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Evadez-vous avec Ryanair

Ryanair[1]

Avec les beaux jours qui reviennent, on a tous envie d’évasion, de voir de nouveaux horizons, et de relaxation. Grâce aux compagnies low cost telles que Ryanair, il est maintenant possible de parcourir l’Europe à moindre coût. J’ai testé un vol Paris Beauvais –Pise (Italie) avec Ryanair.

 

Ryanair, pour ceux qui ne connaissent pas encore, c’est une compagnie low cost qui dessert un peu toute l’Europe à des prix défiant toute concurrence. Le seul hic c’est que tous les avions décollent de Beauvais, à 90 kms environ de Paris, soit 1h15 de voiture. Pour les plus chanceux habitant dans le Val d’Oise il vous faudra environ 50 min pour vous y rendre ; ce qui n’est pas pire que d’aller à Orly finalement. En plus il existe une navette qui part de Paris Porte Maillot et vous emmène à l’aéroport de Beauvais-Tillé pour 14€ le trajet.

 

L’aéroport de Beauvais est vraiment tout petit ! Ce n’est pas la peine d’arriver trop en avance, il n’y a pas grand-chose à faire, et les queues pour l’enregistrement ne sont pas très longues. Je suis passée deux fois par cet aéroport et j’ai eu à attendre au maximum 10 min. Comme dans tout aéroport vous aurez droit aux rayons X. Puis vous passerez directement dans la salle d’embarquement, où il n’y a qu’un magasin et un snack. Ryanair se dit être la compagnie la plus ponctuelle … avec 45 min de retard, je dirais quand même peut mieux faire. Mais bon, Ryanair c’est quand même THE bon plan pour les petits budgets, alors on garde le sourire. Le confort des avions est minimal, mais en général les durées de vol ne sont pas énormes et c’est largement suffisant. C’est peut-être un peu embêtant de ne même pas pouvoir incliner son siège, pour dormir par contre, mais en contrepartie on peut s’assoir où on veut. Prévoyez de quoi manger si vous volez aux heures de repas parce que tout est payant à bord.

Ryanair Boeing 

Après un petit somme nous voilà déjà priés d’attacher nos ceintures car nous entamons la descente. Après seulement  1h30 de vol, nous voilà déjà en Italie!

 

Mais petit retour en arrière. Avant tout ça vous serez passés par le site de Ryanair ou par le moteur de recherche de Gullivearth . Pour bénéficier des bons plans il faut évidemment éviter les weekends importants,  et les vacances scolaires. Et puis il faut s’y prendre un peu à l’avance, car en quelques jours les prix peuvent doubler. Il y a vraiment des prix incroyables sur Ryanair et des offres promotionnelles très intéressantes toute l’année. Il est possible de trouver des allers-retours Paris Beauvais-Alicante pour 25€ toutes taxes comprises. Pour moins de 50€ aller-retour il est possible d’aller à Pise.

 

Si vous ne partez que pour quelques jours, n’emmenez qu’un bagage à main, ce qui évite de payer un supplément, et l’enregistrement se fait directement en ligne. Mais il faut bien faire attention à n’avoir qu’un seul et unique bagage à main. Non votre sac à main n’est pas un élément si indispensable qu’il n’est pas compté comme bagage à main. Le personnel est très pointilleux à ce sujet là, donc prévoyez de la place dans votre valise de cabine. Ce bagage ne doit pas dépasser 10kgs et avoir des dimensions maximum de 40×30x20 cm. Le truc un peu chiant aussi est qu’au moment de payer son billet d’avion par carte bleue sur le site, suivant la carte que vous avez, Ryanair ajoutera une taxe. L’assurance ne sert pas à grand chose parce qu’en général il faut payer plus cher pour changer la date que le prix du billet lui-même ; c’est pareil pour l’embarquement prioritaire. Les gens se précipitent devant les bureaux d’embarquement et il faut jouer des coudes pour faire valoir ses 4€ de supplément !

 

Au final, il faut faire attention à tous les suppléments potentiels, prendre en compte le trajet pour se rendre à l’aéroport, le parking si jamais vous n’avez pas d’autre moyen de vous y rendre, et comparer différentes dates pour avoir les meilleurs prix. Mais dans l’ensemble Ryanair reste quand même un bon plan non négligeable.

 

Espagne, Portugal, Royaume Uni, Suède, Sicile, Italie, Slovaquie, Lituanie, Norvège, France … L’Europe est à portée de main avec Ryanair.

