Are You Ok Enough To CouchSurf?

I have heard some negative opinions about couchsurfing... I don't care! Today my colleague Nadya and I have sent out letters to Davis Goodman and Ricardo Morel, the persons we found in the CouchSurfing database who were so nice to reply.

Nadya, meine Kollegin teaching linguistics at the same Department, joined the CouchSurfing network this month. I am thinking of joining in as well. But I decided to make some investigation first.

The most obvious thing to do is to visit the official website and read the info section. Well, this is what I usually do if I am interested in some website or person: how does organization position itself? or how does s/he want to appear? I was pleased by how the mission of CouchSurfing was formulated:

CouchSurfing seeks to internationally network people and places, create educational exchanges, raise collective consciousness, spread tolerance and facilitate cultural understanding.

As a community we strive to do our individual and collective parts to make the world a better place, and we believe that the surfing of couches is a means to accomplish this goal.

CouchSurfing is not about the furniture, not just about finding free accommodations around the world; it's about making connections worldwide. We make the world a better place by opening our homes, our hearts, and our lives. We open our minds and welcome the knowledge that cultural exchange makes available. We create deep and meaningful connections that cross oceans, continents and cultures. CouchSurfing wants to change not only the way we travel, but how we relate to the world!

"CouchSurfing is not about the furniture, not just about finding free accommodations around the world; it's about making connections worldwide." This is a perl I put in my pocket. I am into studying digital networks and how they transform our culture. CouchSurfing, of course, is a social network that would not have been possible without the internet. Again, this is a vivid example of how the internet can connect people. Unlike plain chatrooms, forums, skype, etc---CouchSurfing serves as an interesting example of how the members of this network want to keep it as real as possible. I mean, the CouchSurfers have their own profiles where they publish a bio blurb or, more likely, a narrative of who they think they are. And you decide whether this is the trustworthy person.

This is supposed to be a trust network making the world better. Beneficial altruism which is meant to be something completely different from sacrifice. Would you agree? I wish I had a chance to interview some CouchSurfers. Well, I have found a blog "Passport Diary" where Ryan published an account of Lindsay Pratt's experiences. I really encourage to read the complete version of this blog post if you are interested in the topic. Here is a chunk of text I want to share:

‘How safe is CouchSurfing?’ I hear people ask. There is of course a risk involved, but that risk will be reflected whenever you travel. Precautions can easily be made and this is done via testimonials, friend link-strength indicators, vouching and the verification system. You see, not just anyone is a vouched member. Members can only be vouched for by an already CouchSurfing-vouched member. It’s an entire circle of trust, with the setup being very similar to eBay.

If you plan couchsurfing (one more noun for webster dictionary:)---check out the Safety tips. For the internet surfer who nicknamed himself/herself as Realist---that's not enough. He contributed to the thread of comments to Ryan's post:

Sounds like a great way to get your stuff stolen. I wonder how many people have lost stuff through these arrangements. I could never trust some random with the keys to my place, even if they have spent a little time getting “vouched for”… sooner or later, I’d wake up and things would be gone.

None denies CouchSurfing can be risky. No risk-no champaign. I was very-very sceptical about CouchSurfing in the beginning... Ideally, if the individuals stick to Couch Surfing ethics and the CouchSurfing hosts stick to their code of conduct ---it's the best way for travelin and enjoying the intercultural communication which I lacked in Paris, for example. My Georgian colleague and I did not know French. We wish we could speak it. Yet it's a pity we were ignored by a couple of persons who did not want to help us when we were addressing them in English. I realized there was something really wrong about it all. I was missing what I like the most---the subcultural experiences versus the fatty creams of polished glamorous culture.

Both couch hosts we have contacted so far---are very interesting people. Most importantly, they seem not to be glamorous and arrogant.

Briefly about the folks. Ricardo Morel's interests are: traveling, backpacking, sociology, social anthropology, social development, geopolitics, rhum (ron), pisco, regional/traditional cuisine, hot spicy food, cooking & eating, football... Most importantly, I like his music bands list: Pink Floyd, The Doors, Steel Pulse, Ruben Blades, Grupo Niche, Joaquin Sabina, Caetano Veloso. He mentions Pulp Fiction.

But Davis Goodman caught my attention by that:

Uhh...studying all the time. Im a pseudo hippy, meaning i believe in the cause, but I like to be clean, (relatively), not mooch off of people, not scare people away, and accept those things in life that we must do.

Awesome profile! ;DDD

Maybe, it's a stereotype, but those folks cannot but be interesting to have a nice conversation with. Okay, but will they trust Nadya and I, two complete strangers?

We really hope this first couchsurfing experience turns out great. :)