04/28/2011
Try Out a New
Country the Easy Way - Swap Homes!
In 1969, as a recent graduate and
newly married to Francis, an English post-grad student at my
university in Hamilton, Ontario, I made a big �leap in the
dark� and moved from my home in Canada to England. I shudder
now at how little thought or preparation I had given to this
major life change but, at 22, life is a great adventure and
I thought myself lucky to have this chance to break away
from conservative rural Ontario where I grew up. After all,
this was the 60s and London was swinging!
However, when Francis and I arrived in
England reality soon set in. Neither of us had jobs nor
anywhere to live and, even in 1969, London was an expensive
city. Necessity instead took us to the East coast town of
Grimsby where Francis managed to get a teaching post at a
local college. I soon found a job in a local library and
began to settle in. But that first year in England was not
an easy time � I was often homesick, and worse, I had
brought North American �big is best� attitudes with me.
Francis wondered why (on our low wages and with just the two
of us) we needed to buy the biggest fridge in the shop along
with a huge chest freezer (just like the one we had filled
with home grown produce and sides of beef on my parents�
farm back home).
That big freezer was always under used
as I soon got into the local habit of �popping down to the
shops�, with the local greengrocers, bakers, butcher and
fishmonger (Grimsby is a fishing town), providing much
fresher and better quality food than I had been used to with
infrequent trips to a supermarket as a student. I also
noticed on my first trip back home a year later that my
Canadian friends and family kept all sorts of stuff in their
fridges that would keep fine unrefrigerated.
Everyone who moves to another country
has to learn to adapt to a new environment to have a happy
experience. My move was comparatively easy � same language
(more or less) and my husband�s family immediately made me
feel welcome. After a year in Grimsby we did move to London
and have now lived in the same North London suburb for over
30 years. I have dual Canadian/British citizenship and truly
now feel a citizen of both countries. I still get a lump in
my throat when the plane takes off from Toronto airport and
I see the neat straight lines of roads and fields gradually
disappear but I also get a real feeling of excitement and of
�coming home� when the first higgledy fields of the English
countryside come into view before landing in London.
We are now living in a global world.
There are negative aspects to this with citizens of the
poorest countries not sharing in the advancements in
communication and travel that make living in another country
much easier for those of us more fortunate. When my
ancestors set sail for Canada in the 1860s they did so
knowing they were unlikely to ever return to their home in
Northern Ireland. Now, it is perhaps too easy to give up and
go back home if unable to adjust to life in another country.
However, despite our advantages, it is still not a simple
decision for many people to live far from family and
friends. A good first step? Swap homes for a short period in
the country you would like to live in.
I started a home exchange service,
Home Base Holidays, in 1985 and in recent years there has
been a great increase in interest in the idea of swapping
homes. Home Base Holidays is now well established and part
of a group of co-operative agencies, the First Home Exchange
Alliance, sharing listings for the benefit of all our
members.
I first became interested in home
exchange from the aspect of feeling more secure knowing my
home was occupied while my family was away. It is always
interesting to learn the various reasons why home exchange
appeals to people. For some it is the cost savings (no hotel
bills), for others the space and convenience of living in a
home (especially families with young children) but probably
the overwhelming reason sited is the chance to try out a
different lifestyle, getting to know a neighbourhood rather
than spending the whole time meeting mainly other tourists.
We have also found, however, members who use a home swap to
�try out� a country they are hoping to move to or, if they
already have firm plans to move, to search for permanent
accommodation or jobs before making the �big break�.
Although most members look for vacation exchanges of, on
average, 2 � 4 weeks, there are also members on sabbatical
or with a job offer in another country who are looking to
arrange exchanges of up to a year.
Swapping homes can at first seem just
as daunting as moving to another country for many people! A
recent enquirer expressed this very well:
'I put an ad somewhere saying I might
like to swap houses, and got a response many months later
from an English family, BUT am sort of cold feetish, not
knowing about my art collection, loads of nice things in my
house, and while I am confident their stuff is safe with
ME....am anxious about them. Ha ha ha .....isn't that the
way?' - Diana M.
