Luxembourg city and surrounding

I needed to do some business in Luxemburg city and thought I could combine it with a short holiday. The most impressive combination between culture and nature is the Petrusse Valley in the heart of the city. The Petrusse and Bock casemates are historic works worth looking at. When you arrive at Place d'Armes you look down into the valley at a beautiful park with a lot of greenery.

From here we can get straight into the city centre and old town where we can look at old architecture, do some shopping and buy coffee, Belgian chocolates and the famous Belgian speculoos cookie sandwich spread. The grand supermarket Auchan in Kirchberg is located in a huge shopping mall with many cafes and restaurants. Here you can buy all sorts of spirits and wine for nearly half the price you would pay in Germany. Many Germans who live close to the border come here, do some shopping and return to their home on the same day.

Lac Esch sur Sur

This time I used Couchsurfing again and made great friends. I had a couple of days laughing and talking to them. Unfortunately it was midweek and they didn't have time to join me to explore the beauties of the country. On the first day it was raining, I visited a few museums, saw the Palace of the Duke, The Cathedral  and the winding roads in the old town. The Cafes Chocolate House and Oberweiss are the most renowned and not quite cheap cafes. The other cafes are a lot cheaper and not all that bad.

If you travel everyday, you can buy combined tickets for EUR 16,- you can use on all the trains, trams and buses in Luxemburg. So on my first available day I went to Mondorf, a small spa town with a pretty park and thermal sources in beautiful nature. Then I continued to Remich on the Moselle using the same bus service. A one-hour-tour by boat on the Moselle gives you the feeling how  close Europeans live together. The left side belongs to Luxemburg with beautiful Luxemburg vineyards, the right side is the German side with lots of forested areas and camping sites.

In a small country like Luxemburg you can do three different tours to three different places with different nature and ethnic cultures within one day. The average Luxemburgian speaks four languages: Luxemburgian or Letzeburguesch, German, French and English. German, French and Letzeburguesch are the official languages but most people speak Letzeburguesch among each other, French better than German. Some of them speak even six languages.

Me at Place d'Armes looking into Petrusse Valley Park

The north of Luxemburg, the Ardennes bordering very close to Belgium is one of the most beautiful places in Luxemburg. Just the train ride along the Petrusse Valley in Luxemburg city, through the Ardennes to Clervaux is a trip on its own. I walked a steep walk from Clervaux Palace to Clairvaux abbey.

The day was long enough to return to Luxemburg city. Unlike by car, the bus and train lines only operate between Luxemburg city and other towns. So I had to return to Luxemburg central station to catch the bus to Echternach. I enjoyed my time at the Echternach man-made lake, went to a huge supermarket and then arrived at Echternach station in time. Another huge shopping mall was under construction.

One of the most picturesque places are Vianden and on this day I forgot my camera. I never thought that the pictures would rest in my mind so a camera wasn't even needed. The bus ride between Ettelbrück train station and Vianden was another trip through breathtaking scenery. Vianden itself was another harmony between nature and architecture. Beautiful weeping willows hanging onto the river, hills, forested hiking trails, a beautiful palace, castle ruines and an ancient bridge were the highlights of this village.

My Couchsurfing hosts Michael and Pipoc

I took a walk in the old town before I climbed up to the castle ruines and the castle itself was beautifully refurbished. Nearly approaching the end of the day, I discovered a hidden campsite on the other side of the river.You could pitch your tent by the water, barbeque the meat you just bought in town and have a relaxing day. It is just very close to the old town. Unfortunately they don't have many supermarkets in both Vianden and Clervaux. So prepare yourself by buying food at Auchan Kirchberg super market before going on a camping trip. It is different from Echternach where the county expected a lot of revenues from nearby cities in Germany.

Last but not least I am so grateful and happy that I could surf Julia and Michael's couch. It was such a nice family who of course spoke several languages and we were so amused that Michael, his brother Bruno and father George spoke German together. My faith in Couchsurfing is now restored, not exactly  in the management and staff members but the interesting people I got to meet and stay with. Of course  we had already made plans for them to visit us next year.

Following Saint Hildegard's footprints with a couchsurfer

My couchsurfer Sara from Wisconsin USA shared an interest which was not very common for the average couchsurfer. She wished to research Hildegard of Bingen's life work and history. It didn't take much time to accept her couch request and the next day we took her on a journey through the Rhine Gorge to the Hildegard sites. My daughter Angela has taken so much energy to do research on the internet, drove us all over the place and told Sara many legends about the sites

Bingen, our first station
After a beautiful ride through the Binger Loch, the southern gateway of the gorge, we arrived at the museum in Bingen where St. Hildegard's life and works were documented in an audiovisual setting. This museum did not only depict Hildegard's heritage but it had a large department of all the surgical instruments applied in the old hospice. It was located exactly opposite the Mäuseturm or Mouse Tower , a medieval tower located on a small island in the Rhine River with a famous folk tale to tell.

Rochus Hill and the chapel
Our next path took us to the Rochusberg and the chapel. It is amazing to find such a gem at my doorstep, vast tapestry of vineyards while we were gazing down at the Rhine and its beautiful castle ruines. Walking through "Hildegard's woods" has given us a feel that we had collected positive life energy and a reborn body and soul. At the edge of the woods we could see such a natural beauty over the Rhine Gorge which could be hardly described in words

St. Hildegard Abbey
We crossed the River Rhine by car ferry and continued our journey in Rüdesheim. This is a famous place for tourists from the very kitsch until the very picturesque scenery of the Rhine Valley. We drove to the Hildegard Forum where we could eat a healthy lunch buffet and watch artworks about her visions and medical insight

The highlight and the final station was the Eibingen church where her relics and bones were kept in a shrine. I must have lost my surfer Sara and my daughter Angela, then decided to take a short cut climbing through the vineyards to St. Hildegard Abbey where the guest quarters are. We visited the Hildegard shop, enjoyed the beautiful view and finally had the chance to attend the Gregorian Chant 6 o'clock vesper.

Sometimes couchsurfers can inspire you to re-explore the beauties of your home area

A day out in nearby paradise Edenkoben and St. Martin

I started wondering what to do on the long weekend of the 3rd October which is the German Unification Day. One couchsurfer and another person spontaneously decided to plan a day trip together. We really don't need to travel too far to experience a fine day of hiking in the woods and visiting an old little town in the Palatinate wine country.

