Workaway International is the best! – Awande Cele

After 5 seasons and hopefully many more to come, I have nothing but great things to say about Workaway International. Starting out as an 18 year old and thinking of going abroad on my own sounded so scary, and believe me it was! However I had the best agent, Workaway International.

They made me feel safe as everything was attended to so professionally and I have been able to trust them throughout the many years.

 Working at Boca West Country Club, I never felt like I was left to fend for myself. Our living arrangements and twenty four hour support from Workaway International made all my stays in America comfortable and I felt at home. Throughout my travels I went on many outings, but my favourite has to be and will always be Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.

The working schedule allows you to explore more parts of America and I find that absolutely amazing.

 Thank you so much guys, keep up the good work!

 

A growth experience – by Nonala Mbatha

Through Workaway International I got the opportunity to work at Boca West Country Club in Florida. It was the best experience ever. I was there for work but I got the chance to explore, meet new friends that became family and brush up on my hospitality skills.

It was tough being away from home but over time it got better. Workaway International and Boca West made me feel at home and checked in to see that I was settling in well. Work was good, we learned to work smart and hard.

The club organized a trip to Miami for us in our first month in Florida and later that season we had our employee Christmas party. They also organized a trip for us to Universal Studios and Disney World.

In between all that I got the chance to celebrate my 21^st birthday. I had gotten two days off from work so that meant I could really celebrate in style. On my actual birthday I went out for drinks and dinner with a few friends and we painted the town red. The next morning my bestie / roomie took me out for lunch at a restaurant near the beach and later that night my friends surprised me with another birthday dinner where they sang a birthday song for me and gave me gifts. All I can say is I would do it all over again in a heartbeat!

A Life changing opportunity – Rolando Mentoor

I first want to thank the Heavenly Father for the opportunity he was created for me, I have seized it with both hands and I am on my way to my second season at the Polo Club of Boca Raton if things go according plan.

 

I was part of the Polo Club set up crew during my first season on the program. It was a very good learning curve and I learned a lot from my colleagues who are masters in the field. We had different types of tasks to perform with different themes and everything had to be co-ordinated so you could not afford to lose focus. Every set up task had to be accurate without disappointments. Fortunately we were well trained and success became part of our culture.

 

During the time away from home I met people who came from near and far but it did not stand in our way of becoming friends which made life so much easier.

 

On the program you learn that circumstances cannot stand between you and your dreams forever.

 

I also had the opportunity to explore America a bit and went to places I was able to mark off my bucket list with a happy face!

 

                                                

This year, I want to achieve more success during my season at the Polo Club and I have pretty big plans to continue my American dream. 

 

My message of encouragement to every young individual is that you should never give up and you cannot stop dreaming. Set goals and strive towards them. God answer prayers.

 

Thank you Workaway International for an exceptional program!

A life changing opportunity! – By Queen Maithufi

 

Workaway is such an amazing program. They help and guide you with everything.

 

I'm a girl from a small village and I was given an opportunity to travel and work in the United States, how amazing is that? It was even my first time on a plane! However I never felt lost because you get to meet all these wonderful new people and I now have friends from all over the world.

                                              

We got to stay in amazing apartments and I was honoured to be a part of the Boca West Country Club team in Florida where we received the world's best training. These were the best years of my entire life! I can now confidently say I am a fantastic server as I worked in amazing restaurants, managed to learn, explore and be the ‘Queen’ that I am today.

                                             

Part of my time on the program was spent exploring…in Florida, I visited Miami and Disneyland and explored some of the world's best beaches. New Mexico has beautiful mountains, surrounded by southern culture and native Indians, it's full of nature and great adventures. I even learned a bit of Spanish and experienced making some of their local dishes.

               

New York, however was the best experience ever! From the Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn Bridge, to Time Square and so much more!

This program has brought out the passion and love I have for hospitality, and I can now say I have international experience.

Lastly, with this program, I saved enough to finally manage to build my mom and myself a house and fully furnish it and that's just the icing on the cake!

 

An extremely surreal experience – by Candace Bennett

 

I cannot begin to mention anything about my experience in the USA without first thanking Workaway International. From my very first application up until now, Workaway has been the most efficient, reliable and supportive company I have ever encountered (and I've tried a few). 

                                             

I had a desire to travel and while looking around on how I could possibly do so on my salary at the time, I came across Workaway International. The opportunity felt extremely surreal the entire time until I placed my luggage in my new apartment in the Sunshine State of America, Florida. 

