. but otherwise, if you really want to be able to speak english all the time and more than just small talk, you've significantly narrowed down the number of countries you could study in. oh, and all countries have "cool girls," so i guess that depends on what you mean by cool? as in they go out and party? or they're intelligent and beautiful and you can pick them up on campus? and a huge part of study abroad IS freedom... however if you will be underage when you go, the rules may be different for you, for example if you're still in high school... so you'll have to check with the programs you're interested in and ask about that to know for sure. check out ciee.org for some good programs.
3 :
Most European countries have good English programs. Of course it varies (if you look at your foreign language class, I'm sure some kids do quite well and others can barely say a sntence, even thought they ahve taken the same classes). I am on exchange in Germany and when I arrived, I felt everyone spoke really good English. Then I realized everyone speaks English and a few people speak good English -- and it's the ones with good English who talked to me in English. The others COULD speak English, but were not very good and were quite nervous about speaking to a native English speaker (once I assured them all that my part of Canada does not speak French -- Germans know Canada speaks French and English but many haven't got much of an idea as to WHERE). However, that said, I have several friends from South America who speak English fluently. Not PERFECTLY, but I can talk to them just like I talk to native English speakers. Their mistakes are only little things, like saying 'swimmed' instead of 'swam' now and then. But a foreign exchange isn't about speaking English in a non-English speaking country. It's about learning a new language; a lot of programs will not be happy if you are not learning the language. It's okay to speak English at the start (I would have no friends if I no one had spoken English to me), but one of the huge points of exchange is to learn a language if you go to a country where the language is not your native one. I was sort of not-dating this guy and while most of the reason for our not-break up was other stuff, part of it was he spoke English to me, and how was I supposed to learn any German if I started dating a guy who spoke English to me? But I digress. South America is good for partying. Europe too, but a different culture. Funny enough, I feel like the 'Canadian' parties I went to seem 'wild' here, when they were just normal parties. But Germans don't do the 'liquor in one hand, chase in the other, out at night around a bonfire (or in a house in winter) with the smell of weed in the air' thing. It took me awhile to get that when I went to a 'party' with someone, I should not except something at a house or anything, but rather something where ID is checked, money to get in is paid, there's a DJ, and drinks are sold (kinda like a school dance, minus teachers/rules and with alcohol). Plus all the girls get dressed to kill and put on their most uncomfy shoes. It's fun, but different from home. And as an exchange student, it's not hard to get attention. I'm a girl so I guess it's different, but I end up getting a lot of free drinks -- which is cool with me! Freedom is going to depend on where you live (is it safe? can you get around easily?) and your family (do they have strict rules?) and to a smaller degree, your program. I am with Rotary and some of my friends nearby are not allowed to go to Köln (Cologne) for Karneval* because it's "too dangerous". (* Basically 5 days of drinking in costumes, as I understand it, and apparently a very very big deal as people have been mentioning it since I arrived here. They all put on "poor you" faces when i say we don't have it in Canada.)
4 :
If you want something completely different from back home, go to Ghana. English is the official language but when will you ever have an opportunity to live with an African family? Ghana is a beautiful country with great beaches, and stunning nature with lots of big animals - elephants, hippos, lions, leopards, many types of monkeys and birds. Plus any family that can take in a student is going to be a wealthy family so you wont be living in a hut with no toilet, youll probably have maids and drivers and cooks. And Ghanaian girls are gorgeous. India would also be very interesting. You could go to Europe at any time but somewhere like India or Ghana would really be a change
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my choices are Argentina Australia Austria Belgium Brazil Bulgaria Denmark Egypt Finland Germany Ghana Greece Hungary India Japan Korea Netherlands Norway Poland Romania Russia Slovakia South Africa Spain Sweden Switzerland Thailand Turkey Uruguay . criteria is i want freedom, cool girls, and to be able to communicate in english without having to only speak small talk.
Studying Abroad - 4 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
I was a 17 year old guy in Switzerland and had a GREAT time. Almost everyone speaks English, plus several other languages. The country was beautiful, and the Swiss are very liberal with their young adults. I was there for the whole year, so I did have to function in German, but it wasn't required. Good luck with your choices...