The hike in the Edenkoben Valley wasn't overly vicious but hilly enough for us to have a good sleep at night. After this we visited a small town in the Palatine wine country where we had a beautiful traditional Palatine dish in a beautiful little restaurant next to the old church. Jasmin from Couchsurfing has provided memorable photo shots she made in St. Martin.

St. Martin is a historic little town which is seldom mentioned and totally unknown for many Germans, let alone foreign visitors. The forest where we picked chestnuts last week, the vineyards, the old cosy wine taverns and historic half-timbered houses where they sell wine is definitely a target just one hour drive from Mainz

I have discovered this beautiful village surrounded by the Haardt mountain range and Palatine Forest during a weekend trip with the U.S. military. During my clerkship in Neustadt an der Weinstraße we visited this beautiful place once during our weekend trip in Edenkoben.

Those people who would like to surf in Mainz may consider this beautiful place about one hour drive from Mainz, especially if they stay for a couple of days. The French border starts about 35 km from here and could still be managed in a day trip from Mainz.

How to make Couchsurfing more attractive for hosts

Meatless breakfast on Good Friday



The current host-traveler ratio on Couchsurfing
Most of the Couchsurfing introduction events such as Couchsurfing Orientation Day as well as several books on Backpacking around the World have been extremely inspiring. Unfortunately the focus of the media as well as private events is too much on the travelling and surfing part. People are rather interested in finding a host in their travel destination than being a host themselves. I think our common sense and the original idea of Couchsurfing is paying forward and this means we take and give a couch.

It will add a lot more balanced information to the Couchsurfing idea if we also present the aspects and advantages of hosting. As a New Member Welcome greeter I have to scroll down very deeply past the travelling or non-hosting member until I can find a host. Then I'm disappointed again because even these people are preparing for their next big trip. What actions can we take to improve this imbalance between hosts and couch seeker?


How can we improve host-surfer ratio?
Many new signups have empty profiles, do not host or are still on travels; very few new hosts are in sight. This can be very discouraging for hosts and travellers alike.
One of the reasons why the host/surfer ratio on Couchsurfing is so imbalanced is: Couchsurfing Inc as well as the media emphasises a lot more on the travelling than the hosting part.

Every TV show, media article, TV documentary, Couchsurfing's own advertisement only presents how much fun it is for a traveller to surf a couch for free. If the media could emphasise more on the hosting part, a lot of hosts will be more inclined to join Couchsurfing for a longer period. Articles in magazines and newspapers, TV programs and even talkshows about the hosting aspect of couchsurfing will make the Couchsurfing idea much more attractive for those people who would like to enjoy hosting.



The many advantages of hosting over surfing

1. You can stay in the comfort of your own home and social environment while the world comes to you and open your eyes
2. Cultural exchange in your own four walls and possible friendships
3. Language practice with native speakers without leaving your friendly environment
4. Teach, learn and share without the hardships of travelling. We may think of parents with kids or very busy people who cannot always afford to travel
5. Valuable help with housework or repairs. These services are very costly nowadays
6. Nice gifts, invitation to a restaurant or home-made food from a foreign culture
7. Hosting is still a lot cheaper and less stressful than traveling

Many people think that hosting is a burden and the host gives, the surfer takes. In real life it is always a two-way communication, a surfer can treat the host to meals and drinks, buy groceries, help in the household, enjoy their company, give them an inspiring experience, you can travel the world without leaving your house and many things more. Hosting is still a lot less expensive than travelling, even in cases where guests don't give too much of a material contribution. Beyond all the presents, good manners, help in the household there is something even more precious: People open up themselves towards a person they will never have a chance to meet on other occasions.


How to minimise unpleasant surprises with guests
It is never pleasant to hear less than positive comments, especially if we would like to promote hosting. There are some surfers who are rude, disrespectful towards the host and their property, abusive, sponging or even dangerous. A new host may want to contact other hosts in their cities regarding reading profiles(interests,teach, learn, share, types of people they enjoy etc), reading into references, how to evaluate positive and negative references alike, photos etc. Last but not least, the best reference is always prior correspondence, skype and phone calls as well as posts in groups

Point nr. 2 of this page is part of CS FAQ and very often used by less reciprocal surfers to pressure their hosts. In fact, this is only one page of the FAQ which is written by ambassadors based on the TOU. Several threads in groups(Ambassador archives) suggest that the Terms of Use is a commercial contract with grey areas to work around. I have never charged for the couch itself, but asking for donations or an act of thanks such as help in the household, groceries or invitation to dinner has never posed any problems. When in doubt, there is always a way to contact the Membership Dispute and Safety Team.


Conclusion
It is very unfortunate that Couchsurfing Terms of Use are totally in favour of surfers and travelers. New Welcome Greeters have a great potential to motivate the joys of hosting travelers. Official and inofficial events like Teach, Learn and Share Day have a great impact on how to make Couchsurfing more attractive for hosts. Let us educate future surfers and new members to be considerate to their host, so their visit will remain a lasting positive experience in their memories.

UPDATE 5 July 2014:  In late November 2011, Couchsurfing has become a for-profit B-Corporation Basically I have nothing against it except that they continue to extend their services to surfers only. Customer service is poor and the website poorly maintained, many documents written by ambassadors have been removed by the new management. CS has grown considerably in numbers and this also results in new members who are only looking for a free place to stay and no strings attached. People still make friends on CS but there are other channels than the CS website to communicate with each other. Asking for an act of thanks from surfers is still possible but CouchSurfing of today has a tougher stance on asking presents or labour from surfers. The New Member Welcome Team which consisted of volunteers is now non-existent and this has taken away a good opportunity for the community to assist new members.

Update November 2014
The already brittle website has been downgraded by the new management and the whole situation has worsened considerably. Many groups and events are transferred to FB, many members communicate through other media like Whatsapp, BBM, Skype and last but not least the ol' phone and email! Some groups on Couchsurfing still provide great information about what and why things happened! I still maintain my hospitality subnetwork and use the above-mentioned media....