 

Florence M.

Etudiant…oui! Mais j’en ai marre des sandwichs!

Vous êtes  étudiants ou vous l’avez été, vous avez des souvenirs assez désagréables des pauses déjeuners de 20 minutes et des sandwichs infames qui les accompagnaient! Voilà un article qui traite des alternatives possibles….bien pour le goût, bien pour le corps (ou pas)!

Tout d’abord, les pasta sodebo! Nouveau concept sorti en juillet dernier. L’enseigne sodebo, principalement connue pour ses pizzas et sandwichs au rayon frais, se lance dans les pâtes, il s’agit donc d’une espèce de cornet contenant… des pâtes a réchauffer au micro onde (2mn) et une fourchette en plastique (solide pour une fois)!

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Le verdict:

  • le prix:  3,50 euros  pour 250 grammes….autant vous dire que ça remplit pas beaucoup pour le prix! On restera tout de même tolérant car c’est avant tout  assez pratique et c’est assez agréable de manger un petit plat chaud. Je vous conseille d’accompagner ça d’une salade et d’un dessert (un fruit pour les plus intéressé par le coté « bien dans son corps »)
  • le goût: C’est la bonne surprise de notre crash test « sodebo ». Les tortelini Ricotta Epinards sauce au parmesan ont vraiment du gout! On aurait presque du plaisir a les manger! Je n’ai pas eu l’occasion de gouter les autres mais je vous tiens au courant le plus vite possible….Pasta Jo a votre service!

Passons au concurrent! Lustucru a lancé récemment sa Lunch Box qui se compose de 6 plats de pâtes différents…Ummmh, Lustrucu vient défier Sodebo sur un marché qu’elle connait bien! Florence a eu la chance de gouter la lunch Box…Quel sera son verdict?

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Et bien finalement, Florence a goûté et Florence dit OUI! C’est vraiment pratique d’avoir ça dans son frigo pour les soirs où on n’a pas du tout envie de cuisiner. Parce que oui, Florence a du courage, elle se prépare des petits plats tous les soirs pour ses repas de midi du lendemain.

C’est simple à trouver (présent dans tous les supermarchés). On peut donc les acheter en allant faire ses courses pour la semaine. C’est le petit joker de la flemme. Et en plus c’est bon!

Les serpentini tomate mozza basilic, un régal, une explosion de saveurs. Un petit bémol par contre pour les tortellini à la carbonara, une offense à la cuisine italienne! Si vous n’avez jamais goûté de la vrai carbonara préparée par la mama italienne, pas de problème, mais sinon, abstenez vous …

Verdict: ça sauve et c’est bon, mais peut-être un petit peu cher!

Conclusion:

Florence et moi même sommes ravis de vous dire que les pâtes ont bien le potentiel de remplacer le sandwich dans les cafet’…nous sommes pas loin de la révolution de la pâte! Seul bémol…un prix élevé pour une petite portion…attendons que les prix baissent…

Locations around the world that are stranger than your imagination – Part 2

The Grand Prismatic Spring, USA

Here is another classic example of a US Natural Wonder making us convinced we’ve accidentally taken Acid or at least some foreign desert Peyote. Is this God just splotching around with his magic paintbrush or is this rich oozing color just something that could have happened any old millennia? This 300 feet / 91 meter wide and 160 feet / 49 meter deep hot spring originally described as a “boiling lake” comes from Yellowstone National Park and sits alongside a 50 foot / 15 meter geyser. From a distance this could be described as a huge earthy pimple. The picture reveals its colossal size. See that grey tubing alongside it? That’s the highway with a little speck of a bus riding along. The reason the coloring looks so rich is because of the surrounding bacteria and microbes which become pigmented while coexisting with the mineral water for long periods of time. The spring boils at a scintillating temperature of 160° F/71° C daily.


City Eating Earth Vortex? Mirny, Russia

Known as the second largest hole in the world, only second to George Bush (the biggest asshole in the world). What either looks like a neighborhood destroying vacuum/vortex wormhole, a gap in space and time leading to another dimension, or that monster from Return of the Jedi that Jabba attempts to feed Luke to, is actually just a really deep and foreboding looking diamond mine. Although the all destroying vortex theory is not far off. The giant thing has been known to actually prey on helpless helicopters who get sucked in to all of its 525 meter depth by the downward draft, propelling them to their eminent doom.

