#I should do it maybe then Id actually have a decent resource for my stories outside of my head /j

[chisatowo]

I find it funny when ppl after listening to me talk abt my stories a bit are like "I wish I could just download this story directly into my brain" like thank you so much bestie trust me when I say if I could I would and it kills me that I can't dhkdydkhsjd

[asgardian--angels]

4 Ways to Connect with Nature During COVID-19

Hi everyone! As someone who studies pollinators and conservation biology, I have found the last few weeks difficult, because I struggle when I cannot be outside in nature most of the time. Connecting with nature is known to be beneficial for our mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual health, and never has that been more important than right now. I thought I would compile a few of my favorite ideas that I can offer about ways you can still connect with nature while social distancing, or even if you cannot leave your home at all. Know that these are obviously not all the ways you can experience nature - just the ones I’m familiar and knowledgeable about. Most of my resources apply to the eastern United States, but these things are applicable worldwide. If you ever have questions, just message me!

1. Go Birdwatching! 

Whether you’re a pro already or someone who’s never even attempted to tell the difference between the ‘chip’ and the ‘cheep’ coming from your bushes, birdwatching is a fun hobby that can be done anytime, anywhere, by anyone. While human activities may have slowed or stopped around us, the natural world is always moving and changing. Birds are one of the easiest animals to observe and learn, and their boundless zeal for life can renew our hope and lift our spirits. Whether you live in the country or the city, there are more kinds of birds than you think to be found right outside your door. The springtime is an especially good time to see birds, because they are migrating to their breeding grounds, bringing a whole assortment of colorful and sometimes unusual species close to your home. 

It doesn’t take much to start birdwatching. Most of us have an old pair of binoculars up in the attic somewhere, and plenty decent pairs for beginners are available for under $30 online (I just bought my mother a pair of Bushnells for $15 that had very good reviews). There are countless resources online to find an overview or quick guide to birds in your area. If you live in the United States, the best all-around every-need bird resource is Cornell’s AllAboutBirds and eBird websites. Together these two resources cover almost every bird species in the entire world - let me briefly go through each individually. 

AllAboutBirds is a guide to every North American bird, with stunning photos, ecology, and identification help. But more than that, from here you can lose yourself in dozens of offshoots of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology - from their several live feeder and nest cams, to their hundreds of articles and interactive bird biology resources. One I recommend for those who want to do some basic yard-watching is the site for Project Feederwatch. This has ample information to get you started in recognizing the (North American) birds around your home. Here’s even a free download of common feeder birds! You should also check out Celebrate Urban Birds, which has ID help for city birds in the US, Mexico, Canada, Puerto Rico, and Panama! 

eBird is a global citizen science site where millions of birdwatchers from Nepal to New Mexico share their sightings to build the largest database of bird knowledge on the planet! I cannot begin to cover everything you can do and learn on this website. You can scope out new places to visit with their ‘Explore Hotspots’ tool, or see where any species on earth has been seen by other people. It will keep your statistics if you enter your sightings, making a convenient way to keep track of all the birds you see! They have a helpful article here about how to start birding near your home.

Birdwatching is an activity that you can put in as much or as little time as you want into it. You will always be rewarded with getting a new perspective on the world around you, discovering neighbors you never knew you had! It can be a refreshing escape from a human-centric world, and maybe spark a curiosity you weren’t expecting! Birds are a bundle of personality, and you will find yourself falling in love with them before you know it. Consider keeping a “life list,” or entering your sightings into eBird to advance bird conservation. Birdwatching can be solitary or you can go with others. When this is all over, maybe you’ll have the chance to meet up with local birders and make new friends! There are birding clubs EVERYWHERE.

2. Plant a pollinator or wildlife garden!

As spring approaches, now is the perfect time to start planning a garden. This is a great way to be outside often but not have any risk of contact with others. Maybe you’ve never gardened before, or maybe you have one but would like to replace some of those exotic flowers with beneficial native ones. No matter your living situation or location, there’s always something you can do to make your little patch of earth a better place for all living things.