2 :
you picked a lot of countries where you can't really get on just speaking english! japan and uruguay? thailand? brazil? lol... you'd definitely need to learn the language, either because english isn't all that common there, or because they don't care to use it and would rather use their own language (ie japan)!! i say don't worry so much about the language part... if you're going to study abroad for any worthwhile amount of time, you'll be able to pick up a language there and do fine. i did it! and it will look great on college apps if this is what you're doing before college. but otherwise, if you really want to be able to speak english all the time and more than just small talk, you've significantly narrowed down the number of countries you could study in. oh, and all countries have "cool girls," so i guess that depends on what you mean by cool? as in they go out and party? or they're intelligent and beautiful and you can pick them up on campus? and a huge part of study abroad IS freedom... however if you will be underage when you go, the rules may be different for you, for example if you're still in high school... so you'll have to check with the programs you're interested in and ask about that to know for sure. check out ciee.org for some good programs.
3 :
Most European countries have good English programs. Of course it varies (if you look at your foreign language class, I'm sure some kids do quite well and others can barely say a sntence, even thought they ahve taken the same classes). I am on exchange in Germany and when I arrived, I felt everyone spoke really good English. Then I realized everyone speaks English and a few people speak good English -- and it's the ones with good English who talked to me in English. The others COULD speak English, but were not very good and were quite nervous about speaking to a native English speaker (once I assured them all that my part of Canada does not speak French -- Germans know Canada speaks French and English but many haven't got much of an idea as to WHERE). However, that said, I have several friends from South America who speak English fluently. Not PERFECTLY, but I can talk to them just like I talk to native English speakers. Their mistakes are only little things, like saying 'swimmed' instead of 'swam' now and then. But a foreign exchange isn't about speaking English in a non-English speaking country. It's about learning a new language; a lot of programs will not be happy if you are not learning the language. It's okay to speak English at the start (I would have no friends if I no one had spoken English to me), but one of the huge points of exchange is to learn a language if you go to a country where the language is not your native one. I was sort of not-dating this guy and while most of the reason for our not-break up was other stuff, part of it was he spoke English to me, and how was I supposed to learn any German if I started dating a guy who spoke English to me? But I digress. South America is good for partying. Europe too, but a different culture. Funny enough, I feel like the 'Canadian' parties I went to seem 'wild' here, when they were just normal parties. But Germans don't do the 'liquor in one hand, chase in the other, out at night around a bonfire (or in a house in winter) with the smell of weed in the air' thing. It took me awhile to get that when I went to a 'party' with someone, I should not except something at a house or anything, but rather something where ID is checked, money to get in is paid, there's a DJ, and drinks are sold (kinda like a school dance, minus teachers/rules and with alcohol). Plus all the girls get dressed to kill and put on their most uncomfy shoes. It's fun, but different from home. And as an exchange student, it's not hard to get attention. I'm a girl so I guess it's different, but I end up getting a lot of free drinks -- which is cool with me! Freedom is going to depend on where you live (is it safe? can you get around easily?) and your family (do they have strict rules?) and to a smaller degree, your program. I am with Rotary and some of my friends nearby are not allowed to go to Köln (Cologne) for Karneval* because it's "too dangerous". (* Basically 5 days of drinking in costumes, as I understand it, and apparently a very very big deal as people have been mentioning it since I arrived here. They all put on "poor you" faces when i say we don't have it in Canada.)
4 :
If you want something completely different from back home, go to Ghana. English is the official language but when will you ever have an opportunity to live with an African family? Ghana is a beautiful country with great beaches, and stunning nature with lots of big animals - elephants, hippos, lions, leopards, many types of monkeys and birds. Plus any family that can take in a student is going to be a wealthy family so you wont be living in a hut with no toilet, youll probably have maids and drivers and cooks. And Ghanaian girls are gorgeous. India would also be very interesting. You could go to Europe at any time but somewhere like India or Ghana would really be a change
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Wednesday, May 7, 2014
USA, Belgium or the Netherlands? maybe somewhere else? (where should I go on my exchange year)?
