1. You will meet really amazing people from all over the world.
The parties you go to will have more internationals than a UN Security Council meeting.
2. Your hosts will take you to cool hidden places that tourists don't know about.
You don't need a travel guide if you're with a local.
3. Your hosts will point you to the best restaurants in town.
And sometimes they will even pay for your meal.
4. Your hosts will show you the side of a city that a tour bus never will.
You'll learn more from a walk through a gritty neighborhood than you ever did in history class.
5. Your hosts know what's happenin' around town.
Because of them you won't miss the one night out of the year when the entire place is covered in candles.
6. Your hosts know where to take you for a fun night out.
You'll return home at 5 AM, exhausted but satisfied.
7. Your hosts will make you feel right at home.
Usually they will even give you a key to their house or apartment.
8. Your hosts usually have cool houses or apartments.
Your accommodations will often surpass a typical B &B in terms of quality.
9. Your hosts have done some pretty awe-inspiring things themselves.
Various hosts of mine have traveled to countless countries, worked on oil rigs in Indonesia, fishing boats in the Faroe Islands, met Metallica TWICE, and walked the Camino de Santiago all the way from Holland.
10. Your hosts will actively encourage you to drink with them.
Nothing says mi casa es su casa like getting drunk together.
11. Your hosts are usually well-educated, whether they went to university or not.
The discussions you have over dinner will be profound, esoteric, and mind-blowing.
12. Your hosts will treat you as a friend, not just a guest.
And sometimes you'll become friends with someone you barely knew before.
13. When you finish your own trip and return home, you can return the favor and host others!
. . . And meet more amazing people just like you!
14. And in case you forgot . . .
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