The Sedlac Osuary, Czech Republic


We should change the title of our article to “10 Locations stranger than your imagination and also scarier than your worst nightmares… or at least that one movie: Jeepers Creepers 2.” But to save ourselves from a mouthful we only have this one single church of terror on the list. It’s a sanctuary fully decorated with human Bones, complete with bone chandelier and all! But you must be wondering: Why would anyone actually create something that sounds like the twisted mansion out of an obvious plot twist from a slasher flick? Apparently the reason is: there were just too many extra bones lying around in this former graveyard site. So many, in fact, that there wasn’t enough room in the earth to contain them all. So what better way to solve a space problem and celebrate the dead than turning them into religious architecture and furnishings? All the while attracting plenty of tourists looking with a reason to travel to the Czech Republic (for reasons other than buying cheap beer and absinthe of course). That’s killing three birds with one stone (or with thousands of skulls, whichever way you like)! The Republic of Czech offers no rest for the dead indeed in their Boney Church.

Locations around the world that are stranger than your imagination – Part 1

Hello true believers, boys and girls, ladies and gentlemen. Today, Gullivearth would like to proudly present an exploration into the unrealistic reality of the world. We want to help you discover some of the craziest travel destinations you might not believe are real, but honestly are. In doing so, we hope to re-inspire your already awakening thirst for travel. Read on and try not to blow your mind.

Giant Crystal Cave, Mexico

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Yes, this awesome crystal cavern is real. Yes, it looks like something out of your fantasy video game RPG. No, Superman was not actually born here. If you’ve ever been to the abode of a collecting hippie you might have seen one of these stalagmite crystals about as large as your arm standing upright and claiming to offer healing power. But if those proportionately tiny crystals can heal at all, we imagine standing in this Cave for ten seconds alone would vaporize your cancer like those kids on the swing set during the opening scene of Terminator 2. They had to drain the water from this cave under Niaca Mountain to reach it but now if you go and see it, it might be one of the most beautiful things you’ll ever find. As you can see, some of these crystals are over an enormous 40 feet long.

Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia

If you’re thinking this picture is a fake: you are wrong! If you’re thinking the man in this picture has died and gone to heaven, you’re probably right. Either that or this is the place that Belinda Carlisle was singing about in her hit 80’s smash, “Ooh Heaven is a place on Earth.” This divine looking locale can be found on an enormous salt flat in South America. It is essentially a group of transformed lakes now extremely dense. It also happens to be the coolest photo op ever. It is the largest salt flat in the world measuring a colossal 10,500 square kilometers.  When it’s covered in water it looks like the picture above. Amazingly, it also makes any average Joe Shmoe moseying along with a nonchalant stroll look like he’s Jesus with the ability to walk on water.


The Wave, Arizona USA

The only surfing you’ll be doing in Arizona is on these sandstone earthy rock formations straight from the Jurassic age. They look like an acid trip and might even be perceived as one on the right day (which would be only natural from the heat exhaustion after the necessary 10 km hike in the scorching Arizona desert).  A natural combination of the original sand dunes solidifying, calcifying, and eroding has given these “waves” their spectacular look. They only let 20 people enter the grounds per day who are given a permit from the Bureau of Land Management. So seeing them in person may be more difficult than reserving a table for two at the top of the Eiffel Tower.

So you want to get married ?

In this constantly expanding universe of space and information people around the world have more opportunities to take advantage of the entire globe around them. Getting married anywhere in the world is one of these many perks that we can now easily or not so easily take advantage of. Every country has different laws, different customs, and different practices. But ladies and gentlemen, future brides and grooms, where is the right place for you? Luckily Gullivearth is back on the trail again, sniffing out the best places to get your life long ties tied on right and tight. This article can be used just for fun or as an index of cultural similarity and dissimilarity. Maybe now, next time you’re chatting or mailing a guy/girl on eharmony/match/friendfinder.com you’ll really consider the country their coming from significant.

Age limits are an interesting topic highly debated between societal standards. If you don’t make the cut you are doomed to forever receive downward sloping lip formations the rest of your life, unless of course you’re a character out of the Old Testament or other practicing religions, then it’s all good. The modern world typically demands a legal age of 18, and everything younger is deemed as strange or even repulsive, however in the Islam tradition, girls only need to be nine years old before they “walk down (or possibly skip with a lollipop through) the isle.” Judaism says that a boy can marry when he is 13 so long as he has the hair down there to prove he’s ready. Which goes to show the age old saying: “If there’s grass on the field, then let’s play ball” is probably a reference to ancient Herbrew scripture.