USA, Belgium or the Netherlands? maybe somewhere else? (where should I go on my exchange year)?
Hello! I'm 15 years old girl from Latvia (Europe) and I'm planning to spend one high school year as an exchange student abroad. I have to start the application process on September this year, but I dunno where to go.. I'm thinking about the USA, Belgium or the Netherlands, but I'm not sure about my choice, maybe finally I'll find myself in a tottaly different country, hah :) I'm able to speak english and a little bit russian, but I'm opened to learn a new language, I just would like to start learning a bit earlier, so it would be nice to choose earlier than on September. But anyway I believe that you could have an amazing exchange in every country. I think I'll go on exchange with YFU and these are my opportunities: (I'm not interested exchange in Asia, so I didn't write it here) Argentina Australia Austria Belgium Brazil Canada Chile Denmark Ecuador France Finland Germany Hungary Netherlands Norway New Zealand Sweden Switzerland Venezuela Help me please with my choice, tell where you'd go! :) Thank You!
Studying Abroad - 2 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
I would definitely go to the USA. Netherlands and Belgium are both pretty close to Latvia, and I think it's way cooler to go oversea / to a different continent!
2 :
New Zealand for sure.
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Thursday, May 1, 2014
US/NETHERLANDS VISA Question(someone who specializes,preferably)?
US/NETHERLANDS VISA Question(someone who specializes,preferably)?
My fiance lives in the Netherlands. I am a U.S citizen. I want to move there with my teenager. My teen would have to finish the school term in the Dutch countries. Our passports are only good for 90day visitation. How can I go and stay? I would already have a residence seeing as I would be living with my fiance. I would even be willing to register and go for schooling, if it meant that would prolong my stay to make things work out for a form of citizenship.B/c as I see it, I can't go as a tourist if I want to go to school and have my youth to go to school? Can I become a student and apply for some type of stay, which would allow my youth to be there and attend school, meanwhile apply for permanent residency? ** I already know that if he has an income he can use that as a guarantor that I can come and stay.....but I can't have him show he can fully support me(though he can through his skill of hands), b/c he has a non-profit foundation. And any other money is unsteadily made through his artistry. Can anyone who has experience with this offer help or links to someone who can help me? Truly thank you for reading this, and thanks to any replies in advance!
Netherlands - 2 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
I think you should visit this site: http://www.ind.nl/en/index.asp It's the dutch immigration website.
2 :
Ok, basically you need to arrange a visa in advance of coming to NL. Yes you can come here for 90 days as a tourist under the visa waiver program, but what you can't do is to come over as a tourist and then apply to stay for a residence permit. Regarding the student visa - of course you can apply for this, but it means that (a) you would still have to show financial support for the duration of the course and (more importantly for you) (b) a student visa is a temporary visa for the duraton of the course - no rights towards a residence permit or citizenship are able to be claimed from this period of time. You would still have to return home and apply for a visa in the same way you would do now. The IND site is the best one to get the info. There is a wizard to take you through the steps here http://www.ind.nl/EN/verblijfwijzer/, and a brochure with more info here http://www.ind.nl/en/Images/VIN_ENG_0806_tcm6-595.pdf As I understand it, someone who is not on a regular income e.g. self employed is still able to act as a sponsor but it will depend on the level of income coming in. If you were to apply for a visa as a dependant of him, he would need to act as this sponsor fully. Otherwise your only other routes are as a 'highly skilled' migrant, self-employed (owning your own business in NL) or sponsored by a company. None of these are easy prospects at all (but again you can read about it on the IND site) To obtain more info you can contact the Dutch embassy in the US, but what I would do is to have your fiance call the IND direct. There is a lotmore info about this online in Dutch than there is in Englsh. Plus he could make a call in Dutch cheaper and easier than if you call them from the US. Alternatively you can check this site - in the forums (written by expats for expats) there are sections for Americans and also for immigration/visa issues. You have more chance to find someone with a "been there, done there" story to help you more http://www.expatica.com/nl/main.htmlI wish you much luck eitherway.
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