Our world is dependent on plants, which make the sun’s light available to other creatures. They interact with the most ecologically important animals on earth - insects. Insects are food for almost all songbirds, as well as the majority of all terrestrial animals in one way or another. “Traditional” gardens try to deter insects with pesticides and non-native plants that insects cannot eat. But we should try to encourage insects, because they pass a plant’s energy up the food chain, as well as pollinate flowers, keep “pests” in check (if you like growing vegetables), and are critical decomposers. The biggest thing you can do to help the local ecosystem is ditch the hydrangeas and hostas, and especially some of that turfgrass. Insects will almost exclusively only eat native plants, and being the most biodiverse animals on the planet, there’s an insect for every plant out there! It’s been shown that yards with few native plants support low levels of insect abundance and diversity, and that means fewer birds and fewer everything else too. Plus, insects are AWESOME in their own right, and once you encourage them, you will discover some incredible, colorful, brilliant species right in your own yard! 

Native gardens are easier than you think. In fact, they’re way easier than what most of us are doing now - by definition, they’re plants that want to grow here! They require less maintenance, no mowing, and no pesticides. They may not be readily available at Home Depot or Wal-mart, but they are easy to find once you locate resources from your region. There are online nurseries to buy seeds or root stock from, like Prairie Moon in the eastern US. Many regions have resources that compile lists of local nurseries and hold native plant sales. To benefit insects and wildlife, figure out what the general conditions of your yard are - soil type, moisture, climate zone - and then choose some plants that will grow there. For pollinators, you should find out what the recommended flowers are for your area - universities and cooperative extensions often produce this kind of information (example here for the northeast), as well as the Xerces Society. This kind of info is becoming much more common in the last few years, due to the popularity of pollinator gardens! Try to plant a few things that bloom in each season, so bees will have food year-round! Native grasses will support the caterpillars of many butterflies and moths too. Pollinator gardens easily overlap with wildlife gardens, which seek to support other animals too, particularly birds. Choose plants that have flowers that turn into seeds or fruit eaten by birds (native dogwoods are one of my favorites!). Plant flowers, shrubs, and trees if you can fit it - this gives insects and birds all sorts of choices for food, and places to hide or nest. Your local Audubon can provide a ton of information about bird-friendly gardening and the best plants.

Another easy way to benefit animals is to be the ‘lazy gardener,’ whether you actually have a garden or not. This means simple steps like, don’t rake your leaf litter, leave logs and rocks, and make a slash pile when you cut branches or trim bushes. This creates habitat for everything from bees to salamanders! 

Don’t have a lot of space? Try an herb garden, or patio garden. Small herb or vegetable gardens will be loved by pollinators even if the plants are not all native, and they will allow you to grow some foods you can harvest, reducing your dependence on the grocery store. Native flowers can be grown in pots as well - goldfinches, for example, will land on any coneflowers you plant, and eat the seeds right in front of you! And if you have no land at all, you can still help out by putting up a bee hotel, and sharing your knowledge with others.

3. The power of the written word - READ!

Can’t go outside? Live in the most inner of inner cities? Feel like you don’t know enough to get out there and identify what you see or know what it means? Books are a naturalist’s best friend. Now is a perfect time to dive into the wealth of literature about the natural world, from stories to field guides. I am always gung-ho to recommend books for a budding naturalist, or anyone who wants to learn more about a new topic! 

Were you intrigued by the things I talked about above - native plants, insects, birds, and the relationship between all of them? I highly recommend Bringing Nature Home by Doug Tallamy. It is the bible of native gardening, in my opinion. It’s an incredible and humbling book explaining in detail and with beautiful photos why we need native plants, just how important insects are, and what we can and should be doing to help. 

Want to learn about pollinators and plan your garden? There’s lots of books for that, and they’re so well made that both beginners and experts can use them. Try any of these:

The Bees In Your Backyard - Olivia Messenger Carril and Joseph Wilson

Pollinators of Native Plants (OR its companion book ‘Bees: An Identification and Native Plant Forage Guide’) - Heather Holm

Buzz: The Nature and Necessity of Bees - Thor Hanson (a narrative, not a field guide, excellent read)

Books about birds? Heck, I mean there’s hundreds of those. It’s a popular genre. I don’t have any on hand but if you want to know more about gardening for birds, check out Planting Native to Attract Birds to Your Yard by Sharen Sorenson. To learn birds, I recommend a Peterson or Kaufman field guide. 