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The typical Islam household

However, much to the chagrin of extreme religious purists and pedophiles alike, marriage at such a young age isn’t legal in any government or state. Were guessing the constitution struck this right off their freedom of religion amendment somewhere between having multiple wives and burning your daughter in the name of the Lord (Leviticus 21:9) (Judges 11:29-40).

It is also interesting to note that in many societies, legal age is commonly younger for females than males, but never the other way around. For example, in Madagascar you must be 17 to marry but only 14 if you’re female. In India you must be 21 or only 18 if you’re a female. In Czech Republic you must be 18 or 16 if you’re a pregnant female. The youngest we found was in South Africa where traditional marriages can be performed for boys/men at the age of 14 and girls/women at the age of 12. We’re going to guess this has something to do with average biological maturation processes in which girls blossom faster than guys. Although, getting knocked up without religious approval also probably has something to do with it. For example, in the US state Pennsylvania. Marriage can be done at 18 legally or at 16 with court approval, but even at 14 if the female is pregnant. Mexico also accepts the age of 14 if the female is pregnant.

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No laws have yet been created for this scenario

Interestingly enough, in the Govenator’s Golden state, there is no legal age limit so long as the court approves of the marriage. However nothing in California has been approved at an age younger than anywhere else in the world yet.

Same sex marriage has become one of the most highly debated civil rights issues in the modern era. In the past, if the government declared it illegal then same sex couples would just have to live with it. But now they can move to the NetherlandsBelgium, 3 US States (Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Iowa), CanadaSpainNorwaySweden, or South Africa, where the law is exactly the same for same sex marriages as they are for opposite sex marriages. (Thanks Wikipedia). In 1989, Denmark became the first country of the modern world to legalize gay marriage in the form of “registered partnership.” 30 countries in total have now recognized gay’s to legally have the ability to have “civil unions” rather than marriage. We’re not sure what the difference is between civil unions and marriage, other than the name for it, even after pouring over various Wikipedia articles. Also, biologically speaking, the taboo and disgust for same sex intercourse in most males while approval for females is baffling. There is likely a subtle connection between marriage law and the thought of intercourse with another dude that keeps these laws in place. Were also not sure that why in the ancient world it was totally cool and normal to learn sexual technique from an older same sex individual and now it’s taboo. In fact Ancient Greek citizens used to be made fun of for not being willing to sexually experiment with the same sex, much like gays are ridiculed today.

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Brutus, don’t be such a flaming hetero

…and kiss me

Paging all Polygamists… You don’t have to be fundamentally Mormon to practice this multiple marriage fiasco. Most polygamy marriages can be found in Africa. In Senegal, it’s nearly standard: 47 percent of marriages there are polygamous. We’re still waiting for it to be legalized in the US just for the hilarious comedy hijinks that could ensue via sitcom format, something that has yet to be exploited. And yes we’re speaking to you, shrewd businessmen of the world.

Marriage and citizenship are also often cited as perks to foreign marriages. This is the reason why so many foreigners come to America looking for a new life and love. It’s also the reason why buying a mail order Russian bride seemed like the right thing to do at the time. Citizenship does not come from getting married anywhere, but only certain countries, namely the US. The US is possibly the most fast and loose with their rigmarole of citizenship laws. Marriage for a green card is more common than the law would like to think. They say they check, but no one has ever seen the law in practice besides in that one Sandra bullock and Ryan Reynolds movie “The Proposal” where the guy threatens to fine them to jail time and fines equivalent to somewhere between GTA and Murder. In practice, it’s only punished about as harshly as downloading music. Lots of big words are thrown around, but no one ever actually sees the strong arm of the law. Hell, the US even has a lottery that just gives away 50,000 green cards a year. The only thing of near equivalence to marriage for citizenship can be found in the UK and Ireland, where getting married only helps speed along the citizenship process from 5 to 3 years of living. We also assume you could gain citizenship through marriage in one of those head hunting tribes of Papa New Guinea, if that floats your boat.

