Monday, January 08, 2007

Mi casa es su casa

The week before Christmas I saw The Holiday. It was really cute (definitely a chick flick) and was based around the premise of home exchange . Basically Kate Winslet & Cameron Diaz, well their characters, swap homes for 2 weeks. I think it's a great idea. And the website featured in the movie is real. There are homes all over the world. You can swap with anyone. While the idea of a total stranger staying in my house for a few weeks while I'm thousands of miles away is a little off putting, the idea of staying in their house is very interesting to me. Just think of how cheap your trip would be if you didn't have to pay for a hotel! Plus, I love to see how other people live. Of course, you have to live somewhere that people would want to visit in order for the swap to work. And while I adore our little town, and we're not far from Charlotte, this area isn't known for its tourist attractions. There are also hospitality exchanges where you go stay with someone for a bit in their home then they come stay with you for a bit. I do that now with friends that live far off, but I don't know how I'd feel if I accidentally saw a stranger make that mad naked dash to the bathroom in the middle of the night!

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

I have friends that used an exchange site for their trip to Holland or somewhere like that. I personally thought they were nuts, but they are very trusting. I was surprised anyone wanted to come to Nashville, TN out of everywhere in the US, but she said they got a lot of interest in it. They had a great time and it was a fantastic, cheap vacation. My friends even exchanged cars! I guess more power to you if you are the trusting type.

J said...

We have friends who do this every year. They spend one month in Europe every summer...they've rented in France, Italy, England, Holland, etc. They've never had a bad experience which is amazing. We're actually renting a house for one month next year - not doing a trade though because I'm just too anal... but can't believe someone is willing to let total strangers take over their house for 1 month!lol

Julie

Andrea said...

I think it's a very neat idea. I'd love to do something like that one of these days.