How Couchsurfing has changed the way I travel

This is where it all started.

Just a couple of weeks ago I welcomed my 7th surfer to my place. If you aren't familiar with Couchsurfing, then keep on reading. :)

Couchsurfing is a digital platform which allows members to do any or all of the following:
- Host travellers;
- Stay as guests at somebody's home;
- Meet locals or fellow travellers;
- Join events organized by other members.

If you decide to host or be someone's guest, you should know that yes, it is free.

I had heard of Couchsurfing years ago, but never really thought of trying it until my trip to Europe a few months back. My friend, who lives in Turkey, and I decided to travel to VENICE together last June and she wanted to see if we could find a couchsurfer willing to host us for a couple of nights. She's been a couchsurfer for years and I'm pretty open-minded, so I was up for it. However, we couldn't find a host; we just ended up meeting a local, an Italian guy, with whom we had an amazing time. He brought us to Lido, introduced us to his friends, and we all enjoyed the nightlife by the beach. (And it hadn't hurt that I was able to practice my rusty Italian.)

There's no doubt in my mind that this incredible experience was what pushed me to be part of the Couchsurfing community.

A couple of weeks after my Venice trip, I was in BARCELONA. I only had one night in the city and figured I could try to meet a group of people whom I could drink and exchange stories with. My first group hangout was definitely memorable. I'll never forget walking and then biking around the empty streets at 3am!

View from the rooftop where we had drinks.

When I was younger, I was definitely an introvert. But that has changed over the years. If you ever meet me, I don't think you'll believe how shy I was. Just the thought of approaching strangers scared the shit out of me. But now I love getting to know people and hearing about their lives. Travelling really does open your eyes and your mind. You realize that there's so much to see and so many people who could touch your life.

Here below are a few more of my Couchsurfing highlights:

MADRID

• Met an amazing American girl, who was working as an au pair in Madrid. There were a lot of people at the time because of World Pride and we ended up staying out all night. 
• Met an Italian guy who brought me to a bar where they served beer and unlimited tapas for only €2.50 (around P150)!!!

Pure chance had brought me to Madrid during World Pride.

LONDON

• My first experience as a surfer. I had 3 different hosts in 8 days. All my hosts were guys, but they were so nice and their flats were in good locations.
• Met with a really nice Bulgarian girl a couple of times. We attended a salsa class together, which turned out to be pretty fun.
• Met another amazing American girl, with whom I spent 3 days. We explored London together and we still keep in touch!

Meeting someone who shows you around is pretty awesome.

TAIPEI

• I arrived in Taipei a day before my friends, so I used the app to look for someone I could grab lunch with. Met a great  Korean guy and we spent the afternoon together. We also ended up going to a club that evening because we wanted the check out the night life in the city. My friends met him the following day and he hung out with us until it was time to part ways.
• A Taiwanese guy brought us to Elephant mountain and we enjoyed the amazing view together.

Definitely worth the short hike.

After my Couchsurfing adventure in Europe, I was still high on that exhilarating feeling. I decided that since I live alone, I could also offer my home to travellers visiting MANILA.

I've hosted 7 people (an Italian guy living in Australia, two Chinese girls, one half Russian and half Korean girl, one Vietnamese girl, one Indonesian girl, and one German girl of Asian descent) so far and I have no regrets. I had work on weekdays, of course, but I still tried to hang out with each one of them as much as I could despite my busy schedule. I make it a point to host only when I know I can at least spend one evening with them so I could get to know them over dinner and/or drinks.

I always tell my surfers that there aren't a lot of touristy places in Manila, but if they're looking for good food and drinks, I've got a couple of places in mind.

If you haven't tried it yet and are hesitating, here are a couple of tips (I'm not an expert or anything, but I've found out that these worked for me):

• If you have at least one close friend who's also a Couchsurfer, ask him/her to leave you a reference. That way when people visit your profile, they'll read a good personal reference.
• Trust your gut. Don't meet anyone who seems sketchy or says things that make you nervous or weird you out. Read the person's references and decide from there. 
• Do not view it as a dating platform. If that's what you're after, why not just download Tinder or Bumble? I'm not saying don't date anybody you meet on Couchsurfing; if you actually find someone you click with and mutually decide to date each other, that's great. But if your primary goal is to date, I think that defeats the purpose of the app.

I enjoy Couchsurfing so much because of the people I meet. The stories I've been told are priceless. I am definitely looking forward to using it more whenever I travel. Since I like travelling solo, it is perfect whenever I do not feel like being on my own. I am grateful for the wonderful and interesting people that crossed my path. Here's to more unforgettable encounters.