                                     

Think of all the perks you get from being independent and travelling. I experienced all of that and so much more. I began to grow as an individual and the program taught me a lot about life. Hard work gets high reward. Being surrounded by people constantly taught me patience in the work area and how to stick my head out of my shell and speak to people of so many different cultures and learn about them. But most importantly, become friends with these people. 

                                                                                                                                             

I've seen and experienced so much travelling in multiple states in America. 

The freedom is vast and the opportunity to really live your life to the fullest is offered to you every day. 

                                       

This is such a phenomenal experience and it is made possible by such an efficient team at Workaway International. It's really just a matter of deciding if you're ready to take it up a notch and go out there to work hard and live a little! I can't fully explain how this made me feel but I can tell you that everyone should do this at least once in their life!

 

                                      

 

My Summer Season Up-north – by Nondumiso Sibanda

 

“The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams”, Oprah Winfrey.

 

It has been a roller coaster year, we finally made it to the US for the winter season in January thanks to the Workaway International team who worked tirelessly to make it happen. Better late than never!

 

Doing our winter season in Florida for four months was g
reat. Time went by so quickly and it was soon time to do visa extensions for the summer season up-north for which l was accepted at Fairview Country Club in Connecticut.

We landed in Connecticut in May and so far it has been a good five months, meeting new people and staying in a different environment. Fairview is a smaller club but has a huge vibe right from the staff to the members.

                                          

One highlight that stands out to me has to be that some of the members here are members at my Florida club, Boca West. It was amazing to see familiar faces and have conversations about Mr D’s Restaurant at Boca West as well as about how certain menu items remind them of meals at the Roadside Cravings Food truck.

Amongst the close knit family of Fairview, one person stands out most and that is Chef Jeff Perez. He is the most humble, hardworking, welcoming and attentive Chef that I have worked with. It has really been a great learning curve.

We have had quite a busy season from Friday grill nights, pasta stations on Sundays, Memorial day, Labor day and many more events and parties.

                                               

The season is starting to slow down which means we will have some time to properly travel and explore.

I have however managed to cross a few things off my bucket list whilst I’ve been here including exploring New York City. We are about an hour away from New York City by train which is the easiest, cheapest and most convenient way to get there.

                                                

My first stop was to see Carlo’s (the Cake Boss) Bakery. I literally melted as l walked in as I have been watching Cake Boss for so long and have been wanting to see one of his bakeries since before I even came to the US. Even though he wasn’t there, knowing that l stepped into one of his outlets filled my heart.

                                            

It has been a good summer and we are almost at the end of the season. We head back to Florida soon for our winter season but first l still need to cross seeing the Statue of Liberty off my bucket list!

 

 

My experience at Boca West Country Club – Lesedi Palo

 The Workaway International program is an incredible experience where I met friends that turned into family. 

 

I was fortunate enough to work at Boca West County Club where I learnt why it is one of the best County clubs in the world. I met amazing people who made being away from home just a little bit easier. Everyday waking up and walking into work was a joyful experience because everyone we worked with had a loving nature. 

Being a hospitality management graduate I learnt how diverse the industry can be in different places of the world and the reason that Boca West does so well is because of the way it is run. Everyone from upper management to the people you work with on a day to day basis are approachable and that made for a great work environment.

 

We went on trips to Miami and Universal which gave us the opportunity to get to know each other more. Our work Christmas party was fun and filled with memories galore. 

 

I left South Africa knowing only four people that I would be working with and came back with friends that I will treasure for life. I met amazing people that I can truly call my brothers and sisters. The Workaway International program truly teaches you to be a better person if you allow it to.

 

Memories last forever – Lauren Davids

 

So many great things to say I just don’t know where to start…

 

Well firstly I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Workaway International for the great opportunity they’ve given me. It has opened so many doors and allowed me to gain international work experience. I have also met some pretty good people through the program and made lifelong friends which I’ll cherish forever. 

 

This program taught me many things including how to become independent, to always strive to do my best and most importantly, it taught me how to actually cook my own meals – a goal I never thought possible to achieve! It also made me realize that anything is possible if you really put your mind to it.

 

Most of my free time was spent socializing with my fellow colleagues I met throughout the program. Some highlights included taking a day tour to Miami all the way to Tampa and spending some time at the Naples pier beach which was breathtaking! I’ve experienced some great places and seen amazing sites and even seen some famous celebrities like Cardi B, Sam Smith and so many more. Gosh this program was so good to me!

