Well, I just got back to Auckland this evening after a fantastic weekend in Wellington. I stayed with a couchsurfer and had one of the best times of my life.
As the title implies, there was a Scottish girl, a British guy, and a couple of Kiwi women and a Kiwi child. These people were some of the most amazing people I've ever had the pleasure of meeting.
I mainly hung out with the Scot and the Brit in the evenings and had some great conversations with them. Both of them had a head full of dreads and were definitely hippies, of which I've always had a certain respect for somehow (maybe because I might be becoming one :) Also, I have a new found addiction to fair trade black tea that I can thank them for. Last night (Sunday night) was my last night there and I found myself going back to their house a little early just so I could hang out with them some more. I reckon I enjoyed talking with them more than checking out the city.
Have you ever met those people you just clicked with instantly? That was how it was with these people. Honestly, by the end of my time there, I thought to myself, "I could just stay and live here." It was brutally cold this weekend but I so thoroughly enjoyed it in spite of that.
Most people think it's so weird when I tell them about couchsurfing. Oh, how I pity them, especially now! What does it say about our culture when the first response I get from people when I try and explain couchsurfing is the question, "What if the person is an axe-murderer?" Is fear so woven throughout our daily lives that we instantly jump to that conclusion? Yeah, but I know, I'm the crazy one, which I readily admit to usually :)
Everyone else can just keep paying ridiculous amounts to stay in a hotel room and not meet anyone new. That's their prerogative (weird spelling, but I did just look it up so I'm pretty sure that's correct even thought it doesn't look like it) As for me, I'll stick to couchsurfing whenever possible. And for that matter, I think I might start doing a lot more of it since I've had two great experiences so far.
Til next time,
Justin
No comments:
Post a Comment