Never Pay for a Hotel Again?

I'd heard about couchsurfing before I went to Belgium this past week, but I'd always been a little skeptical. The idea is that the website connects you with hosts willing to let you sleep on their couches (or spare beds) for free. It's a way for people to get to share their cities, countries and culture as well as meet new interesting people. Couchsurfers, as they're called, send requests asking "to surf your couch" and hosts are free to accept or decline as they wish.

For me, this conjured up images of sketchy old men or scabies infestations. But my friend Owen reassured me that he'd been couchsurfing around France and Belgium and, in addition to never paying for a hotel room, he'd met some incredible people and made some lifelong friends. So I figured, why not give it shot?

It was one of the best decisions I've ever made. In Brussels, Owen and I stayed with the Yanouri family, some of the most hospitable and friendly people I've ever met. The 22-year-old daughter, Sarah, showed Owen and me around Brussels and we stayed up late talking and getting to know each other. Right now she's saving up money for an extended adventure somewhere in Asia or South America and we talked about the benefits and drawbacks of being abroad for a long period of time. We ate our meals with the family and I can honestly say that after only two days, I was really sad to leave. I'm sure that we'll stay in touch for a long time to come.

In Ghent, we spent a night on the couch of Miro and Elke, two hilarious college students and friends of Sarah, who helped us buy some incredible chocolate. Then they took us out to try more Belgian beer and some flavored spirits,jenever, which were quite an experience. Owen and I both tried the hot pepper jenever on a dare and I'm pretty sure steam was coming out of my ears.

Finally, in West Flanders, we stayed in the town of Poperinge with Wim, a warm and hospitable organic farmer who brought back cartons of fresh raspberries for us to try and then served us homemade carrot soup.

As you can tell, all of our hosts were incredible people. I felt so lucky to have met them. I really might never pay for a hotel again...