 

The memories last forever and I’m so excited to go ahead and make some more memorable moments this next season.

  

 

My love for travel – Malanie Titus

My love for travel began at a very young age. From the age of 6, I started exploring and ever since then, I could not stop. 

 

I started local traveling and experienced the finest culture and cuisines within my country but I knew I wanted to see more and became hungry to explore and travel further. I wanted to see more of what the world had to offer so I traveled to parts of Africa and Asia but knew my dream was to visit the United States. One day while casually browsing the internet looking at travel destinations, I came across Workaway International, I could not believe what I was reading. Without hesitation I decided to join the program.

 

Today I can proudly say, joining the Workaway International program was the best decision I have ever made. My dream came true! Not only did I get to travel to the United States, I got an opportunity to work at one of the best country clubs in Florida.

 

Over the years being on this program, I made lifelong friends and got to travel to different parts of the states. My experiences ranged from hiking Devils Tower in Wyoming, building my first snowman, visiting the famous Mount Rushmore in South Dakota, embracing Alcatraz Prison in San Francisco, fishing in Long Island, New York and being able to appreciate the country's history at Lincoln Memorial in Washington DC, to name but a few.

 

I have gained a wealth of knowledge from all my travel experiences. I often try to share this knowledge with friends who have started traveling for the first time with hopes they will have an even better experience. 

 

With all that being said, a huge thank you to Workaway International for the opportunity in making my travel dreams come true. I would not have had these life changing experiences if it was not for the wonderful team at Workaway International!

 

 

 

Go out there and take a leap - you never know what lies ahead – Shaun Liebenberg

To quote H. Jackson Brown Jr, “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do”.

 

This was and will continue to be the motto that I carry with me. It is for this reason I greatly appreciate the opportunities provided by Workaway International as well as Boca West Country Club.

From getting on the first flight to the US, I had no idea how my life would suddenly change.

After a very fun and informative orientation provided by our employer we were ready to get to work. My employment was at our prestigious MyPi Restaurant at Boca West Country Club in Boca Raton, Florida.

 

Here, I was at the perfect place to sharpen my knowledge of what great service, attention to detail and member service was all about.

One of the biggest blessings was without a doubt the amount of new friendships that turned into family that was formed during my time abroad. From staying with housemates, to getting to know each of your colleagues and management team. I was undeniably surrounded with a great support system.

 

As if all these benefits weren’t enough, Boca West Country Club spoils the staff with a trip to Universal Studios. I mean, come on?

I will always be the biggest advocate for the Workaway program. Not only has it changed the way I view the world, but you’ll hear the exact same thing from every person that is, and has been on the program.

 

Due to COVID-19, my time was cut short, however I am excited to get back to the US to continue making memories. To conclude, nothing great ever comes from staying in your comfort zone. So go out there, take a leap - you never know what lies ahead…

Short lived but great experience that is to be continued…

By Gina Kekana

Honestly if someone told me that I would be working in America, I would have thought that they were joking. I am not from an ambitious family in that we weren’t the kind of family that explored relocation in another country let alone on another continent. I heard about the program and honestly, I was blown away and knew that I needed to apply no matter what.

The first time I applied I made it till the country club interviews but unfortunately for me there weren’t any more positions available. I did not give up and I applied the following year and I made it all the way through. It's honestly a feeling I cannot describe when you get your flight pack and reality kicks in.

Landing in Florida and getting slapped by the heat and humidity was so unexpected but enjoyable. Finally shopping at a Walmart was even better! Meeting new housemates was something different. We all needed to try and be open so that we could get to know each other and we did.

Arriving at Boca West County Club was my highlight as I could not believe that I would be the one working in such a beautiful place every day. Blessed was Gina for making it this far and being here, EARNING DOLLARS!!!!!!!!!!

There was so much to do in Florida, there are amazing beaches, restaurants, bars, museums, adventure sports and many amazing people to meet from all over America. Unfortunately my time was cut short due to the pandemic but I’m excited for what the next season holds. I will be sure to do more and explore more as I was also looking forward to going up north to New York for the summer program.

This would have never been possible if Workaway International South Africa did not believe in me. I can be a lot to handle but when I put my mind to something, I fully commit to it and that is why I never gave up till I made it in. Thank you to Charlotte and the team for believing in me.

Hopefully this season turns out to be yet another fantastic season, all the best to the applicants and remember, it's all about you 😊