That said, I've joined a new web community. I've known about it for some time, but hadn't thoroughly explored the options until a friend asked me to help her out by joining to vouch for her. My first thought was why am I vouching for you to a bunch of strangers on the web and why should they care that I do so? I did a little further exploration of the site, which promotes couch surfing, and I found a very interesting community with a lot going on.
;)
For those of you wondering, couch surfing is a cute, popular term for spending a few days on the sofa or in a spare bed at homes of friends. I'm not sure exactly how old the website is, but recall seeing it at least 8 or 9 years ago. Originally, couchsurfing.org was a resource to connect people willing to let someone crash on their couch for a few days with people hoping to find a cheap place to stay. Reasons varied, college kids road tripping the US or backpacking Europe were common. Sometimes people needed a place to stay to look for a flat or apartment in a new location because jobs that pay for relocation are getting scarcer, particularly for those just starting out. Not everyone has a fancy sofa like the one above to share, though.
I hadn't looked at the site in some years, and was rather impressed with the current setup. One need not share one's sofa, nor is the desire to camp on the sofa of someone else a requirement. In addition to facilitating these activities, meets for coffee, drinks, to watch sports, or for a backyard BBQ are common. I ran across a number of profiles within a few minutes of searching where relocated people were using the site as a resource to meet locals in their new area, particularly in larger cities, and I thought it sounded like a great idea. I'll let you know how it works out as I've arranged to meet a young lady newly relocating to my area for coffee at a local coffee bar. She'd never heard of the place and was quite happy to learn about someplace new.
I was also impressed with the attention to safety encouraged by the site, both by design, and by the provision of an entire section devoted to tips, plus a newsletter. If one does choose to offer up a couch or spare room, it is easy to specify all sorts of information. For example, a young woman might specify only female guests, for three nights or less on her sofa. A female couch surfer hopeful might choose in turn only to search only locations where only females reside and only female guests are welcomed. Personal information such as phone numbers and addresses is only shared if you give explicit approval.
Getting back to the friend that wanted me to vouch for her, the site also encourages everyone to vouch for the people they've couch surfed with so others can have a bit more information about the person and their couch. She had joined because a number of our mutual friends have had great couch surf experiences via this site and she was hopeful of both hosting and surfing herself. Since I had both surfed her sofa and had her as a guest at my home on multiple occasions in the years since we met each other online about 12 years ago, she felt I was uniquely qualified to speak about her. She is in the process of planning a trip and the particular couch surfer she hoped to stay with only allows confirmed and vouched members to stay with her. I was happy to help my friend along and she reports she has already arranged her stay. I won't tell more as I have decided to invite her as a guest blogger here on her return to tell of her experience, and she has graciously agreed. I'll be reporting on my own little coffee klatch shortly as well.
[ add comment ] | permalink |
( 3 / 10 )
Calendar