Common misconceptions on Couchsurfing

With the very recent unproportional growth of Couchsurfing, we observe that currently many people have misconceptions about Couchsurfing.
I have heard some comments from people outside and sometimes inside Couchsurfing which may or may not be the reality



. These statements do not represent my own views, although I partly agree with them:


1. The primary reason why people join Couchsurfing is a free place to stay.
2. Hosts are all the same, travelers are all backpackers
3. CS represents "a big love into the world" Utopia.
4. Couchsurfing is dangerous and full of people with mental disturbances
5. Hosts who posts rules on their profile are very negative, uptight and anal
6. Couchsurfing is to help travelers without money.
7. Couchsurfing is secluded from the real world.
8. All couchsurfers are hippies and far left wing
9. Negative references are rare. Those who received them will never get a couch again
10.a. People host because they are lonely and have no life outside CS
b. Consider the host's place as yours and the host your maid
c. Use the internet 24/7 for chatting and don't mingle with the host. The host doesn't need the internet, it's just a luxury



What can we do to clarify these misconceptions?
In this case I can only talk about my own hands-on experiences, the positive and negative ones alike. My experiences are oberwhelmingly positive and the few negatives don't have convincing or even hidden profiles. It is important to tell potential members that exactly as in the world outside Couchsurfing not everybody can get along with everybody. As a New Member Welcome greeter I will always tell the new surfer to use common sense, intuition and observe subtle actions such as words, movements or the eyes next to profile and references. I would suggest reading some profiles, coming to meetings, attend a Couchsurfing Orientation Day or ask a question to the Advice for Hosts group on Couchsurfing.If anybody has an idea about another misconception, please let me know or write a comment on my article. How do you deal with misconceptions?

Update 5 July 2014:
In the meantime, some of these 'misconceptions' have widely become the reality on Couchsurfing. However, it is still possible to avoid this kind of experience by selecting your hosts and surfers carefully 

Special dishes from North Sulawesi

It has been a long time since I have visited the North Sulawesi region. This year I will go for couchsurfing in Manado.I love Manadonese food and somebody recommended a typical Manadonese restaurant which is only visited by locals. Now I know why:-((

My favourite was the kueh apang, a kind of Manadonese pancake. As I entered the place, I had to pass several dog cages with those poor little black guys whining very helplessly as though they sensed that their fate had been sealed. My heart missed a beat but I felt that both my feet were nailed to the ground, some evil spell probably prevented them to move.

I paid for the kueh apang and they promised to make freshly baked ones. As I was sitting on one of the very comfortable chair, a loud and chatty Manadonese family entered the premises. They ordered some "erwe"(dog meat dish) and I still couldn't find the energy to leave the place.

Finally after one hour they told me that the pancakes were ready. At the same time, a waiter solemnly entered the restaurant with a big dish. "Wow," said one member of the family,"that's good erwe." I was still paralyzed but then I ran.....and ran......The cakes didn't interest me anymore although I had paid and people were shouting after me that I forgot the pancakes.

So remember that the most specific food in North Sulawesi is the erwe(dog puppy dish) and paniki(bat dish). Does Couchsurfing knows about this all?

Molote, Anthony and Vitalii

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

My opinion on vouching

Vouching on Couchsurfing has been a heated discussion in some threads. Different people seem to have different views on vouching, some are very strict, some give them away like Christmas presents and many are somewhat inbetween.If somebody asks me what the right approach to vouching would be, I will answer that this will fully depends on the voucher's intuition, observation of subtle actions and personal view.
I will then present to them my own view on vouching which they may agree or disagree with.

How do I proceed with vouching and what criteria do I need?

A person can be great and trustworthy, although the hosting/surfing/personal connection may not click perfectly.  With the help of  CS-friends, I have set up the wording for my vouching criteria:

A. I must trust them with my family, friends, property and belonging.
B. They must trust me with their family, friends, property and belonging
C. They must be respectful to other people, their property and belongings
D. They say what they mean and mean what they say


How much time do I need to vouch for people?

Generally, I will leave out every person that I just meet after a quick drink or a large gathering on neutral grounds. Probably I will size up this person whether I decide to continue our relationship or not.My idea of time is quality and not quantity. And this actually means that I definitely need some time but don't quantify in minutes and months. We could as well have spent a shorter quality time to be able to tell how far I can trust a person.

Normally I don't host people for 1 night only and therefore I always get a fair time to build up a relationship. However, I don't vouch for everybody that I hosted or surfed with. I'm very, very selective with hosts or guests and in the past I have vouched for many of my surfing/hosting experiences.

I vouch for the people from MY subjective viewpoint and give NO guarantee that this person would become best friends with everybody. The heterogenuous, multicultural and -lingual nature of CouchSurfing would not make this possible. The people I vouch for are all CS-dedicated in many ways and GENERALLY trustworthy. At the end of the year I'll give my friends list a review but don't limit it to a certain number or time. This is rather about quality time spent and the nature of the relationship.

Exceptions:
People that I work with closely may become the exception because in the past I have vouched for people I met in ambassador meetings which lasted a couple of days/hours. Sometimes we have organised meetings together so the bonding was stronger. Even when I receive very good vibes from them I will still give it time to find out more details.

Do I vouch back for the vouch I get?
I have done this in the past because I considered all my vouchers trustworthy. However, there is no guarantee that I will always do this in the future.

I have never considered vouching as an "You love me, thanks. I love you too" approach. Neither do I make a drama out of it or because I'm an ambassador. Long time marriages or friendships can turn into a malicious war, people change or show their other dark side they may not be aware of before. So I think even the most sensible people make mistakes so once in a while. Removing the friend links on CouchSurfing is the only way to remove the vouch. At least the next vouch will not add up to the vouch list.

I hope this helps people to vouch with conscience. One more tip: Click on the profile who has vouched for your future host/guest and find more information.

Thomas Hervouet

I thought it was about time to host again. Thomas Hervouet posted on the Frankfurt Couch Emergency group that he was unable to find a host after 25 requests. His message was nice and his profile sympathetic. However, I first thought I would turn down a 1-night-request because normally it didn't provide enough time to get to know each other well enough

We had a lot of mail exchange beforehand. Somehow he sounded like an interesting guest to host and I provided him with a lot of information regarding Frankfurt and Mainz. He was French and I thought this was an excellent opportunity to practise my French too. Apart from everything his profile said that he grew up in a stable family which was something I was always impressed by. Couchsurfing is an opportunity to meet awesome people and speak many languages if you know how to choose your guests.

I was busy working on that day and he needed to tour Frankfurt on his own. We made an arrangement to meet at the Shangrila Mongolian Restaurant in Frankfurt. As I entered the room a young man with a backpack and friendly blue eyes came along and greetet me. He looked a bit different from his profile photo which was not too clear at that time. However, he recognised me straight away. His eyes were friendly and his manners appealing. The food was excellent and good value for that price. Thomas was hungry and couldn't wait for the fresh prawns to cook. The staff would cook the meat you choose in front of your eyes. Thomas chose spicy food and I already thought it was too spicy for a Frenchman.