Looking for books on nature in general? Not field guides, but non-fiction narratives? There are some absolutely stellar writers in our age that regularly move me to tears with their descriptions and connections to the natural world. My top author pick is Bernd Heinrich, an ornithologist and naturalist who has written over a dozen books on a variety of topics. I particularly recommend Summer World (and its companion Winter World), One Wild Bird At A Time, The Homing Instinct, and Life Everlasting: The Animal Way of Death. But they’re all really really good. There are SO MANY books of folks writing about their experiences with nature, from scientists in the jungles of Borneo to the average Joe exploring the concrete jungle. I have a small collection at home, but in my current locale, I can recommend The Secret Life of Bats by Merlin Tuttle, or Unseen City by Nathaniel Johnson. But there are, really, hundreds. All will change the way you view the world around you. You cannot read enough. 

Want to learn more about how important nature is to human beings? The biophilia hypothesis that states that we as a species need nature for our very souls, our physical development, our mental wellbeing? Please read Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv. It’s humbling, enlightening, and sobering. 

4. Citizen Science, Volunteering, and everything else!

You may feel alone right now, but know that everywhere, there are millions of people waiting to share their love of the natural world with you. Anyone who has a second to spare and the interest to look out your window should consider becoming a part of a citizen science project. These sorts of projects vary widely in their commitment time and energy, but most are solitary activities that you have complete control over. Some are more organized than others - many just ask you to report a sighting of a certain kind of organism, and others have a data sheet and timetable to follow. All contribute valuable information to conservation, making you a part of something bigger even when you cannot leave your yard. They also give you the opportunity to learn a new skill - like photography, or data collection - and help you notice aspects of the natural world you may have never given a second thought about before. A lot of them are a community that you can interact with online. Below are just a few of the MANY MANY citizen science projects out there. Again, this is US biased, but it is easy enough to find ones in your own country or those that are international.

eBird - I mentioned this before, but eBird is quite likely the biggest citizen science project in the entire world. There are a googleplex of ways to interact with others, learn more about the birds in your area or anywhere else in the world, find out who local birders are, and keep track of your own sightings. The data you submit has been used in countless peer-reviewed scientific papers and has a direct, significant impact on bird conservation worldwide.

iNaturalist - a worldwide platform for sharing sightings of any species, anywhere. A great community of naturalists, amateurs, and experts, here to help you identify your creature and explore what others find.

Project Feederwatch, The Great Backyard Bird Count, Christmas Bird Counts, Global Big Day, etc - offshoots of eBird and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. These are specific events that ask backyard birders to keep track of what birds they see for a couple of weeks. This helps track migration patterns and population declines!

BugGuide - similar to iNaturalist, but for insects only and in North America only. I’ve been on this site for 12 years now, I’m a diehard! Experts will help you ID insects, and your data becomes part of a huge database to help scientists learn more about our native insects. Requires photos - a good chance to start two hobbies at once!

Bumble Bee Watch - submit photos of any bumblebee you find in North America. Bumblebees are declining and scientists need regular people to help track populations of these pollinators. 

Guys, there’s so many more. A few more quickies: iMapInvasives (for spotting invasive species), National Phenology Network (for tracking when things change - when flowers bloom, when animals nest, great if you see the same things reliably every day!), The Great Sunflower Project (plant a sunflower, monitor what bees visit it), Zooniverse (a compilation of different digital projects that need eyes and ears to help sort through data - like trail cam photos for instance! You’d be helping real researchers, often grad students at universities, but sometimes big ticket names too!). 

These are large-scale projects. But there are always smaller, local community projects that need your help. Become more aware of what’s coming up, even for after this pandemic when you can get outside and volunteer at something like a BioBlitz, a cleanup, or a tree planting. You would not believe how many volunteers we always need to make conservation possible. People like you are the backbone of what we do. Check your local and regional Audubon, your universities, your cooperative extension. They have resources, things that can give you information you need or ways to afford things you want to do. I’m sure there’s plenty I’ve forgotten to mention, since I don’t have all my things with me here. But never feel isolated. The natural world is always around you, and you are never alone! Every creature big and small is a lifetime of stories to tell. Pick one and get going!

