Just a quick post, but Carrie and I have successfully completed our third stay with a complete stranger through the site CouchSurfing.
Sue went out of her way to pick us up at the airport, show us an amazing resort hotel in Brunei (which was supposed to be a palace (for someone tied in with the royal family) who was reportedly later rejected from the royal family. It was turned into a beautiful hotel inlaid with gold, tiger eye, mother of pearl, and marble everywhere.
Sue also took us to see our first ever polo match/practice. Those horses are amazing.
We stayed at Sue’s home for 3 nights and enjoyed walking the beach, a great Internet connection, and a very nice air conditioned place.
In return, we made Sue one of our favorites – eggplant parmesan, enjoyed some wine with her (Australian and New Zealand wine from Kuala Lumpur – since you can’t buy alcohol in Brunei), shared great travel stories, and helped her with some computer issues.
Sue, thank-you very much, and Couchsurfing, thank-you for making the introduction possible.
Sounds like so much fun plus it’s a good way to save a few bucks! What a nice way to make a new friend!
It’s really very cool. We’re finding we really enjoy Couchsurfing… of course, we do a lot of research on the people and make sure there’s a good possibility for a fit (and that they have good feedback) before we go to stay with them, so anyone else using Couchsurfing may want to do the same…