Our conversation continued to become more interesting and I learnt that he was a nuclear physician who just finished his CME in Würzburg. His English was excellent, my French rusty and I couldn't communicate on the same level as in English. So we decided to speak English. After informative conversations with the other people in the restaurant, we drove home in the rain. I had some trouble with my night vision and he was patient enough to assist and navigate me a little bit.

Visiting the Mainz Marathon
The next day was a Sunday and the Mainz marathon was on. It is a big running event in Mainz along with cultural performances and food. At first he was reluctant to visit a loud marathon but soon he changed his mind. He enjoyed the beauty and historical significance of Mainz.

Mainz was famous for its laid-back people and love for outdoor festivals. Anyway, the Mainz marathon was a unique event and everywhere there were Brazilian and German military drummers to fire the runners. We took some photo shots, visited some baroque churches and headed for Wiesbaden after spending a couple of hours sightseeing.

Wiesbaden
Thomas preferred Mainz to Wiesbaden but I thought he had not seen everything and we did not have enough time to view the Wiesbaden baroque architecture and lifestyle. I drove him through the posh Wilhelmstraße or Wilhelm Street and we could see the Park, Casino and Opera from the car. From the Taunus Str we could already see the hills and wineyards of the Neroberg. This is an important landmark with the only water-driven funiculaire. We took a walk and photo shots on top of the Neroberg. The weather was excellent and we had a clear view of Wiesbaden. After a lovely lunch it was time for him to catch the train to the airport.

Thomas was one of my best guests whose visit felt rather like meeting a good friend. When I have time I really would like to visit him in France. Up until now, he was the second guest that I initially didn't want and who turned out to be one of the best experiences ever! He invited me to surf his couch in France and one day I will do mate....

Culture shock in small serves

The social gap between village and city
I helped my mother a lot with her new little house. At first I thought it would be difficult because business in Indonesia was complicated and unsafe. The language barrier did not make things easier. My Indonesian language and cultural skills improved very fast partly due to the work pressure. I had no choice but to push through our interests and at least I managed to get basic work done.

Our house was just on the border to the kampung or village area. Many well-to-do Indonesians were hesitant to live near the border of a kampung because the social gap between the village and city was wider than the Grand Canyon. I liked the fruit orchards in the kampung and all the kampung style houses. But there was definitely a strong agression and envy against the new houses and newcomers. I felt the presence of it every day as I walked through the area.

Newcomers and villagers in Melati Mas
Somehow I could even understand the resentment the villagers had towards the newcomers. Imagine you had lived your own lifestyle in peace and then the rich people started to intrude into your space and changed your life with force......Kampung people still burned their rubbish in their gardens which could lead to life-threatening conditions such as asthma or lung cancer. This was something I just couldn't imagine from my Western viewpoint. It had been prohibited in Jakarta city areas but this place was still considered the border to the villages.

Newcomers wanting to move into one of the new houses were waited for in front of their house. A huge group of kampungers(villagers) under leadership of their elders would devour you unless they could squeeze a hell lot of money out of the "richies". They would block the newcomers to enter their own house until they received the money to carry out the job. These village people were lazy, had no work and often could only afford 2 meals a day. For this reason it became more than incomprehensible for me why all of them possessed a mobile phone they could chat on for hours.

Getting in touch with traditional medical herbs
The jamu or medical herbal tea is a tradition which is as old as mankind in Indonesia. What ever you wish, just name it. Jamu for more sexual potence, for a nice skin, for less spots on your face, for more social charisma, even a total cure of cancer :-))) Every Indonesian would have at least one glass of jamu from a street vendor every day. I tried a few glasses but soon I had to regret it. Probably the water did not meet enough of the hygienic requirements. I contracted a fungus diarrhoea for a couple of days. Through these jamu sessions, I got to know a lot of different local people and their lifestyles.


The importance of age and ethnic identity
The way people adressed each other based on ethnic identity and age alienated me even more. My mother was quite upset as people called her Oma(grandmother) and I wasn't too happy as some youngsters called me Tante or auntie. People address to you based on your perceived ethnic identity. Something I found absolutely weird!!!!!

If they called you Tjie or encim they perceived you as Chinese. I thought what would happen when some Muslim Malay people with Chinese features were called Tjie, encik or encim. Well, they told me that this had happened on several occasions and non-Chinese people were upset about it. The official term was Ibu which meant Ms or sometimes mbak(Miss) when the person was young. If you say Ibu you can't go wrong because this is standard regardless of age and ethnic identity. People also seem to act strange if you are not married although in Jakarta city people start to change.....

I can never familiarise myself with this attitude and unable to understand why ethnicity and age is so important in Asian societies. But Couchsurfing will apparently teach you to be respectful and tolerant of people with values and beliefs other than yourself. It really provides close-corner learning of other lifestyles.

Nur Widodo

Melati Mas is somewhat out in the sticks and the poor public transportation was not overall helpful to meet couchsurfers. I decided to use the internet and found Nur Widodo who also helped hosting my CS friend Aishah Rachman. His mail was very friendly and I wasn't surprised at all as he called me on the phone and suggested a meeting place.

He was busy because he was preparing for his business assignment on an oil rig where he worked as a geologist. Nur Widodo looked much younger than his chronological age and as nice as his profile picture. He smiled warmly and said:" Ibu Sue(my mother who also has a profile on CS)". We instantly had a lot of stories to share and he was very keen to speak his excellent English with us but I rather preferred to speak my poor Indonesian with him.

Widodo invited us to join him to Jakarta in his car. It felt like we had known each other for ages and the conversations proceeded to the more sensitive cultural issues. Cultural encounters can be interesting but we should be prepared for a shock sometimes .It is easy to get to know and even roughly understand a culture......but it can be a challenge to actually live a culture as though it was your own.

I couldn't stand the temptation to buy a dress at the posh Pasar Raya in Kebayoran Baru and again Nur showed his talent and taste for good fashion. I chose a good quality smart casual dress for about Rp 400,000, quite expensive for Indonesian standards.

We spent roughly the whole day together, it started to rain cats and dogs and he dropped by at our place for a coffee. I wanted to buy some Indonesian cakes(kueh basah) but the rain was so horrible that even he preferred to just have some cookies. Nur, your advice on Indonesian culture especially the attitude of Indonesian parents was very sound although I had difficulties to understand it. Hope to see you again when I return to Jakarta

Food in Melati Mas, Tangerang

You can really enjoy food in Indonesia for barely 1,- €. There is a nice restaurant in Melati Mas called Jes Jos. My favourite dish for Rp 15,000 or a bit more than 1 € is a big serve of nasi goreng pete(fried rice with meat and "stinking" peas pete). It is a real clean restaurant and they deliver everything to your place for free.

