PASSPORTS AND VISAS 101

Las Vegas is the largest city in the state of Nevada and its metropolitan area, known as the Las Vegas Valley, includes Clark County and the cities of North Las Vegas, Henderson, and Boulder City, as well as several other unincorporated communities.  The Las Vegas Valley has a population of 2.3 million people and has been America’s fastest growing city the past decade.  Although Las Vegas ranks as only the 28th-most populous city in the United States, there could be as many as 300,000 tourists visiting here on any given day.  Known as “America’s Playground”, Las Vegas is one of the country’s most popular tourist destinations.  It has also become a diverse city with a population of over 200,000 people with Asian heritage, including an estimated 30,000 Chinese.  Immigrants from China first came to Las Vegas in the 1860’s during the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad to work as laborers.  Like other towns in the American West, Chinese were well known for their participation in restaurant and laundry service businesses; Chinese would eventually expand into the casino business starting in the 1940s.  Nowadays, Las Vegas residents with Chinese heritage are well integrated into American society and contribute their talents across a broad array of professions.

Los estudiantes internacionales, los profesionales y los funcionarios comerciales tienen muchas opciones de lugares para estudiar inglés en Washington, D.C. Muchas universidades, facultades y otros programas ofrecen cursos de inglés para que usted aprenda o mejore sus habilidades en el idioma inglés mientras se prepara para la educación, el trabajo o la vida en los Estados Unidos.

Los programas de Inglés como Segundo Idioma (ESL, por sus siglas en inglés) y de Inglés para Hablantes de Otros Idiomas (ESOL, por sus siglas en inglés) pueden ayudar a los hablantes no nativos de inglés a aprender o mejorar sus habilidades en inglés. Washington, D.C. y el área metropolitana circundante ofrecen varios niveles de programas de ESL y ESOL. Usted puede optar por un programa que se adapte a sus necesidades, ya sea principiante, intermedio o avanzado.

The Republic of Mali -- a landlocked former French colony in West Africa -- is better known today for its continued civil strife than as a tourist destination.  The U.S., British, and other governments recommend citizens do not travel to Mali because the risks of crime, kidnapping, and terrorism remain high.  While civil unrest has closed some popular tourist destinations to the general public, many other attractions remain open for cautious, adventurous travelers from the New Orleans area.

Mali is one of the most remote countries in the world and one of the hottest.  Covering 480,000 square miles, the country stretches from the middle of the Sahara Desert in the north to the more heavily populated Sudanian Savanna to the south.  Drained by the Niger and Senegal rivers, the remote country offers travelers cultural treasures, desert sand dunes, rolling plains, tropical savannahs, and woodlands.  Mali’s largest metropolitan area, the capital city of Bamako, offers a more Westernized alternative to the traditional villages found across the country.  

Editor's Note: U.S. passports are currently taking up to seven weeks to process using the government's expedited service.  It is possible to get a passport in less time by scheduling an appointment with the Passport Agency by calling 877-487-2778 and appearing in person at their office.

More residents of Tallahassee are obtaining U.S. passports as international travel grows, especially for students and faculty at Florida State University, whose Center for Global Engagement and office for International Programs has expanded its study abroad programs and international initiatives in recent years.  Tallahassee is also home to Florida A&M University, which continues to offer study abroad opportunities through its Office of International Education & Development.

The Florida Panhandle region’s strong economy and growing population are also contributing factors to the increased demand for new passports in recent years.  Owing to a business-friendly government that promotes economic freedom, Florida is now the fastest-growing state in the union.  Of Florida’s 22.2 million residents in 2022, over 385,000 people live in the Tallahassee metropolitan statistical area.  In 2022, the U.S. Department of State issued 1,315,125 passports for residents of the Sunshine State, making Florida the 4^th largest state for passport issuance (after California, Texas, and New York).

International students, professionals, and business officials have many choices for places to study English in Washington, D.C.  Many universities, colleges, and other programs offer English courses for you to learn or improve English language skills while preparing for education, work, or life in the United States.

English as a Second Language (ESL) and English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) programs can help non-native English speakers learn or enhance their English skills.  Washington, D.C., and its surrounding metropolitan area offer various levels of ESL and ESOL programs.  You can opt for a program that meets you where you are, whether beginner, intermediate, or advanced. 

