CouchSurfing: Meet, Chat, Explore and Travel

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

In one of the posts about learning foreign languages, I casually mentioned a rather interesting service. It is suitable for everyone who loves to travel and receive guests. In addition, I have heard positive reviews about this system from friends. So what is CouchSurfing?

CouchSurfing is a non-profit international network that brings together travelers from over 230 countries around the world. By registering in this network, you get the opportunity to exchange cultural experience and get language practice in a rather interesting way: to host guests from different countries and, in the same way, to receive a roof over your head in any country that is included in the list. And who, no matter how indigenous, can best show his city and tell about his country, about the customs and mores of his people?

In addition, CouchSurfing organizes various interesting seminars and conventions in various countries, bringing together all interested participants. In addition to communicating and gaining an interesting experience, this service also helps to significantly reduce the financial costs of travelers, because they receive accommodation for free. In return, of course, you should also be ready to provide a room for fellow travelers, or at least arrange a city tour for them and make a pleasant company.

If you are not strong in English, in the upper right corner you can choose Russian or Ukrainian! True, not all paragraphs will be translated (I don't even know what it is connected with), but still, given the large amount of text, the translation will save you.

So, you register. Finding your country and your native language will not be easy. But I suspect that this is due to the fact that I chose Russian. When filling out the questionnaire at the very end, you are asked to indicate whether you can provide accommodation for someone from the travelers, or just gladly meet those who wish to visit your city. After registration, you will receive a letter to the specified e-mail with a confirmation link. Where you will have to enter your real address (where you live) and make a charitable contribution in the form of any amount. All this is necessary, since you must be completely confident in you, because you provide accommodation for people from other countries. In the same way, you must be sure that decent people will settle with you.

When you search for people on the service, you can read responses about them. Moreover, a person cannot delete or correct responses about him that were left by other people.

Also, community members can vouch for each other, thereby raising the rating and showing that it is safe to stay here, and the owners are interesting and sociable people.

Confirmation is one way of confirming the safety of such travel. In the application form, you confirm your physical address and make a small charitable contribution.

Friends - you can write a good review about a person you know personally. When you add someone as a friend, you will be asked certain questions. The answers to them will be shown both on your profile and on your friends.

In order to fully start using the service, you must enter information about yourself (your interests, what you do, etc.) and add your photo. Then you can find the group you are interested in by keywords.

By choosing the country and language you are interested in, you will receive brief information about the selected country and a list of people. I chose Australia.

By clicking on any of them, you will be taken to his profile.

You can also contact your so-called local ambassador. Ambassadors are active users of the service who voluntarily act as a liaison in the community. That is, this is a person who can advise you where and with whom to stay, tell you how best to use the services of the community. To find it, you need to fill out a form and filter by the specified parameters. True, in Russia and Ukraine, I never found a single ambassador.

Basically, you can just click on Community - People Online Now and you will see a list of people who are currently online. Click on the one who suits you and write him a message. If you find a common language, you can find out how everything works in a more accessible language.

You can also create your own interest groups, upload photos, correspond with interesting people and sometimes come to visit them.

An American came to one of my acquaintances using this system and collected folklore from different countries. After Kiev I was going to Russia. The guy turned out to be very sociable and positive. As well as the girl who received him at her place.

So everyone who wants to travel a lot and practice the language they are studying would highly recommend this service. While you will have to spend a lot of time to read just huge guides to action, but this time is worth it. After all, in return you will get an opportunity for interesting and lively communication!