Would you like to have a good breakfast?
Before I leave the house about 6.00 am for the internet cafe to do my both offline and online work(offline is cheaper BTW), I have breakfast first. Ah Lim, located at the corner of Jalan Raya Melati Mas(main road of Melati Mas) sells the famous steam mee for Rp 9.000. The ketoprak vendors or Indonesian salat with rice noodles and peanut sauce start to sell around 9 am. You can get a nasi uduk(rice steamed in coconut milk) for Rp 3000 without meat but you need to come before 8 am.

The hygiene especially in the charts of the street vendors leaves much to be desired. One morning I saw the village people doing their morning business in the river where they got the water for coffee about one hour later. I have watched some people using water out of the gutter for cooking or to prepare salad, the cleanest one was actually somebody who used water to wash the cars. My tip would be to choose the small street restaurants or stalls instead of the vendors. But the Tahu Sumedang or freshly fried tofu cubes cost so little and you can get it piping hot from the vendor.

Even a restaurant with a karaoke is not particularly expensive. The Furami or Nyonya Suharti restaurant is reasonably cheap and you can sit in a clean and cosy environment. For fried carp with sauce you pay around Rp 30000 or € 2,- for a huge serve with a delicious sauce. Apart from this furami serves sumptuous dinners and karaoke singing if you wish. At night you will see a BBQ seafood stall in front of the BSD shopping plaza.

What can we do to avoid a serious bug like typhoid, salmonella, clostridium difficile and all those lovely pets? Of course we are all better off with immunisation and this can be very cheap in Asia too. A strong immune system is paramount and about 70% of it is located in the digestive system. We need enough sleep which is sometimes not easy, especially when you are couchsurfing. Aa positive attitude and healthy food supports our immune system. About 10 days prior to travelling and during the whole travel period I start to take prebiotics from the pharmacy on a regular basis. Perenterol has significant studies and it worked well for me. This increases the amount of natural intestinal flora which are well-known to deflect germs.

Use your eyes to judge the food - you wouldn't regret it!!!!

My last minute guest in Sydney

My only real last minute guest in Sydney was Pierre Jean. He wrote to me about 5 hours prior to his arrival at my place. I told him not to write copy paste messages and to mention my name instead of just a hey. He apologised for this and we started a 2-hour mail contact which I found quite extensive. I could find out quite much about him and his journey. He has been travelling to the icy northern part of Mongolia, not a particular tourist destination, as well as the dangerous Timor Leste and East Indonesia. All his stories about a ferry ride in East Indonesia as well as staying with locals in Timor Leste caught my attention immediately. His photo at the ice lake in North Mongolia ignited my interest. He was French and could not speak English very well, so this was a great chance for me to practice my French language. I told him that CS or Couchsurfing was not a dating site and he assured me that we were both not cannibals......good analogy.

I was still at work as my mobile phone rang. An Australian girl was on the phone and told me that my "friend" was lost. Jeezz....I gave him such a detailed description and I could already expect some sort of messy catastrophic person. Anyway, as I arrived home he was already waiting for me. He looked like a playboy on his profile photo but in real life he looked older than his 26 years. A bit bald already, thin, shy and rather underfed. He looked sick and tired thus I did believe him as he told me that he didn't sleep for 2 days. Sydney was cold at that time of the year and he used to sleep outside in the park because he was too proud to ask for a couch..

Pierre Jean was extremely well-mannered and polite as a guest. He was clearly a disorganised person in his head; creative but catastrophic. He never liked working on a career, left school at the age of 16 despite his parents being well-off and educated. Pierre Jean was good at language learning and picked up foreign languages in quite a short time. He told me that he could play the piano, offered to play for me many times although he never studied it and never learnt to read music. His stories about Mongolia, Indonesia and Timor Leste were amazing, he met a lot of local people on ferries and surfed their couches without this website. I could believe this because that was what I did before the era of Couchsurfing and the internet. He was considerate and talked to his mother on the phone a few times a day. I also experienced that his mother sent him money immediately on the same day. The first thing what he did was to invite me to an Italian restaurant, something that I wouldn't expect from a backpacker.

The ways on Couchsurfing are strange because Pierre Jean was not the type of person I would make friends with under normal circumstances. It was the French language, his travels and his considerate attitude towards hosts where I was sure that he learnt it during his travels in poor countries. Pierre Jean stayed with me for 6 days and I helped him to contact Alain Funel in New Caledonia. He wanted to look for a job to finance his travels and did not have a working visa for Australia. As a Frenchman he could reside in New Caledonia without any problem and take up a job. Alain's wife was given training because her school background was not strong enough to find any type of work. I suggested these opportunities for Pierre Jean and he seemed interested.

Pierrre Jean was an immature and quite crazy guy but I thought he could succeed in New Caledonia. He has always been very polite, clean and tidy in my house, helped washing the dishes and showed a lot of respect. I just had some difficulties to get him under the shower and brush his teeth. He was grateful, gave me a wonderful reference in French and went off to New Caledonia......

Jeffrey, my host from Singapore

Jeffrey!!!! He has become one of my closest friends on CS and we are still in contact until today. I was posting to the Singapore group and saw his subgroup: The Singapore EAT EAT EAT group. He answered positively to my post on his group and offered to meet up and share food together. Singaporean food is famous and I thought this would be the chance to experience food in the company of a local friend. We have been mailing a few times and I got to know his need for clean surfers very well. I'm a clean person but I don't shower 3 times per day and don't wash my hair every day. My hair and skin is rather dry and it would become brittle if I wash it everyday. It is a matter of fact that even in a tropical country, fresh sweat doesn't smell and is by no means dirty. What we normally smell is old sweat starting to decay after a few days exactly like rotten food. Indeed a few backpackers smell horribly because some of them find it cool not to shower and change their clothing for a whole year. Would Jeffrey find me clean enough to surf his couch?

I arrived in Singapore with a sore stomach and diarrhoea. Jeffrey and his family already waited for me at the airport. He looked exactly like on the photo, so does his lovely family. We went to some place in Singapore that I didn't remember and ate congee(rice porridge with condiments). It was so delicious and my diarrhoea stopped immediately. The next days were unforgettable as I joined the family shopping in Johor Bahru Malaysia, buying gold paper money for the rituals in Singapore and helped them preparing for the feast. The family was so hospitable and never let their guest contribute to anything.