Diana expresses a natural reaction
many people have initially to the idea of having 'strangers'
in their most private spaces, their homes. If you can accept
that other people will have exactly the same concerns about
you as you do about them when you are first in contact, and
are willing to take the time to get to know potential
exchange partners and make careful preparations before an
exchange holiday, the risks involved in home exchange are
minimal. You will join a growing band of enthusiastic
exchangers worldwide with many wonderful exchange
possibilities to look forward to.
Older children can take an active part
in their family�s exchange arrangements and the preparations
beforehand can be an important part of the whole exchange
experience. Tom McGonigle from Belfast, Northern Ireland,
describes his family�s first exchange to Texas in summer
2000:
�Ultimately we had three
possibilities, with Austin, Texas proving to be most
compatible in terms of child-friendliness and dates. Having
set up the exchange in December 1999, we really enjoyed the
long lead-in. Communication by e-mail and phone reassured us
that we were dealing with responsible people who shared our
priorities and interests. The children enjoyed getting to
know each other via e-mail, planning theme park visits,
comparing toys and games, favourite things to do locally and
preferred restaurants. The sense of anticipation was
enhanced by exchange of photos and books about local
activities, and organising flight arrangements.
Our family had a marvellous time in
Texas. The different way of life engendered a sense of fun,
education and adventure. Besides driving a large van with
automatic gears on "the wrong side of the road", we swam in
creeks with turtles and catfish (while buzzards hovered
overhead!), ate BBQ, rode all the nearby roller coasters,
shopped at Outlet Stores, listened to Tex-Mex music and the
Austin Symphony Orchestra, won the prize for "Most
Patriotically Dressed" at our local July 4th Street Party
(definitely a rigged vote by hospitable neighbours!), and of
course visited the Alamo.
The home in which we stayed was large,
well equipped, and very suitable for our four children,
especially as we were enrolled at the nearby swimming pool.
It was pleasant to chill out indoors with the
air-conditioning and fans (no central heating radiators
here!). The children enjoyed the range of different toys,
videos and books, and found it novel to watch a sprinkler
system operating, and the squads of Mexican workmen from
"Perfect Lawns of Austin" tending the grass. The local daily
newspaper - the Austin-American Statesman - provided a good
flavour of local issues and concerns. Prices were quite
similar to those in Ireland - apart from petrol, which is
only a quarter of the price that we pay! We ate out
frequently, sampling a range of Mexican food, though
resorted to burgers and "fries" on a few occasions to
placate young palates!
Flexibility and readiness to
compromise are required for a successful home exchange. We
had to adapt dates and shorten our ideal length of stay
(though compensated by making a four day stopover in Boston
on the way home); it was difficult to obtain insurance cover
for Americans to drive vehicles in Ireland, whereas it
proved very straightforward for us to be insured to drive in
Texas. However there is no doubt that the advantages
significantly outweigh any inconvenience, and detailed
planning reaps its reward. It was very interesting and
enjoyable to meet people in their own community, staying in
a home where children and adults could be comfortable; we
affected major savings in accommodation and transport costs.
In addition a wider circle of our family and friends shared
this holiday experience.
In particular the friends and
relations who met each family at airports (in our case
arriving four hours late - at 3 am - into Austin airport),
and those who organised day trips or evening meals all
gained from the experience by making their contribution, and
are consequently more interested in seeing the photos and
video to learn how the other half of the exchange worked
out.�
A large percentage of Home Base
Holidays members now have Internet access (and email makes
contact between potential exchange partners very easy) but
we also publish three directories each year which enables
many members worldwide without Internet access to take part.
Visitors may browse all current exchange offers (often with
photos) and join Home Base Holidays on-line for instant
access to member contact information:
http://www.homebase-hols.com
Home Base Holidays also publishes a
free bi-monthly newsletter, Home Swappers which includes
stories from experienced home exchangers, tips and advice on
arranging successful swaps plus links to useful travel
sites. You may read all editions at:
http://www.homebase-hols.com/news.shtml
Bio:
Lois Sealey is a 50+ year old, living
in London with husband Francis. They have two grown-up
children, Tanya and Mark, also with dual Canadian/British
citizenship but who for now remain �Londoners�. Home Base
Holidays is a full-time occupation for Lois but she is also
interested in travel, vegetarian cuisine (so much for the
beef farm in Ontario where she grew up!), the theatre and
local community.
Contact Lois to subscribe to Home
Swappers and to ask any questions you may have about home
exchange vacations:
homeexchange@btinternet.com |