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The Best Ways to Make Money while Travelling

If we told you that your job options were limitless you might be wondering: how the hell am I going to get paid to look for lions on an African Safari while simultaneously smoking dope? For those smart asses who are wondering something along these lines and still consider yourselves remotely intelligent: shut the F#@% up! We mean, it could be time to look outside the fantasy box and start checking in with the sad reality of the working world. If you are lucky enough to have the rest of the travelling world jealous of you by not having money as an issue, this article is not for you. But luckily, for the rest of us who got 99 problems, even if a bitch ain’t one, Gullivearth has spent countless hours pouring over strenuous research in the form of Google searches to help narrow down jobs that work for everybody, namely travelling students with little professional experience. No, we won’t hook you up with a job you can do while simultaneously skydiving the Grand Canyon, unless of course, your Blackberry Storm gets service 13,000 feet (4,000 meters) above the ground or you do the obvious and instruct skydiving courses. But until phone services stop falsely promising us and letting us down with their slogans of getting service “everywhere in the world” we thought you might enjoy some of the more popular options along the road well travelled, emphasis on the word well.

 

“’Lunch at 12:30? You’re breakin’ my balls Harry! »

Now before we start rattling off a list of Jobs you could do, which is at the end of the article, we would like to first give you some sound, time tested advice.

First, work where the currency is strong (anywhere where they use the Pound, the Euro, or the Yen will do). There is no use in attempting to work for pesos or rupees while trying to fund your travels on Sunset Strip. On the other hand, if you work out of a country with a strong currency for a short time you could effectively fund long stays of travel in those exotic foreign adventures you love to take. Working minimum wage for 1 day in Japan can get you a half a month stay in a cheap hostel in India. Second, don’t let illegality necessarily stop you from searching for a job. Okay, so the foreign government officials might not wholeheartedly agree and it will be far from relevant to site this article as an excuse. “But your honor, Gullivearth made me do it!” just won’t cut it once you’ve been caught. We realize illegal activity will remain what it is, illegal. That said, thousands of travellers have been getting paid under the table for years without the notice of the authorities. If that scares you, get a working visa! You may also be able to find little law loopholes with just a little bit of research. For example, if the job is categorized as a paid internship, you may be able to get paid without the earnings being deemed as wages, technically, and is therefore perfectly legal without the visa. Third, use any skill you have, your own intuition, and be creative. This is what we meant by saying the possibilities are endless. You’ll see what we mean when we start listing jobs. For every service there is a customer, you just have to learn how to market yourself correctly, (simply standing in a busy intersection is often enough!). Things to keep in mind: always dress presentably and respectably to the local culture, wake up early and search all the local job listings, message boards are great place for you to find a job as well as market your own services via flyers. Fourth, Working with the locals will give you a more authentic experience. Not as if this even needs to be said but it’s easy to forget if you find a job while you are stuck at a computer all day typing and/or being lonely. You will have a much better time at work if you interact with the locals on a day to day basis, unless of course you’re the Unabomber.

Or one of the three little pigs

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_Kaczynski

You’ll also be able to pick up on all kinds of cultural quirks you just can’t read about in a guidebook, including the ever useful ability to speak a new language. Sadly, most jobs catering to travellers only offer work with other travellers, minus the local culture. It only makes sense when you can’t take people’s orders in their native tongue. But with some extra research you can be interacting with and learning from the locals daily and be getting paid in the process. Fifth, Work in Australia, seriously. They offer easy to find and well paid work for foreigners with the most easily obtainable working visa out there. How’s that sound?

That’s the end of part 1. In the next installment we will provide you with the full list of job ideas, some more helpful tips, and the best websites to help find a job abroad.


In the last installment we helped give you some inside tips on the best ways to find and keep a job in a foriegn country. This installment will further elaborate with a list of jobs that we created to get you started. The end of the article contains some extremely useful websites to help stimulate your search for cash. Whether looking for a new career or simply to a way to fund your trip around the world as you go, obligation free, we’ve created the guide for you. Without further delays, here is our complete list of ideas for all you future money makers:

Entrepreneur: No CV is necessary when you work for yourself. Just make sure you aren’t interfering with the local law too much if you don’t have a permit. If you get caught just be polite and prompt, leave, and go somewhere else. Some popular suggestions: Masseuse (preferably at the top of long steps or at the end of a long hike). Sell ice cold bottles of water on a hot day, sell umbrellas when it rains, teach language lessons or music lessons or whatever lessons, DJ, open a kissing booth, independently clean houses or garden, sell art, design t shirts, distribute flyers for a bar, babysit (or au pair), dog watch, etc.