[reesewestonarchive]

chapter seven / rem belongs to @forlornraven / masterpost / mature content

Twenty five cents seems so much heavier than it should. A weight in his pocket, in his palm, and Nakoa knows getting the heaviness from him will only make him feel better, but…

He still can’t pick up the receiver.

Rain pelts against the side of the phone booth, and Nakoa shivers. Across the street, Rem sits in the van, his feet kicked up on the dashboard, smoking. Nakoa can just barely make him out through the foggy window panes.

They haven’t talked all morning. Not even so much as a hello.

With shaking fingers, Nakoa drops the coins into the payphone and lifts the receiver. Dials home, and waits.

If his father picks up, Nakoa will hang up. He’ll return to the car, he’ll ride off into the sunset with Rem. If his father picks up, Nakoa won’t listen, won’t even speak. He’ll let the fucker wonder.

“Hello?”

It’s his mother. Nakoa’s heart clenches, nausea twists his stomach into knots. He voice cracks a, “Mom?” and he feels twelve years old again, the first time Michael hit him. Donna says nothing, though, so Nakoa says, “Did I lose you…?”

“No, one moment, let me get a pad…” Then, distantly, “Just someone from work, Michael, I’ll take this in the other room.”

Relief spreads through his veins, and his eyes burn with unshed tears. She’s keeping him from Michael, and—he chokes out a laugh. Thinks if she’s stood up for him years ago, this wouldn’t have happened.

“Nakoa,” she says, her voice watery and weak. “Are you okay? I won’t ask where you are, but are you okay? Do you need money? I can—” She pauses. “I don’t know how I would get it to you, but I /could/, sweetheart, I could.”

Nakoa grips the receiver, closes his eyes tight against the onslaught of tears. Fuck. “I didn’t—No, Mom, I’m fine. Are you okay?”

A sigh of relief. “Now I know you’re safe, yes.” Another pause. “Why did you leave?”

“Don’t—this isn’t. I’m not—” He leans his head against the phone box. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“I miss you so much,” Donna says. It feels like Michael’s hands around his throat, hearing her words. “I wish you would come home.”

“I can’t. You know I can’t.” He swallows. “I just wanted to let you know I’m okay. Okay?”

“You’ll visit, though, won’t you?”

Fear grips him tight around the throat. “No—I can’t—” Once upon a time, Nakoa thought maybe he’d never get out of his father’s sight. Now that he has, the idea of ever seeing him again…

He looks back at the van, at Rem playing air guitar in the driver’s seat. “I’ll—I’ll call again, okay?”

“Nakoa, wait!” Donna hesitates, then says, “He has people looking for you. You know your father is an influential man, I just… please be careful.”

People—why the fuck would Michael care about it. Why would he waste resources on finding his own fuck up of a son?

Nakoa shakes, anxiety rocking him apart. “I gotta go. Love you, bye.”

He slams the phone down in its cradle harder than he needs to, steps out of the phone box, and stumbles to the van. The rain’s at a downpour now, and when Nakoa climbs in the passenger seat, next to Rem, he’s soaked.

“How’d it go?” Rem asks, turning down the music. Then, seeing Nakoa’s expression, asks, “Hey, what the fuck—what’s wrong?”

Nakoa’s throat feels tight, tears burning at the corner of his eyes again. He blinks, says, “Nothing,” but then Rem’s hand is on his shoulder and Nakoa breaks.

His sobs are silent, quiet things sung to the backdrop of The Cure, and Rem pulls Nakoa into a hug, awkward from the angle but no less appreciated. He speaks against Nakoa’s ears, but the blood roars too loudly in his ears to be heard.

Searching for him. Nakoa thinks about the stories Rem’s told him, about the guy with a bat, the windshield, and, when he can speak, Nakoa asks, “Did you know?”

“Know what?” But Rem sounds sufficiently confused, and Nakoa doesn’t want to believe he’d lie to him, so he decides he doesn’t believe it. “Hey.”

Nakoa doesn’t look at him. Thinks back to all the stupid shit he’s said and done, the mixtape, leaving in the first place without a plan. “Rem.”

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m here.” His voice is soft, and in the storm, Nakoa thinks this is the safest he’s ever felt. Locked away from the world in Rem’s arms.