Ethiopia – the cradle of civilization – continues to welcome tourists from the Dallas area seeking historic cultural treasures, exotic natural beauty, and warm hospitality.  Ethiopia’s importance in the origins of mankind was confirmed by the 1972 discovery of “Lucy”, a fossilized 3.2 million-year-old female near the Awash River.  Today, tourism is the largest sector of the nation’s economy after agriculture. While “Lucy” was touring the United States and the United Kingdom in the first decade of the 21st century, visitors from other countries flocked to Ethiopia to explore its deep cultural history.  

The Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (previously known as Abyssinia) is located in northeastern Africa in the Horn of Africa.  Unique among African countries, Ethiopia resisted colonial rule for centuries -- until a brief Italian occupation during World War II.  Strategically located near the Middle East and Europe, Ethiopia’s access to major regional ports makes it a center of international trade and global influences.  More than 110 million Ethiopians live in a country covering more than 470,000 square miles –an area larger than France and Spain combined.  The population is a melting pot of African and Middle Eastern cultures, comprised of 80 various ethnic group who speak 90+ languages.  Almost two-thirds of Ethiopians are Christians, with most of the remaining inhabitants practicing Islam.  Half of the Ethiopian population was Jewish before Christianity was declared the national religion in the Fourth Century.  Today there are still several synagogues remaining in active use.

Editor's Note: U.S. passports are currently taking up to seven weeks to process using the government's expedited service.  It is possible to get a passport in less time by scheduling an appointment with the Passport Agency by calling 877-487-2778 and appearing in person at their office.

More residents of Athens are obtaining U.S. passports as international travel grows, especially for students and faculty at the University of Georgia, whose Office of Global Engagement has expanded its study abroad programs and international initiatives in recent years. 

North Georgia’s strong economy and growing population are also contributing factors to the increased demand for new passports in recent years.  Metro Atlanta and surrounding cities such as Athens, are the fourth-fastest growing region in the United States in the late 2010s, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.  Of Georgia’s 10.6 million residents in 2019, over 215,000 live in the Athens metropolitan area.  From 2013 to 2019, the number of Georgia passports issued by the U.S. State Department annually grew by more than 150% to reach 487,000.

A Filadélfia é uma excelente escolha para quem está pensando em se mudar para os Estados Unidos e que quer viver em uma cidade vibrante com infinitas oportunidades. Este artigo fornecerá uma visão geral da cidade e destacará alguns dos melhores bairros para comprar imóveis para aqueles na busca por uma casa própria. Também destacaremos algumas das atrações mais conhecidas da Filadélfia que atraem não apenas turistas de outras regiões dos Estados Unidos, mas também imigrantes e visitantes de longo prazo de todo o mundo. Essas características incluem um ambiente de negócios dinâmico, instalações médicas de primeira linha, universidades de alto nível e uma profusão de marcos culturais e históricos que sustentam a indústria do turismo da cidade. Coletivamente, esses elementos criam uma base sólida para a economia da Filadélfia e, por extensão, reforçam a demanda por imóveis e impulsionam os valores das casas a longo prazo.

Sinh viên quốc tế, các nhà quản lý doanh nghiệp hay các chuyên gia quốc tế lần đầu tiên đến Philadelphia và các khu vực đô thị lân cận có thể đăng kí các chương trình đào tạo tiếng Anh để cải thiện kĩ năng tiếng Anh của mình hoặc chuẩn bị cho quá trình học tập và làm việc tại Mỹ.

Các chương trình đào tạo như Tiếng Anh như ngôn ngữ thứ hai (ESL) hoặc Tiếng Anh cho người nói những ngôn ngữ khác (ESOL) sẽ giúp các sinh viên rèn luyện hoặc cải thiện kĩ năng tiếng Anh của mình. Có rất nhiều  chương trình ESL và ESOL khác nhau để bạn lựa chọn theo học tại Philadelphia hay các khu vực lân cận, dù cho là chương trình cho người mới bắt đầu, chương trình trung cấp hoặc nâng cao. Những chương trình cho bạn lựa chọn bao gồm: chương trình giảng dạy những kĩ năng nghe nói cơ bản; chương trình tập trung vào việc nâng cấp những gì bạn đã được học, và cách chương trình học giúp bạn chuẩn bị cho các kì thi lấy các chứng chỉ cần thiết.

Charlotte area tourists have been allowed to visit Saudi Arabia ever since the kingdom finally opened the door to leisure travelers in 2019, following decades when most visitors were businesspeople, government officials, Islamic pilgrims, and/or expatriates visiting family members.  The largest nation on the Arabian Peninsula, Saudi Arabia’s natural treasures range from the beaches of the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf to its hot dry deserts, mountain ranges, grasslands, and forests (located in the Asir Mountains).