Street Performer: Bring a guitar, sing out loud, walk a tight rope, juggle, balloon art, do whatever you do and as long as there are people walking around with money (festivals or tourist hotspots are a big plus) they will throw you some too. The pros: some performers can make 80 Euros daily doing whatever they love. No working visas required and only one rule applies: don’t suck (unless that’s your profession, in that case we have no judgements over your hard earned labor).

 

Seasonal Worker: Some places can never have enough extra helping hands, primarily when seasonal tourism increases so does the opportunity for work. Just make sure to apply a couple of months ahead of time, that way you can guarantee a job. Options include ski instructor, ski resort anythinger, diving instructor, surf instructor, harvesting, farm staying, camp councillor, camp supervisor, life guard, tour guide, hotel employee, bouncer and more.

Teaching English: Many of these pre arranged programs can actually work out against your advantage. They will charge you for using their grounds and pay you little in return. By the time you’ve paid for board and meals you may have little spending money to actually use and see the place you’ve come to travel in. Some deals can be better than others though. Make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into before you sign up with a program. Getting a TEFL or TESOL can help but is not necessary. We recommend you find the companies that hire English teachers and go to them directly as if you were applying for any other job. That way you can negotiate your working terms before you’re stuck with no free time and just enough spending money to maybe go out to the bars once a week.

There are many websites that can hook you up with jobs around the world. Some of the best include:

anyworkanywhere.com- Pretty self explanatory

iagora.com- Jobs in Europe

jobmonkey.com- Many Job listings in every field

workfortravelclub.co.uk- Paid membership for short term work

pickingjobs.com- worldwide harvesting jobs by picking fruit

wwoof.org- work on organic farms across the world

One final tip: Don’t be discouraged if you can’t find a job immediately. It can often be very difficult to find something right away, especially if you are illegal. Just be patient with your searches and good things will come to you eventually. Every place has work to be done in some form or another.

Christmas around the world

You might think that your way of celebrating Christmas is the way but every country and culture has its own little twist. Here at Gullivearth we would like to present to you an alternative way to celebrate that same merry Holiday on the 25th of December. We’ve seen that international students can be readily accepting of new cultures and traditions, popular examples include: learning how to say, “Cheers!” in as many languages as possible, trying a new food (however disgusting it might seem at first), taking transportation on the back of an animal, dancing with the locals, attempting to use a strange and foreign toilet, etc. The culture shock might seem overwhelming at first but an experienced traveller will tell you that’s half of the fun. So lets see how exotic you guys can make your Christmas this year and bring some of that international holly jolly into your life. You may never look at Christmas the same way again.

The US Christmas: Put up the lights, hang some stockings, find a Christmas tree, have your children write letters to Santa Claus, make a snow Angel (if snow is available), carol in the streets, find out who’s naughty or nice, drink eggnog (a thick mixture of milk, sugar, cream, eggs, and cinnamon often spiked with alcohol *rhum or southern comfort), give gifts, etc. Most of these acts are pretty comparable among most western countries. In beach towns in California you’ll find Santa Claus wearing swim trunks, riding the surf, and probably using vernacular such as any variation of dude and bro, awesome, or the ever enthusiastic but less expressive « hell yeah! »

Latvian Christmas: They wear some of the most bizarre costumes ever. They call it Mumming when they wear anything ranging from a walking talking haystack to a goat head to a living corpse.


Japanese Christmas: Because Christianity is a minority religion here, Christmas is more of a commercialized holiday than anything else. Although, it is the time for children to receive presents from « Hotei-osho », a benevolent Buddhist monk. This is also a holiday for lovers, much like Valentine ’s Day for the US. Men commonly buy flowers and teddy bears for their girlfriends during Christmas. That’s sweet. Although it seems the Santa Claus concept didn’t escape Japanese anime writers from protraying him like a glowy eyed dark skinned hulk of a saint.

Mexican Christmas: What may seem like the best option so far: They celebrate the holiday from the 12th of December to the 6th of January. Kids receive their gifts at the end on January 6th, the epiphany, from the 3 wise men, similar to how the three men brought gifts to baby Jesus. Christmas Eve is celebrated with fireworks and everyone banging pots, shouting, whistling, ringing bells, etc. Mexican celebration food features Tamales, Atole, and Menudos.

Greek Christmas: They are starting to decorate small and large Christmas boats instead of trees. Some areas precede Christmas by fasting while everyone else celebrates it by feasting.