Maybe it’s how lost he feels, maybe it’s Rem’s breath warm against his neck, but Nakoa still feels safe enough to say, “I think I’m in love with you.”

It doesn’t hurt to say them. Nakoa’s not sure if it’s because he already hurts so much, another piece of it won’t make it worse, or if it’s…

Rem’a lips brush against his neck, soft, softer than Nakoa’s used to from him, but he says nothing. After their morning, Nakoa’s surprised by his closeness, surprised by how easily he came to Nakoa, but.

“I’m an idiot,” Rem says.

Nakoa blinks. “That’s not exactly the response a guy wants to hear.” Rem laughs. “Neither is that.”

“It’s not… badly received, if that’s what you’re thinking.” Rem clears his throat, pulls away. “…you’re…that’s…”

“I wasn’t going to say it,” Nakoa says. “That’s what the tape was for. Kind of let you figure it out on your own.” Without Rem’s body heat, the van’s cold. Nakoa reaches for the knob for the heater, fingers shaking again. “I didn’t wanna fuck this up.”

Rem’s voice is soft when he says, “You wouldn’t have fucked it up. Hell, if I haven’t fucked it up…”

But commitment’s a different storm than… whatever it is they’ve been doing. Intertwined, but Nakoa knows the feelings he gets from Rem, but he’s wanted to fuck plenty of people. Rem goes farther than that.

He always has.

“Hey,” Rem says, knocking his elbow against Nakoa’s. “We’ll figure this out. That’s what we do, right?”

Figure it out. A weight settles in Nakoa’s chest. “Right.” He turns away. The van no longer feels like home, but like a prison. Maybe he was better off at home, under Michael’s thumb, or…

With a frustrated sigh, Rem says, “I’m not. I don’t mean—”

“Can we just not talk about it? Forget I said anything.”

“I can’t say it back.” Rem gives a frustrated groan. “I’ll get there, okay, I will. Just, this is important. You’re important.”

Nakoa certainly doesn’t feel that way. He clears his throat, wipes a hand down his face, and says, “Can we just go?”

-

He splurges for a hotel on the coast. It takes half of what Nakoa has left, but it’s worth it for two nights of the view of the ocean, for two nights with the salty breeze.

For two nights of Rem getting decent rest in his own bed.

They arrive at 9am to the hotel. Nakoa’s kept his distance for a while, after his accidental confession, and he hasn’t touched Rem without being touched since. He’s passed out in the passenger seat, instead of sleeping with Rem on the mattress, because the closeness feels wrong in the aftermath of Nakoa’s words.

But he steps out of the van and closes his eyes at the wind coming off the ocean, and feels peace. Water droplets spray his face, and Nakoa imagines what it might be like to drift away on waves like these, away from Michael, from money and the concern of where they’re going to sleep next.

Rem takes two towels from their room for the beach, and Nakoa disappears with a fake ID to the nearest liquor st to surprise him with a bottle of whiskey.

“Aw,” Rem says, twisting the top off. Behind him a sign reads, NO ALCOHOL ON BEACH. Rem downs half the small bottle and hands the rest to Nakoa. “You spoil me.”

Nakoa shrugs, downs the rest of it.

With the people around, Nakoa keeps to himself a little more, thankful for the excuse. Still, Rem has other ideas. “No one knows us here,” Rem says, against Nakoa’s neck. “We could fuck on the beach if you wanted.”

“And get thrown into jail?” Nakoa snorts. “Actually, fucking you might be worth the public indecency charge.”

Rem’s mouth is warm at his neck, sends shivers down Nakoa’s spine. “You think you can take me?” His voice is low, rough against Nakoa’s ear.

“Bold words,” Nakoa says, but instead of turning around and pulling him into a kiss, Nakoa elbows him in the ribs and ducks away, laughing as he takes off down the beach.

They settle, finally, a good distance away from the others. Nakoa slathers sunscreen across Rem’s back after he writes ‘fuck me’ with the lotion, feels the reverberation of Rem’s voice against his own hands as Rem speaks.

“I thought we could head back through the mountains, right? Montana, then through North Dakota.”

Nakoa wants to tell him they should go back to Colorado, but the place still has Nakoa checking over his shoulder, so maybe not. Maybe this is best, this haphazard map searching.