Jeffrey prepared for the Feast of the Hungry Ghosts, something I had heard of as I lived in Malaysia and Indonesia for some time. However, I never experienced it from a close-corner viewpoint. I enjoyed the private preparation much more than the real function with CS because I felt like being a good friend or member of the family. Everyday we went out eating while preparing for the big feast. After the food offering ceremony we could eat all the delicious food Jeffrey cooked himself.

Apart from being a generous and kind person, Jeffrey was a skilled driver and perfect organiser. We travelled together to Penang and Hat Yai and I met his friends Anthony and Joe who joined us in the car. They remained great friends on CS and I hoped I could meet them again soon. The weather in Penang was horrible and we had to wade through shit water to get to the gourmet restaurant. But nevertheless, the experience was so special, the food excellent and Georgetown a beautiful old city with a background of durian plantation and the sea.

We drove the whole night where I discovered that Jeffrey was a good driver too. At the border between Thailand and Malaysia we stopped at a small restaurant next to fruit plantations. The fruit was very cheap but the cempilak was finished and so was the durian. I saw real Malays eating grilled chicken and melinjo vegetables with their hands. Not a single tourist and backpacker, exactly the kind of rural life I would expect in SE Asia. After this we crossed the Thai border and Jeffrey started to teach me a bit of Thai. It was just later that I found out that it was crucial.

"Couchsurfing" in a Thai nunnery, a special experience
We stopped at a nunnery and I always wanted to experience the spirituality in a Thai temple. I decided to "couchsurf" in the temple. The nunnery was located in the middle of the forest and has impressive traditional architecture. Their meditation was very simple but deep, similar to Taijiquan without the martial arts component. Instead, they related the meditation to daily tasks such as household, sewing, cleaning etc. I had the best durian I could imagine with thick flesh and small stone, dry and sweat taste with a colour as yellow as butter. We could have this for breakfast and lunch because lunch at noon would be the last meal before the next morning. The nuns realised that I was not accustomed to this kind of lifestyle and gave me a chance to adjust slowly and allowed me to have a light dinner. Jeffrey, I spent most time surfing and travelling with you and I still would like your family to stay with me whereever I am, in Sydney or in Germany.

Lukewarm nearly negative surfing experiences

What would life be without some a bit less than positive experiences so now and then? Isn't life including Couchsurfing like a dish with various types of spices? Sweet, sour, bitter, spicy? I needed less than extremely positive experiences to be able to grow up as a person. To be true I never had any really negative experience on Couchsurfing but sometimes it didn't click or probably the circumstances were not right to live up my ideas of Couchsurfing.

I expect from Couchsurfing some sort of friendship between different cultures where people also become friends and host each other. Even before I joined Couchsurfing I have never been a friend of hostel dorms but rather prefer non tourist spots and immerse in cultures. It has been quite disappointing when I sense that somebody originaly has nothing else in mind but to save money at somebody else's expenses. Hopefully people can understand how it feels to be used a free B & B, even when they are respectful and try to connect to you.


The free hostel from XXX in country Neverland
This time I would keep privacy and will not mention the place, name and city where my next host comes from. I will call him host XXX from city XXX. Host XXX was definitely a friendly and laid back host with a hospitality that I cannot imagine. He enjoyed the world coming to his place and was a generous host. However, being hosted back-to-back is not my cup of tea and queueing for the bathroom would make me feel like canned sardines. As I arrived at his place I was totally disappointed because I had to sleep on the floor without a mattress and sharing with strangers I wouldn't be in control of the numbers. The surfers kept coming so I wasn't even sure who was still coming and how many surfers would end up at his place. As the last surfers came I already had panic attacks and I was not used to wait so long for the shower.

I was already aware that we could not rely on Couchsurfing alone and that we should be prepared and have money for a hostel or hotel. That was probably the first mistake that I made. Host XXX and me had email and phone contact for about 3 months. My mistake was of course that I did not ask exactly for my sleeping arrangements. City XXX was busy in the high season and had few hosts compared to other places. I'm not enthusiastic about hostel dorms and hotels were all fully booked and charged triple walk-in rates for those who didn't book far in advance. The budget hotels and single rooms in hostels were booked out for a few weeks and so were the low rates for good hotels. If I knew that host XXX hosted so many people I would have booked a good hotel far in advance for a reasonable rate.

What have I learnt from this experience?
Some hosts don't have limits for the number of their guests and more comparable with free hostels entertaining party guests. Nice......but I prefer personal connections with my prospective hosts. Nowadays I would not only read their profiles but would also ask carefully about sleeping arrangements and make sure that I will be the only guest in the house, let alone sharing a room with a traveler. My idea about Couchsurfing is to focus more on the lifestyle of the hosts and therefore find other surfers rather disturbing. I was too polite to ask about sleeping arrangements because I thought that I should concentrate more on the relationship with the hosts. However, how could I be serene enough to relate to the host when I have 7 sleepless nights?

In total I had only one lukewarm experience hosting somebody and three people that I threw out of my NYE party in Sydney. Being in control of your guests seem to make the experience much more tolerable. In the future, I will book a hotel far in advance for a couple of days parallel to searching for a host. This learning experience was definitely necesssary for me to live up the wonderful ways of Couchsurfing.....

When I think back to all my hosting and surfing experiences: Nearly all of my hosting and surfing interactions were between positive and extremely positive, except of one horrible surfing in Perth with a person who in my opinion was not made for hospex sites. I was traumatised and other unpleasant experiences resulted from this surfing fatigue and trauma. Couchsurfing is definitely a factor with several unknown variables and if we are not up to an unpleasant surprise we can only do our best to avoid it.

From Bourail to Noumea

Olive's house was in the middle of the Caledonian bush or brousse and we had no neighbours except of wild cows, dogs and horses. Zita his dog couldn't stop playing with me because she was young and strong. Every time she brought a piece of stone and deliberately dropped it on somebody's foot(ouch) to invite them to play with her. She never got tired no matter how often and how far you would throw the stone. Bourail and the bushland is said to be the residence of many "Caldoches", the French white people who have been living in New Caledonia for more than 5 generations. As a tourist and foreigner, I tried to be very careful about saying something with a double sense like Caldoche or Kanak(indigenous person). The safest for a foreigner is to always use neutral words and expressions.

