Help Me Get to Italy!

Tiah Bourchuk Start Date: Jul 27, 2016 - End Date: Nov 26, 2016

My Travel Story

by: Tiah Bourchuk Start Date: Jul 27, 2016 - End Date: Nov 26, 2016
What is this all about?
I've been given the opportunity to work in Italy as an au pair, and it's something I've thought about for a long time and I am very excited to finally have the chance to do it before I begin University, a whole new chapter in my life. 
The family in Italy I have taken a job from are two amazing parents, with six children that, although I have not skype with all of them, sound amazing as well. I've seen their four youngest on skype, and as their two oldest are more independent because of their age, I will mostly be caring for the four youngest. 
I will paid for working, an amount that I am more than happy with and more than able to live off of, as I've been told by their current au pair who is also from Canada and almost my age. 

First of all... why Italy?
Well, I'm not sure why Italy popped into my head when it did roughly three or four months ago. I had beene experimenting with learning Italian, but then in History class we learned about Mussolinni and the Renaissance and all these different things that happened in Italy. I love history, and Italy is rich with it. Especially political history, which Mussolini provides a lot of. Italy is a place rich with culture and a language I want to get to know. Therefore, Italy ended up being my destination. I had also been looking for au pair opportunities in Australia, England, Ireland, Iceland, and a couple of oher countries but I was never as excited to get a message from an Australian family as I was to get a message from an Italian family. 

How long will you be gone?
If all goes according to plan, I hope to leave on or very close to November 12 2016, and be back by the end of July 2017, maybe a little bit earlier. 

Will you be working the whole time?
No! I have Sundays off right now, but we need to negotiate the time table as I want to take Italian classes like their last au pairs have done, so my schedule would most likely change when I started those classes. 

Why do you need money if you'll be getting paid when you're there?
I need a visa to be in Italy for over 3 months, and the Italian consulate requires me to have 2,400 euros (just under $3,500 Canadian right now) in my bank account at the time I apply for my visa. It's not a lot, however I need to have also paid for my flight (between $1,000-1,500 Canadian), medical insurance (over $400, but it varies), and the visa application (Embassy in Ottawa states it is $169.25) all before I apply for the visa, which I need to do a minimum of 2 weeks before I leave, preferably 3-4 weeks before I leave, in case something goes wrong in the application or it is slower than it should be, which happened to their last au pair. 

So... long story short?
I am working as much as I can, both working my scheduled shifts and trying to pick up more shifts, including looking for a second job in the next two weeks, and applying for a credit card as the credit limit can count towards the funds needed, but I need $3,500 in my bank account by the end of October at the latest, and that is after I spend the money on the flight, visa application and medical insurance. 

Conclusion
I'm not sure how you happened upon this page, whether I shared the link to you, and maybe you're a family member or friend, or a friend shared it for me and you're a stranger. Either way, I'm hoping you will donate anything to me to help me get to Italy. I'm asking for donations, but it would be in replacement of any upcoming gifts for things such as my graduation in early November, my birthday in late November (which I hope to be in Italy for), Christmas, or any gift-giving occasion. 

Going to Italy would be an amazing experience for me. I'd be working, and being paid, and having fun, and learning all at the same time. I would experience things I've never even heard of, learn more independence, and learn about a world I haven't even begun to exeperience. 

If you have any questions, I will be more than happy to answer any and all of them. If you have any suggestions about airlines, or packing, or traveling, I would be happy to hear them. 

I already feel close to this family, and I don't want to let them down. I'm really hoping I will have the funds to do this.