“Maybe settle in for a week somewhere,” Rem says. “Get a job or something.”

“You mean I get a job. When was the last time you held down anything?”

Rem shoots him a look over his shoulder, reaching for the lotion. “Depends. When was the last time I fucked you?” He pushes Nakoa back against the towel, bites at his neck. “I miss handcuffs.”

Through the fog building in his head and the heat building in his stomach, Nakoa says, “You lost the keys last time!”

“They were plastic!”

“You had to cut me out of them with wire cutters,” Nakoa says, but he’s grinning. Rem’s pressing kisses along his torso as he goes down, his hands holding him up, sinking into the sand. Nakoa really doesn’t want sand in his business anymore than strictly necessary. “I’d rather not be locked up and at your mercy for the rest of my life.”

“No?”

“Gotta have my fun too, don’t I?” For a few seconds, he just stares into Rem’s eyes, hoping, searching… until Rem pulls back with a goofy grin, and the world rights itself.

“What?” Rem’s eyes are shining.

Nakoa shrugs. “Nothing, just…” His gaze drifts, over Rem’s eyes, his hair, his tattoos—down the horizon, down the beach, across the water. From their spot in the sand, it’s hard to see anyone at all. They’re almost completely hidden by a small spot on the beach which is hidden by rocks. Rem has a mischievous glint in his eye, and he unbuttons Nakoa’s jeans, fingers moving so slow Nakoa can barely handle it, before Nakoa shoves him away with a laugh.

“Come on!”

“I’m not fucking you here,” Nakoa says, grinning like a fucking fool at Rem. He thinks about the mixtape, about Rem’s response. He thinks about what Rem had said about not being able to say it back.

He thinks about Rem, about how much Nakoa does love him, in spite of his bullshit, in spite of the shitty things that he drags them through.

Nakoa’s hands ache for a joint, and all he wants to do is get high and fuck, slow and leisurely, until Nakoa’s not sure where he ends and Rem begins, but Rem, here, sober and smiling and pleased…

He’ll take it.

Rem covers him in sunscreen and presses open mouthed kisses along Nakoa’s shoulders, then pulls him up against a rock and leans against one of the shadowed sides. Sunglasses sit atop Rem’s nose, blocking out the sun. He’s already turning red, though, Rem.

With a longing glance towards the water, Nakoa crawls up to lie beside Rem. He sinks into the warm sand, like a backrub against his muscles, cramped from the van. If he lifts his head, just a little, he sees Rem.

The warmth, the breeze, the distant sound of kids playing. Rem sitting at his feet, his breathing quiet and steady.

It’s more like this than it isn’t, but it’s still not often enough that Nakoa won’t take the brief respite from the bullshit.

Nakoa dozes. Dreams of small ocean-side cottages and sex in motel rooms, in resorts. Working at a job he doesn’t hate, of Rem’s smile and his laugh and the cadence to his voice when he’s trying to turn Nakoa on (so, always).

When he wakes, Rem’s fucking with a Walkman, fumbling tapes between his fingers. “Hey,” he says, nudging Nakoa with his foot. “Come here.”

So Nakoa goes, because he always goes, settles in between Rem’s legs, his back to Rem’s chest, and waits for Rem to plop the Walkman in his lap. Rem shoves the headphones on over Nakoa’s ears and says, “Listen. Yeah?”

His hand brushes down along Nakoa’s arm, and, after hesitating for just a second, Rem presses play.

[poolenick-blog]

I am no stranger to visa applications. Plus, I perfectly know the struggle when applying for a visa especially since I am born in a third world country with only a third world passport — naturally, processes and interviews would always be especially rigorous for us.

But in spite of all the horror stories that you may have heard, seen, or read, getting a visa is still and absolutely achievable! Take it from me!

TIP: Make sure your passport is not expiring anytime soon. In addition, submit all the documents in an organized way. It helps to provide a checklist too in order to give the embassy a quick overview that you have prepared everything that’s needed (though at times this is one of the basic requirements).

 Don’t even try submitting fake or ‘doctored’ documents. There’s a high chance that you will not only get denied, but you will also be banned.

 It can be through travel tickets/bookings or your passport stamps. Even if it’s not one of the requirements, it helps to show them this to send them a message that you have traveled before, that you always came back, and that you have never overstayed abroad.

