The year 2009 is about to say good bye.....A melancholic feeling comes up, preparing cookies and presents for Christmas, the tension we know all too well when we open up the next door on our Advent Calender.
My last surfers have been such good guests and I felt they were rather like friends or relatives than ordinary couchsurfers.
Vitalii
My mum just went home and I decided to host the next surfer. Vitalii from Canada with Russian roots was a new member but his profile was so impressive that I decided to host him on a fairly short term. He was interested in sports and martial arts like me, so it would be interesting to meet him. His messages sounded nice and warm and he definitely had read my profile in detail. A knock on the door and I saw a smiling, exuberant and warmhearted young man. He brought me my favourite Lindt chocolates...yummy....
Vitalii was different from most couchsurfers who came to Mainz. He didn't come for a short transit just inbetween 2 flights but to spend time in this area and meet the local people. We had a great and funny time Vitalii, chasing through Mainz and driving through the German wine country to Straßbourg France. I miss you and hope to see you one day whereever in the world....Toronto?
Anthony
Mainz is an unknown destination for international travelers and when they decide to stay, it is usually because they are on a stopover. Anthony Schmitt from the U.S. was not less interesting. I was the first Couchsurfing host that he found through Couchsearch. He had some hosting and surfing experience with other volunteers who were also on Couchsurfing. I have always been very intrigued by Peace Corps Volunteers, especially when they live in a rural area in Africa or Asia. What an interesting life, it reminded me of my time in Tanzania. He needed to travel a long way from rural Morocco to the next airport Fes and arrived shortly after midnight.
A nice and gentle guy who looked a bit older than his 25 years. We had a glass of wine, exchanged some information and went to bed. The next day we went on a long hike in the Rhine Valley, explored castles and made some photos. The day was nice and still long, so we went to Bacharach to look at the ancient half-timbered houses before we left for Mainz to have onion tart and new wine.
It was a strenuous day and I locked out his passport and the housedoor key in my trunk. Anthony remained calm and helped me a lot not to lose my nerves. Angela lived near my parking and fortunately she was at home and lent me her key. I could go home, fetch the spare keys and problem solved. Anthony was helpful and mature, had a lot to share about his life in Morocco and passion for travelling, he even offered a lot of assistance in the household. After he left I found a postcard from the place where he lived....Thank you Anthony, I will try to visit you.
In memoriam Molote Massilo
Probably my last guest this year was Molote from Johannesburg, South Africa. He was an outstanding and unique guest, a linguistic acrobat with versatile interests. Once you get used to constant business calls and mails, having him as a guest is highly recommendable. As I wasn't well because I was stressed out with work and the change of the weather didn't do any good to me, he proved to be an excellent companion. I was kind of fatigued and suffered a headache. Molote cooked a wonderful Spaghetti Bolognaise, did the dishes and we had interesting conversations about CS, South Africa and differences between cultures within and out of South Africa.
We got to know each other quite well given the very short space of time. Molote came back for the second time to stay with me and I nearly forgot him. Otherwise I would have organised something like a party with other CSers or friends. Nevertheless, the conversations with Molote were really eye-opening. Where should we start? Lifestyle, outlook on the world, international politics, economy, people inside and outside CS, the new South Africa after Apartheid, women, men........
Like with most of my surfers, we cooked together a lot because he was a homey person exactly like me. This time we had roast duck with potato dumplings(Knödel) and red cabbage or Rotkraut because Molote initially wanted to try out Sauerkraut. Like most South Africans Molote prefers a rich breakfast like steak but we agreed on a rich German breakfast with fresh rolls, cold meat balls and fresh bacon.
After that we went out to see Mainz, had a second good breakfast before heading to see Frankfurt and enjoy a sumptuous Mongolian Buffet. This Mongolian buffet at Shangrila actually deserved an article on its own. Thomas Hervouet from France, my surfer who came earlier this year, also had the pleasure to enjoy this marvelous restaurant. Name it, they have Chinese dumplings, duck, curries, vegetables, fruits, sushi etc along with ice cream, cakes and Asian pudding. But the best of all is a large selection of fish, giant green prawns, kangaroo, beef, pork, mutton cooked in front of you with fresh vegetables.
UPDATE May 2011:
This summer(South African winter) in 2011, Molote sadly passed away due to bacterial meningitis. He was attending a CS meet on Saturday, suddenly developed high fevers which the doctors didn't take seriously in the beginning and as it was diagnosed it was too late......He passed away on Thursday.
I have shut down my couch due to health and work reasons before hitting the road again
Unfortunately I have caught a horrible cold bug and had pseudo-asthma attacks for 2 weeks. Bad enough to irritate but not threatening enough to fear for my life. Sylwia from Warsaw would have been the next guest but I was so sick that I couldn't host her and needed to cancel on a short term. She was already the second guest this year that I needed to cancel due to unforeseen health challenges. Those things happen and it again reminded me that we always need a back-up host or hostel
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