Belgian Christmas: They have two Santa Claus figures, St. Nicholas and Pere Noel. While St. Nicholas checks up on what all the kids are doing by monitoring their behaviour during the month of December. Pere Noel sits in the North Pole and sorts through the wish lists. They are essentially the good cop bad cop duo of Christmas.

Estonian Christmas: It sounds like a foreign Christmas over here. They celebrate the sacred holiday by bringing home “Christmas straw,” fortune telling, and predicting the next year’s harvest and weather. And of course there is the traditional Christmas day sauna, a great opportunity to mingle with your relatives, in the nude!

That’s it for your crazy Christmas traditions. Go out there and have a wild and new experimental time. Or invent some new traditions of your own. We hope you’ve been inspired. We sure have, and can’t wait to row in our shiny Christmas ships, stuff ourselves with hot tamales, and prance around the sauna wearing nothing but our haystack helmets. Merry Christmas everyone!

Le Spring Break, vous en rêvez ?

En tant qu’étudiant, vous avez forcément entendu parler du Spring Break américain, et si vous êtes du genre grand fêtard, cela vous fait sûrement rêver. Si vous adorez les soirées étudiantes où l’on boit beaucoup et où l’alcool donne lieu à un relâchement total de vos sens, que vous trouvez qu’une soirée étudiante c’est trop court, et qu’il n’y en a pas assez, eh bien le Spring Break est fait pour vous !

spring-break-crowd

 Le Spring Break, qui se déroule chaque année pendant les vacances de printemps (comme son nom l’indique), est un évènement hors du commun. C’est l’apothéose des soirées étudiantes, avec une fête qui se prolonge sur une semaine entière et se déroule dans une ville aux accents exotiques: Cancun. Sur ces immenses plages de sable fin, les étudiants américains profitent de leur semaine de vacances pour se faire plaisir: boire, s’amuser, se déguiser, jouer à des tas de jeux alcoolisés… Et tant d’autres choses que vous n’aurez aucun mal à deviner.

Alors, pour les étudiants européens les plus fêtards, le Spring Break semble être un évènement à tester absolument au moins une fois dans sa vie. En effet, plus tard, lorsque vous commencerez à travailler, impossible de se fondre dans la masse des étudiants et de s’amuser avec eux. Heureusement pour vous, vous ne serez plus en état de boire des quantités d’alcool aussi vertigineuses, ayant perdu l’habitude des consommations effrénées. Le Spring Break, c’est donc maintenant ou jamais !

Le problème qui se pose pour de nombreux étudiants européens, c’est que prendre une semaine de vacances pour aller s’amuser à Cancun, ça coûte assez cher. A cela, rajoutez le prix de l’alcool et des entrées en boîte, et la somme devient peut-être un peu trop conséquente pour être dépensée. Alors, pour la plupart d’entre nous, le Spring Break, c’est un rêve lointain mais difficilement réalisable…

Pourtant, c’est moins connu et ça n’a lieu que depuis quelques années, mais le Spring break existe aussi en Europe, tout près de chez nous ! C’est certes moins glamour si on enlève les plages de Cancun, mais la fête y paraît pas mal aussi.cocktails

Alors, jamais entendu parler du Spring Break à Lloret del Mar ?

Ce Spring Break, c’est la version européenne du phénomène américain. C’est peut-être moins trash (et encore, on n’en est pas sûr), mais pour tous ceux qui rêvent d’un Spring Break sans pouvoir s’offrir l’original, notre version parait un excellent compromis !

Ce que veulent les étudiants internationaux

Le récent classement Universum des 50 employeurs qui font rêver les étudiants internationaux en 2009  donne lieu a peu de surprises. En effet, quelles entreprises, selon vous, font le plus rêver les étudiants du monde entier ? La réponse paraît évidente: les entreprises qui les feront voyager, qui leur ouvriront le plus de perspectives à l’international. Il est donc logique que les étudiants internationaux soient attirés par les multinationales.

Ces multinationales font d’autant plus rêver les étudiants en temps de crise. En effet, les multinationales sont les entreprises qui résistent en général le mieux aux soubresauts de l’économie, grâce à leur taille critique.

Un troisième argument est celui du réseau mondial de contacts que peut aider à créer une multinationale. Les jeunes étudiants fraîchement sortis d’écoles de commerce ou d’ingénieurs aspirent à se construire un réseau, si possible mondial, qui leur servira pendant toute leur carrière. Et la puissance de ce réseau de relations ne peut être sous-estimé.  