INTERVIEWS: Your interview can affect the documents you are submitting; but surely, if you are submitting genuine papers, then there’s no need for you to be nervous about this because the questions are always basic: what is your purpose for visiting, how long do you intend to stay, etc. (Though depending on your answers, the visa officer can be more thorough).

At best: remember to be honest and precise when applying for a visa. Simply answer what they ask for. DON’T launch into a full-blown storytelling spree. It’s not necessary for you to give out information when it’s not asked for! (Besides, the officers unfortunately wouldn’t care about your story, no matter how sad or tragic it might be.)

Additionally, wear something presentable (no need to be too formal), arrive early, be confident, and speak in English (or if you’re more comfortable in speaking your country’s language, then feel free to do so — unless the embassy doesn’t allow it).

travel insurance, I would highly recommend World Nomads since they offer the best price and coverage (they cover all countries worldwide too!).

: If you’re applying for a tourist visa then this shouldn’t be a problem; after all, you really wouldn’t have any other rationale for visiting a country abroad other than for… well, tourism. Supply them the itinerary that you want to do, the places that you want to see, and the experiences that you want to achieve and you should be fine.

The same applies for work, study, fiancé, or marriage visas because those are already self explanatory — to work because you are being sent there by your company, to study because you want to develop your knowledge and the university at that country is known for their outstanding program, etc. etc.

If, however, you’re applying for a visa to visit a friend or family, embassies commonly need a compelling argument to justify your plans of visiting. The first application isn’t typically a problem because seeing a friend or family member for the first time should somehow already be a reasonable purpose; but for the next visits, you or your host must have a stronger cause as to why you want to come back. Such may hold true too if you are planning to apply for 2nd tourist visa to the same country and so on.

Nevertheless, again, this is where dissimilarities can happen: some people can easily get a visa after the first time, but some people cannot. It’salways a case to case basis.

You might be thinking now, “What are examples of strong reasons?” I think it all boils down to having significant or sensible events. For tourism, let’s say you’ve been to Belgium before but currently, you want to come back because you want to see Tomorrowland; provide them the tickets for that and your motivation for wanting to see them (it happens only once a year anyway). Or maybe you have a blog and you want to experience and promote the country even more, blah blah blah. Or you want to take a gap year before you start working on your career. As for friends or family visits, if there’s a birthday, wedding, or reunion, make sure your or your host mentions that too.

» At the same time, don’t forget to prove the relationship you have with your host.

Ultimately, just make sure you have a decent motive or just be true to what your intention is — most of the time, your situation (no matter how simple or complicated it might be) would already be enough of a reason.

TIP: When applying for a visa, don’t ever indirectly imply that you have plans of staying longer because that will go against the 4th section below. If you’re going on a student visa, don’t mention plans of working in their country after finishing your degree; you have to express your desire to come back to your own country.

Or if you’re going on a tourist visa, don’t carelessly mention that their country has a very good education system that you find fascinating, because that might incidentally hint something to the embassy officer that you might want to study there — this is a bit of an exaggeration, but you get what I’m saying. …Then again, I’m pretty sure you won’t say such things if you follow the tips I’ve mentioned in the 1st section: which is to be ‘on point’ about your answers. Say nothing more, nothing less!

Every embassy wants you to convince them that you have enough money to support yourself because if you don’t, they would be very skeptical about how you will be funding your stay and they will also doubt your purpose for visiting their country.

As a general rule, here are ways for you to prove your solvency…

it becomes tricky, because though you have your own business, they need to know that it’s something stable and that you have enough cash. So other than the 1st three bullets below, it helps to provide:

Copy of Official Business Registration/ Business Permit

Tax paying certificate and/or tax statements

Bank Statement or Book of the company and Financial Reports for the last 3 months

Copies of personal credit cards, bank certificates, or bank statements in the last 3 months

depending if your sponsors are your parents or your school, or even both:

Sponsorship letter from parents or legar guardian, with attached documents showing their solvency (as employed, self-employed, unemployed, or retiree persons)

Certification from the institution/school providing you the grant; this document must specify the amount, term, and expenses that the scholarship includes

NOTE: The requirements for employed and self-employed persons are as applicable to freelancers too; depending on your situation, you might have to provide not only your proof of employment but even the registry of your ‘business’.