The Bourail market was really interesting with the many exotic fruits which remind me a bit of Malaysia or Indonesia. Indigenous women in very colourful traditional dresses sitting around chatting or selling their products was typical for the Bourail market. In my opinion they were more interested, educated and curious than the Australian indigenous people back home. I bought an indigenous vegetable called chou Kanak or indigenous cabbage which looked more like spinach to me. The Caledonian indigenous people were curious and wanted to know much about the indigenous people in Australia. I always had hangups talking about the indigenous people in Australia and was happy as Pierre came to pick me up. The woman was surprised that my friends were white because as I told her that I stayed with friends she probably expected anything else than a "Caldoche". As a foreigner I often prefer not to voice my opinion too clearly because I was not always sure whether irony in that particular case would be suitable to express the double sense of matters.

The bus from Bourail to Noumea was late as usual. Jean Lugand, my third host, expected to pick me up near the cinema where the bus stop was. He was a handsome, kind and neat young man who worked as an engineer for Air Calin. HIs written English was excellent but as I asked him he preferred to speak French. This suited me very well because I liked to practice my French as much as I could while I was in NC. Indeed my French became very fluent and I started to use irony, humour or any type of slapsticks. Jean initially treated me as a couchsurfer and he clearly said that he wouldn't change his life for a couchsurfer. Of course I would never expect any host to change his life for a surfer or guest.

We went out Salsa dancing to the prettiest dancing I could ever imagine. Jean said it was an appealing place with friendly guests and staff. I couldn't agree more with him on that place. It was built in traditional Caledonian architecture in the middle of the sea, so we had to walk a small bridge to cross a small part of the water to be able to enter the disco. We had a salsa course where men and women were separated. Jean was tired and went home earlier. I still stayed and danced with many people then I slowly walked back to Jean's apartment in the noble suburb Anse Vata by the sea.

Anse Vata is a suburb with predominantly European or sometimes Asian residents where you hardly see any indigenous person. Sometimes I could observe a few indigenous people sleeping on the beach. The next day Jean didn't have time for me because he had a business dinner. He gave me the key of his apartment which he normally didn't give to surfers. I'm trustworthy but people who don't know me need some time to find out and I'm glad Jean trusted me. I walked a long way until Baie de Citron and further up but as I had sneekers and jeans on, they didn't admit me to the disco.

The last day of my stay in Noumea I went to the famous municipal market located just on the waterside of Noumea Harbour. It was another beautiful building with a blue roof and water views. Here they had the prawns NC was famous for and plenty of Vietnamese and Indonesian food. So I had quite a good value coffee, breakfast and hot lunch here. After breakfast I was looking for diving and surfing opportunities but it was not as easy as in Sydney. I needed to pay much for a boat which could bring me to the diving and surfing points. Because I was alone I needed to pay the fee for the whole boat because it was off season but school holiday time. All the flights were booked and everything was more expensive because of the school holidays and I couldn't find a flight to the Pine Islands. Finally I decided to just take a day cruise.

A must see in Noumea is the Centre Culturelle de Tjibaou or Cultural Centre. It is a a piece of land located by the sea, a beautiful spot with interesting indigenous shows, landscape gardening and the real indigenous houses. Just the bus ride along the coast provided a different side of coastal Noumea. I initially thought that Noumea was not worth a visit. But this city is multicultural and -ethnic, so even a cruise ship full of Australians will just be absorbed in the ethnic diversity of Noumea. I spent the last day with Jean and invited him to dinner at Baie de Citron. He was very caring and organised a shuttle bus to catch the very early flight. Public transportation was extremely unreliable in New Caledonia s I couldn't thank him moer for that. I was really prepared to catch an expensive taxi at the risk that they rip me off as a tourist. Thank you Jean for your hospitality and it was a great pity that I couldn't spend much time with you to get to know you better.

The New Caledonian Bush - Oliver

The long distance bus in New Caledonia is quite a horror. Firstly they are never on time and if you arrive at the station, you will be totally confused by the disorganised and unlogical manner of both passengers and drivers. I arrived early and still didn't get a proper seat because everything was so messy. Thank God that Bourail was not too far. At least I have learnt that I needed a rented car to explore New Caledonian Bushland or brousse. It was so stupid that I haven't brought my driver's license with me. I arrived in Bourail about 8.30 pm.

The bus was full of indigenous people whose way of thinking and behaviour I found difficult to follow. But they were very polite, good French speaking and friendly. After we arrived at Bourail bus terminal it was time to say good bye to them. A gentle nice young Frenchman approached me and said:" Soraya, is that you?" Well, Oliver looked like a daring playboy on his profile picture but in real life he just looked like the Frenchie next door. Oliver's friends were already waiting at the nearby cava bar, a really cosy place where people sat outdoors around the crackling fire chatting their time away. They asked me whether I knew cava and I told them about my experience with Alain.

Soon I felt quite comfortable among these people and I was treated more like a friend than a stranger sleeping over. In multi-ethnic and -cultural New Caledonia you hardly stand out as a tourist, especially if you speak French. I began to really understand why French people liked to live in New Caledonia despite the extremely high cost of living compared to the infrastructure or economic standard of the country.

We arrived at Oliver's house which was about 3 km outside of Bourail. Zita, the dog truly welcomed me with her strong temperament. Mimi, the cat couldn't stop caressing her body to my legs. Olive's business partner and housemate Fred was as hospitable and friendly as he was. He had a simple but catching humour, exactly the contrast of the more serene Oliver. He was as much a host as Oliver to me and made me feel rather like a friend than a stranger sleeping over. Couchsurfing really gave me the opportunity to make instant friends and this extremely positive New Caledonia experience gave me the feeling that all hosting and surfing experiences were as wonderful as this one. I slept in Olive's office and later I heard that Fred used to sleep here but took the guest couch instead.

Olive's friends felt more like friends than hosts to me and I had the feeling that I knew them for a long time. As a surfer I would behave exactly as I would at a friend's place. The kitchen was not particularly organised and I cleaned and washed the dishes. Fred was very surprised and happy because I did this but it is just something very natural for me to do.

The next day Oliver and Fred helped his friend Pierre to build a party shack on his private property. He invited me to join. The property was in the middle of the bushland and provided an amazing view over the Ile de Verts or Green Island in the mmiddle of the ocean. While they were working, I went to the beach but walked back soon to help them taking photos of their construction work. The photo shots started from the first stone laid with Pierre's signature and date of construction. We also visited Pierre's brother's party shack and private beach in another part of the bushland. How amazed and surprised I was by the shack because it provided a kitchen and shower next to a sheltered party shack. This beautiful private bay area with mountains in the background was called Baie Tisse or the Bay of parties. A very tricky wordplay because the French word betise which is pronounced the same means stupidity.

