With a heading like that I should clear a few things up right away - no, I'm not pregnant, and no I'm not married, and no, I haven't been arrested nor have I any reason why I should be... ok?
So, back to the don't freak out part....
Last night I hosted my very first couchsurfer. That's right, I had a complete stranger come in to my home and stay the night. It wasn't as random and unstructured as it may look, it was through the couchsurfer organziation... there is a level of oversight and accountability... like eBay but dealing with people and personalities and stuff.
Anyway, after many requests and missed connections I finally had my first surfer. His name was George. (Yes Mom, a him.)
Not that I remembered that... for some reason I had entered it in my phone as Charles. So, when I went to meet him at the metro I thought he was the guy I was looking for and I asked, "Hey, are you Charles?" to which he logically replied, "No." It took a while before we actually realized we were looking for each other.
Cool guy.... a bit younger, really smart - getting his masters from Johns Hopkins - their campus in Italy, degree in International Relations with a focus on Russia... heading towards a career with the State Department.
We went to dinner with friends after drinks at the Red Room. Mellow night and then in the morning he came with me to the tram stop by my school and I gave him a ton of directions and advice and sent him on his way - released in to the wilds of Prague to roam as he will, never to return again.
Seriously though, he's not coming back here. He's meeting up with his friend today and they're staying in a hostel.
So, why a post about something so non-monumental?
Why not??
A few points of interest - one, at Namesti Miru the escalator broke while we were on it. An incredibly abrupt and rather jarring experience that I don't recommend.
Two - there was an accident this morning which made me really really late for work - the busses never came so we had to walk to a different stop and go backwards, back to Skalk and then pass through my metro terminal on my way to work... not a big deal but it was my second day in my new position with a tremendous amount of oversight... quite nerve wracking.
Third - even thought it was only one night and totally mellow, I had a certain sense of accomplishment. I had been hesitant to open my home (with good reason) and didn't for many, many people, but decided to do it for this one person and am glad I did. This sort of opportunity to stay in a house makes traveling realistic for so many... and I'm glad I was able to help out and have everyone be happy.
I now will feel a bit more comfortable when I take my first couchsurfing journey - cause I'm planning to in the next few months. I can't afford hotels and hostels all over Europe, but I can find people I'm comfortable with who I am connected to within my network of friends... and go stay in their homes for a day or two.
I'll let you know how it turns out.
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