Also, Please DON’T rely on this list alone; double check with your embassy as there might be some items that they would specifically want from you and which I have failed to mention here.

TIP: For most of my visa applications, I usually have a sponsor in spite of the fact that I can already support myself — I still like to include them in my applications since it adds more strength. It truly helps a lot, especially when I quit my job and started working freelance. Usually my sponsors are friends or relatives, but it’s usually just on paper; it doesn’t mean that I absolutely require them to fund my travels. Of course, in line with this, you would need to provide enough proof to show your relationship with these sponsors and why they are sponsoring you — and that of course you ACTUALLY have the funds to cover your trip since the immigration officers can check on this before your actual entry into their country (they have the right to ask for proof of cash on hand, credit card, bank statement, etc.)

By the way, this is another area that you can overdeliver on; feel free to provide as many documents as you can!

“But what is the minimum amount of money do I need to show in my bank account?”

This is something I can’t really answer because every country would have its own minimum requirement depending as well on the time period that you are going to stay; therefore, I suggest that you call the embassy or check their website for any corresponding info about this.

But in my experience with Schengen Visas for example, most of the member countries would need you to show that you have EUR 50 (Php 2,500+) per day of your stay. This is the bare minimum, that’s why I suggest that you add way more money to it.

Money Saving Tips to Start & Live a Life of Travel

Meanwhile, as an additional way of showing that you can ‘support’ yourself, they would surely need documents that shows  you have a hotel booked. To obtain these documents you can (1) reserve with a hotel online or (2) make a ‘dummy booking’ which can usually be done online [like Booking.com and Agoda], or through a travel agency.

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If however, you are going to stay over at a friend, partner or family’s house, the embassy would need details of your ‘host’ like their ID cards, residence documents, proof of your relationship to them — all of which are easy to prepare.

In my opinion, this is where embassies put most emphasis on — they really need you to be bounded to your home country, and that you have strong ties that will compel you to come back at the end of your stay. They definitely don’t want you aiming for ways to stay longer (illegally) nor aiming for ways to become an immigrant without going through the necessary procedures at your home country.

What are examples of ‘strong ties’? They vary from country to country: they will consider your circumstances, travel plans, financial resources, and ties that will ensure your departure after the period of visit. Thus, other than the evidences already mentioned in the above sections, make sure that you’ve issued…

Mention an affair that would necessitate your return (it can be a board meeting, company event, etc.)

Business registration

Proof of possession of real and personal property (real estate, etc.)

A letter from you, stating any other reasons why you won’t overstay

School enrollment certificate

Approved leave of absence

A letter from you and your parents or legal guardian(s), stating reasons why you won’t overstay (explanation of family situation, your long-term plans in your residence country, etc.)

NOTE: These are NOT absolute, chances are, one proof would already be enough; yet as usual, it helps to overdeliver on evidences. You can always ask the embassy for any other kinds of documents they might want from you to prove your situation.

I understand that some procedures when applying for a visa would require a round trip ticket to be booked and presented — this would already be a proof that you won’t overstay, but I advise that you provide more evidences still since tickets are the most basic affirmation. (Though of course, most embassies nowadays do NOT require you to have round-trip tickets to be booked and presented before/during the application. If you really need to present tickets, it should be enough to show a flight reservation or itinerary).

In case you’re wondering where to look for the best flight deals, my go-to platforms are Momondo, Kayak, and Skyscanner.

TIP: Your passport stamps help in justifying that you are not someone who overstays abroad.

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Overall

I dearly hope that these tips will help you! I wish you all the best of luck!

FINAL NOTE: Even with these pointers, remember to always check with your embassy first. Please also direct any clarifications and follow-ups to your applications to their office, and NOT to me; this is in consideration of the fact that they would always know more about your situation than me. Again: this article is merely a helpful guide for you.

How about you?

Do you have any other tips to share? Or things that I forgot to mention and should include when applying for a visa?

Have you ever been in a difficult situation while applying for a visa? What happened and how did you get over it?

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The post Applying for a Visa? Here Are 4 Important Tips to Get You Approved! appeared first on I am Aileen.