I was so impressed by the vast space of the private bushland. Similar to Queensland we had to pass a barrier to enter this huge private property. We had so many parties and I enjoyed their company so much that I nearly cried as I had to leave Bourail. The bus was 2 hours late as usual.....

Alain Funel from New Caledonia

I had 2 weeks off work and which country should I visit? Preferably something with a different culture and language. The holiday was planned on quite a short term and I had only 4 days to look for a host. During this period I needed to turn down a nice request from nice people from Ireland. After browsing the net, I decided to write to 4 hosts and 3 hosts said yes. Woohoo........

Air Calin or Air Caledonia started late and I arrived at 8 pm. I was looking for my first host Alain Funel and he was already waiting at the airport. Normally I don't ask people to pick me up but with the poorly organised public transportation in New Caledonia, I was more than happy to accept his offer to pick me up. He was shorter than I expected but I have been realy impressed by his warmhearted kindness. We arrived at his house and greeted by his girlfriend Yolande and the 2 students from Vanuatu.

We had a lovely meal and again this was not anything that I expected. Fried manioc with prawns. Alain was my only host who grew up in New Caledonia but born elsewhere. All my next hosts immigrated to New Caledonia from metropolitan France. Alain took me to his office which was in the center of Noumea, the capital city of New Caledonia. He gave me the address of a lady who worked for the tourism office and I noticed that he knew a lot of people. We went to the night fair showing traces of the original indigeneous culture of New Caledonia. It really felt that I was not a tourist and his friends treated me exactly like a local.

Alain had time for me after work and he showed me around the city in his car. We went to a cava bar to sample cava, a typical drink from Vanuatu. I do know that the cava cava plant contains analgesia which can be effective for arthritis. The cava bar is a Vanuatuan tradition where people sit there in the dark cave, drink cava and socialise. Alain warned me already that it could become heavy and make you tired. I tried them and you could spit it somewhere in case you hated it.

Walking through Noumea gave me a lot of insight into the New Caledonian culture and the very subtle conflicts between the ethnic groups. Not only that my French language improved but I could also learn about the diversity of the various ethnic groups. Very soon I realised that I needed to walk a very fine line in order not to offend any group. Indigenous people spit on the ground which was something I needed to get used to. Time passed by very quickly and it was about time to say a temporary goodbye to Alain to continue my travels to the New Caledonian bush. Public transportation especially the long distance buses are a very special topic in which I'll talk in the next article.

Garry Graham

I spent the next months attending many CS meetings and found a couple of new friends. On Australia Day I had some work-free days and decided to embark on just a short trip to Port MacQuairie. It was just by chance that I found GArry Graham through another friend who came to my NYE potluck in Sydney. He answered immediately and very positively to my request.

Garry already waited for me as I arrived late night in Port MacQuairie. He looked exactly like his picture, welcoming and hospitable. As I arrived at his house I was a bit disappointed because I couldn't have the guest room due to "friends" staying. For sure my first intention was to experience the area, looking for some opportunities to live there and spend time with Garry. But I can't deny the fact that I do have the need for my own room without the need to live out of the suitcase. On Couchsurfing I could get to know a person I wasn't really aware of....myself.......After a few sleepless nights I was not the nice person I used to be....

I enjoyed staying with Garry and we became really good friends. He had a neat organised household, loved tea and cooked lovely gourmet food. He showed me around the area, took long stretches into the Hinterland with me but the amount of freshwater didn't allow us to surf. He didn't seem to be happy with his friends Lynn and Phil whom I found ignorant and rude. Our dissatisfaction in Lynn and Phil's company created some bonding between us and we spent more quality time together. We discovered another interest that we share next to beaches and surfing - Martial Arts. We trained Hapkido together on our last night. Garry was quite a multitalented person and I regret that my stay was so much troubled by Lynn and Phil. He introduced me to his friends and I was invited to their birthday drinks. Lynn and Phil wore me out though and I had sleepless nights. My headaches became so bad that I needed to cancel my next host in Byron Bay.

Garry, you are a good friend and I look forward to hosting you in the future.

Hans-Jürgen, Enrico's father.

Sometimes I thought that Couchsurfing was the wrong place for me because the majority of the members were under 30. Simply too young for me to come closer in real life friendships. Enrico, a nice couchsurfer from Germany wrote me a somewhat strange request. At that time I was not even aware of Couchsurfing safety precautions and that every person should have a separate profile to make the host or guest feel safe. In case of problems it is also easier to report a separate profile to the MDST(Member Dispute and Safety Team), a team I just learnt about later.

Enrice wrote me a strange request for his 48 y/o father who was not good with computers and didn't speak English very well. Enrico's request was elaborate and showed very clearly that he bothered to read my whole profile. I decided to host Enrico's father because he was older........

I expected a worn-out silly old man who couldn't speak a word of English and possibly could not even leave the house without being run over by a car. The doorbell rang exactly at the time as I expected him. "Well, German punctuality." I thought. Surprise...surprise...I saw a fairly young-looking and athletic man with a beard and interested lively eyes. He entered and gasped a bit as he saw the breathtaking 180 degree view of the Sydney Harbour.

We spoke German for most of the time and he quickly lost his initial reserved behaviour. He...a married man with me, a woman living alone in a small flat. But we soon found some topics about his travels in Queensland and the European background of Kirribilli. We spent a warm Sydney evening enjoying the Sydney Harbour and drinking red wine. He had so many interesting stories to tell about the time as East Germany's wall was still reality. As a customs officer he told me exactly the same stories that my neighbour and friend from East Germany told me. Touching stories and the opinion from the other side: How arrogant they found the Westies and how they have been looked down at.

His son Enrico told me that I could possibly change his life by showing him more than the usual triad: working, shopping and watching TV. Hans-Jürgen wasn't lucky with the weather because it rained nearly all day and I had to work. So we spent quite a lot of time watching TV and the German DVDs that I brought from the university library. I cooked him an Australian Bratwurst made of lamb and rosemary and he could enjoy a sweet breakfast with mango ginger jam. He was more independent than Enrico described him. During the day he walked the Harbour Bridge to the centre of Sydney, visited Aldi in North Sydney and Luna Park just on his own and took a few pictures of Kirribilli. A seemingly less spectacular experience with just a common man who started to see the world and learn at a very moderate pace.....Oh, he was an excellent guest where house rules were totally redundant. I could see that his wife had taught him everything a good guest on Couchsurfing should know:-))))) He was not a particularly rich man but he was generous. I appreciated the bottle of red wine and the yodeling mole he brought from Germany.....