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Cette étude révèle  l’attrait des étudiants internationaux pour les entreprises du monde informatique, et surtout l’attrait que représentent toujours les grandes entreprises du monde de la finance ! En temps de crise financière et de remise en question du monde de la finance, on aurait pu s’attendre à un léger désamour, mais ce n’est pas le cas !

 Ainsi, l’entreprise qui attire le plus les étudiants internationaux est Google, le moteur de recherche qui a conquis le monde. Google est suivi de près par Microsoft, entreprise internationale par excellence et géant de l’informatique. Puis, dans le top 10 apparaissent de nombreuses entreprises du monde de la finance: PWC, Goldman Sachs, PriceWaterHouseCoopers, Procter & Gamble, Deloitte…

Ainsi, les étudiants internationaux qui feront le monde de demain semblent avoir choisi leur camp: les multinationales. Mais qui oserait les juger ? Refuseriez-vous un emploi dans une maltinationale, qui sera la plus à même de vous apporter succès professionel, réseau, richesse et CV bien rempli ?

 Voir le classement ici.

STF

20 ans après la chute du mur de Berlin, les étudiants internationaux ne jurent que par Berlin-Est

C’est aujourd’hui, le 9 novembre 2009, que l’Europe, le monde, et surtout l’Allemagne, fêtent le 20ème anniversaire de la chute du mur de Berlin. Alors que dès la chute du mur en 1989, des milliers de jeunes berlinois de l’est investissaient Berlin-Ouest et son rêve d’ouverture et de liberté, 20 ans après, c’est Berlin-Est que les jeunes investissent.

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En effet, Berlin-est est aujourd’hui le rendez-vous privilégié de la jeunesse berlinoise et de tous les étudiants du monde. Les étudiants internationaux adorent Berlin-Est. Berlin-Est représente le Berlin bohème, artistique et fêtard de la ville. C’est dans Berlin-Est que les loisirs sont les moins chers, à la portée des étudiants.

C’est ainsi qu’à Berlin-Est, vous entendrez des étudiants de tous pays, parlant anglais, français, espagnol, italien… Berlin-est est devenue le symbole de l’ouverture au monde de tout un pays. Quelles que soient leurs origines, les jeunes de toute l’Europe investissent Berlin-Est, que ce soit pour leurs études ou pour des vacances entre amis.

Pour comprendre un tel engouement, il faut revenir une dizaine d’années auparavant. Berlin-Ouest, qui regroupe une bourgeoisie de plus en plus importante, est devenue trop chère pour les jeunes artistes et autres étudiants désargentés. Or, Berlin-Est est une partie de la ville qui a été quelque peu délaissée par cette bourgeoisie. De nombreux artistes commencent alors à s’y installer, à investir des squats et autres locaux laissés à l’abandon. Berlin-Est est ainsi devenue peu à peu le repère des jeunes artistes de la ville. Cela a crée un dynamisme artistique et culturel des plus attrayants, qui a vite suscité l’engouement de la jeunesse bohème et artistique de toute l’Europe. Les étudiants ont suivi le mouvement, et Berlin-Est est devenue en quelque sorte le Montmartre allemand des temps modernes.

Et que font les étudiants internationaux à Berlin-Est ?

Tout d’abord, ceux-ci trouvent des logements dont les prix restent à leur portée pour une grande capitale européenne. Ensuite, ces étudiants y retrouvent les lieux de sortie les plus branchés de la ville. Le Berghain est par exemple devenue la boîte la plus en vogue de Berlin en ce moment, et se situe à Berlin-Est. Cette boîte de musique électronique accueille les grands DJ du monde entier. Les étudiants de Berlin-Est se retrouvent également dans le quartier de Prenzlauerberg pour ses nombreuses boutiques tendances, mais surtout pour bruncher le dimanche à Kastanienallee, un lieu incontournable pour la jeunesse berlinoise. C’est aussi à Berlin-Est que chaque dimanche matin, les jeunes de Berlin se rendent aux puces de « Boxi » pour chiner et trouver les derniers accessoires vintage qui rendront leur look tendance. Enfin, la jeunesse cosmopolite de Berlin-Est raffole du Badeschiff, un lieu des plus insolites où vous pourrez profiter d’un bain dans une piscine chauffée, au milieu d’une rivière glacée.

Berlin est devenue depuis la chute de son mur une ville cosmopolite, l’une des plus ouvertes d’Europe, et Berlin-Est est le plus beau symbole de cette ville jeune, dynamique et internationale.

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